Back from Ireland and we loved it!
Jul 8th, 2005, 11:14 AM
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Back from Ireland and we loved it!
Hi fellow fodorites,
We got back a couple nights ago and had a great trip. Ireland is really a very special place. I began planning this trip a year ago (thanks to all of you), and as it grew closer, I wondered if it would live up to my expectations. It did, and then some.
My husband and I were traveling with our 15 year old son and 18 year old daughter. We were orginally planning to meet up with our 21 year old daughter in Dublin at the end of the trip because she was planning to do a summer semester exchange program at Trinity. I wanted to focus on the West, but everyone else wanted to see Dublin and since our daughter was going to be there, I arranged to fly into Shannon and out of Dublin, with about two night stays at each stop.
Our daughter decided not to go to Ireland after all, instead taking a two week trip to Spain and France with some college friends, which she enjoyed very much.
So the four of us went as planned. I have to admit I didn't enjoy Dublin as much as the rest of the trip, but that's because I'm more into being in countryside and small towns than big cities. I live 20 minutes from downtown Chicago, so city life is easy to come by but beautiful countryside is harder to get to in the Chicago area than in many cities. Dublin is a fine city. It seemed pretty dirty to me, but I've discovered in my travels that Chicago is an unusually clean city.
So to recap, we landed in Shannon on Friday morning June 24th, picked up our car and drove to Doolin with a stop for lunch and a walk in Lahinch. We stayed at Ballinalacken Castle Hotel which was very nice and beautifully situated. After a short nap, we had dinner right at the hotel (very good) and then took a little walk in the surrounding countryside.
On Saturday, after breakfast, the owner took us up to the ruined castle on the grounds which was fun and had nice views of the ocean. Then we drove around the Burren for a while, which we all found interesting. Then drove into Doolin and had lunch and shopped at the Doolin Crafts center, which was very nice with good food. Went to the harbor and arranged for a boat tour below the Cliffs of Moher, which was recommended by the people at Ballinalacken. We all enjoyed the boat trip very much. Lots of bird life below those cliffs. After the boat trip, we drove to observe the cliffs from up above. By this time, it was about 6 pm and although the buses were leaving, it was still packed. We were really glad we had done the boat trip as well. It was a very active and enjoyable day, and I felt I was adjusted to the new time zone already. We took a cab into Doolin that night and ate at McGanns which was ok but the music was in the other room and we couldn't see/hear it. So we walked to the other place (McDermott's?) Better music there although packed to the gills.
The next day after breakfast, we checked out and headed for Dingle. I thought Doolin was a good first stop, as it was easy to get to from Shannon and Ballinalacken was very peaceful and lovely. The burren was also not too crowded.
I'll write more later, but a few items of interest:
We rented our car from Dan Dooley using our Mastercard to waive the CDW. No problems with that and the car was a good size for the four of us. Ford Focus Wagon. Not too big for the roads although anything seems too big on some of those roads. My husband was glad I got an automatic even though he had told me a manual would be fine.
We didn't like Aer Lingus and would avoid flying them in future, but it wasn't anything too bad and we did get there and back safely. Our flight out of Chicago landed in Dublin first (which they didn't tell me when I reserved, even though I specifically asked them). We were supposed to be on the ground in Dublin about 45 minutes but it ended up being about an hour and a half because they had mechanical troubles with the door after taking off the Dublin passengers' lugguge. We thought the seats were the most uncomfortable of any airline we've flown (all U.S. with the exception of Sabena 24 years ago). It wasn't just the length of the flight; the seats were very hard and my rear was numb about an hour into the flight. The food also seemed worse, although we weren't expecting much in that department. My daughter is a vegetarian, and I've learned to request veg. for all of us as it's usually better, more fruit and usually pasta as a main course. On Aer Lingus, the main course was soggy cooked vegetables. I think they mixed it up and ordered vegan, cause we didn't get real creamer or cake like everyone else. Just very little food in general. We were quite hungry when we finally disembarked in Shannon about 11 hours later!
For the return flight, we learned our lesson and brought on our own food and took aspirin before takeoff which helped with the back/leg pain we experienced going out. That flight also had mechanical difficulties so we sat on board 1 1/2 hours in Dublin before takeoff while they tried to fix the air conditioning and the oxygen to the pilot's cabin (not very reassuring!) It got quite warm onboard, but once they fixed it, it was fine. I would advise bringing plenty of water as we ran out and they seemed to have more tea onboard than water or soft drinks
Regarding luggage, we were glad we packed light. We brought 21 inch roller type suitcases made by REI. I thought they were great, held quite a bit when you opened the expandable zipper. We were gone 12 nights, and did some laundry about half way through. We had great weather and my son wore shorts every day. My husband wore them a lot too. It was 60s and 70s in the daytime. No rain the first 4 days and then some rain every day the rest of the trip. But the rain was mostly light and intermittent, and we were fine with our waterproof windbreakers. I did not bring umbrellas, and we didn't miss them (had hoods on the jackets). Most of the B & Bs had them available for guests I think. In addition to the waterproof, I brought a fleece jacket, which I used the first few days. Once it got more rainy, I wished I had brought a lighter layer for under my rainjacket. I only brought one long sleeved cotton shirt and that was a good weight for the temps so I wore it alot. We also brought a duffle bag for our second pair of shoes and left room for souvineers.
Because it was our first trip, I don't regret moving around and seeing a lot, but I do feel that even two nights was too rushed just about everywhere we went. Maybe because we were a group of four with kids, it always seemed our arrival day was spent driving and getting acclimated, which only left one day for touring. That was enough for Doolin, but I would have liked a third night in Dingle. We did have three nights in Kenmare, but could have used a fourth. Also could have used an extra night in Kilkenny to see the surrounding countryside. Same for Dublin, where we didn't even have enough time to see the city highlights. (Spent too much time in the Guinness Warehouse.
Sorry for such lengthy rambling, I really meant to be more organized but didn't want to put off posting some of it.
I will write more soon.
We got back a couple nights ago and had a great trip. Ireland is really a very special place. I began planning this trip a year ago (thanks to all of you), and as it grew closer, I wondered if it would live up to my expectations. It did, and then some.
