MiamiBeachMomma

After lots of planning and researching and deliberating I am happy to say our trip was FANTASTIC!!!

We started off flying into Dublin through Munich from Miami on a red eye (points tickets, beggars cant be choosers!!!)

DUBLIN-
So when we landed in Dublin we were thrilled at the AMAZING weather. It was gorgeous and we were told that it had been awful weather just the day before! We took a cab into Dublin to our hotel - the Westbury. Our driver was a doll, he was a retired police officer and gave us the low down on all things Ireland! We arrived at the hotel and it was heavenly!!!!!

Our room was ready even though it was still early and the front desk staff was soo helpful. We had a choose of 2 rooms and she took us us to show us before we picked. We opted for the king suite with 2 roll-aways for the kids. We were thrilled to have a king size bed - and the kids were just as happy to not have to share their bed!!! We all just wanted to climb into bed at that point, but we persevered and headed out to take a walk and grab lunch.

We had lunch at Hatch and Sons
http://www.hatchandsons.co/
which was rec by the concierge at the hotel.
Adorable little place across from St Stephens Green
We enjoyed the food and our first Irish beers.

Then we went for a walk into the park and I think I feel asleep sitting up watching my kids climb trees. We had to keep moving!!!1

For dinner that night we ate at the hotel at Cafe Novo - and I have to say it was AMAZING!!! They took typical Irish dishes and modernized them!!! Sooo good!!!!
One of the best meals of our trip!!!

Day 2 - DUBLIN
We also enjoyed the breakfast buffet in the hotel (another restaraunt - dont know the name.) I could have stayed all day to just eat scones!!!!

Today we did the Sandemans free walking tour. We had taken on in Munich and though it was fantastic!!! The guides give lots of folks a walking tour for free and you "tip" them as you see fit.
http://www.newdublintours.com/
Our guide was a student at Trinity College, I think his name was Eoin/ Owen . he was great!!!! We got lots of history as well as comedy

After the tour - the guide gave us the option to join him for lunch at a pub - where we had our first real Guinness. I couldn't believe I was an instant fan!!!! I could drink these guys as a meal - so creamy and filling!!! I was not as bug a fan of the pub food as I was of the pub drinks!!!

After lunch we headed out to the Old Jameson tour. We hadn't bought tickets in advance - we should have bc we had to wait around over an hour for the next tour that had space to begin. We all enjoyed the tour - even my kids. Who have been dragged to vineyards and breweries throughout our travels. We were lucky enough to get picked as the special tasters!! It was all lots of fun and I started my new education of Whiskey, Whisky, and Bourbon.

After this we were all wiped and went back to enjoy a little downtime in the hotel. Unfortunately by the time we headed out to dinner - all the restaurants had pretty much stopped serving food! And it was only 9 pm!!! Very different from our other trips like in Spain where dinner starts at 10 pm! We had gelato for dinner and called it a night.

Day 3 - Kilkenny
The next day we ate our yummy scones again and took a cab to the Hertz location in the city where I had reserved a rental car. We were going to rent a mifi from Hertz and they were all out!!! Big uh -oh!!! Now if we needed directions or a phone - we were out of luck!!!

So off in search of the highway we went. This was scary stuff!!!! Once on the highway - it was way easier - we didn't have to think about being in the right lanes!!!

Once we approached the exit for Kilkenny is where the fun began!! We didnt know where we were going and had to drive through the center of town. It took us almost 2 hours to make it to the B&B after pulling over many times to ask for help. SO thankful there was no language barrier!

We stayed at the Rosquil and decided that we wouldnt getback in the car until it was time to move on to the next town!!

I had booked us a bike tour of Kilkenny which of course we were late for bc of the delay. The inn keeper, Phil, was so nice and called the bike guy to reset the time and give us a few minutes to breath!
The bike tour was super fun!!! It was just the 4 of us and the bikes were all in great condition!
http://kilkennycyclingtours.com/tours/
We really say all of Kilkenny and got a great history lesson too!!! Perfect for the kids!
We never really ate lunch so we head to Kytlers for a very early dinner and more brews!! Today I tried the Smithwicks, but hubby stuck with his Guinness!!!
I don't even remember the food, but the atmosphere was fun and we hung out to catch the live band and dancers.

