Planning FIRST trip to IRELAND for MAY 2007-(hope I can still do it) Trip is for myself and husband. My husband is very concerned that he will find the trip boring... so any suggestions for places or excursions that are not museums to throw in something of interest to him..
Is it possible to fly into Dublin see the West COast and explore much of Northern Ireland. My ancestors were originally from around the Derry area so I want to see a lot of Northern Ireland. Thanks for your help!!
I have been avidly reading all of the other itineraries and trip reports to try to get ideas of all the good places. THANKS

Need to know how long you're trip will be to help guide you. We were there for 8 days last June in the Southwest part of the country and barely scraped the surface.
You'll also need to tell us what types of things your husband does like. Ireland is all about the scenery, history and people.
An excellent web site for info on Ireland with a great hostess and question and answer section is www.irelandexpert.com
I used that extensively to plan car rental, B&Bs, itinerary and found the information to be excellent and accurate.

Hi A,

Agree with above we need to know how much time you have in Ireland.

Is it possible for you to Fly into Dublin/Belfast and out of Shannon or vice versa?

when I think of Ireland, I don't think of museums...I think of beautiful scenery, history, great pubs and music. get some tour books and get your husband envolved in the planning...you could also get him one of the great historical fiction novels set in Ireland...or set the tone with some movies set in Ireland.

there are pitch & putt courses (9-hole golf) everywhere, as well as horesback riding and great places to bike and hike.

check out other gaelic sports/events

the carrick-a-rede rope bridge may be exciting for him...we enjoyed giant's causeway and dunluce castle nearby

we took a private tour of the derry walls and bogside murals that was great

I would suggest selecting places to stay that are close to pubs and dining so you don't need to drive after touring for the day...pubs with music are even better

in dublin and at bushmills there are whiskey tours (we went on one in Midleton in the south that was great)

the tour of kilmainham jail in dublin is very interesting

we enjoyed the music and literary pub crawls in dublin

we all enjoyed visiting different styles of castle and the tours are usually good...in donegal we liked glenveagh park/castle

"Is it possible to fly into Dublin see the West COast and explore much of Northern Ireland."

would suggest flying into dublin out of shannon...you can see as much as you want depending on time and how fast you want to travel...
but considering you already have a reluctant travel companion...wouldn't try to push it too hard...not too many 1 night stops...mix it up.

looking at 10-12 days knowing that we lose 2 w/air travel. My husband loves MUSIC- any suggestions for pubs-etc w/live music .. looking at the fly into DUBLIN, will go to DERRY, and lots of little towns as we can fit in... we like staying in B &Bs or small inns..

When I went to Ireland I flew into Shannon and then spent 10 days driving to the east coast, ending in Dublin.

Don't even bother going to Dublin!
Stay on the west coast!
Right outside of the Shannon airport there's small town named Ballingary. There's an inn there called The Mustard Seed. It's a must. Dine there as well--everything is organic and local.
We went to church there one sunday with all of the farmers and there children and it was extremely charming.
Go to Ennis and Killarney as well, Dingle too.
Just avoid Dublin. It's not very Irish.

coffeetoffee646 wrote: "Just avoid Dublin. It's not very Irish."

Rubbish! Of course Dublin is Irish. There is more to this country than peasants and castles and leprechauns.

What appeals to one visitor might not appeal to another.

I don't think Ballingary is right outside Shannon. I think it is closer to Adare.

Isn't there also a Ballingary in Co. Tipperary?

There are Ballingarrys all over Ireland. It's a very common place-name.

If Music is one of your primary focuses, then you should look at flying into Shannon, traveling to Doolin for two nights, Galway for two nights, Clifden for two nights and then to Derry for three nights before flying out of Dublin.