My husband and I were traveling with our 15 year old son and 18 year old daughter. We were orginally planning to meet up with our 21 year old daughter in Dublin at the end of the trip because she was planning to do a summer semester exchange program at Trinity. I wanted to focus on the West, but everyone else wanted to see Dublin and since our daughter was going to be there, I arranged to fly into Shannon and out of Dublin, with about two night stays at each stop.
Our daughter decided not to go to Ireland after all, instead taking a two week trip to Spain and France with some college friends, which she enjoyed very much.
So the four of us went as planned. I have to admit I didn't enjoy Dublin as much as the rest of the trip, but that's because I'm more into being in countryside and small towns than big cities. I live 20 minutes from downtown Chicago, so city life is easy to come by but beautiful countryside is harder to get to in the Chicago area than in many cities. Dublin is a fine city. It seemed pretty dirty to me, but I've discovered in my travels that Chicago is an unusually clean city.
So to recap, we landed in Shannon on Friday morning June 24th, picked up our car and drove to Doolin with a stop for lunch and a walk in Lahinch. We stayed at Ballinalacken Castle Hotel which was very nice and beautifully situated. After a short nap, we had dinner right at the hotel (very good) and then took a little walk in the surrounding countryside.
On Saturday, after breakfast, the owner took us up to the ruined castle on the grounds which was fun and had nice views of the ocean. Then we drove around the Burren for a while, which we all found interesting. Then drove into Doolin and had lunch and shopped at the Doolin Crafts center, which was very nice with good food. Went to the harbor and arranged for a boat tour below the Cliffs of Moher, which was recommended by the people at Ballinalacken. We all enjoyed the boat trip very much. Lots of bird life below those cliffs. After the boat trip, we drove to observe the cliffs from up above. By this time, it was about 6 pm and although the buses were leaving, it was still packed. We were really glad we had done the boat trip as well. It was a very active and enjoyable day, and I felt I was adjusted to the new time zone already. We took a cab into Doolin that night and ate at McGanns which was ok but the music was in the other room and we couldn't see/hear it. So we walked to the other place (McDermott's?) Better music there although packed to the gills.
The next day after breakfast, we checked out and headed for Dingle. I thought Doolin was a good first stop, as it was easy to get to from Shannon and Ballinalacken was very peaceful and lovely. The burren was also not too crowded.
I'll write more later, but a few items of interest:
We rented our car from Dan Dooley using our Mastercard to waive the CDW. No problems with that and the car was a good size for the four of us. Ford Focus Wagon. Not too big for the roads although anything seems too big on some of those roads. My husband was glad I got an automatic even though he had told me a manual would be fine.
We didn't like Aer Lingus and would avoid flying them in future, but it wasn't anything too bad and we did get there and back safely. Our flight out of Chicago landed in Dublin first (which they didn't tell me when I reserved, even though I specifically asked them). We were supposed to be on the ground in Dublin about 45 minutes but it ended up being about an hour and a half because they had mechanical troubles with the door after taking off the Dublin passengers' lugguge. We thought the seats were the most uncomfortable of any airline we've flown (all U.S. with the exception of Sabena 24 years ago). It wasn't just the length of the flight; the seats were very hard and my rear was numb about an hour into the flight. The food also seemed worse, although we weren't expecting much in that department. My daughter is a vegetarian, and I've learned to request veg. for all of us as it's usually better, more fruit and usually pasta as a main course. On Aer Lingus, the main course was soggy cooked vegetables. I think they mixed it up and ordered vegan, cause we didn't get real creamer or cake like everyone else. Just very little food in general. We were quite hungry when we finally disembarked in Shannon about 11 hours later!
For the return flight, we learned our lesson and brought on our own food and took aspirin before takeoff which helped with the back/leg pain we experienced going out. That flight also had mechanical difficulties so we sat on board 1 1/2 hours in Dublin before takeoff while they tried to fix the air conditioning and the oxygen to the pilot's cabin (not very reassuring!) It got quite warm onboard, but once they fixed it, it was fine. I would advise bringing plenty of water as we ran out and they seemed to have more tea onboard than water or soft drinks
Regarding luggage, we were glad we packed light. We brought 21 inch roller type suitcases made by REI. I thought they were great, held quite a bit when you opened the expandable zipper. We were gone 12 nights, and did some laundry about half way through. We had great weather and my son wore shorts every day. My husband wore them a lot too. It was 60s and 70s in the daytime. No rain the first 4 days and then some rain every day the rest of the trip. But the rain was mostly light and intermittent, and we were fine with our waterproof windbreakers. I did not bring umbrellas, and we didn't miss them (had hoods on the jackets). Most of the B & Bs had them available for guests I think. In addition to the waterproof, I brought a fleece jacket, which I used the first few days. Once it got more rainy, I wished I had brought a lighter layer for under my rainjacket. I only brought one long sleeved cotton shirt and that was a good weight for the temps so I wore it alot. We also brought a duffle bag for our second pair of shoes and left room for souvineers.
Because it was our first trip, I don't regret moving around and seeing a lot, but I do feel that even two nights was too rushed just about everywhere we went. Maybe because we were a group of four with kids, it always seemed our arrival day was spent driving and getting acclimated, which only left one day for touring. That was enough for Doolin, but I would have liked a third night in Dingle. We did have three nights in Kenmare, but could have used a fourth. Also could have used an extra night in Kilkenny to see the surrounding countryside. Same for Dublin, where we didn't even have enough time to see the city highlights. (Spent too much time in the Guinness Warehouse
.Sorry for such lengthy rambling, I really meant to be more organized but didn't want to put off posting some of it.
I will write more soon.
Jul 8th, 2005, 03:30 PM
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Well it's 5:30 pm Friday, and as soon as my husband gets home from work, we're going to sit in the garden with some Guinness. But in the meantime...
Dingle: Took the ferry and got there sooner than we expected. My husband is a fearless driver and I found it nervewracking because he drove faster than I would have liked, but he seemed to get used to the roads/left hand side stuff pretty quickly and after the first day, when he moved too far to the left and snapped the left hand mirror shut against a parked car (no damages to either car), he was able to handle it well. I, on the other hand, was muttering "Jesus!!" and by the end of the week, had added "Mary and Joseph!!" (in something louder than a mutter) to my exclamations of fear. I am a lapsed catholic, and I guess Ireland brought it all to the forefront again!
