Ireland itinerary (another one sorry!) Appreciate fine tuning thanks.
 

Hello everyone. Well I have received some great tips from my other post and think I have found the romantic cottage for June 2009!

Just after some critique of draft itinerary with regard to travel days and length of time in particular regions please....

We prefer country to city, photography, local people (and pub experiences which it appears can't be missed!), history but not too many museums - maybe a horse ride somewhere.

Fly into Cork Wednesday (Day 1)before lunch having flown from Oz.

Days 1 - 3 Kinsale
Day 4 - drive to cottage Kilmakillogue Harbour area - stay for 5 nights - ROK, Beara Peninsula, Gap of Dunloe...
Day 9 & 10 Dingle (? The Shores)
Day 11 somewhere near Cliffs of Moher
Day 12
Day 13 - 15 Donegal area ? Kilcar cottage
Day 16 drive to Glendalough (really want to see St.Kevins - is this silly?)
Day 17 back to Dublin for last 2 nights

* Do we need somewhere between Cliffs of Moher and Donegal?

* Should we abandon Glendalough (hope to ditch car in Dublin so don't want to do as day trip from there and would like to stay o'night if we go)

* Is Kinsale worthy of 3 nights or should a night go somewhere else

*Should we be staying in Dingle itself to enjoy the pub culture or will we have enough opportunities for that elsewhere given that we have at least one cottage stay and maybe same in Donegal?

Any other thoughts gratefully accepted!

I have seen a heap of requests for review of Ireland itineraries and have read many and tried to learn from them but thank anyone who has time or inclination to look at mine specifically.

ttt

Wow this looks really great! Looks perfect.

We drove through Kilcar and I thought it looked like a great place to stay. Really beautiful. We were on our way to hike on the nearby cliffs.

Glengesh pass just beyond Kilar is a gorgeous drive & there are so many great hikes in the area. We hiked Mt. Errigal and we spent a day at Glenveagh National Park. I loved Glebe Gallery, another site near Letterkenny.

One of our day trips the week we stayed in Kenmare was down the Ring of Kerry to Portmagee where we'd reserved space on the boat headed out to Skellig Michael. That was an incredible day trip. We reserved space by stopping at the visitor center in Kenmare and they gave me the number for the boat captain.

Our favorite drive in the Kenmare area was the Borlin Valley. It was rugged, scenic, just us, abandoned stone cottages and a lot of sheep. The second best drive for us there was on the ROK, south of Glencar, through Macgillycuddy's Reeks. It's a narrow steep road, really beautiful.

We drove from Shannon to Donegal once and it was fine. We stopped at Carrowmore Megalithic Cemetery near Sligo and loved it.

You'll have a great time!

Thank you rosetravels - I have picked up lots of tips from you and can now add a few more!
As many fodorites have said before me, personal experiences are invaluable when one is planning from this far away!!!

Hate to be the one to rain on your parade, but ...

Day 16 is rather unlikely. Not impossible, mind you, but a really LONG, HARD day.

My advise -- drive Kilcar to Dublin. If Glendalough is THAT important, visit it as a daytrip from Dublin. There are a number of Tour Companies that offer full and half-day trips.

Here's the hard facts:

According to the route planning function at http://www.aaroadwatch.ie

Kilcar to Dublin Airport (to drop off the car) VIA Glendalough is396.08 Kilometers (that's 246.1 miles), routing you via the N56 to N15 to N3, then through part of Northern Ireland on A46, A4 and A509, before rejoining the Republic's N3 to the M50 to the M11 and on. AA says it takes 6 hours and 28 minutes of drive time.

While I have NO doubt that a DETERMINED Irish citzen might achieve that estimate, I would be shocked if you might manage that same feat in anything under 8,5 hours.

Then, you would need to add in the time you wanted to spend touring the site AND realize that it will take you AT LEAST an hour (or more) to actually return the car and be transported into Dublin City Center.

Interestingly enough, using AA's route, when you join the M50 from off the N3, you will actually be only 8.2 miles from the airport.

AA says Kilcar to Dublin is 273.12 KM (169.7 miles), using mostly the same route previously mentioned. They say 4 hrs and 18 minutes drive time. I say it will be closer to six -- possibly more, if you stop for photo options and extended snack / toilet / rest stretches.

