First trip to Ireland Trip Report
Sep 21st, 2007, 09:29 AM
#21
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Linda, just wanted you to know that I am continuing to enjoy your trip report. Thanks for the information about the Gap of Dunloe - exactly what I need to know.
I'm looking forward to hearing about your drive to Kinsale. We will be doing the same. I am torn because one of the two sisters traveling with me really wants to go to Kinsale. I would prefer to spend that time in the Kenmare/Killarney area since there is so much to see and do in that area and our time is limited. I will be interested to hear your thoughts.
I'm looking forward to hearing about your drive to Kinsale. We will be doing the same. I am torn because one of the two sisters traveling with me really wants to go to Kinsale. I would prefer to spend that time in the Kenmare/Killarney area since there is so much to see and do in that area and our time is limited. I will be interested to hear your thoughts.
Sep 21st, 2007, 11:38 AM
#22
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Sunday: "On to Kinsale and tell us what we missed in Kenmare"
Another beautiful morning, our last wonderful breakfast at Loch Lein. We packed up and agreed to meet BIL &SIL in Kenmare for lunch. We had the best breakfasts everywhere on this trip--You would think that the large breakfasts would last us all day, but we always seemed to stop for lunch and then had a later dinner. At every B&B we stayed at, we were offered choices for breakfast, a well supplied buffet and brewed coffee. At Loch Lein the coffee was served in a French press.
On our way to Kenmare, we stopped at Muckross, and walked a trail that took us by the lake. Another stop at Torc Waterfall, stops for pictures--the drive from Killarney to Kenmare is part of the Ring of Kerry and is a very enjoyable drive.
We arrived in Kenmare and spent some time wandering around, did some shopping. Since it was Sunday afternoon several restaurants were closed: Packies and Mulcahy's. We saw the Lime Tree but didn't check it out--Foley's looked just fine.
I feel that we certainly missed the specialness of Kenmare. Everyone loves it but it didn't seem much different than Killarney--a bit smaller. Perhaps we needed to spend the night, probably we needed to spend more time there. What did we miss? We possibly could have shortened one of our happy hours at Loch Lein and done a bit better job enjoying Kenmare--no I don't think we could have shortened our happy hour---just have to save it for the next visit.
We had also debated today about our route to Kinsale. Killarney to Kinsale on the inland route is 67 miles--no stop in Kenmare. Kenmare/Bantry/Skibbereen/Clonakilty/Timolegue/Kinsale is 107 miles. The scenic route is not as scenic as I expected but it does give you some good towns to stop at---Glengariff looked really lovely. The Famine Museum in Skibbereen is very good.
Next visit I would probably just head directly to Kinsale, visiting Kenmare on a different day. (I don't know if I could skip Loch Lein to stay in Kenmare)
We also wanted to do a kayak trip that was recommended on the board. If I had found that information sooner, I might have adjusted our schedule for it. When I e mailed the company about their schedule, they were only offering a full day trip that day and we just couldn't get down to Glengariff by 10 am. We would have had to leave Killarney by 7 am to get there on time and we just weren't into rushing around on this trip. No other kayaking trips were offered. With the weather we had, this day would have been a highlight.
Rivermount House in Kinsale is located right before you enter the town when coming from Timoleague, which would have been great if I realized that my directions to the B&B were from Cork(my sheet said "directions from Cork"
We were stuck in a Kinsale Sunday evening traffic jam for about an hour---when I realized my one and only navigation error of the trip, I thought my husband might kill me. We turned around and drove back through Kinsale (no traffic going this way) and to the B&B.
Rivermount House is very nice and they have a great sunroom where the guests gather. Once again however, we got the smallest rooms--twin beds again. (Still about twice as large as the Captain's House.) When you make reservations in March and stay 2 nights, you would think that you might get one of the nicer rooms. Arriving Sunday evening though must have been our fatal error. All the rooms were occupied. When someone commented how nice their room was, I peeked in the open doors the next day. We definitely had the smallest 2 rooms.
Great dinner that night at Vintage.
Another beautiful morning, our last wonderful breakfast at Loch Lein. We packed up and agreed to meet BIL &SIL in Kenmare for lunch. We had the best breakfasts everywhere on this trip--You would think that the large breakfasts would last us all day, but we always seemed to stop for lunch and then had a later dinner. At every B&B we stayed at, we were offered choices for breakfast, a well supplied buffet and brewed coffee. At Loch Lein the coffee was served in a French press.
On our way to Kenmare, we stopped at Muckross, and walked a trail that took us by the lake. Another stop at Torc Waterfall, stops for pictures--the drive from Killarney to Kenmare is part of the Ring of Kerry and is a very enjoyable drive.
We arrived in Kenmare and spent some time wandering around, did some shopping. Since it was Sunday afternoon several restaurants were closed: Packies and Mulcahy's. We saw the Lime Tree but didn't check it out--Foley's looked just fine.
I feel that we certainly missed the specialness of Kenmare. Everyone loves it but it didn't seem much different than Killarney--a bit smaller. Perhaps we needed to spend the night, probably we needed to spend more time there. What did we miss? We possibly could have shortened one of our happy hours at Loch Lein and done a bit better job enjoying Kenmare--no I don't think we could have shortened our happy hour---just have to save it for the next visit.