Day 4 - Cashel, Cahir, Killarney
It was unusually warm and of course none of our lodging had AC...I knew this was going to get me in trouble, again!!!
But the breakfast was delish and the innkeepers were so lovely and accommodating!

Then we were off to Cashel.....
We did the guided tour - which was super and crowded. We wanted to get here earlier - but it didn't happen.
We had lunch at Ladyswell (I think.) No pub food - salads and sandwiches. Good change of pace!

Then we drove to Cahir castle which my kids really loved!!!

Then it was the long drive to Killarney. We were thankful that we had the super duper insurance on the rental car - bc as we were warned the roads are tiny...but no one mentioned the stone walls and branches!!! THE only think not covered were the tires and rims. Which was really scratched up badly when we got the car and I smartly had the rental place take dated pictures before we accepted the car.

Anyway - there is no way to drive on these roads without scratching the side of the car of these branches!! Especially when giant buses and trucks and coming at your from the other direction!! Also during the trip we were behind the truck that trims the brush that hangs into the roadways. It was funny- they drive while trimming the trees.

We made it to Killarney to the our hotel - Earls Court House. And we hit our first rain of the trip. I had mixed feelings about the hotel. There were pros and there were cons and there was no AC and it was HOT again!!!

We walked to a pub down the street for dinner and planned out our next few days.....

Day 5 - Dingle
We were torn between doing the ROK and the DIngle drive. And in the end we went with Dingle. It was the most insanely gorgeous day which was awesome!!! We stopped in Dingle first to get some coffee, have a snack, and get cash.....

We also stopped at the tourist center and got a great map of the Slea Head loop.....which marked the sites of interest.

The scenery was breathtaking!!! We made a lot of stops - to take it all in. We stopped at the fort, the beehive huts. We spent a lot of time stopped near the area where they filmed Ryans Daughter just admiring the coast line. SO prettty! We also hiked up through a meadow of sheep to see a Celtic Oghman Stone, which made my 14 year very happy.

We took our time enjoying the views and when we arrived back in Dingle - we needed fish and chips. But we needed the best fish and chips and we were sent to Reel Dingle Fish, which has 4 stools and is a hole in the wall, we were lucky and when our order was ready all 4 stools were vacant. This was really good stuff!!! Highly recommend it!!!
We took our time enjoyed these tasty treats and spoke with the guys behind the counter about the fishing and overfishing in Dingle and Ireland. Super friendly folk!!!

We drove back into Killarney and it was a Sat night - so we thought wed take in some live music at dinner. We again were directed to a pub. We sat - the server was friendly - we had our beers and then our food came - eeks!!!
The band finally came on to play and it was all fun!!! Ironically when he asked the large crowd that had amassed whose from Ireland here - expecting a big cheer - not one person answered back- we were all tourists!!!!!! Funny!!!! The locals knew better about the food!!!!

Day 6 and more tomorrow......

MiamiBeachMomma

Sooooo Day 6....
Woke up in Killarney and ate breakfast at Earls Court.

In the morning we did the guided tour of Ross Castle.

Drove to Kate's Cottage to Hike the Gap of Dunloe - or at least part of it. It took us some time to find a spot and we circled the parking area for a while.

Finally spot opened up and we parked and had a snack.
Then we started the hike. Half the time the cars driving through and the horse carts forced off the road. The other half we found ourselves forced of the path bc of all the horse poop!!! The scenery was beautiful but it was all pretty un-relaxing and we turned around at the first lake.

Later that day we headed to Torc Waterfall. This was gorgeous!! The kids decided to walk down at the waters edge while I stayed on the path.

For dinner we decided we needed a break from pub food and picked Italian.....Dyne was the choice. Its tiny - you definitely need a reservation. The food was really delicious but its all very slow. Everything we ate was fantastic. We ordered another pizza when our meals came bc we decided it was going to be enough, thankfully they put a rush on that pizza so it was ready when we finished the meals that had been delivered to the table.

