Help me plan my 2 weeks in Ireland
 

I am trying to plan a trip to Ireland for next summer

We will be 2 adults and 2 children ages 7 (boy) and 10 (girl) at the time of the trip.
Kids have travelled to Europe before and also are very used to traveling.

I would like to fly into Dublin and out of Shannon. Spending 3 nights in Dublin and moving down the coast and west.

I would like to visit the following counties, staying 3 nights or more in each place as a base to visit the areas.

County Clare, County Kerry, County Cork and trying to figure out where to stop first on the drive from Dublin going South. Either Kilkenny or Waterford?

We don't have to stay in the main cities of each place and would prefer to get a feel of the local area vs being right in the middle of the tourist towns.

Accommodations would like to keep it at $200 or less per night. Prefer family rooms but 2 rooms would be fine also.

So basically I would love help in, what towns to pick and how long would be a good time to spend there. Would also love to hear about places to stay for us to consider.

Is this enough information or do I need to add more?

Thanks for any help.

Hi! Great post BTW, I'm sure you will get lots of help. I've found that most posters here really know what they are talking about for Ireland and are more than willing to help.

I will only put down two main bits of advice for you for now since you are just starting your planning for Ireland.

First, get a couple of guide books and have everyone in the family got through them. I suggest Eyewitness guides for the kids since they have lots of pictures and your little ones can pick out places they think they'll like to see. (there are a few good threads here about places to go with kids in Ireland. Put "Children" or "Kids" in the search space, then click on "Ireland" in the Europe column.) You and the other adult going should read about Ireland from your guide books and get an idea (or 12) about where you'd like to go and what you'd like to see/do. Since you already have the countries you want to visit this should be only slightly easier a task then trying to go through the whole country. (ha!)

My second piece of advice is; if you really want to get a good feel for the local area, as you say, then you should stay longer in that area rather than moving every couple of days. Many places rent self catering cottages at weekly rates and, overall, it will cost you less while you also get a local's point of view. (Even full B&Bs often have weekly rates.) You could rent a place outside of Dublin so that you could do day trips into the city or nearby as well as get into Wicklow, Kilkenny and even into Wexford and Waterford. Then do your other week in the Kerry area with daytrips around the Ring, into Dingle, around Cork, etc.

I have visited Ireland every year for the last 5 years and chatting about Ireland is my second favorite past time to going myself. I would be more than happy to give more help should you want it.

Enjoy planning you trip,
Wendy
[email protected]

Dublin for 3 days. Tramore, which has a beach, for 2. Cashel for a day. Kinsale for 2. Valentia Island for 1. Doolin for 2. The Aran Island for 2. Cong for 2. Donegal for a day. Back down to Shannon.

Hi Wendy,

Thanks for the info. I will look into staying one week somewhere in the Cork or surrounding areas.

In Dublin though I would like to stay in the city as the traveling back and forth will tire the kids before we even get to where we are going. It also makes it harder to get to the places if there are short visiting hours.

HuwMorgan, thanks for the advice but moving every day or every 2 days is not something I like to do on vacation. Thanks for the info on the cities.

We really enjoyed Glasha Farmhouse B&B in County Waterford, just south of Clonmel in Ballymacarbary. It's out in the country, a beautiful white two story farmhouse with wonderfully gracious hosts. Nice rooms and absolutely fantastic breakfasts. We found lots to explore in the area - mountains, coastline, castles all within reasonable driving distance. You could do both Kilkenny and/or Waterford towns from there, yet be able to retreat to the countryside in the evening. It' light until 10 - 11 in mid-summer, so even if you decide to eat in one of the bigger towns, you can drive back in the daylight.

Your kids would probably like the Bunratty folk park and maybe the banquet too. The Dingle pennisula is beautiful. I would stay there. They would also like Blarney castle and the garden behind it. The garden had amazing trees and would be alot of fun for them to explore.

We self catered on the Dingle Peninsula for a week with our then 9 and 13 year olds. We had a wonderful time and found plenty to do in this beautiful area. We also B&B'd in Cahir and Dublin for 1 and 2 nights. It was a nice mix. A very successful trip which we all enjoyed.
Have a wonderful time.

marylouise

can you tell me where you stayed? I would love to look into it.