We had also debated today about our route to Kinsale. Killarney to Kinsale on the inland route is 67 miles--no stop in Kenmare. Kenmare/Bantry/Skibbereen/Clonakilty/Timolegue/Kinsale is 107 miles. The scenic route is not as scenic as I expected but it does give you some good towns to stop at---Glengariff looked really lovely. The Famine Museum in Skibbereen is very good.
Next visit I would probably just head directly to Kinsale, visiting Kenmare on a different day. (I don't know if I could skip Loch Lein to stay in Kenmare)
We also wanted to do a kayak trip that was recommended on the board. If I had found that information sooner, I might have adjusted our schedule for it. When I e mailed the company about their schedule, they were only offering a full day trip that day and we just couldn't get down to Glengariff by 10 am. We would have had to leave Killarney by 7 am to get there on time and we just weren't into rushing around on this trip. No other kayaking trips were offered. With the weather we had, this day would have been a highlight.
Rivermount House in Kinsale is located right before you enter the town when coming from Timoleague, which would have been great if I realized that my directions to the B&B were from Cork(my sheet said "directions from Cork"
We were stuck in a Kinsale Sunday evening traffic jam for about an hour---when I realized my one and only navigation error of the trip, I thought my husband might kill me. We turned around and drove back through Kinsale (no traffic going this way) and to the B&B.Rivermount House is very nice and they have a great sunroom where the guests gather. Once again however, we got the smallest rooms--twin beds again. (Still about twice as large as the Captain's House.) When you make reservations in March and stay 2 nights, you would think that you might get one of the nicer rooms. Arriving Sunday evening though must have been our fatal error. All the rooms were occupied. When someone commented how nice their room was, I peeked in the open doors the next day. We definitely had the smallest 2 rooms.
Great dinner that night at Vintage.
Sep 21st, 2007, 02:50 PM
#23
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I am so enjoying your trip report. What can I say about Kenmare? You are right that you need to spend a few nights to appreciate it. For something comparable to Loch Lein you should try Sallyport House. It is slightly out of town and has a rural atmosphere while still in walking distance to Kenmare. There is a scenic park in back of Sallyport and the Kenmare river meanders around it. Peaceful views of the river and mountains. Classic & classy Ireland. Wish I were there right now having a wonderful Irish breakfast.
Sep 27th, 2007, 02:34 PM
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I am enjoying reading LindainOhio's postings, especially those about driving in Ireland. When we were there last April, every time we felt that it was a bit crazy on the roads, we all started humming/singing the Vonage commercial song and had a great laugh.Those commercials said "sometimes, people do crazy things" dut doo dut dodoo! Seriously, though, we never had aproblem driving - just "go to the left!"
We rented a self-catering cottage in Kenmare (Shamrock Cottages)which was perfect for the 6 of us. It was a beautiful place with a grand view.We also rented to cars at the Shannon Airport from Irish Car Rentals and all went well with them. We rented a phone in Ireland - did it over the Internet and the phone was delivered to the rental car desk and was there when we arrived.
We made day trips around the Ring of Kerry, out to Dingle, and to Kinsale. We also spent two days out of 7 just taking in Kenmare and relaxing which was really nice after a lot of driving and sightseeing.
We never had a bad experience in a restaurant or pub, although the food wasn't always the greatest. We just picked ones that looked good to us and they turned out to be fine. Everywhere the Guinness, Smithwicks (say, "smiddicks" and even the Carlsberg was extra tasty in Ireland.
We're (7 of us)getting ready to go again on October 13th. This time we're renting a cottage in Doolin and once again, two cars (by the way, one car is basically to carry luggage). We'll be buying a SIM card this time because we can use our present Unicel phones in Ireland.This time we're hoping to see the Cliffs of Moher, the Aran Islands, the Burren, Galway Bay, and we'll probably find our way into a few pubs each day. Can't wait!!!
We rented a self-catering cottage in Kenmare (Shamrock Cottages)which was perfect for the 6 of us. It was a beautiful place with a grand view.We also rented to cars at the Shannon Airport from Irish Car Rentals and all went well with them. We rented a phone in Ireland - did it over the Internet and the phone was delivered to the rental car desk and was there when we arrived.
We made day trips around the Ring of Kerry, out to Dingle, and to Kinsale. We also spent two days out of 7 just taking in Kenmare and relaxing which was really nice after a lot of driving and sightseeing.
We never had a bad experience in a restaurant or pub, although the food wasn't always the greatest. We just picked ones that looked good to us and they turned out to be fine. Everywhere the Guinness, Smithwicks (say, "smiddicks"
and even the Carlsberg was extra tasty in Ireland.We're (7 of us)getting ready to go again on October 13th. This time we're renting a cottage in Doolin and once again, two cars (by the way, one car is basically to carry luggage). We'll be buying a SIM card this time because we can use our present Unicel phones in Ireland.This time we're hoping to see the Cliffs of Moher, the Aran Islands, the Burren, Galway Bay, and we'll probably find our way into a few pubs each day. Can't wait!!!
