initial stages of planning a trip to ireland!! i've been to the south part, and we are heading to the western coast.
how long of a drive from galway to connemara? flights into Shannon don't look good, how long is a train ride from dublin to galway? is renting a car best?
is a belfast side trip possible? thanks!

"how long of a drive from galway to connemara?" - what part of connemara are you visiting? It takes about an hour and a half to get from Galway city to Clifden.

"how long is a train ride from dublin to galway?" - about 3 hours.

"is renting a car best?" - yes, particularly if you want to visit places like Connemara. You won't need a car for Dublin though - it's easier without.

"is a belfast side trip possible?" - of course. Belfast is about 2 hours from Dublin by train, so you could do a day trip, or spend a little longer, depending on the amount of time you have. You could do this trip by train, but IMO it would be nice to drive - if you had time you could stop at Newgrange on the way, and also visit the Giants Causeway.

cailin, it looks like we'll have to fly into dublin, but want to head straight out (by car or train) to galway. but perhaps in this case, we will just drive to belfast first, than down to galway...

There's a CityLink (Private) Bus Service from Dublin airport to Galway (Tourist Office, about 300m from Eyre Sq.). It runs hourly during the day and takes about 4-hours. Saves having to go to BusÄras and change. I took it once and connected with BusEireann to Ross'A Veal (Connemara). Check out: http://www.citylink.ie or http://www.Buseireann.com

www.aaroadwatch.ie for route planning, time/distance estimates. The times are only approx...in my opinion, if AA says four hours, best to count on five. Figure about 30-35 miles per hour, on average.
If you rent a car, you have to tell them ahead of time that you are going into the North, for insurance purposes. Since you have already seen the Southwest, cover N.I. first, moving on to Donegal, Sligo, Mayo and then the Connemeara and Galway. It will minimize 'back-tracking'.

good ideas, all...finding flights in and out of shannon would be ideal...many thanks!

Hi,

Yes, I agree. Ireland is so pleasantly easy to drive in relatively short times. The country is so beautiful that even the short drives seem to fly by. I might even get off the main highways and roads and visit the less touristy cities, too. Stop in a pub for lunch and eat with the locals, get caught in an Irish traffic jam....

What about flying into Shannon and out of Dublin? Or vice versa? That way, you really won't "back-track?"

Have a great trip! (I'm jealous!)

Best Regards,
Julia

how long is the car vs. train ride from dublin to shannon?

I would estimate as probably pretty close to the same, unless by driving, you find some stops to distract you (Kildare, Cashel, Limmerick, Shannon, etc. come to mind). Would you be flying into Dublin and out of Shannon, or must you fly out of Dublin, as well?
Makes a big difference.

the flights from paris cdg only go to dublin. hmm. may have to consider a car rental, and seeing alot of the countryside...

If you're planning on doing the southwest as well, from Connemara to Cork, etc. I've noticed that AerLingus has flights from CDG direct to Cork, if that's useful to you.

Just a thought .. have you checked on flights in Belfast?

italian...i have! i can't find anyone (that i would fly) that goes into belfast. any suggestions? i do see that aer lingus flies into cork, so, that might be a possibility.

Haven't been to Belfast, yet.. so can't comment on that. Flew into Cork one summer though, Aer Lingus from London-Gatwick. It wasn't a bad flight, at all (we had my wife's parents -82 and 74, at the time -- with us). Cork has a nice, little airport, on the west side of the city. If you are departing from Dublin, you can head north, to Galway, stopping mid-way, at Bunratty. The drive will take about 4 hours, exclusive of tourist stops along the way. From there, you can do a circular drive out through the Connemeara, visiting Donegal, Northern Ireland and ending in Dublin.
If you are flying out of Shannon, I would recommend heading to Dublin first,taking a break stop in Cashel, then traveling counter-clockwise - N.I., Donegal, Connemeara, Galway and ending at Shannon.
When are you going, and how many in your group? What is on your list of interests and 'must-see' sites? The more details you provide, the more help you are likely to get.

thanks italian! connemara, and galway are the main points of the trip. it will be 2-3 adults, so no problem with the car. belfast will be a real plus. maybe one nights rest in dublin before the drive to galway...what's in bunratty?

Bunratty holds the Castle and folk park. I mention it as a reknowned tourist attraction, almost exactly 1/2 way between Cork and Galway. There are lots of attractions along the way as well, South of Limmerick is Lough Gur, Limmerick has the Treaty Stone, King John's Castle and the Hunt Museum. Just north of Bunratty and Shannon is the Cragganowean Project, just to name a few.
If you arrive in Cork, will it be coming directly from the states, via CDG, or after having spent time there? It matters, relative to your state of rest. If you are coming into Cork with little, or no sleep, the two hour drive to Bunratty would be a good place to spend the night, otherwise, it is a good, mid=point travel break.
Once you firm up your plans, let us know. There's a lot of good know-how here on Connemeara trips and routes.

thanks, i'll wait to talk to my dad and we'll weigh our options.