tmac...

Do you recommend any of the places you stayed (guesthouse, B&B, etc.)?

KatieH, I do not think that anybody was particularly rude to jedivader, not nearly as rude as he was in his response.

As happens with most destinations, there is a subgroup on this forum that is particularly knowledgeable about Ireland, and it is common that the members of that group feel a need to advise people to cut their itineraries. Because it happens so often, the "green blur" has become part of the vocabulary here, and accumulated exasperation sometimes shows.

Since your post, jedivader has been rude about my position (about which, incidentally, he is wrong).

As you post with the status of being a Fodor's Editor, why not call jedivader for his manner and tone?

I loved the hotel we stayed at in Dublin (Brooks Hotel), but it was a hotel, not a guest house. The rate was 180euros per night.

We did not stay in Belfast, so I cannot provide any recommendations.

In the Ballycastle area, we stayed at Crockatinney Guest House, which was 25 GBP per person per night. Not nearly as luxorious as Brooks, but clean and in a great location for exploring the North Antrim Coast.

In the Galway area, we stayed at Ashford Castle, so again, I don't have a recommendation for B&B's or Guest Houses.

I'm not sure how well Belfast would work as a base for exploring the North Antrim Coast (Giant's Causeway, Dunluce Castle, Carrick-a-rede, Bushmills). It's a rather long drive.

Also, the drive from Belfast to Galway will be quite lengthy and will most likely use up a whole day. Viamichelin indicates it is 341 km and will take 4 1/2 hours.

The drive from Dublin to Belfast is pretty quick - most of it is on the M1, which is a normal, multi-lane, wide highway.

Check on Irelandyes.com I did a lot of my research there and found it to be very helpful.

jedivader:

Glad you were able to come to a less ambitious itinerary. I truly think you will have a much more enjoyable time with less on your plate.

I hope all the folks here were able to help.

If you would like a recommendation on sites in and just north of Dublin, please let me know. Or, click on my name to see prior trip reports... I have them all on my website, as well.

There are also lots of things to visit on the trip from Dublin to Belfast. Newgrange neolithic burial mound (huge and impressive, you can walk inside), Hill of Tara (where Irish kings have been crowned for millenia), Slane Abbey, the Boyne Valley, all sorts of places.

We stayed in O'Neill's Victorian B&B, which was inexpensive but noisy. Good earplugs made it fine. They are right near Trinity College, so very central and convenient. I think it was like E35 a night per person, sharing a triple.

OK...here we go.

I just spoke with my wife and since Galway is such a long distance to and from Belfast & Dublin, we've decided to:

Day 1: stay overnight in Dublin so we are not driving while tired. (thinking of Avalon Hostel).

Day 2: head to Northern Ireland. Not sure what area to stay in yet. We want to do the Bushmills area attractions and see other sights in and around the area/Belfast.

Day 3: Northern Ireland

Day 4: maybe still Northern Ireland overnight or head back to Dublin area this morning.

Day 5: already in Dublin area or heading to Dublin area in morning. Do things in and around area.

Day 6: Dublin area. Doing things in and around area, only drive as far as we feel.

Thinking of Ophira (www.ophira.ie) in Dun Laoghaire. It seems like a nice place and decent price as far as I can tell. Plus, we would be south of the city and be able to do things south of Dublin (Wicklow, Wexford, Kildare, Kilkenny). All depend on how much driving we want to do. I think our first night in Dublin will be enough to see what we want to see, we'll be there for almost and entire day and overnight.

Should we not rent a car out first night and then get it the next morning or would that be too much of a problem? Since we are staying in Dublin that first night, we don't need the car for anything.

Padraig, my comments were meant more to remind veterans of Fodor's to have some patience; as a newbie to the board I know I would have been taken off guard (and a little angered) if someone had suggested sympathy for my travel companions.

Jedivadar-- participating on public forums (not just this one) takes a slightly thick skin, a willingness to take things in stride, and the ability to let comments go that you don't find particularly helpful.

Happy Friday!

jedivader,

You made a very nastly remark to an old lady who was just trying to get you to listen to the good advice you were getting. I'm happy for you that you have taken it and hope you have a very enjoyable trip.

jedivar, sounds like a nice, relaxing trip. I've been to Dun Laoghaire, and it's a pleasant, seaside town.

