Ireland has some impressive scenery and friendly people, but overall, I didn’t enjoy our to West and Southwest trip very much. The reason is the driving. When people discuss Ireland trips here, they mention driving in passing and talk about other stuff In fact, driving is the dominant feature of any trip to Ireland. You can rationalize it all you want, but it is constant stress and drain that sucks enjoyment from everything.

Driving on the left is not the main problem. That is fairly easy on roads between towns. The roads are two lanes, so you need only stay in your lane and everything is fine. In towns and when you have to make turn it gets trickier – especially if you are searching for signs and directions. You will make mistakes and end up in the right lane. It’s simply unavoidable, since you can’t undo years of driving habits in a few days. The moment your concentration slips, you fall back on right hand driving. Whether you will have an accident is in the hands of the traffic gods. Some people will and others won’t. It is purely a matter of luck.

I also found driving a standard transmission with the left hand to be no problem. However, I’m an experienced standard driver and left-handed as well. People who aren’t both may have some problems here.

The real problem is the road system with narrow lanes and twisting roads. Even the major roads, like the N18 which sppears as nice thick line on maps, are far inferior to the average country lane at home. And then it goes downhill. Most roads have lanes no wider than the car width. You spend hour after hour looking down the road for cars coming the other way, estimating how close you can get to the left as they pass without scraping your car on a wall or destroying your tires against the rocks. The cars pass so close you can smell the other driver’s breath. Hour after hour you do this. The strain mounts and the adrenalin rises every time you see the next car approach. You keep a steady concentration at what might be approaching around the next curve, so you have time to get out of the way. It’s it’s a tour bus, then you hold your breath at is passes and hope that you haven't steered left so far that you are going to lose your left side mirror against a tree. Perhaps the worst part is that you can’t look away from the road long enough to view the scenery, so you get nothing in return for all this aggravation.

Then there are the roundabouts, the most insane notion of traffic control every invented. They are nothing short of an absolute nightmare in heavy traffic.

The mindnumbing thing is that I drove in a relatively quite time. The thought of doing this during high tourist season is too terrible to even think about.

Other matters.

Except for uniformly excellent breakfasts, we also found the food mediocre. Not bad, just blah. And expensive. We didn't try any fancy places, so good food made be there. I can't say for sure.

In Dingle, we stayed at the Greenmount House, which gets great reviews. I can’t imagine why. It has excellent breakfast, but that’s the only plus. The room was small and plain, bordering on decrepit and the common room average. My wife isn’t American, so the owner must have thought I wasn’t either. He didn’t hesitate to make made several mildly disparaging anti-American remarks in front of me. I would not recommend the place.

We also stayed that Bunratty Lodge, which a lot of people here praise. It was OK, and I’d give it C+. It is modern and so spare that your footsteps echo in the hallway. But I wouldn’t recommend it because of the location. Bunratty consists entirely of a cluster of restaurants and pubs near the castle. The last thing you want to do in Ireland is to drink and drive, so you’d best stay walking distance to the pubs, since all you can do there is eat and drink at the pubs. Bunratty Lodge is a 40 minute walk from “town.” There are many closer places. Bunratty Woods looked interesting, a least from the outside. In fact, I would avoid Bunratty unless you plan on arriving just in time to go to bed. The place is dead, dead, dead.

On the other hand, Killeen House in Galway was one of most beautiful and elegant places I’ve ever stayed. There are gardens and 25 acres of grounds to wander next to the lake. It’s 4 miles out of town, but that’s OK since there is nothing in Galway worth bothering about.

However, the best part of the trip by far was dropping the car off at Shannon airport, where I just about kissed the ground. The rental car guy laughed at our misery. It had seen it a thousand times before.

