West Ireland: Planning , Re-Planning, and Over-Planning
May 16th, 2007 | 11:02 AM
#1
Original Poster
Joined: May 2007
Posts: 2
Likes: 0
West Ireland: Planning , Re-Planning, and Over-Planning
Maybe its my inexperience, or just an American thing, but nothing is more stressful then a great vacation....well at least the time leading up to it.
My girlfriend and I will be traveling to the UK for a bit over 2 weeks at the end of this month (May). Neither of us has been anywhere outside of the US (besides Canada, which is Detroit's backyard) so we're a bit unsure on how much to plan, and how much to just wing-it,
For the first week, we've got it mostly blocked out with our well-traveled friends in London. The second part will be in Ireland. We'll be flying into Dublin on a Wednesday night and our intention is to head westward for a few days until traveling back to Dublin for our flight home the following Tuesday. We know we'd like to make it out to Galway, but after that we're not sure, there’s so many options. Dingle Peninsula ,Cliffs of Moher, Connemera, Aran Islands, Biking, Hiking, and Beer (oh my)! It all sounds great, and I'm sure whatever we choose, it will be. But where the stress arrives, and what I'm asking of you noble travelers out there, is how do we get to, and between these places? It’s hard for us to decide if we should be taking a bus to some of these places for a few hours, or getting a hostel there and hanging around.
A few questions…What's a reasonable route to see the west side of the country traveling public transportation from Dublin in 5 days for two cheap, fun , over-worked 24 year olds. What’s the best form of transport on a budget (probably not renting a car), are those 3-4 day bus passes worth it? And which stops would you consider staying over at?
We're really excited, and just want to make it as fun as possible. Any advice would be great!
My girlfriend and I will be traveling to the UK for a bit over 2 weeks at the end of this month (May). Neither of us has been anywhere outside of the US (besides Canada, which is Detroit's backyard) so we're a bit unsure on how much to plan, and how much to just wing-it,
For the first week, we've got it mostly blocked out with our well-traveled friends in London. The second part will be in Ireland. We'll be flying into Dublin on a Wednesday night and our intention is to head westward for a few days until traveling back to Dublin for our flight home the following Tuesday. We know we'd like to make it out to Galway, but after that we're not sure, there’s so many options. Dingle Peninsula ,Cliffs of Moher, Connemera, Aran Islands, Biking, Hiking, and Beer (oh my)! It all sounds great, and I'm sure whatever we choose, it will be. But where the stress arrives, and what I'm asking of you noble travelers out there, is how do we get to, and between these places? It’s hard for us to decide if we should be taking a bus to some of these places for a few hours, or getting a hostel there and hanging around.
A few questions…What's a reasonable route to see the west side of the country traveling public transportation from Dublin in 5 days for two cheap, fun , over-worked 24 year olds. What’s the best form of transport on a budget (probably not renting a car), are those 3-4 day bus passes worth it? And which stops would you consider staying over at?
We're really excited, and just want to make it as fun as possible. Any advice would be great!
May 16th, 2007 | 04:06 PM
#2
Joined: Apr 2006
Posts: 52
Likes: 0
Are you looking at 5 days not including Dublin? If so, I would do Galway with a night on the Aran Islands (Inishmore). We took the bus mostly in Ireland but the train would be faster (although more expensive). You would take a ferry from Galway to the Aran Islands and no car is needed there - rent bikes! We did a day trip/bus tour to the Cliffs of Moher and Connemara from Galway as well. If you want more hiking, you might consider a day trip from Dublin to Glendalough. I loved Dingle but that adds more travel time so maybe save it for your next trip 
May 17th, 2007 | 10:04 AM
#4
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 2,414
Likes: 0
Jonny:
Bus Eireann offers bus tours from Galway of Connemara and the Burren.
https://www.buseireann.ie/ecommerce/...ge.asp#daytour
There are some private companies also. Here's one.
http://tinyurl.com/yqda28
You can catch the tarin or bus from Dublin to Galway. This is not my area of expertise, but lots ahve traveled in Ireland by public transit. It's not the greatest system in the worl, but it works.
Bill
Bus Eireann offers bus tours from Galway of Connemara and the Burren.
https://www.buseireann.ie/ecommerce/...ge.asp#daytour
There are some private companies also. Here's one.
http://tinyurl.com/yqda28
You can catch the tarin or bus from Dublin to Galway. This is not my area of expertise, but lots ahve traveled in Ireland by public transit. It's not the greatest system in the worl, but it works.
Bill
May 17th, 2007 | 10:06 AM
#5
Joined: Oct 2004
Posts: 9,737
Likes: 0
My daughter and I spent a night on Inis Mor this past March and loved it. (My trip report is A Tale of Two Trips: Ireland as a Visitor, Paris as a tourist. Days two and three are Inis Mor. It has info about where we stayed, what we did, etc.) But whether it's worth it to you depends on what interests you.