Day 7 - County Clare
We checked out of Earls Court and started the drive towards Ennis. The drive was fun and scenic as we passed through Adare and the cute thatched roof homes. We stopped in Limerick to visit St Johns castle.
http://www.shannonheritage.com/KingJ...torExperience/

Its has a brand spanking new museum and "experience" exhibits.
It was really done very well and helped us brush up on and clarify even more history. The best part was the live Blacksmith in character who had actual swords and armor. He had the kids hold the swords to determine if they were the right size and weight for them. He explained how they would be used in battle (and how movies generally get it all wrong.)
He even taught us about where the term penny pinching come from, fun facts to shares at cocktail parties.

From here we drove to Ennis to check into the Old Ground Hotel.
I was exciting to say here, I thought it was going to be luxurious. Its not
They definitely need to renovate (at least my room)
The carpets & curtains were worn and the bathroom tiles in major need of a sledge hammer.
The beds were comfy and the location was great.

We had dinner the first night in the hotel as it was included in the package I booked. Dinner was lovely and we enjoyed it.

Day 8.....
Breakfast at the hotel was a simple buffet with the option of a made to order hot plate. This was a great breakfast with more delicious sconces!

Then we were off to explore the Burren and the Cliffs.
We stopped first at the ring fort and sheepdog demo place
http://caherconnell.com/

Then on to Poulnabrone.

Then to http://www.burrensmokehouse.ie/
and to lunch at http://www.roadsidetavern.ie/roadside/
where we ate the Burren Smokehouse deliciousness and drank their craft beers. Amazing lunch!!! We shared the smoked fish platter. I wish I could eat this once a week at home!! So good!!! My kids got the smoked fish sandwiches and they gobbled them up!!!!

Then off to the Cliffs. We spent a lot of time checking them out from every vantage point. I am afraid of heights and I was nervous about the parts with no walls.... I saw so many people jumping over the walls to walk, take picture, etc. I really freaks me out!!! We stayed late until we really had the place to ourselves. I was glad to loaded the car with sweatshirts, jackets, and hats. It gets cold and windy up there!!!

I had read on the boards that people were complaining about having to pay to park. But it isn't just for parking - you are paying to help keep up the visitors center and all its exhibits, which there is no charge to enter.

Back to Ennis for dinner and pack for tomorrow's flight to Edinburgh....

scotlib

Hi MiamiBeachMomma, thanks for the trip report. I've just found it and am replying to find it again later to read more. I see one is 14, did you mention age of the other child?

I love seeing links. It's very helpful to have direct access to follow up if I'm interested.

Cheers.

janisj

Oh -- I just saw this - haven't read through yet since I'm in a hurry out the door but saw your screen name and the trip report tag. REALLY looking forward to reading it later and especially when you get to the Scotland bits, since I remember your planning threads and wondering how things turned out . . . (and the 'fight' w/ dulsex . . . he has left the bldg BTW)

flpab

Love the walking tours with the students from Trinity. Jameson and ginger beer. My favorite combo, try it sometime. Nice trip report but so sorry about no ac. That would have killed me.
I am with you on the cliffs, scary with the wind and getting so close to the edge. Last time I was there the coasties were looking for a body so nothing to mess with.

TPAYT

What fun! Reading your excellent report took me back to our time in Ireland. It sounds like you had a grand time and I'm looking forward to Scotland. I've never been there so that will be all new for me.
Carry on!

Jennifer_Travels

We are planning a family trip to Scotland next July (2 adults, 14 year old daughter and 16 year old son) so are really looking forward to the Scotland portion of your report.

europeannovice

Following along.

bilboburgler

looking forward to seeing how you got on

eating food is not a rush, slow down and enjoy

MiamiBeachMomma

Day 9....Scotland

We woke up super early, had breakfast, loaded up the car, filled it with gas, and we were off to the Shannon airport. When we returned the car to Hertz the rental agent was really checking out the wheels and I was glad I had them take extra photos when we picked up the car.

