I am planning a week in Ireland in 2012 and have a total phobia of driving in the UK. I would like to do a scenic train trip, with some stops in cities/villages for a couple of nights. Does anyone have any recommendations?

First caveat: most trains start in Dublin and branch out from there so if you only go by train, you'll have to return to Dublin for various cities. However, there are busses which connect most places in Ireland.

now some suggestions:

Base in Dublin: there is an Irish railtour which takes you on a (long day) tour to the Giants Causeway and back. There are coach tours (book at tourist office) to Newgrange or Powerscourt or Glendalough. Going to Powerscourt can be done on your own. Take the DART (commuter train) to Bray (take a walk along the beach promenade at Bray before you head back to Dublin.)and at the station catch the bus to Enniskerry. The gate to the estate is in view when you get off the bus. One day take the DART to Greystones (sit on the left on the way out for great views of the sea). Greystones is a pleasant seaside town where you can take a walk on the beach, have lunch and return for the rest of the day in Dublin. A day trip to Kilkenny is possible from Dublin.

You could take the train to Galway for a couple of days. Take the bus from Galway to the ferry at Rosseveal for the trip to the Aran Islands. There are also tours of Connemara from Galway by bus.

Take the train from Dublin to Killarney and catch one of the bus tours of the Ring of Kerry or walk about the National Park.

I don't know what your interests are so can't be more specific. Let us know what you like to see and do, so we can perhaps help you more.

Click on the Ireland section of this forum and you will find a few trip reports from members who have done their tour by bus and train.

PS The Republic of Ireland (the south) is NOT part of the UK. Northern Ireland (6 counties of Ulster) are part of the UK.

Great suggestions, Irishface, but I think Maxers is worried about driving on the left as the UK does. The roads in Ireland can be quite narrow when you're not on a divided highway.

since when is Ireland in the U.K.?

Take a train to Tralee and hop by bus over to Dingle, a city with lots of inexpensive accommodations and singing pubs at night and then hop the public buses or mini-bus tours that putz around the fantastic Dingle Peninsula, where Gaelic is still the daily language - stark rocky coastlines and beehive huts from antiquity abound.

Dingle is interesting in itself and look out for Fungi the tame dolphin that swam into Dingle bay some years ago and now cavorts with tourists that fishermen carry out to meet him in boats.

You no doubt could do similar peninsula tours from Tralee.

Buses in Ireland run much more extensive routes than trains and are frequent.

You can have a perfectly good holiday in Ireland using Public Transport either Train or Bus.. You dothough need to stick to places with good transport links. Dingle is not such a place and better seen on a tour possibly from Killarney (just voted Ireland's tidiest town).