Really loved Dingle. Loved the town and the peninsula. The town is a bit scrappy, but I liked that (and I'm usually a sucker for "cutesy" places.) It felt authentic, which I liked. We used the AA roadwatch for driving directions, and that was really helpful. Also had brought a Michelin map book for UK/ Ireland which was much more detailed than the map that came with the car rental. I had printed out all our routes, and I forgot to put "via Connor Pass" when driving to Dingle from Doolin. When we realized we missed the turn off, we kept going, thinking we would take the Connor Pass another day. But we never did, and I'll have to go back for that.
We stayed at Greenmount House in Dingle and that was probably the nicest place we stayed as far as creature comforts (probably because it is modern, purpose built.) The location was very good with nice views and easy walk to town. Big rooms. (suites). The host is not the warmest person, and although the breakfasts were delicious, they always made us feel very rushed, even though we got down there early enough and never stayed past the 10 am end time. There was a large tour group staying there our first night (from Chicago, wouldn't you know) and they basically took over the place and made some drunken noise (they were smokers and stood under my kids open window to smoke and chat at 3 am). However, John, our host, told us after they left that he didn't usually rent to bus groups like that and his daughter had booked it inadvertantly when he was on vacation. He seemed just as glad to see them leave as we were. I would definitely stay there again because it was a really nice place.
The first day after we arrived we just walked around the town and had dinner. After dinner, my husband and I and our 18 year old went to a pub and heard some good traditional music. Our son had gone back to Greenmount.
The next day, we did the Slea head drive and enjoyed that immensely. We had lunch at the Blasket Island Center and my son had a short nap during the film. The kids were fascinated by the Bee hive huts. We were following Rick Steves directions and that was helpful, although we got mixed up/lost near the end and I think we detoured off the road we were supposed to be on. I actually enjoyed being lost the most because I could stop looking at the guidebook to see if we wanted to check out points of interest and just enjoy the countryside. The signs were in Gaelic, no english, and that did confuse us at times because we got the names for Dingle and Dunquin mixed up and got pretty twisted around at one point. We stopped at a beach for a while and it was warm and sunny with some people actually swimming. I kept my shoes on but my kids said the water was even colder than Lake Michigan. We also stopped at Louis Mulcahy's pottery studio, and I didn't buy anything but wished I had.
That night, we went to another pub, this time with both kids, and listened to some great music. It was the best music/craic of the entire trip, so I'm glad my 15 yr old son was there because he really enjoyed it. They had a good guitar player, and my son plays, so he watched very intently.
The next day, we drove to Kenmare. We drove through Killarney to get there, and I was glad we weren't staying there because it was very crowded and touristy. The ride from Killarney was very pretty and kind of harrowing because of all the traffic. Went past Moll's gap, torc waterfall, ladies view. We only drove that way that first day and then went a different route on subsequent days, that was more of a highway for part of it.
In Kenmare, we stayed at Shelburne Lodge, which was very nice and a short walk to town. When we arrived, I don't think our room was ready so the owner's daughter sent us to the beautiful garden in back and brought a lovely tea with homebaked breads. They had a grass tennis court and my teens immediately went and played a very raucous set of tennis while we enjoyed our tea. I think that tennis match was one of the hightlights of my son's trip because he kept begging his sister for another game the whole time we were there. (which she refused, partly because we were too busy, but also I think because she discovered he could beat her.)
I have to admit it would have been easier to stay in Killarney to see Muckross House and Gap of Dunloe. We ended up taking up most of our first day on Muckross house, which we all liked, even my son who hates tours/museums. After the tour, we went on a hike, so I guess that's why it took so long. The second day, we made the drive back to Killarney to hike the Gap of Dunloe. Because we didn't want to miss the excellent breakfast at Shelburne, and because we kept getting lost in Killarney, we ended up driving directly to kate Kearney's cottage since we knew the tours had all left Killarney by the time we got there. We got there about 11 am and hiked the whole way. It was astoundingly beautiful, and I am so glad we did it. I almost suggested we skip it because by that time, I really didn't want to make the drive back to Killarney a second time and I realized we weren't going to have time to go to the Beara Peninsula since we were leaving for Kilkenny the next morning.
But we all loved the Gap, it was our favorite day of the whole trip. Probably because we were not in the car and there were hardly any other people around once all the pony carts had passed us by. Thank god their poop doesn't line the whole route, at the beginning I thought we were going to have to be sidestepping it the whole way. I've never seen scenery like that before. Very special. We got to Lord Brandon's cottage in time for a quick bowl of soup which was needed as it poured rain on us at the end of the hike for about 20 minutes. I did not have waterproof pants but my linen pants dried very quickly (bathroom dryers helped) and it was not cold so we were fine. We bought boat tickets there and they also arranged for us to take one of the buses back to Kate Kearney's cottage from Ross Castle, where the boats end up. They charged us 25 euro each for the boat and bus back. I'm not sure how much the tours cost, but we figured a cab would have been pricey, and as I said, we didn't get to Killarney in time to catch a tour. I think if I went back, I would stay in Killarney one night and then in Kenmare the other few nights.
My husband is home at last and the Guinness is calling....
Dingle: Took the ferry and got there sooner than we expected. My husband is a fearless driver and I found it nervewracking because he drove faster than I would have liked, but he seemed to get used to the roads/left hand side stuff pretty quickly and after the first day, when he moved too far to the left and snapped the left hand mirror shut against a parked car (no damages to either car), he was able to handle it well. I, on the other hand, was muttering "Jesus!!" and by the end of the week, had added "Mary and Joseph!!" (in something louder than a mutter) to my exclamations of fear. I am a lapsed catholic, and I guess Ireland brought it all to the forefront again!
Really loved Dingle. Loved the town and the peninsula. The town is a bit scrappy, but I liked that (and I'm usually a sucker for "cutesy" places.) It felt authentic, which I liked. We used the AA roadwatch for driving directions, and that was really helpful. Also had brought a Michelin map book for UK/ Ireland which was much more detailed than the map that came with the car rental. I had printed out all our routes, and I forgot to put "via Connor Pass" when driving to Dingle from Doolin. When we realized we missed the turn off, we kept going, thinking we would take the Connor Pass another day. But we never did, and I'll have to go back for that.