I just returned from a self catering unit in Clonakilty, Cork and found it a prfect choice for my two grandchildren 7 &9. The unit was spacious and contained all possible amenities. As well, we were able to do easy daytrips to:
Cahir Castle
Queenstown Story
Fota Wildlife Park
Skibbereen famine museum
Kinsale
Mizen Head
Sherkin Island
Drumbeg stone circle
Mallow donkey Sanctuary
many wonderful beachs
I found the town of Clonakilty charming, not full of tourists, yet providing all we needed in terms of good groceries, pubs, etc.
When you arrive in Ireland try to pick up some of the Horrible History series for kids your kiddos ages..couldn't get mine to quit reading
The Cutthroat Celts
The Stone Age People, etc

The 4 bedroom 4 bath house we stayed in is on the northern side of Dingle Peninsula in Castlegregory. Go to www.irelandselfcateringguide.com

Click search for "southwest" then "kerry" then "castlegregory"

It's the "Brandon Bay" house that Breda Reidy rents. It was spotless with VERY comfortable beds. It had a nice fully equipped kitchen and we shared a washer and dryer w/ Breda. The house is semi-detached from her family home with a private entrance. What enticed us was photos showing the views from the house and we were not dissappointed. It also happened to be very reasonable in 2000 ($200 for the week! Not bad for four of us staying 7 nights!)The house is surrounded by ocean, mountain and sheep. It's not within walking distance to "activities" though Kilcummin Beach, mentioned in Frommer's Guide as "Best Beach",is a short walk across the road.We watched a little dog round up sheep every day from our window.The sunset over Brandon Bay was visible from the house, too. It's a 5 minute drive from the center of Castlegregory. Let me just tell you that it is somewhat remote and it's at the north end of the Conor Pass which offers the most beautiful scenery but is not for the faint of heart driver. My husband had no problem going over it several times...night and day, sun and fog, but I would guess he's unusual!! The above website that I mention unfortunately does not have photos but it appears one can order the hard copy guide for free and I'm certain there will be some pictures of the homes.
Looks like there are many other homes available, too. I'm sure you could find something less remote yet on the peninsula if that suited your family better. We loved being there.
In my opinion,the area is a wonderful place to "plant" with a family.
It offers SPECTACULAR scenery,ancient ruins(ie.,beehive huts and forts),Inch Beach,hiking,mountain ocean,Dingletown for activities(aquarium,boat ride to see Fungie the dolphin,shops,pubs,etc.)
It was an easy daytrip to Killarney National Park. I didn't find Tralee to be the prettiest little city around and we only passed through, but I was armed with info of things to do there that we just didn't have a chance to take in. A "time car" ride,a windmill, a steam train exhibit and a peat bog you could tour.Tralee is about 20 minutes away.
Sorry to go on but I love recalling it all!! Hope this helps!

Oops! I looked again and see that the self catering guide is 10 Euros. It's not free! Oh well.

But you'll your money self catering in the west. You can then put the money toward an in-city stay in Dublin so you can use your time there more wisely.

I'll add that we were there is June and it was light until 11:00 pm.

Good luck! Have fun!
marylouise

We spent a week in Ireland and wished we had more time. We flew into Shannon and out of Dublin - 3 nights in Dublin may be too much. Try and target the smaller towns versus larger cities Cobh and Kinsale are close to Waterford and Kilkenny but more relaxed and fun for kids in the smaller towns. Absolutely don't miss:
Dingle Peninsula - Slea Head and Connor's Pass (much better than Ring of Kerry)
Kinsale
Cobh - largest emigration point in Ireland - instead of Kilkenny
Dromoland Castle outside of Shannon and close to the Cliffs of Mohrer

DO NOT DRIVE on the Ring of Kerry - take the bus tour (and we aren't typical bus tour people). Treacherous roads - we had an accident and ran into 2 other American families who had car accidents the same day as well.
We stayed at 4 star hotels in smaller towns and got a feel for the local culture for inexpensive rates.

Hi ga9497
I hope I'm not making you crazy with my persistent posts but I'm having fun with this. I just explored the self catering guide site a little more and found the house. Go to the castlgregory page and at the bottom you can click on a small square "regional website." When it opens click "accomodations" and then search for self cater,Castle gregory. Find the Brandon Bay one and click. That's where we stayed. The photo does not do it justice and there are none of the surrounds that hooked us. The deck is new, I think. It faces the ocean,sunset,gorgeous views. Anyway, there it is, hope it gets you off on a search and I'll stop now!!!
marylouise

You will love Ireland. Count on drive time being about twice what you would expect in the states as you look at milage and maps. From Dublin to the Wicklows is not that bad. The scenery is awesome. Drove the military trail and took some side roads, streams, sheep, cool stuff. Folks with us insisted on going to the Waterford Crystal factory. I hate tourist stuff and group tours. Really enjoyed it and think your kids will find it interesting. Ireland is awesome. The slow travel is part of the adventure.

to weddinginitaly can you provide more info on your accident in Ireland, what insurance did you have and how was it handled by agent etc? Thanks