Help with trip to Ireland, September, 2006
Jun 25th, 2006, 06:05 AM
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Help with trip to Ireland, September, 2006
A friend and I are Flying into Dublin on September 7th. on our first trip to Ireland. We will stay in Dublin for three days. We will rent a car on our last day in Dublin and drive north to spend the following two weeks travelling in Northern Ireland.
On September 23rd we will drive from Belfast to Enniskillen and also visit the Belleek Pottery factory in Fermanagh. We leave that same day to drive down the west coast. This is where we need help. We can look at the map and see lots of places that we would like to see and we have read on this site about all the great spots in the west. We can figure out the distances in miles ( or kms) and compared to here in California the distances look small. However, we have read on this board about the length of time it takes to drive around in Ireland. We would be grateful if someone could suggest an itinerary for us from our leaving Enniskillen on September 23rd. until we fly out of Shannon on September 29th. We want to make the most out of these last days. Our three musts are the Cliffs of Moher, Cong where the Quiet Man was filmed and Blarney Castle. We will stay in Ennis on the night of the 28th. Thank you very much. calguy2006
On September 23rd we will drive from Belfast to Enniskillen and also visit the Belleek Pottery factory in Fermanagh. We leave that same day to drive down the west coast. This is where we need help. We can look at the map and see lots of places that we would like to see and we have read on this site about all the great spots in the west. We can figure out the distances in miles ( or kms) and compared to here in California the distances look small. However, we have read on this board about the length of time it takes to drive around in Ireland. We would be grateful if someone could suggest an itinerary for us from our leaving Enniskillen on September 23rd. until we fly out of Shannon on September 29th. We want to make the most out of these last days. Our three musts are the Cliffs of Moher, Cong where the Quiet Man was filmed and Blarney Castle. We will stay in Ennis on the night of the 28th. Thank you very much. calguy2006
Jun 25th, 2006, 12:52 PM
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Blarney Castle is a bit out of your route.
If you consider dropping it - Sounds like you have 4 nights between Enniskillen and Ennis so - I would suggest Enniskillen to Westport (Co. Mayo) if you stay in that area for 2 nights you could explore North Connemara- Kylemore Abbey etc to the west and also Cong area to the south east.
Next night Galway - next night Ballyvaughan, North Clare from where you can explore Burren and driver around coast by Cliffs of Moher, etc to Ennis.
This route is not exactly coastal all the way from Enniskillen but it has good roads. If you stick to the coast roads are not as good and distances are much longer.
If you consider dropping it - Sounds like you have 4 nights between Enniskillen and Ennis so - I would suggest Enniskillen to Westport (Co. Mayo) if you stay in that area for 2 nights you could explore North Connemara- Kylemore Abbey etc to the west and also Cong area to the south east.
Next night Galway - next night Ballyvaughan, North Clare from where you can explore Burren and driver around coast by Cliffs of Moher, etc to Ennis.
This route is not exactly coastal all the way from Enniskillen but it has good roads. If you stick to the coast roads are not as good and distances are much longer.
Jun 25th, 2006, 12:57 PM
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Jun 26th, 2006, 06:25 AM
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Hi calguy2006,
Looks like you are planning to do a lot of driving! You are correct in stating that the distances look smaller but it does take much longer driving them! The roads are narrow and you will be encountering tour busses, sheep crossing the road (we saw lots of them) and just slow-moving traffic!
We had 10 days in Ireland and focused on the west coast for our first visit. We spent 3 days in Killarney and visited the Dingle Peninsula, took the Gap of Dunloe tour (spectacular) and then went to Galway for our next 5 days. We made Galway city our base and did our tours from there. We also chose not to drive and used the busses and taxis to get us around. There were 5 family members so we just split everything 5 ways. Worked out great for us.
We took an all-day tour w/ Lally Tours and visited the Connemara Region, saw where they filmed The Quiet Man, the Twelve Bens, Kylemore Abbey, Killary Harbor, through the village of Spiddal, and back to Galway City. We made lots of stops along the way for photos, etc. Absolutely a grand day! Scenery was unbelievable. We saw more rainbows that day!
Another day we took the bus to Rossaveal and then the ferry out to Innismore. We spent the day there.
We did not visit the Cliffs of Moher or the Blarney Castle simply because there wasn't enough time. Blarney Castle was too far out of the way. You can probably do the Cliffs of Moher out of Galway.
Ennis will be a good point for you to stop as it is not too far from Shannon Airport. A better stopping point would be in Bunratty because it is only about 15 min. to Shannon. Remember that you will need to check in 3 hrs. before your flight and allow time to turn your car in.
We stayed at a nice B&B in Bunratty and visited Durty Nellies Pub, which was right next door. Good food and drinks there! Bunratty Woolen Mills are right across the street from Bunratty Castle and lots of great shopping there.
I would suggest that you type up a proposed itinerary by your dates and post it here. Others can critique it for you.
While in Dublin, are you going to be doing any tours?
Hope this helps. Good luck. You will have a fantastic trip and fall in love w/ Ireland. The Irish people are so friendly and helpful.
Looks like you are planning to do a lot of driving! You are correct in stating that the distances look smaller but it does take much longer driving them! The roads are narrow and you will be encountering tour busses, sheep crossing the road (we saw lots of them) and just slow-moving traffic!
