My wife and I plan a drive tour of Irland next June/July.Would prefer renting a cottage in a central location and do day trips out .
Any ideas from you good people

There have been a few threads on this subject. I would look for a place somewhere around Killarney/Kenmare. From there you could do a lot of day trips in several directions.

If you are looking for a truely central location, I would suggest something around Mallow, although many would comment that it is an unremarkable, slightly urban place. While that criticism is true, it is very convenient to Cashel, Blarney, Cohb, Cork, Killarney, Limmerick and Galway. The towns nearby, Kanturk, Banteer, Millstreet, etc. are picturesque and beautiful and self catering rates are quite reasonable, so that you might consider some 'overnight' day trips, to Dingle, or Bearra, as well.

Hello prowl,

Ireland is a wee bit large to do from a single location.

You mention June/July - is that ALL of June and July?

My wife and I did seven weeks in Ireland two years ago. We spent four to seven days in 'self-catering' accommodations in several different areas - with day trips in the surrounding areas. It worked well for us.

Our self-catering stops:

1. Just outside Belfast
2. Portrush
3. Enniskellen (Highly recommend Belle Isle self catering)
4. Westport
5. Salthill (Galway)
6. Killarney

We also mixed in a few B&B's and hotels to break up the trip and experience some service in other areas like Dublin and Waterford.

In planning the trip, we found self-catering accommodations usually require a four day or seven day stay. For seven day, generally the stay begins on Saturday. We also found that those properties that had rental restrictions such as no children/no smoking (I have nothing against children) were a cut above others in terms of 'quality'.

Happy accommodation hunting.

Have a great trip.

Check out http://www.irishvacationrental.com for self catering vacation rental in Ireland . The rent is cheaper in June as July & August are high season. Electricity is not usually included in the rentals price , it is nomally metered seperately

We did a week's rental in Clonakilty in Co. Cork last summer and loved that location. It's a great town and a good base for day trips. From there, we did day trips to Kinsale, Mizen Head, Gougane Barra, the small towns of west Cork, and Baltimore & Clear Island.

We were in Ireland last July and had a wonderful time. Since then I have found a cottage or two I would love to rent on holiday-rentals.com. There is one in Connemara, County Galway that particularly appealed to me. We fell in love with the central and northern West coast - amazing scenery, food, people and many fewer tourists.

If you really want to tour Ireland - as opposed to a small bit - you simply cannot do it from one central location.

Opinions might vary about just how boring Ireland's Midlands are. But it's really difficult to get anywhere you'd really, really want to see, and back, in one day from somewhere like Athlone.

Ireland is surprisingly big by European standards (bigger than England, for example), and its roads - especially in the nice bits - aren't designed for rapid driving. Worse, crossing or going round Cork or Dublin is always VERY time-consuming and unpleasant - and unavoidable on the tour as you've described it.

You can limit yourself to the Deep South, base yourself in a cottage somewhere south of Cork and have a great time. But it's the Deep South you're visiting, not Ireland. And if you've time, it would be a crime to miss out Galway, Connemara or the North from your Irish holiday.

Decide what you want to see, and work out the appropriate mix of cottages and hotels. Then you have the minor task of finding the right place: there's no shortage. But remember that calculating average journey times of 30 mph is likely to err on the side of optimism.

Thanks Sparky for your e-mail.Much appreciated.