kireland

MY BF and will be in Ireland for 5 days in November. I had been thinking that we would do three nights in Dublin and two in Kilkenny (I understand the drive between is approx. 3 hours and I was thinking this wasn't too far to go for two nights). I have been to Dublin before and found three nights plenty of time to see things, but my BF is wondering about staying there for the whole five nights and just doing day trips. What are your thoughts on this? Because there isn't a lot of daylight in November our daytrips would have to be fairly short. Would driving to Kilkenny and visiting sights near there during our two days out of Dublin give us a better taste of Ireland than making Dublin the home base for the duration of our stay?

Thanks very much!

Padraig

It's pretty well axiomatic that a visit to a capital city is a different experience from a visit to other parts of a country, and that applies to Dublin as to other capital cities.

That said, unless you are willing to travel after dark, you would be using up a good slice of limited daylight just to get to and from Kilkenny.

The other risk you run in November is that you might get grey wet days, and on such days it is generally better to be in a city or a large town than out and about trying to enjoy the scenery.

I suggest that you stay in Dublin and keep an eye on the weather. If you get a day suitable for touring, hire a car for that day and head into the Wicklow mountains (do a search here on "Wicklow" for ideas). You can also use the DART (commuter train) to visit attractive places like Howth or Malahide.

bilboburgler

Great fan of the King Citric in Howth why not stay there a couple of days rather than Dublin

GreenDragon

I agree. If you were there in June, my answer would be different, but there is plenty to do on day trips out of Dublin. If you like history, check out a day trip to Newgrange and the Hill of Tara, or down south to Glendalough Abbey. Malahide Manor house is a nice tour, and there are some lovely scenic spots on the coast nearby. Dun Laoghaire is a nice break from the city (a port city south of Dublin) and Powerscourt Falls and Powerscourt Gardens offer another possibility.

kireland

Thanks! So two votes for Howth has me reconsidering the trip to Kilkenny! Bilboburlger - you meant the King Sitric right? (though King Critic is a funnier name). I checked their site and they are available with and without dinner included. As this is a Michelin starred restaurant I'm guessing the real draw is the food, right? Perhaps an overnight here with dinner would be a nice way to get outside of Dublin, see the seaside and have a great meal. I'm thinking only one night though - not two.

Padraig - I like your suggestion of watching the weather but the planner in me worries about the ease of getting a car on short notice and if we wanted to stay the night what do you think the chances of booking at the King Sitric on short notice would be? Do you imagine it books up in advance, even in November?

Thanks very much!

Padraig

Eat at the King Sitric if you like seafood. If you stay overnight you can walk off some of the calories next morning on Howth Head. As to booking, you don't say which end of November you have in mind. It might require advance booking at weekends or late in the month (many businesses have their staff Christmas parties early).

I never hire a car in Ireland as I live here. I don't think it would be a problem, but if you can't get one, then you can find other amusements (e.g. Dart to Bray, coastal walk to Greystones, Dart back into the city).

kireland

Thanks Padraig - We are arriving in Dublin the morning of Tues, Nov 13th and departing the afternoon of Sun, Nov 18th. Having looked at the King Sitric on the Blue Book site I am now thinking that it might be a nice idea to do the first 2 nights in Dublin, then a night at the King Sitric and a night at the Tinakilly House in Wicklow before returning for the last night in Dublin. That way we won't do too much driving, we will see city/countryside and the sea and it will feel like three mini-holidays. The reason for splitting the stay in Dublin would be to stay in an affordable hotel the first two nights (The Paramount) and splurge at The Clarence on our last night. If my BF thinks that sounds like too much moving around then we can always do the first three or last three nights in Dublin at The Paramount, with the other two in Howth/Wicklow.

Does this make sense?

Padraig

You will be gambling a little with the weather, but so what? If it's wet when you are in Wicklow stay out of the mountains and do romantic winter coastline stuff. Wicklow Town is pleasant enough for a short visit, and you can walk on the beach at Brittas Bay and imagine what it is like on a summer's day!

Personally, I'm not sure the Clarence is worth the splurge, and you are unlikely to meet the owners.

kireland

Yeah. I know what you mean about The Clarence. Last time I was in Dublin I frequented the Octagon Bar there and sadly the most glamorous person I saw was me! The Paramount is essentially right around the corner from The Clarence too and while not as posh it does offer the same convenience of location.

I just priced it out and with The Clarence in the mix for teh last night and it puts us at an average of 165 Euros per night ($220 US) and we were trying to keep it to $200 US per night for hotels. If we do the Paramount the first three nights, The King Sirtic on Friday and the Tinakilly House on our last night then we come in at an average of $172 US (128 E) per night. So maybe that is the way to go.

I had wanted to be in Dublin for one weekend night so we could do a Literary or Musical pub crawl (they aren't offered on weeknights in Nov), but maybe this shouldn't be such a concern. Will there still be traditional music and good crowds in the pubs and of Dublin on weeknights?

Thanks for all of your help!

kireland

BTW - I just realized that Howth is north and Wicklow is south so I'm not sure if it makes sense to rent a car for two days and do these places back to back or perhaps rent a car only for an overnight to Wicklow and take the DART to Howth. I think I'll map it out on ViaMichelin to see.

Padraig

It's not worth hiring a car to get to Howth, and not much use having one while you are there.

I suggest DART to Howth; DART back in to city centre the following morning; pick up hire car (24-hour rental) and head for Wicklow.

In Dublin you can create your own pub crawl. Or you can spend an evening here: http://www.osheashotel.com/merchant%5Fhotel/ Don't mind that it's a hotel -- that's almost a sideline; it's largely a good music pub.

kireland

Thanks Padraig - Your feedback is very helpful. I think visting Dublin, Howth and Wicklow will make for a great trip! Do you happen to know anything about Wicklow Town? I had been considering staying at Tinakilly House (which I beleive is near in Rathnew), but now I'm thinking we might like soemthing that is less of a 'country' house and more of a 'town' house so that we can walk around and visit different pubs and restaurants. I was wondering if Wicklow Town might be a good place to find lodging as it seems close enough to the mountains, which we could visit during the day (weatheh permitting) and then stroll the town at night.

Thanks is advance!

Padraig

Sorry -- never stayed in Wicklow town. Come to think of it, I have never spent an evening there either. It's pleasant enough, but not a special place -- a couple of old-fashioned shopping streets, a few residential streets, and a not-very-busy harbour. I don't know the restaurant scene there. Hunter's Hotel in Rathnew captures much of the local trade for good food, and the Grand Hotel in Wicklow (not that grand these days, more faded grandeur) does the cheap and cheerful end of the market.

Tinakilly House is indeed near, and has a good reputation.

jumper22

Just responded to your other post but then saw this sorry.

If you do the DART and then rental car, a tip: There is a Dollar/Thrifty city centre car rental office within about a 1-minute walk from the Pearse DART station. We always got the best deals from Thrifty there, they're very nice & convenient location especially from the DART.