We had 10 days in Ireland and focused on the west coast for our first visit. We spent 3 days in Killarney and visited the Dingle Peninsula, took the Gap of Dunloe tour (spectacular) and then went to Galway for our next 5 days. We made Galway city our base and did our tours from there. We also chose not to drive and used the busses and taxis to get us around. There were 5 family members so we just split everything 5 ways. Worked out great for us.
We took an all-day tour w/ Lally Tours and visited the Connemara Region, saw where they filmed The Quiet Man, the Twelve Bens, Kylemore Abbey, Killary Harbor, through the village of Spiddal, and back to Galway City. We made lots of stops along the way for photos, etc. Absolutely a grand day! Scenery was unbelievable. We saw more rainbows that day!
Another day we took the bus to Rossaveal and then the ferry out to Innismore. We spent the day there.
We did not visit the Cliffs of Moher or the Blarney Castle simply because there wasn't enough time. Blarney Castle was too far out of the way. You can probably do the Cliffs of Moher out of Galway.
Ennis will be a good point for you to stop as it is not too far from Shannon Airport. A better stopping point would be in Bunratty because it is only about 15 min. to Shannon. Remember that you will need to check in 3 hrs. before your flight and allow time to turn your car in.
We stayed at a nice B&B in Bunratty and visited Durty Nellies Pub, which was right next door. Good food and drinks there! Bunratty Woolen Mills are right across the street from Bunratty Castle and lots of great shopping there.
I would suggest that you type up a proposed itinerary by your dates and post it here. Others can critique it for you.
While in Dublin, are you going to be doing any tours?
Hope this helps. Good luck. You will have a fantastic trip and fall in love w/ Ireland. The Irish people are so friendly and helpful.
Jun 26th, 2006, 07:20 AM
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Interesting itinerary. Spending two weeks in NI will certainly be relaxing. It's very compact and the roads there are generally better than those in the Republic.
From your post, I'm guessing that you have some place to stay in or around Belfast for the two weeks and are then moving on. You wil be spending 2 weeks in a relatively small section of Ireland and then 5 days doing an enormous amount. There is so much to see on the west coast.
I like the idea of spending a bit of time in Westport. I also don't think (to use a Michelin Green Guide term) that Blarney Castle is worth a journey. If you happened to be driving by, sure, take a peek. Otherwise, there are lots of other castles that are closer to where you are going that are as nice or nicer.
I've never been in Enniskillen or Parks castle but you'll be driving right by one or both of them. Enniskillen has some odd opening hours. For instance, they don't open until the afternoon Saturday.
Near Galway is Athenry to the east, Aughnanure outside of Oughterard, Dunguaire south in Kinvara, and of course Bunratty. Those would all be within easy reach of your path.
At Cong, you can stop into Ashford Castle which is actually a former catsle turned into a beautiful hotel. It says guests only. but you can walk into like your staying there. The grounds are beautiful and the views to Lough Corrib are quite nice.
If it is possible, it might be a good idea to leave NI a few days early to enjoy a slightly more leisurely trip down the west coast.
Bill
From your post, I'm guessing that you have some place to stay in or around Belfast for the two weeks and are then moving on. You wil be spending 2 weeks in a relatively small section of Ireland and then 5 days doing an enormous amount. There is so much to see on the west coast.
I like the idea of spending a bit of time in Westport. I also don't think (to use a Michelin Green Guide term) that Blarney Castle is worth a journey. If you happened to be driving by, sure, take a peek. Otherwise, there are lots of other castles that are closer to where you are going that are as nice or nicer.
I've never been in Enniskillen or Parks castle but you'll be driving right by one or both of them. Enniskillen has some odd opening hours. For instance, they don't open until the afternoon Saturday.
Near Galway is Athenry to the east, Aughnanure outside of Oughterard, Dunguaire south in Kinvara, and of course Bunratty. Those would all be within easy reach of your path.
At Cong, you can stop into Ashford Castle which is actually a former catsle turned into a beautiful hotel. It says guests only. but you can walk into like your staying there. The grounds are beautiful and the views to Lough Corrib are quite nice.
If it is possible, it might be a good idea to leave NI a few days early to enjoy a slightly more leisurely trip down the west coast.
Bill
Jun 27th, 2006, 08:54 AM
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Thanks again to all who responded to my posting. Yes, I agree, Bill, that we should try to shorten the N.I. part of the trip to give us more time on the west coast. We have friends up there and will be staying on the north Antrim coast and later near Belfast. Thanks for the tip about having to get to Shannon hours before departure - we had completely overlooked that. We will spend the remainder of the day that we arrive in Dublin plus 2 full days. We won't rent a car until the day that we leave to drive north. Maybe there's a day tour from Dublin to Blarney Castle that we could fit in on our 3rd day if we manage to see all the sights in Dublin on the first two days? Otherwise we will probably have to cut Blarney Castle from our itinerary. Thanks again. calguy2006
Jun 27th, 2006, 10:32 AM
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Hi calguy. I figured there were commitments there. I definitley wouldn't take a day trip from Dublin to Blarney. The success of Blarney Castle is marketing, not quality. If you were to take a day trip from Dublin, I would consider Glendalough or the Newgrange area. MUCH, much, much, much more interesting. I hold back too much don't I?
Bill
Bill
