Need advice on driving times and "must-see" attractions!
 

My husband and I are going to Ireland in September for a wedding and will be staying around Ashford Castle in County Mayo for three nights. After that, we only have three more nights to explore beautiful Ireland. <BR><BR>My husband is interested in going straight to Dublin for the night (Guinness lover). Then we were thinking about exploring County Cork (Mizen Head) and County Kerry (Dingle Peninsula). Is this possible? How long does it take to drive from County Mayo to Dublin and then Dublin to western County Cork? What other sites should we see on the way? <BR><BR>Any suggestions on B&Bs in the southwestern counties? We are flying in and out of Shannon airport and need to stay the last night around it and maybe the night before around Killarney or Cork City?????? <BR><BR>Help--I want to do it all!! <BR><BR>Thanks! <BR><BR><BR><BR>

From County Mayo, Dublin is a several hour (7+ hours) drive. If you have only 3 nights, I would not go all the way to Dublin. There are a lot of great things to see on the West coast of Ireland to waste all that driving. I loved Dingle, the Cliffs of Moher must be seen at least once in a lifetime. (Doolin is a great Irish town to see, near the Cliffs).

Although repetitively offered here (by me, inparticular), this advice is valuable for any traveler to Europe planning a driving trip. You should become familiar with one or all of the three major websites for distances and driving times:<BR><BR>www.viamichelin.com<BR>www.mappy.com <BR><BR>or<BR><BR>www.geoshellstar.com<BR><BR>Be st wishes,<BR><BR>Rex<BR>

Julie:<BR><BR>I agree with Kate. The trip to Dublin is a long one and then you have to find your way around, and get out the next day. The Guinness Brewery "Tour" doesn't actually show any beer being made. It's more of a Guinness museum....self guided tour. It's OK, but not worth 10-15 hours of roundtrip travel. You can find great Guinness all over the country and there are lots of shops that sell Guinness paraphernalia.<BR><BR>Even leaving Dublin out, you would be doing a lot of driving to get all of the way down to Mizen head and then back, presumably stopping at places like Dingle, Kenmare, Cliffs of Moher etc in one direction or the other. Don't get me wrong, I love Mizen, but that might be a bit much.<BR><BR>You could make it to the Dingle area from Cong, though it will take the good part of a day to get there.<BR><BR>Unless you have a VERY late afternoon flight, I would stay in Bunratty the night before you fly out. Killarney and Cork would both probably be about a 4+- hour drive and you need plenty of time to get out of the airport especially if you buy a bunch of stuff and need to do the VAT cash back scam. You'll spend some substantial time in the two lines that handle those things at the airport. Two hours before take off is pretty much a minimum.<BR><BR>With what you want to see, but still being realistic, I think I would drive to Dingle on for your first night, stopping in Adare on the way. Blow through Bunratty, you'll be back later. By the time you get to Dingle, it will be late in the day. Spend that night and the next there and then head back to Co Clare vis the Killimer-Tarbert ferry. You could see the Cliffs of Moher, then head into Bunratty and enjoy the oh-so-touristy-but-still-very-fun castle banquet at Bunratty and stroll through the folk park. I will say, if it's a weekend day, it will be pretty crowded at the folk park and if you were going to do the banquet, you will probably want to make your reservations now. I hate to admit it, by I really enjoyed the banquet by the way.<BR><BR>You can get lots of selections of places to stay but two of my favorites based on where you'll be staying are The Shores on the Dingle peninsula and Bunratty Lodge in (obviously) Bunratty. The Shores is not in the town of Dingle so if you plan on staying aout late and partying and then stumbling back to your room, it would not be a good choice. It would however be good in that it's on the north coast and would be a slightly shorter drive back to Co Clare. It's a 5 star B&B with beautiful views, very comfortable (I liked it more than the Ashford) and the hostess is wonderful. The Bunratty Lodge is very nice, and the customer service is as good as it gets. If you want, she will reserve the castle banquet for you.<BR><BR>OK, I've ramble long enough....have fun!!<BR><BR>Bill

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