Use one of your Days in Doolin to take a Clifs of Moher cruise as that is a spectacular way to view the Cliffs. You will find fantastic traditional music in Doolin at McGann's Pub, Gus O'Connor's Pub or McDermott's. Doolin is at the heart of traditional Music. Drive North along the coast and through the Burren to reach Galway. Use one of the days in Galway to explore the city with a hop-on/hop-off open top bus tour and lunch at McDonagh's fish & Chips. You could also catch a ferry from Rossaveal to Inis Mor for the day. Clifden is the seat of the Connemaras. Use your full day here to explore the region, Kylemore Abbey, Maam Cross, the Irish Famine Village, etc. and then spend the evening at EJ Kings, a hundred plus year old pub that has fantastic Traditional Music and excellent food. From Derry, you can day trip to the Inishshowen Peninsula, Ireland's Northern most point, Giant's Causeway or Donegal. All are within a two hour drive

use this site, http://www.aaireland.ie/routes/, as a tool when planning your driving routes.

If you have already booked your flight, then you can reverse this route, though the drive from Doolin to Dublin will be a long one.

Enjoy your adventure!

Slan Agus Beannacht,

Bit Devine
Cowboy Craic

ttt

Ya know Padraig, if you could just point me to a few more of those peasants and leprechauns, I'd be most grateful. I keep missing them. Dublin ... not Irish? Yikes!

As far as music, Doolin's reputation has faded a bit quality wise, but you can certianly still hear some good stuff. I've heard different quality levels there, but you can count on something being on every night. The scene in Ennis is getting very strong. I liked Westport for trad as there seemed to be a lot of it going on when I was there in May 05 and not all at Matt Molloy's. Great trad sessions aren't necessarily about great technical performances.

Bill

Bill,

It is not at all about Peasants and Leprchauns, it is about the slower pace and the everchanging landscapes which can't be found amidst the hustle & bustle of large, cosmopolitan cities.
I will have to admit that I am more than happy to help people avoid the larger cities, mainly Dublin, in favor of smaller towns and villages.

I love Doolin, though I find that Gus O'Connor's lacks the spontaneity one looks for with a trad session, which is why I go to McGann's. In Westport, I would rather pop in to King's House than Matt Malloys for the same reason. Ennis does indeed have some fabulous trad music. Cruise's Pub being one of my favorites. Tailor Quigley's being my other favorite.

Slan Go Foill,

Bit Devine
www.cowboycraic.com

I would check out contiki.com for some great trip itinerary ideas. Everyone I know has loved the tours they create.

The Porterhouse next to Matt Molloy's has fabulous music also. Cruise's is quite good and there are a number of great spots in Galway and Dublin.

On the small towns issue, I prefer them also, but to remotely suggest that Dublin is not very Irish is as Padraig so aptly put it, rubbish. Also, as he says, what appeals to one may not appeal to another, but saying I prefer small towns to large cities is quite different from saying Dublin is not very Irish.

If a person has any interest in Irish history, Dublin should be visited. I will admit, the more I go there, the more I like it.

It's funny, a while back someone started a thread as to whether or not they should visit Dublin. Nobody responded that they shouldn't and in fact, legions of folks gave Dublin rave reviews. I wondered what happened to all of the people that don't like the place.

Of course, my opinion that Dublin IS Irish is just that. My opinion. Perhaps I'm wrong.

Bill

Dia Duit Bill,

I agree that Dublin has much to offer in the way of museums, art and theatre. I wouldn't say that Dublin isn't Irish. I would say that Dublin is too crowded for my liking. For others, it would more well suit than say spending a week on Inis Mor. Galway, though I love it, can only be handled in small doses for me. I like wide open spaces more than museums.

I had forgotten about Porterhouse. I had a wonderful time there this past July. As for Galway, I am still looking for a "favorite" spot. Perhaps you have one that I can check out when I head that way in June?

Slan Go Foill,

Bit Devine
www.cowboycraic.com

aprilmay, Bill, et al:

Here is the link to that thread on Dublin:

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34656627

Lots of info in there.

Bob

To say that Dublin isn't very Irish is to say New York City isn't very American.

I must admit I an not that fussed on Dublin. I much prefer Cork City or Belfast. I just think it is too busy and over crowded. Yes I know it is a big city that everyone wants to go and see, but then I am not a lover of London either for the same reasons.
Now you may find this odd but I love Edinburgh and have been there several times, twice during the festival time in August and that really is busy and crowded. I was going for the festival and was going back and forward to see as many shows as I could fit in. I was having such a good laugh I did not let the crowds put me off.