We stayed at Greenmount House in Dingle and that was probably the nicest place we stayed as far as creature comforts (probably because it is modern, purpose built.) The location was very good with nice views and easy walk to town. Big rooms. (suites). The host is not the warmest person, and although the breakfasts were delicious, they always made us feel very rushed, even though we got down there early enough and never stayed past the 10 am end time. There was a large tour group staying there our first night (from Chicago, wouldn't you know) and they basically took over the place and made some drunken noise (they were smokers and stood under my kids open window to smoke and chat at 3 am). However, John, our host, told us after they left that he didn't usually rent to bus groups like that and his daughter had booked it inadvertantly when he was on vacation. He seemed just as glad to see them leave as we were. I would definitely stay there again because it was a really nice place.
The first day after we arrived we just walked around the town and had dinner. After dinner, my husband and I and our 18 year old went to a pub and heard some good traditional music. Our son had gone back to Greenmount.
The next day, we did the Slea head drive and enjoyed that immensely. We had lunch at the Blasket Island Center and my son had a short nap during the film. The kids were fascinated by the Bee hive huts. We were following Rick Steves directions and that was helpful, although we got mixed up/lost near the end and I think we detoured off the road we were supposed to be on. I actually enjoyed being lost the most because I could stop looking at the guidebook to see if we wanted to check out points of interest and just enjoy the countryside. The signs were in Gaelic, no english, and that did confuse us at times because we got the names for Dingle and Dunquin mixed up and got pretty twisted around at one point. We stopped at a beach for a while and it was warm and sunny with some people actually swimming. I kept my shoes on but my kids said the water was even colder than Lake Michigan. We also stopped at Louis Mulcahy's pottery studio, and I didn't buy anything but wished I had.
That night, we went to another pub, this time with both kids, and listened to some great music. It was the best music/craic of the entire trip, so I'm glad my 15 yr old son was there because he really enjoyed it. They had a good guitar player, and my son plays, so he watched very intently.
The next day, we drove to Kenmare. We drove through Killarney to get there, and I was glad we weren't staying there because it was very crowded and touristy. The ride from Killarney was very pretty and kind of harrowing because of all the traffic. Went past Moll's gap, torc waterfall, ladies view. We only drove that way that first day and then went a different route on subsequent days, that was more of a highway for part of it.
In Kenmare, we stayed at Shelburne Lodge, which was very nice and a short walk to town. When we arrived, I don't think our room was ready so the owner's daughter sent us to the beautiful garden in back and brought a lovely tea with homebaked breads. They had a grass tennis court and my teens immediately went and played a very raucous set of tennis while we enjoyed our tea. I think that tennis match was one of the hightlights of my son's trip because he kept begging his sister for another game the whole time we were there. (which she refused, partly because we were too busy, but also I think because she discovered he could beat her.)
I have to admit it would have been easier to stay in Killarney to see Muckross House and Gap of Dunloe. We ended up taking up most of our first day on Muckross house, which we all liked, even my son who hates tours/museums. After the tour, we went on a hike, so I guess that's why it took so long. The second day, we made the drive back to Killarney to hike the Gap of Dunloe. Because we didn't want to miss the excellent breakfast at Shelburne, and because we kept getting lost in Killarney, we ended up driving directly to kate Kearney's cottage since we knew the tours had all left Killarney by the time we got there. We got there about 11 am and hiked the whole way. It was astoundingly beautiful, and I am so glad we did it. I almost suggested we skip it because by that time, I really didn't want to make the drive back to Killarney a second time and I realized we weren't going to have time to go to the Beara Peninsula since we were leaving for Kilkenny the next morning.
But we all loved the Gap, it was our favorite day of the whole trip. Probably because we were not in the car and there were hardly any other people around once all the pony carts had passed us by. Thank god their poop doesn't line the whole route, at the beginning I thought we were going to have to be sidestepping it the whole way. I've never seen scenery like that before. Very special. We got to Lord Brandon's cottage in time for a quick bowl of soup which was needed as it poured rain on us at the end of the hike for about 20 minutes. I did not have waterproof pants but my linen pants dried very quickly (bathroom dryers helped) and it was not cold so we were fine. We bought boat tickets there and they also arranged for us to take one of the buses back to Kate Kearney's cottage from Ross Castle, where the boats end up. They charged us 25 euro each for the boat and bus back. I'm not sure how much the tours cost, but we figured a cab would have been pricey, and as I said, we didn't get to Killarney in time to catch a tour. I think if I went back, I would stay in Killarney one night and then in Kenmare the other few nights.
My husband is home at last and the Guinness is calling....
Jul 8th, 2005, 06:35 PM
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Bucky, I'm enjoying this so much because we did almost the same route in April. We spent the 1st 3 nights in Lisdoonvarna near Doolin, next we went to Dingle and stayed at Greenmount. We were there 5 days so had time to get lost a couple of times. Spent a lovely day looking for Ballydavid. Yes, they did rush us a little about cleaning the rooms at Greenmount but were lovely people. We stayed at The Lodge just down the street from where you stayed. Keep the report coming. Thanks, Joan
Jul 9th, 2005, 05:37 PM
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We walked past the Lodge going into Kenmare every day and it looked very nice.
Shelburne is a very old home, and it was decorated beautifully. The hostess, Maura Foley, used to own and chef at Packies. (very good, we ate there). Her husband, who I had talked to on the phone from Chicago, unfortunately was ill and in the hospital in Dublin. He was so charming on the phone, I was sad to miss meeting him. His wife is very nice and a very gracious hostess. Her gardens and the whole atmosphere was very pleasant.
We had a big embarrassment on our second morning because my 15 year old son's shower somehow overflowed into the breakfast room below. They came up banging on the door for him to close the glass shower "curtain". It was closed, so we never really figured out how the bathroom got so wet. My husband theorized the water from the shower head bounced off his head (he's 5' 11) over the top and too much water got on the floor. Those half glass partitions they use in the showers over there are not too efficient. At any rate, when we came down for breakfast, it was raining....inside. It was pretty embarrassing, but they were very nice about it. And the next day (after a very short and careful shower) when we checked out, Maura told us they had a plumber look and a seal was broken.