We took the shuttle to the terminal and since I had paid for my bags before we left Miami and checked in for the flight the night before - we cut the entire line at the Air Lingus counter. Nice... But now we had loads of time to wait around the Shannon Airport. It was early on the morning, but it didn't stop us form having just a few Whiskey tastings in the Duty Free shop!

So many people had complained about Air Lingus and the regional flights, so I think my expectations were really low. It was completely fine. New for me - if you want a beverage that's extra $$$. Whatever the airfare was cheap! We were also warned about luggage restrictions, really - if you pay for it - you can bring whatever you want !

We landed in EDI and picked up our bags, withdrew Scottish pounds from the ATM and made our way to the rental car area. The walk was longer than I had expected....

We picked up our Volvo and began our drive to Callandar. My husband was a pro and driving by this point of the trip and in his opinion driving in Scotland was easier than Ireland, the lanes and roads were wider...

We drove past the Kelpies. What a site, wild to see them rising from the highway.
The Kelpies | The Helix

We stopped in Doune for lunch at the Buttercup Cafe http://buttercupcafe.co.uk/index.html
It was adorable, but the service was really strange and unwelcoming. And this was our first taste of STICKERSHOCK and the prices for eating out!! WOW! It doesn't hit you at first because everything is priced like we are used to in the US, but then you calculate that's 1.7 times more.

Then we were off Doune Castle
http://www.historic-scotland.gov.uk/My 14 year old had become quite the Monty Python fan over the past year and I didn't tell him where we were going - it was to be a surprise!! My 11 year old is a fan of wide-open spaces and climbing!
The castle wasn't very busy which was great; I'd hate to have to share it with too many other tourists.

I had calculated in advance buying the 7-day Explorer Pass. We planned on visiting Stirling Castle, Edinburgh Castle, and Doune for sure - then anything extra would be gravy! I think the savings really kicked in bc I bought the family pass. If you are just a couple - and only visiting these 3 sites over 7 days it may not be worth it. Check the link and plan ahead.
http://www.historic-scotland.gov.uk/explorer

Anyway it was definitely the best option for us - so I purchased it here in the gift shop.
In the gift shop we also picked up the audio guide, which was the bomb!! It is narrated by Terry Jones of Monty Python fame. During the narration you get both the historical information as well you may remember this area from the movie when......

We closed the place down. The literally had to unlock the giant front castle doors to let us out. We all couldn't get enough.. Both my kids were quoting the movie for days on end after this visit....It was by far our favorite castle visit.

After Doune we continued on to Callandar to check into our B&B.
http://www.lubnaighouse.co.uk/We had booked the Coach House for the 4 of us that worked out well, one room had 2 twins, the other a double bed and each room had its own bathroom.

This was my boys' fav B&B of the trip.
The innkeeper, I can't remember his name, was sooo welcoming. He was so nice!! He served breakfast in his full Kilt attire. Breakfast was great, loads to eat!! We didn't have wifi in our rooms. We had to go to the main house. It turned out to be nice. My husband disconnected from work when we went back to our room.

Dinner....The Old Rectory in walking distance to the B&B. Food was eh, but served with a smile and the drinks were cold and live music was loads of fun!!

Day 10
After a breakfast we headed off to Stirling Castle, getting there was fun - we were not used to the Navi and the roundabouts.....felt like Chevy Chase ala European Vacation.... looks kids Big Ben! Once we made it up to the Castle.. .we sat a while in the car as the parking was pretty backed up....
Once we parked we breezed through the line since we had our nifty Explorer Pass - which we started calling our Fast Pass (like in Disney World.)

We enjoyed our time at the castle, we took the guided tour - the guide was sometimes hard to understand as he had a rich Scottish accent... We roamed on our own as well, but didn’t get the audio guide - probably should have in retrospect.

After the castle - we drove to the William Wallace Monument, however our Navi just couldn't get us there - so we bailed.....and drove to the Deanston Distillery back in Doune.
http://deanstonmalt.com/e had to wait for the next tour - so we had soup (very yummy) and coffee in the cafe while we waited.....
The tour was great. It was Silent Season so we didn't see any actual production...but we got the gist and our tasting.

