Ireland - Two Questions
 

Arriving Shannon Airport early Sept 2nd. Planning on stopping in Ennis enroute to Doolin for quick sightseeing and bite to eat. Then I read there is alot of traffic in the Ennis area???? Question One: With being new drivers should we avoid this area and head right on to Doolin?

Spending two nights Doolin, two nights Dingle, two night Killarney. Next morning leave Killarney, stop in Kenmare then continue to Kinsale for the night via coastal route.

Morning after Kinsale, possibly stop at Blarney Stone, continuing to Cahir Castle, Swiss Cottage and Rock of Cashel. Overnight Cashel.

Next day Jerpoint Abbey, Kells Abbey and Kilkenny. This is Question Two: Should we overnight in Kilkenny or head further north as the following day we plan to stop at Glendalough and Powerscourt. Continue to Dublin to return rentals and two nights Dublin. Leaving from Dublin airport back to the states. We have five 20+ in our group of ten so want to be somewhere near the pubs at night.

This is the third time you have posted these questions.

I didn't answer on the other two occasions because I have no opinion to offer. I still haven't.

Click on your name at the top of the page and you will find your previous questions and the one answer they elicited.

Padraig, I know I posted this more than once but never saw it posted and I did click on my name and it never showed. Maybe my computer....sorry.

There's not alot of traffic in the Ennis area--Ennis is fairly small from that standpoint. The main road goes right through, though you'll be turning off to get to Doolin. There's alot of traffic up in the Galway area, but if you're going to Doolin you won't be up that way.

The roads out of Shannon airport are not as crazy as those around Dublin. We have alternately gotten on the road and stopped for breakfast, or gotten our car and gone back to the upstairs cafeteria at the airport for tea/food. I think you will be fine stopping in Ennis. (On our first trip near Ennis, we ended up going the wrong way on a one-way street, so be careful!)

As for your second question, we went to Kilkenny from Dublin via Glendalough. I think you could probably stay in Kilkenny and get an early start in the morning.

Thank you Holldoll and allisonm for your helpful and kind replies.

We arrived at Shannon early, got the rental car and headed to Doolin on our way to Cliffs of Moher. This was June 2002. We were exhauseted from the flight and DH had to adjust to the driving situation while it was rush hour with lots of cars coming the opposite way. We were so hungry and the towns we went thru were empty with no open businesses/restaurants.
Outside of Doolin we stopped at a B&B and asked could we purchas breakfast-she said yes and were were so happy!We drove about an hour and we were at the Cliffs.
After this 3 hour drive under less than ideal conditions DH tilted the seat back and slept for 3 hours in the parking lot of the Cliffs of Moher. I had to first see them and then I came back to the car and slept too. When DH walked out to see the cliffs it was so windy (that the wind had woke us from shaking the car)I had a hard time steadying the camera for a photo. So...I would suggest staying close to Shannon while you recover from the flight.
We especially loved the Dingle Peninsula, Connemarra and the Ashford Castle.

hbo6,

One of my trips our first time driver in Ireland drove from Shannon to Lisdoonvarna which is close to Doolin in 1 and a half hours. I think it would be easy to stop in Ennis for a walk around and something to eat. If you find Temple Gate Hotel in the heart of Ennis, they have their own parking lot and you could go in for breakfast and after walk around town without moving your car.

You have a good itinerary and you should have a wonderful trip and I hope you do. Joan

Sounds like you are doing a similar trip to the one we did last September--up to Kinsale.(Don't miss the walking tour in Kinsale--the Irish guide is a charmer and it's a great tour)

Ennis is actually a great place to stop but it was crowded when we drove through.

My husband couldn't find parking, so I jumped out of the car at the bank on the corner. Went in and got some Euros and then walked down the street to the Vodaphone Store to get a SIM card for the cell phone I picked up on Ebay for $25. Took me less than 15 minutes to do both and then we were back in the car.

If you are at all interested in golf, you drive right by Lahinch--we stopped and actually got tee times for the next day. The town right past the golf course has several little pubs--we stopped there for lunch. We then drove to Doolin and visited the Cliffs that day.

There are stone walls on the drive from the airport to Doolin--they seem mighty close when you are on the passenger side of the car. We didn't find that the driving in Ireland was as difficult as we expected though. I always knew the name of the next town we would drive through. We just followed the signs to that town and then continued to our destination, noting the next town each time--worked great for us.

Traffic in Ennis is not as bad now due to the N18 bypass. Just driving through Ennis you'll wonder why folks would stop at all. Instead, park and walk to the city center. It's really quite nice and easy to walk. I think the music pubs in Ennis are superior to those in Doolin if for no other reason that they are not as crowded. But there is another reason and I've heard what I feel is a higher quality of music there.

Stopping at Jerpoint, Kells, Kilkenny with an overnight in Glendalough is not doing justice to Kilkenny. I find it to be one of the nicer towns (technically a city) in Ireland and well worth a couple of nights. If you don't stay the night, it may not be worth the visit as there is too much to see in a couple of hours.

Personally, I would spend two nights in Kenmare and not Killarney. Kenmare is much less of a tourist slum and really quite a charming village. I like villages to wild tourist bustle, so perhaps others would disagree with me.

Hope this helps.

Bill