After you add in the car return and transport to the city, you can easily have spent 8-10 hours since departing Kilcar.

Is that what you want?

Bob

Hi Bob, was hoping you would chip in, your info has also been invaluable so far, thanks.

Take your point it will be a big day but was actually meaning to spend the night (Day 16) in Glendalough and then return car and us to Dublin next day with subsequent two nights in Dublin (Days 17 & 18.)

Would this way work or still madness?

Could I also ask your opinion about Day 12? I was thinking maybe around Clifden but would it be more feasible to just push on and add another night to Donegal?

I will reiterate the idea of going to Dublin instead and doing a day trip to Glendalough. Glendalough is beautiful and worth the trip, IMHO - just not from the other end of the country! :)

Hi ozgirl:

I think the issue of Day 16 is that, by the time you make it to Glendalough, it will be very late in the day. Bob's research and advice is really good. I don't know how much time you'll have for enjoying it. You could of course, see it 1st thing in the morning and then go drop off the car. Depending on the status of the M50, it's roughly and hour to the airport. It could be worse if traffic is very bad, not an unusual occurrence.

To your other questions:

Yes, i would pick a place between Doolin and Donegal. Perhaps Westport (which isn't directly on the way), but is a great town. You will be sad you didn't stay longer. It would also give you a short intro to Connemara.

Most places in Ireland are worthy of three nights. That said, if you could add a night to Westport and cut a night form Kinsale, absolutely.

You can enjoy the pub culture in most places. I love the Shores so I always stay there. That said, I've driven over that pass many many times at night, in fog and so on. Guinness, believe it or not, is quite low in alcohol so I have to be slamming them, (which I don't) to get in trouble. I usually drink pretty slow there and really, never remember feeling drunk. Of course, I also tend to play in sessions there which slows down my drinking a lot.

I did a fabulous horseback riding trip in 2005 in Northern Donegal (in Dunfanaghy). The ride took us across beaches and up to the top of cliffs. Dingle has some horseback options too which would be beautiful.

Hope this is helpful.

Bill

Thank you Greendragon and Bill.
I am rushing off to work at the moment but will check my map again this evening and investigate Westport etc.

Would love to hear more about the horse riding also... was it a day trek or longer? I am up for an overnight but my husband is not sure his backside could cope!

ozgirl - I think Bill's idea is very good. You can easily take a day (or even 2) away from Kinsale to add to Westport. Westport is a great town, great pubs, great scenery. We loved it. We spent a day in Kinsale (day trip from Kenmare) and it was charming but there were many tourists. We preferred all our other more 'outdoorsy' day trips to that day.

Ok given those comments on Kinsale -what about doing Glendalough somehow at the beginning instead of 3 nights in Kinsale? I know it would be backtracking but less of a drive than Donegal to Glendalough at the end?

Ours was a 2-3 hour tour. We used Dunfaghy Stables: http://www.dunfanaghystables.com/ Thay also do day trips and over nights. We had 9 of us on this trip (bad idea) so they gave us our own tour. It was really a great trip despite the rain that soaked us near the end and a helmet that fit me more like a large mixing bowl.

Here is a Dingle company I know of: http://www.dinglehorseriding.com/

Bill

My BAD!!! (The wife says that I am the Poster Child for ADD)

The drive from Kilcar to Glendalough is rated at 321.4 Km (199.7 Miles) and 5 hrs 11 minutes -- Still a long ways, but do-able -- especially in June, when it won't be well and truely darkuntill nearly 11PM. Plus, coming from OZ, the roads MAY be less daunting than for those of us from the US.

My suggestion echos Bill, relative to Westport and Kinsale. With five nights in Lauragh, you'll have plenty of time to scour West Cork and South Kerry.

The drive from Dingle to the Cliffs is relatively short and I'm NOT a huge fan of Doolin -- particularly in June. Might be a good place for lunch, though. If you 'Pushed On' to Ballyvaghan, it's STILL only 190Km (118 Miles). Then, the next day's drive to Westport, via Galway and Lenaun reads as 147.42 Km (91.6 Miles) through a decent part of Connemara (N59 to Maam Cross).