Dinner...Ciros
http://www.cirositalianrestaurant.co.uk/menus.html
Good, solid Italian dinners. Strange and unfriendly service.


Day 11
We had our yummy breakfast again and decided we wanted to return our car to the airport rather than in the Edinburgh as we were warned it was festival season and the in-city office closes much earlier than the airport. I called a gazillion Hertz numbers and was told I could only speak with the actual locations than the main UK or US numbers. I could not get through to either the airport or Edinburgh folks. I must have spent all the money in my Skype account and I was getting really frustrated. I was told to send an email since I could not get through by phone. Our innkeeper helped us plan out our day and came to the car to bid us and the kids farewell as we drove off. Really - the nicest kind of guy you will meet!!

After wasting lots of valuable time we headed to St. Andrews....very pretty easy drive..
We parked at a metered spot in put in the max time...
We used our fast pass again to visit St Andrews Castle and Cathedral ruins. We were even able to use the pass to climb to the top of the tower - just was a hike.... and my 11-year counted all the steps.. but sadly I cant remember how many now. Maybe he does.
The view was fantastic!!

We didn't want to get a ticket and made it back to the car with just minutes left on the meter. We hopped in the car and drove over to the beach so the boys could run Chariots of Fire style. Then off to find a bite for lunch.

We re-parked the car and wandered through the streets. It’s such a pretty little town. Very expensive to dine and we wondered how the University students managed to make ends meet.

We found a great sandwich shop.....
Sadly, I can’t remember the name. I even went on goggle maps to try to figure it out - but I cant.

After lunch we decided to drive to Edinburgh. We would see if we could get to the in city Hertz location and take it from there...

The drive was easy. Finding gas was a little challenging - but we thankfully found a station. We returned the car in the city with no trouble at all. (I ironically got a reply email a day later thanking me for letting them know about the change in plans of on the return - that never happened.)

We went to hail a cab to take us to the Premier Inn and the driver told us it would be much quicker to walk bc traffic was very heavy. So walk we did. It was kinda far, but thankfully our 14 year old is a big and strong kid and he did a lot of heavy lifting with the bags so I didn't have to!

PI was what I had expected.... clean, simple, a place to rest your head......http://www.premierinn.com/en/hotel/E...princes-street

We ventured off to find some dinner - this was a challenge I wasn't expecting.... kids weren't welcome to eat in pubs even though it was pretty early.. And everywhere we found was a pub. It was tough to find a place to eat!!!! After walking for quite some time.... we found
http://www.bellaitalia.co.uk/italian...anover-stGreat find. Yummy meal - amazing server!!

Then back to the hotel to rest. Bonus... our window faced the castle and we watched the firework from Tattoo from bed!!!!

We had to be up early in am to catch our Rabies 3 day Skye Tour. At this point we were so nervous about our decision - as driving was easier than expected and we were happy with our car...... Stay tuned to hear about our AMAZING 3 day adventure!!!!!

janisj

wonderful!

Yes -- the audio guide at Doune is a kick

here are the two links that got a bit messed up (You need to leave a space at the end of any url)

http://www.historic-scotland.gov.uk
http://www.lubnaighouse.co.uk
http://www.bellaitalia.co.uk/italian...rgh-hanover-st

MiamiBeachMomma

Thanks janisj.... I was using my yahoo email as a writing notepad and it did funky things to my links.... I noticed my kelpies link didn't even make it....

http://www.thekelpies.co.uk/

Switching to word for the rest....

chepar

Really enjoying your trip report.

I'm planning a trip to Scotland next fall that will be a combination on my own with a multi-day Rabbies tour, so I'm looking forward to reading the next portion of your report.

Nikki

I'm enjoying your trip report and looking forward to hearing about Edinburgh.

NatalieRx07

My mother and I will be taking a similar trip in June 2015 ... Looking forward to reading the rest of your trip report!!!