Anyway, after the Gap of Dunloe hike, we decided to drive back to Kenmare by a different route and stop in Sneem for dinner on the way. So we took some little roads through the Ballaghabeama Gap. That was a really pretty drive, similar to the Gap of Dunloe at times. We only saw a couple other cars, which was good, since it was quite narrow. Lots of sheep of course.
In Sneem, we ate at the Blue Bull Pub, which was nice. It's a cute little town and I'm glad we went back that way and saw something different instead of traveling the same route back to Kenmare.
When we got back to Shelburne, my husband and I walked to a pub but the kids were too tired. We hadn't heard any music in Kenmare and wanted to check it out. We did find some nice music, although it wasn't the traditional we were looking for. More what I guess you could call modern Irish, but still with a bodhran.
Although Kenmare was very quaint and had some good restaurants, I didn't find it as interesting as Dingle. Perhaps we didn't look hard enough, but it didn't seem to have as much music and the pub we ended up in was filled with baby boomers, like us, rather than the mix of ages (including children) we saw in Dingle. I also didn't see many shops that interested me; they seemed rather dated.
Having said that, I do wish we had more time there as it was a good location and I would have liked to explore the Beara from there. I would definitely go back to Shelburne Lodge.
My favorite part of the trip was our first three stops, (Doolin, Dingle, and Kenmare).
Next installment I'll try to finish up with our trip to Kilkenny (stopping at Cahir Castle and the Rock of Cashel on the way) and Dublin.
Shelburne is a very old home, and it was decorated beautifully. The hostess, Maura Foley, used to own and chef at Packies. (very good, we ate there). Her husband, who I had talked to on the phone from Chicago, unfortunately was ill and in the hospital in Dublin. He was so charming on the phone, I was sad to miss meeting him. His wife is very nice and a very gracious hostess. Her gardens and the whole atmosphere was very pleasant.
We had a big embarrassment on our second morning because my 15 year old son's shower somehow overflowed into the breakfast room below. They came up banging on the door for him to close the glass shower "curtain". It was closed, so we never really figured out how the bathroom got so wet. My husband theorized the water from the shower head bounced off his head (he's 5' 11) over the top and too much water got on the floor. Those half glass partitions they use in the showers over there are not too efficient. At any rate, when we came down for breakfast, it was raining....inside. It was pretty embarrassing, but they were very nice about it. And the next day (after a very short and careful shower) when we checked out, Maura told us they had a plumber look and a seal was broken.
Anyway, after the Gap of Dunloe hike, we decided to drive back to Kenmare by a different route and stop in Sneem for dinner on the way. So we took some little roads through the Ballaghabeama Gap. That was a really pretty drive, similar to the Gap of Dunloe at times. We only saw a couple other cars, which was good, since it was quite narrow. Lots of sheep of course.
In Sneem, we ate at the Blue Bull Pub, which was nice. It's a cute little town and I'm glad we went back that way and saw something different instead of traveling the same route back to Kenmare.
When we got back to Shelburne, my husband and I walked to a pub but the kids were too tired. We hadn't heard any music in Kenmare and wanted to check it out. We did find some nice music, although it wasn't the traditional we were looking for. More what I guess you could call modern Irish, but still with a bodhran.
Although Kenmare was very quaint and had some good restaurants, I didn't find it as interesting as Dingle. Perhaps we didn't look hard enough, but it didn't seem to have as much music and the pub we ended up in was filled with baby boomers, like us, rather than the mix of ages (including children) we saw in Dingle. I also didn't see many shops that interested me; they seemed rather dated.
Having said that, I do wish we had more time there as it was a good location and I would have liked to explore the Beara from there. I would definitely go back to Shelburne Lodge.
My favorite part of the trip was our first three stops, (Doolin, Dingle, and Kenmare).
Next installment I'll try to finish up with our trip to Kilkenny (stopping at Cahir Castle and the Rock of Cashel on the way) and Dublin.
Jul 11th, 2005, 05:54 AM
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After leaving Kenmare, we headed towards Kilkenny. Our first stop was Cahir Castle. We had lunch in the town and then toured the Castle. The town isn't much, but we enjoyed the castle very much and in fact, it was my son's favorite of all the old "stones" we saw. My 18 yr old daughter also liked it a lot.
Next we drove to the Rock of Cashel, which was really awesome. From there, Kilkenny was not much further. We covered the most miles on this day, but it didn't seem bad at all, maybe because we stopped the two times and also the driving was easier (better roads).
In Kilkenny, we checked into Butler House, which was the only disappointment of the five places we stayed on our trip. It is in a great location, with beautiful, peaceful gardens at the back and a great view of Kilkenny Castle (especially lit up at night). But the rooms are badly in need of redecorating, with torn furniture and worn, stained carpets. The bathroom was really dark and dingy. I can live with stuff like that, but the beds were also really uncomfortable (and hot, covered in those plastic mattress pads that I hate). It could be such a great place, the rooms were quite huge, but it needs a large infusion of cash for new furnishings. And, it was the most expensive place we stayed. I'm surprised Frommer's recommended it in their 2004 guide; in the past, I've always had good luck with their picks.
Anyway, it was right in town so we walked around after dinner (minus our son, who was enjoying the extra tv channels). Kilkenny was very crowded, as it was the weekend, and my daughter wanted to shop, but was disappointed at the extremely high prices, worse than Chicago's high end stores.
We liked the town, but I already missed the western part of our trip, but I knew I would.
The next day, we dropped off some laundry, checked our email, shopped, and toured Kilkenny Castle, which was beautiful and a good tour. Also went to St Canice's Cathedral (interesting).
We wanted to hear some music, as we had in each place we stopped, so we checked with the receptionist, and she said there was only one pub in town that did traditional on weekends. So we went there with the kids, but they were the only kids there. (Actually my 18 yr old daughter fit in fine, but my son seemed out of place). We parked ourselves near the "stage", and the band started to tune up, but ended up not playing because Live 8 was on the TV and the barman turned up the volume and explained to the band that Pink Floyd might be coming on next. I can understand why they did that, as it was a Saturday night with a young crowd who would rather see Live 8 than traditional music. So we left after a bit and enjoyed Pink Floyd from our hotel room.