Add in an extra hour to detour to Kylemore Abbey - and AT LEAST as long to tour it.

Another VERY worth-while detour is on offer at Lenaun -- it will add only 15-20 miles to the trip, but you could spend HOURS enjoying what is very possibly one of THE most scenic stretch in all of Ireland -- The Doo Lough Valley, Killary Fijord, and Croagh Patrick.

The drive from Westport to Kilcar would be 206.5 Km (128 Miles). A bit long, but LOTS of interesting diversions to pause at -- Sligo, Drumcliffe (Yeat's Grave), etc.

We traveled much this same route, last year, and the year before. While I never finished the Trip Report for '08, the pictures might interest you....

Trip in '07:

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=35054440

Trip in '08:

http://ireland.activeboard.com/index...picID=18964980

Bob

Thank you once again.

Will have fun checking out these suggestions when work is not distracting me!!

Yes, I think we from OZ do see distances a little differently but I am mindful of speed limitations and distractions along the way so very much appreciate first hand knowledge.

Would it be feasible to go to Glendalough from Cork on Day 1, spend the night there and then travel down the coast to Kinsale?
This would be the easiest way to take a day off of Kinsale.

I'd spend the first night in Cork or Kinsale to cut down on driving. I'd then go to Glendalough at the end, as you'd planned, before Dublin. That makes sense to me.

Like this:
Day 1 Kinsale
Days 2 - 6 (5 nights) Kenmare
Day 7 & 8 Dingle
Day 9 Stop at Cliffs of Moher, visit the Burren as it's fun to walk there. Stay___?
Days 10 & 11 Westport
Days 12, 13, 14, 15 Donegal
Day 16 - up early, drive to Glendalough, stay there. If needed, you could also visit first thing on the 17th
Day 17 & 18 Dublin. (Visit the Guinness factory!)

After a who-knows-how-long flight from OZ?????

Well, I don't know, but I wouldn't think so.. Even if you do get off the plane well-rested..

http://www.aaireland.ie/routes says that Cork Airport to Glendalough is 259.4 Km (161.2 Miles). They give the time at 4 hrs and 7 minutes. It would probably take ME about 6 hours. Your mileage may vary ....:)

I think the best (or, the least worst) of the possible scenarios would be the plan that has you drive Kilcar to Glendalough.

Kinsale is 33 KM from the Cork Airport. Even allowing for the inevitable delays in getting your baggage and picking up the rental car, that should still put you IN Kinsale, in under 2 hours of landing. If you are well and truly rested, you could 'swing by' Blarney, enroute -- only adding in a total of 24 extra Km. I'm not a fan of the whole, 'Kiss THE Stone' stuff, but the grounds are magnificent and I believe they have the Manor House refurbished and open, now...
That would STILL place you into Kinsale by early afternoon. Even if you needed to take a wee nap, with daylight until half nine or ten, you'ld have LOTS of time to explore the town, the Fort, the pubs and the food venues. And, all day and night of Day 2, to see the rest.
Kinsale is a great harbor/ gormet/TOURIST town -- well worth a vist of a day or two, in MY opinion, but youare more likely to be mingling with Yanks and Brits there...
For me, the 'Real Ireland' is a tad further West...

Bob

Thank you Rose and Bob,
My problem with Kinsale is that cottage is booked from Day 4 so cannot go with your suggestion Rose as much as it makes sense.

Essentially we have 3 nights to kill from landing until cottage starts from day 4. I haven't confirmed accommodation anywhere else though so can still change plans for those first 3 nights if necessary?

Now, I'm ordinarily NOT a fan of the 'One Night Stand', but ...

Night 1: Kinsale, per my last post.
Night 2: Glendalough
Night 3: Either Kinsale, or further West - my vote would be Clonakilty, to drop into DeBarra's
or, forgo the SW coast, Kinsale to Bantry and pick a spot inland ...

Bob

Can you check with the cottage to see if you can move the date up a couple of days? If not...perhaps Bob's series of one night stands :) or perhaps you can go to Dingle before the cottage?

Cottage is strictly Saturday to Saturday but am going to investigate some of Bob's one night stands!!!

Thanks again.