I agree with you...I just came off a bus tour of Ireland and marveled at the ability of the bus driver and had the feeling that if I were to do the tour on my own, the driving would take much of the joy out of it. I know the prevailing opinion is that coach tours stink but I think the person driving just cannot appreciate the scenery of the country and constantly I saw how cars had to give way to trucks and buses and saw one accident when a woman driver (no offense meant) backed up to allow our coach to pass and smashed into the car behind her popping and severly damaging her trunk...

As far as food, the breakfasts were okay with what we Americans call Canadian bacon, eggs, etc. Included meals on this tour were fine although not particularly large but fine nonetheless. Lunch stops, as they are on most of these tours are on your own. Based on experience on previous tours, I am not adventuress on holiday and as a matter of fact, and I can see the bricks being thrown at me now, my sure fire solution to lunch has always been McDonalds. Reasonably priced and you doggone know what you are getting. I must say that in Ireland, as compared to just about every other European country I have been in, there were fewer McDonald's. On most of the lunch stops, I like to take a quick look at the town, find an internet cafe to deal with touching up on the day's news and a quick bite. The quick bite turned out to be a problem and without McDonald's I was stuck with varous kinds of sandwiches.

I know I know you don't go on holiday to eat at McDonald's but frankly based on my experiences and my own palates, to me it is still the best alternative for lunch (positively not dinner) or perhaps a pint of Guiness at a pub (but it's not good to drink on an empty stomach).

In Dublin I fell back on the old reliable, Japanese food and found a couple of good Japanese restaurants. I also discovered what was called a Carvery in Ireland was not a Carvery a la London but rather a grill where you could get grilled meats. No I didn't find any places serving corned beef and cabbage (but then again I didn't look that hard).

I would really opt in Ireland quite frankly for the group tour. There is so much beautiful scenery and not have to worry about where to turn off and there is enough free time on the tour to be able to meet and mingle with locals if that's what you want to do and I don't feel any of the stops skimped on the time needed to do it justice (just how long does it take to climb to the top of Blarney Castle and try to stretch your body into a proper ocnfiguration to kiss the Blarney Stone?...and once you've done it how much more time do you need??)

Just my humble humble opinion...

I'm sorry your trip was not up to expectations.

I'm going back to Ireland next year for our 4th trip. I hope people read this trip report and <b>stay home!!!</b> The Guinness tastes terrible. The people are grouchy &amp; grumpy. It rains all the time. The seafood is horrible. The scenery is an eye sore. Driving on the left side of those narrow roads is scary. Ireland is not a place you would want to visit. :-&quot;

Oh come on...everything you say may be true but how can you say the Guiness tastes terrible?

Nice try, Budman.

Give it up, Budman, you'll never get Ireland all to yourself.

We had a fantastic time driving around Ireland and NI. For me, driving is always stressful on the first day, but after that it is fine. But that's just me, I'm not saying it's easy for everyone. We loved the people and the food. But nothing is for everyone and you are certainly entitled to your opinion. It sounds like you'll never go back, so I hope you'll try to remember the good things about Ireland.

&quot;I would really opt in Ireland quite frankly for the group tour.&quot;

I agree. I generally don't like tours, but this is an exception.

Hehe...my mother and I went to Ireland in 1998. We rented a stick shift because it's a lot cheaper and she has always driven one. Before we went, I asked her if I should take lessons in stick shift so I could share the driving, but she told me to save my money.

Well, my mom ended up paying about $200 for all the damage that was done to the car. I had always thought of my mother as a good driver, but she got very nervous driving on the left and managed to get a flat, back into a pole, and sideswipe a parked car! Oh, and I got sick right at the beginning of the trip. However, we do not let these incidents ruin our memory of what was otherwise a terrific trip. Ireland will always hold a special place in my heart and I am planning to get back there one of these days.

Oh, and the stick shift came in very handy on the Connor Pass, and my mom did a great job driving it.