MiamiBeachMomma

Day 12
As I said we were really nervous about our decision to give up our freedom and take the 3 day Rabbies Skye Tour. We had decided the night before to walk from the hotel to the Rabbies meeting spot and grab some Starbucks on the way. When we woke it was pouring – not the normal Scottish Dreek weather – but heavy Florida summer rain! We couldn’t walk – we couldn’t stop off for breakfast on the way.


The friendly PI front desk guy called us a cab at check out but told us since it was majorly raining it could take a while…I started to get really nervous about missing the bus!!! I had read a review that someone who was late did get left behind, yikes!!! As I started to panic to calculate running down Princes Street in the rain with the kids….the cab driver arrived, wet, ready to haul our things to the car. Whew!!
We arrived earlier than expected at the meeting point, which doubles as a café and we were able to grab a bite, and run across the way to a little market to get road snacks.

We checked in and waited…while wondering which of these folks was on our bus…..

When it was time to board we walked down the street a wee bit to the mini bus and met Laura – our driver guide extraordinaire! She loaded up the bags and we got on the bus….
My boys were thrilled to see usb chargers at all the seats – just in cases they needed to take a work call, lol. They were sad there was no wifi….I was thrilled!!!

And then we were off – towards Stirling to pick up 4 more pax. Laura had us all introduce ourselves to each other. And then the history, culture, etc lessons began!!! I know everyone raves about the Rabbies drivers, but really, I cant imagine any of them to be better than Laura, we were already happy about our choice. In the first hour we learned so much!!!

We hit Stirling to take bathroom break, pick up 4 more, grab a quick picture, and then we were back on the road towards Callandar, hmmmmm, this is all familiar!!! Our next stop was at the entrance to the Highlands just beyond Callandar at the Loch Lommond NP. We grabbed a coffee and the kids skipped stones in the loch.

I honestly can’t remember all the stops on the way to Skye that say –Im sure its on the Rabbies site.
http://www.rabbies.com/tours_scotlan...our.asp?lng=en

We stopped at Fort William for lunch. We had a lovely soup and sandwich in town and then grabbed more coffee. Off through more of the Highlands on the way to Skye, while we learned of the clans, customs, the battles with the English, dreek weather, kilts, Pichts, fairies, folklore, haggis, scotch and of course William Wallace (definitely re-watch Braveheart before your visit – to get you in the mood – so what if it’s a wee bit historically inaccurate, it’s a great flick!)

We arrived in Portree in the evening and we were dropped off at our B&B (Tor Nan Gillean) and told to be ready for pickup in the morning with our rain gear for our day on Skye.
We walked into town for dinner that night – about a 10-15 min walk.

We were lucky to get a rec from the B&B lady – to try the Granary and it was the first place we encountered on the way into town. It was a Saturday night and we had no reservations….bad idea!!! The menu looked great and the gentlemen (owner? Manager?) was sooo friendly and promised us he would fins a way to squeeze us in!!! He did – dinner was excellent!!!

Day 13 – Skye Adventure
Breakfast was a big feast! With fresh berries, cereals, eggs, toast, veggies and meats.
It was a rainy morning and Laura was exactly on time to pick us up. We headed back on the minibus to pick up the rest of the crew and we began the day….

We visited/walked/hiked/tasted in so many places..I’ll try to name them all.
Faire Glen, Quiraing, Uig, Kilt Rock, Talisker Distillery

We stopped for lunch back in Portree and we ate at The Isles Inn Pub & Hotel. They have vegetarian Haggis on the menu that my 14 year really wanted to try as there was no interest in eating the real thing!

We got back late and wet to the B&B late night and we had to drag ourselves to dinner knowing that you really cant get food past 830/9 pm, especially on a Sunday night. We decided on pizza at l'incontro. The servers were such sweethearts and very accommodating!! The pizza was yum and we ordered way too much!

irishface

Loving your report! I took my nephews who were 11 and 14 at the time to Scotland and hearing about your boys reminds me of how much fun the nephews were. One of them has a son who is nearing the age of your youngest and is eagerly awaiting his cousin to be old enough to go. (I may be too old by that time!)