Some daytrips to consider from the south side:

Powerscourt Gardens and Falls
Glendalough Abbey (my fave place in Ireland)

From the north side:
Newgrange
Hill of Tara
Malahide manor house
Seaside drive

From the west side:
National Stud Farm (horses!), Japanese Gardens (they are on the same estate)

Inside Dublin:
Hop on/Hop off bus to get you oriented
Dublin Castle
Dublin Zoo
Phoenix Park
Trinity College/Book of Kells
Guinness Factory tour
Jameson Factory tour
Countless museums, churches, abbeys

Kilkenny is a bit of a drive from Dublin - it took us over 3.5 hours our first day there (never doing it right after a flight again!!) and it was well dark when we did get there. However, Kilkenny is one of my favorite cities in Ireland. It's a great medieval city with cathedrals, a castle, and winding cobblestone alleys throughout

Thanks Dragon and tmac for all the help, keep it coming if you think of anything else.

Looking at Ballycastle to be my base-camp in Northern Ireland right now.

Anyone recommend the Dublin pass?
www.visitdublin.com/dublinpass

Observations on this post.

Fodor's Editor Katie_H pats "NEWBIE" jedivader on the head and apologizes for veteran Fodor's members comments. She ignores jedivader's rude comments such as "screw the rest (irisheyes & chatham)" & "your smart-ass remarks and rip on people". All Joan (chatham) did was suggest a bus tour. That makes jedivders comments more reprehensible.

After jedivers unkind comments, Joan replied:

"jedivader, You made a very nastily remark to an old lady who was just trying to get you to listen to the good advice you were getting. I'm happy for you that you have taken it and hope you have a very enjoyable trip."

Who is taking the high road here?

jedivader told everyone: "This board has the feeling of an AOL chatroom full of idiots and teenagers now. If you don't have something useful to say, just shut-up and let others respond."

Who sounds like they are in an AOL chatroom? Who sounds like an idiot and teenager?

Is jedivader really open to all opinions? Is he showing respect to others?

Fodor's Editor Katie_H is naive if she thinks jedivader is a Fodor's newbie. He has a profile of Q&As 3 pages long. This post from him is telling: http://www.fodors.com/forums/pgMessa...p;tid=35048044

--------------------------------------

Author: jedivader
Date: 08/11/2007, 06:48 pm

Man, everyone seems to be giving me the same advice. First I've ever encountered that, usually get mixed opinions.

I just don't ever see us getting out that way again just to do Moab area if we only do Zion area this time. This sucks!!

----------------------------------------

Do we notice a trend here?

Who is rude? Who is immature?

IrishEyes post was a bit sarcastic but was it done for the sake of being sarcastic or to bring attention to something? Anyone ever hear of reverse psychology? Did she provide ANY useful information in her post at all? Was her comment "I would hate to be the other couple along for the ride!" a legitimate opinion or a "smart-ass remark"?

Fodor's Editor Katie_H says: "I do think some of the posts on this particular thread are rude; advice is needed, not judgment."

Fodor's Editor Katie agrees with jedivader as she writes "as a newbie to the board I know I would have been taken off guard (and a little angered) if someone had suggested sympathy for my travel companions."

jedivader already posted a topic about "Canyoning/Coasteering Trips in Ireland" and was informed there are no canyons in Ireland by youngblueeyes.

Did he read it? If so, does he take advice or notice comments given?

http://www.fodors.com/forums/pgMessa...p;tid=35023689

Padriag posted: "I had already decided not to offer any further advice or assistance to jedivader because I am simply not interested in his or her approach to visiting a place. But if I was still on the field, I would walk off now."

Mixed messages from jedivader: "So because you don't like my approach to visiting a place, trying to do as much as possible, you don't want to assist." & "If you don't have something useful to say, just shut-up and let others respond."

Is any forum member like Padriag under obligation to reply and assist?

Would you want to assist jedivader knowing he could turn on you and call you names if he does not like your opinion?

How do veteran Fodor's members like being scolded by the editor for not handling another veteran member (not newbie) with kid gloves?

Fantastic how things have been flipped on me because a couple of posters thought it fun to make smart comments.

Once again, thanks to all that provided assistance...most recently GreenDragon.

And as you can tell by reading any and every one of my posts since I've been on Fodor's, there has never been any type of conflict. If it wasn't for talking with a few people concerning my trip to Utah, we would have been making a big mistake with our first plan.

Monitor.....there is canyoning in Ireland. You can contact Catherine Bannon at Bluelough.

www.mountainandwater.com

Thank you, Moniter, I did mean well but maybe I did sound too much like a grandmother. In your post I noticed I misspelled nasty. I think I'd better stay away from this thread.

Kind Regards, Joan