Sojouner : I'm sorry you had such a bad trip. I found Greenmount House to be just wonderful when I visited last month. My sons had one of the mini-suites and I had the smallest room and shower in the house. What I did have was a window seat with that beautiful view. My bed was just as comfortable, but I was happy I didn't have to share the room. They do have 2 common rooms. One with a big TV . I hope you have better luck on your next trip. Regards, Joan
Budman: I needed a good laugh today. Thanks!

Sojourner, I appreciate all that you've said. It's valuable information you're adding to Fodors for like-minded people. I hope some parts of the trip, once on solid ground, were enjoyable for you. If nothing else, you have Ireland out of your system now.

And while agree for the most part about the food. Although I have had some excellent meals there, it's only been at select places.

But you do make it sound like all those people who offered you advice prior to your trip tried to pull the wool over your eyes about the driving. It is possible that they saw things from their perspective just as you're doing now.

I doubt that everyone is just trying to get visitors to go to Ireland so that they can get into an auto accident. I doubt that people are itching to get back so they too can have a miserable time driving, don't you? Besides being a problem with Ireland, it could well be skills, an issue of where you're used to driving (I've seen worse roads near my home, but can't speak for your home), an attentiveness issue. Obviously though, it is a personal issue in that these things happened with you, but not everyone, yet you've framed them in &quot;<i>you</i> will, <i>you</i> will&quot; terms.

So it may be rationalizing, and Ireland needs no defense from me, but while caution and adaptability are required to drive in Ireland, it is done millions of times a year by non-residents. That perspective and that of the problems should both be known by those who are going. Ultimately, like anything else, know your own limitations.

During my trip last year I was the same way wrt driving on my first day. I was tense and constantly thinking &quot;gotta get there, gotta get there&quot; as I ignored the scenery and sights around me.

Then a switch flipped. I realized I was on vacation, not in a race. I bought some CDs (REM, U2, and a great 70s disco mix), cranked up the stereo, drove slower, and had a blast. If I got the least bit tired or annoyed with the roads, I stopped in the next town just to poke around for a bit -- my schedule be damned. Heck, there was no schedule really.

I'm sorry you didn't enjoy your trip as much as you had hoped, but traveling to foreign countries sometimes requires a mental adjustment, not just a time change. You absolutely HAVE to adjust and accept the local ways or you'll be miserable. If it's good enough for the locals, it's good enough for us.

I too am sorry that sojouner has had this negative experience because of the driving. However I hope that those of you who haven't been to Britain or to Ireland will not get discouraged by reading this.

We've been to the UK - and not Ireland - on five three-week trips and to all four corners and, contrary to sojouner, we ENJOYED the driving aspect. No worrying, dents or scratches.

The size of the vehicles and the roads are a pleasant relief to the scale of same in the US. Upon coming home, we were struck by how over-sized everything is here.

As for the roundabouts, I think they're ingenious. You can safely cross paths with other cars without having to stop at a sign or a red light - as long as you cede the right of way to your right. One was recently installed here in my hometown and what a difference it makes from the previous intersection with its 4-way stop signs!

Sojouner,
Your comments on driving through Ireland were somewhat similiar to mine on my trip last month.I am also left handed and found driving a manual no problem at all.The roads are as narrow as you say,but the way I coped with that was an attitude adjustment on my part.Your'e right about it hard to enjoy the scenery with the need to be constantly attentive to the road.So what I did was to just pull over to the side of the road to enjoy the view.I also found it very useful to have a navigator with a good map and directions to be indispensable.

As for roundabouts,I think they are one of the greatest road innovations ever.So much better than having to constantly sit at signals in order to change directions.

As far as food goes,I was pleasantly surprised at the good quality of it.The breakfasts were large and varied at the places I stayed.I found that they carried me all the way to dinner,with no need for lunch any more substantial than a Guinness.Dinners, while certainly not cheap, were of mostly high quality,both Cullinans in Doolin,and Lime Tree in Kenmare come to mind.

In the end I feel that my 10 days,covering 800 miles has satisfied my Irish curiosity and feel no great compunction to return.

