dcormann

Hello All!

The last time I posted here was for planning a trip to Hawaii. It rocked. So…let’s give this another shot. This time we’re off to Ireland. Here’s the problem…my flight is already booked and I think this where the problem lies. All the suggestions I have read are the same…”Too much driving is no way to enjoy Ireland!” Therefore, we’re looking to do 3 destination points over several days. Here’s the deal:

4/26am - Arrive in Dublin
4/27- Dublin
4/28 – Rent car and head over to Galway
4/29 – Another day in Galway
4/23 – Drive down to Cork
5/1 – Another day in Cork

Now here is the rub…our flight is out of Dublin. Yes…maybe we should have spent more time on the west coast and flew out of Shannon. However, this is how it was book. So the deal is are flight is out of Dublin on 5/3. Therefore we have a day unaccounted for. I’d like to leave Cork on 5/2 and travel North towards Dublin and stay in a small town along the way that will leave me in a good spot to wake up early and catch my flight out of Dublin on 5/3 at 11:30am. I’m figuring that I don’t want to stay more than 45 minutes outside of Dublin. Any town suggestions?

What do you guys think of the two nights in each of these towns? Is it too much “city life”? If we were to stay in Galway and Cork are their tours that take you to other towns? Also, can you do The Cliffs of Moher from Galway as a day trip or is it to far?

Thanks for the help!

dave

CasaDelCipresso

I know you said you don't want to spent too much time driving...the last time I went from Dublin to Galway we just took the train. We find it more relaxing than driving. Don't know about the connections to Cork...but may be worth looking into. LOTS of tours from Galway that are nice...we took the ferry out to the Aran Islands...booked through the tourist office and it included the bus out to the ferry, etc. - Galway, to me, dosen't feel like a city anyway...just a nice town ;-) very charming...not at all like dublin, so don't be concerned, you'll like it

dcormann

Awesome..thanks Casa. I would assume we can book those tours when we stroll into town. Thanks for putting me at ease with Galway. I was concerned about the city thing.

colbeck

Are you planning to stay in Cork City? Kinsale, a seacoast town in West Cork, is much more charming and there are some excellent restaurants.

dcormann

Well we were planning Cork City but I've been reading about how big and confusing it is. I'm already going to be dealing with Dublin and Galway so I'm thinking of stating away from Cork if people agree. I don't think we need to see another city. What do you think?

colbeck

Cork is definitely a big, bustling city. Personally, for a great Irish experience, I would opt for Kinsale. It is a very colorful, historic town with a harbor, charming inns and B&B's, shops, and, as I mentioned before, some excellent restaurants. As you will have a car, you can enjoy a scenic drive around the countryside as well. Much better than fighting the Cork City traffic!