On Sunday, we drove to Dublin. Went straight to the airport to drop off our car (yay!) No problems with that, and we were not charged an extra day because Dooley gives you a two hour grace period (we had picked it up about 11:30 in Shannon and returned it around 1:00 to Dublin). Took a cab into the city.
Dublin was packed. We stayed at the Westbury, right off Grafton, and it was a really nice hotel and a great location. We spent the first afternoon walking around Grafton (my daughter really wanted to shop although again, prices were so high she spent more time looking). The street scene on Grafton was a lot of fun, with street entertainers and portable booths selling inexpensive jewelry, scarves, etc. But there were so many people you could hardly move. There were tons of Italian teens on bus tours. It was interesting, because in the west we saw a lot of German tour groups, and of course Americans, but once we got to Kilkenny and Dublin it felt like every other person was speaking Italian. We also took a walk through St Stehpen's green and that was more peaceful.
After dinner, my kids were so tired they headed back to the hotel and my husband and I walked over to the river and through the Temple Bar area. It was Sunday night, but we were the oldest and soberest people on the street. Lots of young women wearing cat ears. I guess hen parties. Still too crowded for our liking, and we didn't hear any traditional music.
On Monday, our last day, we walked over to Trinity College and waited for a tour given by one of the students. We enjoyed the tour very much, the guide was quite witty. Afterwards, we waited in another long line to see the Book of Kells. That was a dissapointment, mainly because of the crowds. We could not even get near the table, and were waiting patiently behind some people when a tour guide came in with a large group and basically shoved us out. Never got within two feet of the display table. Afterwards, we went into the library, which was very cool and I enjoyed the displays of the fancy bound books.
After a quick lunch, we boarded one of the hop on/ hop off buses. Those are great and a good way to see the city. We had beautiful weather. We got on the bus around 2, I think, and told the bus driver we were planning to see the Kilmainham Jail and the Guinness Storehouse. He advised us to get off at Guinness first, since we stopped there first, but that was a mistake, because by the time we got out of there, it was close to 4 and the next bus driver told us it was too late to go to the jail since the last tours left at 4. That was a big disappointment, and a surprise, since the two guide books I was using both said the jail was open until 6 pm. And since it was Monday, a lot of the museums were also closed. So we didn't plan that day very well, but we did enjoy Trinity (except for the book of kells) and we did enjoy the Guinness museum. There is a nice bar with a good veiw at the top.
We got back on a bus to finish the circuit, and the lady doing the tour announcing was really bad. No one could hear her and she was also quite rude to some young Irish girls who asked her a question about one of the sights. (Told them they should be ashamed they didn't know that, and then never answered them). Luckily, that bus was ending up for the day so we had to get off and get on another to take us back to St Stephens Green, and the next guy was great and very informative. So if you get a bad tour guide, my advice is get off and wait for the next bus, because we really enjoyed it when we had a good guide who we could hear.
After we got off the bus, we tried to do some last minute gift buying, but were surprised that all the stores were closed by 6 pm. For a touristy place that stays light so late at night, it seemed unusual. But then, the Irish have their priorities straight and know that eating and drinking is more important than non stop shopping the way Americans live I guess.
After diinner, we took the kids for a short walk to see Temple Bar since they hadn't been with us the night before. It was a Monday night, but still packed (as was Grafton st again that afternoon). I'm used to crowds being from Chicago, but I was surprised how crowded Dublin was. I'm sure I would have enjoyed it more in the off season. The kids didn't seem too anxious to linger, probably because they were with their parents, so we headed back to the hotel. Everyone was pretty tired by this time and ready to go home, although it had been a fantastic trip.
We left Dublin in the rain the next afternoon. I miss Ireland already and hope I get back someday. It will probably be without kids, which will make it a lot easier, and I will spend more time in each place we stay. We liked everyplace we went and everything we saw, so for this trip, I don't think I would change much. I feel very lucky to have gone and have been enjoying looking at the 200 plus pictures my husband and daughter took.
I've been thinking about why I liked it so much and I think one thing is that Ireland is such a nice mix of beautiful, unspoilt scenery and interesting historical ruins, castles, churches, etc. It's great for kids too, because you can be outside enjoying a hike as well as learning some history without spending all day in museums. I haven't traveled that much so don't know if there are other places like this in Europe?
And of course, the Irish people are so nice and charming as well. A very special place.
I want to thank all of you for all your help planning this trip. It was really valuable and helped make the trip as enjoyable as it was!
Next we drove to the Rock of Cashel, which was really awesome. From there, Kilkenny was not much further. We covered the most miles on this day, but it didn't seem bad at all, maybe because we stopped the two times and also the driving was easier (better roads).
In Kilkenny, we checked into Butler House, which was the only disappointment of the five places we stayed on our trip. It is in a great location, with beautiful, peaceful gardens at the back and a great view of Kilkenny Castle (especially lit up at night). But the rooms are badly in need of redecorating, with torn furniture and worn, stained carpets. The bathroom was really dark and dingy. I can live with stuff like that, but the beds were also really uncomfortable (and hot, covered in those plastic mattress pads that I hate). It could be such a great place, the rooms were quite huge, but it needs a large infusion of cash for new furnishings. And, it was the most expensive place we stayed. I'm surprised Frommer's recommended it in their 2004 guide; in the past, I've always had good luck with their picks.
Anyway, it was right in town so we walked around after dinner (minus our son, who was enjoying the extra tv channels). Kilkenny was very crowded, as it was the weekend, and my daughter wanted to shop, but was disappointed at the extremely high prices, worse than Chicago's high end stores.
We liked the town, but I already missed the western part of our trip, but I knew I would.
The next day, we dropped off some laundry, checked our email, shopped, and toured Kilkenny Castle, which was beautiful and a good tour. Also went to St Canice's Cathedral (interesting).