We have driven thru England and Italy without any problems, but I am afraid Ireland also did us in. We were so happy to turn that car in! We were there for 6 days and I was a nervous wreck the whole time, and I was the passenger. My husband was not much better. We got on this little, winding, one lane road and met a bus and we had to back up over a mile - not fun. My husband also takes his photography seriously and was very frustrated because we would see these beautiful vistas with cows or sheep grazing and there was absolutely no place to stop the car. Rock walls on one side and cars or sheer drops on the other.
It took me a martini or two each night to get over the days drive. We did stay at some lovely manor houses with excellent chefs.
If I ever go back it will be with a tour or if I could afford it I would do it like a couple we met while we were there - they hired someone to drive their car for them. Sounds like the best of all worlds.

You know, sojourner, you made me think: I never had to experience this! My brother in law and I agreed that it would be better for one of us to do all of the driving, rather than have to train a &quot;new guy&quot; the second morning. Bless his heart, now I REALLY appreciate all he endured -- trying to stay between the hedges and hearing the three of us yelling at him all the time.

As a result, I imagine my impressions of the trip to Ireland are much more positive than is his. Same between you and me: the experience of Ireland was so powerful and stimulating to me (and I normally do not eat a large breakfast) that it sticks in my mind as one of my best European destinations ever.

I have driven in Scotland and it was much, much better. The infrasystem is much more developed. Once, and only once, I drove in London. Never, never again, but for an entirely different set of reasons.

Your posting caused me to rethink why people like to visit certain countries, and why they do bus tours vs. driving, and why certain foods appeal and others do not. It's one's personal comfort zone, plus the totality of the experience. Some activities -- like trying to survive driving on the wrong side of the road -- so dominate the experience that the trip is either postive or negative based on that single factor.

I'm surprised you did not mention the weather. Yours must have been better than ours. We had three days of sunshine out of 11. But, and here's my point: we were prepared for bad weather and it did not bother us.

The driving -- had I done it -- probably would have ruined the trip for me, too, because it was like nothing anyone could describe on these pages, and I was sitting in the co-pilot's seat. Even there, it was constant stress, just watching Ireland go by from a totally different perspective. (Did you know that you can traverse traffic circles across the top of the middle? We didn't either, but we did, several times...)

Sorry your experience was so negative. To us, it was a visit we will never forget, and in a very positive sense.

I'll have to ask my brother-in-law if he agrees with our assessment. I suspect he will have a different view.

Jim

So should we do that bicycle tour that we have always wanted to do when we visit Ireland rather than renting a car and driving? Disregarding the driving on the left problem, is the driving really a lot worse than in the villages in Andalucia where you tuck in the car mirrors so that they won't scrape the sides of the buildings?

As an avid road cyclist,4-5000 miles a year,I would not do a bicycle trip through Ireland unless it was all on secondary low vehicle use roads.I came across occasional cyclists on the National roads and thought them to be crazy.There are way to many blind corners where a vehicle coming up behind you would have no way to avoid hitting you.

Driving a car can be stressful enough,but on a bicycle it almost seems suicidal.

Interesting report! Thanks for having the guts to post something beside &quot;Oh the food was yummy&quot;! and &quot;I found the cutest B&amp;B&quot;. Everyone has differnt experiences and different travel styles and expectations, that what makes the forum a good resource. Sometimes things are not what we expect them to be, or think they should be, your report offered a few points for people who may not have been to Ireland to consider. Thanks for sharing.

I felt bad because my 70-ish parents went to Ireland recently for a family wedding and came back really less-than-thrilled. They were REALLY unhappy with the driving. They were also very disappointed with the bed-and-breakfast plan (or whatever you call it) they used. They thought the b and b's were really boring, not especially welcoming, and sub-par accomodations. At their ages any trip to Europe might be their last and I felt bad they didn't love it - or go back to France or Spain which they did love. Oh well.