We wanted to hear some music, as we had in each place we stopped, so we checked with the receptionist, and she said there was only one pub in town that did traditional on weekends. So we went there with the kids, but they were the only kids there. (Actually my 18 yr old daughter fit in fine, but my son seemed out of place). We parked ourselves near the "stage", and the band started to tune up, but ended up not playing because Live 8 was on the TV and the barman turned up the volume and explained to the band that Pink Floyd might be coming on next. I can understand why they did that, as it was a Saturday night with a young crowd who would rather see Live 8 than traditional music. So we left after a bit and enjoyed Pink Floyd from our hotel room.
On Sunday, we drove to Dublin. Went straight to the airport to drop off our car (yay!) No problems with that, and we were not charged an extra day because Dooley gives you a two hour grace period (we had picked it up about 11:30 in Shannon and returned it around 1:00 to Dublin). Took a cab into the city.
Dublin was packed. We stayed at the Westbury, right off Grafton, and it was a really nice hotel and a great location. We spent the first afternoon walking around Grafton (my daughter really wanted to shop although again, prices were so high she spent more time looking). The street scene on Grafton was a lot of fun, with street entertainers and portable booths selling inexpensive jewelry, scarves, etc. But there were so many people you could hardly move. There were tons of Italian teens on bus tours. It was interesting, because in the west we saw a lot of German tour groups, and of course Americans, but once we got to Kilkenny and Dublin it felt like every other person was speaking Italian. We also took a walk through St Stehpen's green and that was more peaceful.
After dinner, my kids were so tired they headed back to the hotel and my husband and I walked over to the river and through the Temple Bar area. It was Sunday night, but we were the oldest and soberest people on the street. Lots of young women wearing cat ears. I guess hen parties. Still too crowded for our liking, and we didn't hear any traditional music.
On Monday, our last day, we walked over to Trinity College and waited for a tour given by one of the students. We enjoyed the tour very much, the guide was quite witty. Afterwards, we waited in another long line to see the Book of Kells. That was a dissapointment, mainly because of the crowds. We could not even get near the table, and were waiting patiently behind some people when a tour guide came in with a large group and basically shoved us out. Never got within two feet of the display table. Afterwards, we went into the library, which was very cool and I enjoyed the displays of the fancy bound books.
After a quick lunch, we boarded one of the hop on/ hop off buses. Those are great and a good way to see the city. We had beautiful weather. We got on the bus around 2, I think, and told the bus driver we were planning to see the Kilmainham Jail and the Guinness Storehouse. He advised us to get off at Guinness first, since we stopped there first, but that was a mistake, because by the time we got out of there, it was close to 4 and the next bus driver told us it was too late to go to the jail since the last tours left at 4. That was a big disappointment, and a surprise, since the two guide books I was using both said the jail was open until 6 pm. And since it was Monday, a lot of the museums were also closed. So we didn't plan that day very well, but we did enjoy Trinity (except for the book of kells) and we did enjoy the Guinness museum. There is a nice bar with a good veiw at the top.
We got back on a bus to finish the circuit, and the lady doing the tour announcing was really bad. No one could hear her and she was also quite rude to some young Irish girls who asked her a question about one of the sights. (Told them they should be ashamed they didn't know that, and then never answered them). Luckily, that bus was ending up for the day so we had to get off and get on another to take us back to St Stephens Green, and the next guy was great and very informative. So if you get a bad tour guide, my advice is get off and wait for the next bus, because we really enjoyed it when we had a good guide who we could hear.
After we got off the bus, we tried to do some last minute gift buying, but were surprised that all the stores were closed by 6 pm. For a touristy place that stays light so late at night, it seemed unusual. But then, the Irish have their priorities straight and know that eating and drinking is more important than non stop shopping the way Americans live I guess.
After diinner, we took the kids for a short walk to see Temple Bar since they hadn't been with us the night before. It was a Monday night, but still packed (as was Grafton st again that afternoon). I'm used to crowds being from Chicago, but I was surprised how crowded Dublin was. I'm sure I would have enjoyed it more in the off season. The kids didn't seem too anxious to linger, probably because they were with their parents, so we headed back to the hotel. Everyone was pretty tired by this time and ready to go home, although it had been a fantastic trip.
We left Dublin in the rain the next afternoon. I miss Ireland already and hope I get back someday. It will probably be without kids, which will make it a lot easier, and I will spend more time in each place we stay. We liked everyplace we went and everything we saw, so for this trip, I don't think I would change much. I feel very lucky to have gone and have been enjoying looking at the 200 plus pictures my husband and daughter took.
I've been thinking about why I liked it so much and I think one thing is that Ireland is such a nice mix of beautiful, unspoilt scenery and interesting historical ruins, castles, churches, etc. It's great for kids too, because you can be outside enjoying a hike as well as learning some history without spending all day in museums. I haven't traveled that much so don't know if there are other places like this in Europe?
And of course, the Irish people are so nice and charming as well. A very special place.
I want to thank all of you for all your help planning this trip. It was really valuable and helped make the trip as enjoyable as it was!
Jul 12th, 2005, 04:46 PM
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Bucky, thanks for your trip report, I've read more than half and now I have to make dinner! I plan to print your trip report out and highlight some good tips.
I'm planning our family trip to Ireland for June 2006. Many of the places you have mentioned are on my interest list. Help! How do I narrow it down? Like you said, I don't want only 2 nights per location because then by the time you arrive it's almost time to leave already! I'd like 3 or 4 nights per location but that means limiting the destinations to only about a maximum of 4 or 5 Irish destinations.
Since my grandmother is from northern Ireland I will probably want to go up north for 1 stop. Maybe Dublin for 1 stop since we'll probably fly in there. That leaves only 2 or 3 more stops! Dingle and Doolin maybe...we want to see the burren and the cliffs of Moher.
Like you, I like small towns and don't really like big cities. Though dublin has the book of Kells at Trinity college. I am interested in culture, music, and the Gaelic language. Also history. And just meeting the Irish people, who have always fascinated me because of my Irish grandmother and all of her Irish immigrant sisters.
but wait...what about Galway? Newgrange? Trim Castle? Kenmare? (Also other interesting small towns near Doolin: Ballyvaughn, Lisdoonvarna, Kilfenora).
This is way too many choices. I have already read 2 or 3 guidebooks on Ireland.
What if you could plan your trip over? And you had about 14 or 15 nights in Ireland, not including the overnights on the flight? How would you divide it up, based on the experience you have gained?
Thanks very much!
I'm planning our family trip to Ireland for June 2006. Many of the places you have mentioned are on my interest list. Help! How do I narrow it down? Like you said, I don't want only 2 nights per location because then by the time you arrive it's almost time to leave already! I'd like 3 or 4 nights per location but that means limiting the destinations to only about a maximum of 4 or 5 Irish destinations.
Since my grandmother is from northern Ireland I will probably want to go up north for 1 stop. Maybe Dublin for 1 stop since we'll probably fly in there. That leaves only 2 or 3 more stops! Dingle and Doolin maybe...we want to see the burren and the cliffs of Moher.
Like you, I like small towns and don't really like big cities. Though dublin has the book of Kells at Trinity college. I am interested in culture, music, and the Gaelic language. Also history. And just meeting the Irish people, who have always fascinated me because of my Irish grandmother and all of her Irish immigrant sisters.
but wait...what about Galway? Newgrange? Trim Castle? Kenmare? (Also other interesting small towns near Doolin: Ballyvaughn, Lisdoonvarna, Kilfenora).
This is way too many choices. I have already read 2 or 3 guidebooks on Ireland.
What if you could plan your trip over? And you had about 14 or 15 nights in Ireland, not including the overnights on the flight? How would you divide it up, based on the experience you have gained?
Thanks very much!
Jul 13th, 2005, 05:43 AM
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This was also our first trip to Ireland, and I think if I could plan it over, I would probably go to less places. However, like you, there were four of us, and you have to compromise so it's more difficult to plan. Also, I had younger children (15 and 18) to try and please. If it were just my husband and I, it would be easier.
I think it's easier to stick with one or two regions. Since you want to go north, maybe you should save Dingle and Killarney for another trip. You could see the cities of Dublin and Galway, and also the Burren area and then after the Burren head to Connemara, which we didn't see but I've read great things about on this board. I think it may be less crowded in the summer as well.
I know it's hard to skip places, but hopefully, you'll be able to go back someday.
I think it's easier to stick with one or two regions. Since you want to go north, maybe you should save Dingle and Killarney for another trip. You could see the cities of Dublin and Galway, and also the Burren area and then after the Burren head to Connemara, which we didn't see but I've read great things about on this board. I think it may be less crowded in the summer as well.
I know it's hard to skip places, but hopefully, you'll be able to go back someday.
Jul 13th, 2005, 08:47 AM
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Bucky,
thank you so much for your fun and very informative trip report! We went to Ireland for the first time last Fall, and we also stayed in the Shelburne Lodge and Greenmount House. It's odd; we had the exact opposite feelings about Kenmare and Dingle, preferring Kenmare. But then, our time in Dingle was cut short by a bad storm (we ended up staying in Lahinch!). We did feel the same way you did about the hospitality at Shelburne being better than at Greenmount--not a knock on Greenmount, but the folks at Shelburne are extraordinarily good hosts.
And to top it off, we too drove from Kenmare to Sneem and ate at the Blue Bull (wasn't the river view from the bridge in Sneem cool?). We're headed back in 4 weeks to stay in Western & Northwestern Ireland this time.
Thanks again for your great trip report.
thank you so much for your fun and very informative trip report! We went to Ireland for the first time last Fall, and we also stayed in the Shelburne Lodge and Greenmount House. It's odd; we had the exact opposite feelings about Kenmare and Dingle, preferring Kenmare. But then, our time in Dingle was cut short by a bad storm (we ended up staying in Lahinch!). We did feel the same way you did about the hospitality at Shelburne being better than at Greenmount--not a knock on Greenmount, but the folks at Shelburne are extraordinarily good hosts.
And to top it off, we too drove from Kenmare to Sneem and ate at the Blue Bull (wasn't the river view from the bridge in Sneem cool?). We're headed back in 4 weeks to stay in Western & Northwestern Ireland this time.
Thanks again for your great trip report.
Jul 13th, 2005, 04:44 PM
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beach dweller,
I'm so jealous that you're going back already!!
Actually I liked Kenmare quite a bit and wouldn't hesitate to go back there. Same with Dingle. Little things like the weather can influence you quite a bit. They're both cool places and it would be hard to choose between them, really.
Yes, the view from that bridge was lovely.
We did find the drive between Kenmare and Killarney a bit trying. The scenic route was awesome, but extremely busy in late June. It took us about an hour due to all the traffic, bikes, pedestrians. After that, we went a different way that wasn't nearly as pretty but faster.
I think your suggestion of seeing Muckross house on the way between the two towns is a good one. We didn't plan it that way and ended up using a whole day on Muckross. I realized later that we should have stopped there on the way in, as the drive from Dingle is not that long. Because of that, we had to cut the Beara Peninsula from our trip. Next time, maybe?
I'm so jealous that you're going back already!!
Actually I liked Kenmare quite a bit and wouldn't hesitate to go back there. Same with Dingle. Little things like the weather can influence you quite a bit. They're both cool places and it would be hard to choose between them, really.
Yes, the view from that bridge was lovely.
We did find the drive between Kenmare and Killarney a bit trying. The scenic route was awesome, but extremely busy in late June. It took us about an hour due to all the traffic, bikes, pedestrians. After that, we went a different way that wasn't nearly as pretty but faster.
I think your suggestion of seeing Muckross house on the way between the two towns is a good one. We didn't plan it that way and ended up using a whole day on Muckross. I realized later that we should have stopped there on the way in, as the drive from Dingle is not that long. Because of that, we had to cut the Beara Peninsula from our trip. Next time, maybe?
Jul 15th, 2005, 02:10 PM
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Bucky--enjoyed your trip report and it makes me want to go back to Ireland. Our last trip was when smoking was still allowed in the pubs so next time we can enjoy the music for a longer time--smoke made us leave. I think we experienced a similar hop-onhop-off thing with the bus in Dublin. I have learned to be very careful with the hotels/inns recommended in Frommers--we had a similar experience to your stay in Killkenny--but it was in Florence and I have to wonder exactly what year someone from Frommers visited the place!
