tomfromaus

Hi All,

I'll be in Oxford in late August 2018 for a wedding, and my parents will be there also. We have 2 to 3 weeks and would like to explore Scotland, Northern Ireland and Ireland. I was thinking a one-way road trip from Oxford up to Scotland, across on the ferry to Belfast and then down to Dublin (from where we would fly home).

Having read some of the other posts on here though I'm wondering if that is a silly idea. Is it possible to hire a car and take it from NI to Republic of Ireland? Should we concentrate on just one country? Or is a road trip like this feasible? (We're from Australia so long distances not too big a worry)

Any advice would be appreciated!

Thanks

Kwaussie

I don't know about the logistics of hiring in Belfast and dropping in Dublin but we did a trip around Ireland and NI last year and there was no trouble driving between the two. We did 9 days, Dublin - Belfast- Ballycastle- Connemara - Dublin

De Mansers in the U.S.A & Beyond: In Dublin's fair city

Also drove from Edinburgh to Inverness and back down to London on a separate trip. I think you can easily do what you're planning provided you pick your overnights wisely and don't try to see too much.

De Mansers in the U.S.A & Beyond: Scotland the Brave
Sounds like an awesome road trip

bilboburgler

Ok, the logic that a Brit would use is that the ferry is slow and we wouldn't want to have to bring our car on the ferry twice. I'm not sure what the costs of of moving a rental car between islands or if the car renter even allows it (not all do). So you need to do the costs calcs yourself and decide if the time wasted on the ferry makes sense. To me as Brit it sounds "dumb" to do this.
However you also need to think if you have enough time to do so much of 2 or 4 or 3 countries (depending on your political views). Every bit of your road trip is buried in interesting stuff to see. If I had 3 weeks I'd focus on two but of course the Highlands are a whole area you need to decide if you want. For me England and Scotland can be visited in a 3 week trip, if you have to fly to Dublin to get home then maybe miss out on a full Highland and island visit and just go to Edninburgh and fly across. The good feature of this is that you would be arriving in Edinburgh in early Spetember when the hotels become clear of the festival (which fills the place for most of August).

Hooameye

" Road trip around the UK"
You do realise that the ROI isn't in the UK?

bigtyke

If the drop off cost is too much, then fly between Scotland and Ireland. I'd also check if there is a big drop off fee between Ireland and Northern Ireland. To think that your plan is too much for 2-3 weeks is absurd.

thursdaysd

Three weeks would allow one week for each country. While you could probably do NI in less, that is ridiculously short for ROI and Scotland.

@tomfromaus - it has been a while since I was in Australia, but from what I remember the roads resemble the US rather than the UK. I don't know how much planning you have done yet, but I suspect that it will take considerably longer than you expect to get around. Use https://www.theaa.com/# and/or https://www.viamichelin.com/ to plan your driving.

janisj

>> Or is a road trip like this feasible?<<

Unless you strictly use motorways and major roads - no, it isn't feasible. The scenic/fun bits aren't on the motorways, but on the slow minor roads where you will average 35 or 40 mph/55-70kph. So in three weeks you could say tour through the Cotswolds, Wales, the Lake District and possibly Yorkshire (a convenient loop since you are starting in Oxford) . . . or Cumbria/Northumberland and a little of Scotland . . . or fly to Ireland and do the 3 weeks in the Republic and NI.

With just two weeks you could any of the above - just modified. i.e. the Cotswolds, Wales, and the Lake District . . . or Scotland and Northumberland.

Just remember - driving in the UK and Ireland is NOTHING like driving in Oz.

wasleys

And then add on 50% . These are straight driving times and don't allow for stops to admire the scenery, find a toilet , have a cup of coffee or have lunch.
Distance isn't the issue when driving in the UK or Republic of Ireland, it is TIME! It will take you a lot longer to cover the miles than you might expect.

historytraveler

As bilbo pointed out, the ferry is slow and it can also be expensive. Time consuming picking up rental car and returning. I wouldn’t recommend driving from Oxford to Scotland. Too slow if you take the scenic routes and not particularly scenic by motorway. Wasleys is spot on ( as well as janisj ) when saying that it’s not a matter of distance but of time.

allisonm

It seems to me that the OP is not trying to see all of each country but get a taste of each.

I think this can reasonably be done. You are going to be limited in the areas you will be able to visit, but if you can stretch it to 3 full weeks, I say go for it.

Rent a car for the UK portion and then fly to Belfast. Rent a car in NI and explore the coast for a couple of days, then take the train to Dublin. Stay outside the city and rent a car for a few day trips, then spend the last couple of days in Dublin, where you won’t want or need a car. You will really hit only a few highlights but I think you already know this!

thursdaysd

Belfast is in Northern Ireland. Northern Ireland is IN the UK.

It is my understanding that the best scenery in the Republic of Ireland is in the west, not around Dublin.

allisonm

Oops, of course thursdaysd is correct, NI is part of the UK.

There is beautiful scenery on the West Coast and that is our preferred area, but there is much to see and do in the Dublin area for folks who have never been.

janisj

>>I think this can reasonably be done. <<

Sure it can be done . . . if what one wants is a road trip. And there is something to be said for road trips. But a road trip in the confines of the UK/Ireland is not what we in the States, Canada, or Australia think of as a 'road trip'. Here in Northern California we think nothing of traveling 150 miles for a special lunch. In parts of Scotland or Ireland 150 miles is a two day drive when you include the places to see en route.

But it certainly isn't doable if they want to linger anywhere or visit castles, explore remote scenery, hike, whatever

Just depends on what one wants -- IMO/IME having spent months in Scotland for instance -- unless you just want the tired old Tartan triangle of Edinburgh, Loch Ness, Skye (spare me another identical itinerary!) - one would need three weeks in Scotland just to scratch the surface there. Same for Ireland. Same for say Yorkshire/the Lakes/Northumberland/the Borders.

allisonm

Janisj, I get what you are saying. We are planning our 11th trip to Ireland because we haven’t seen enough. We spent a week plus in Scotland and never got north of Callendar or very far south of Edinburgh, so I know we barely got a taste of Scotland.

The OP asked about doing a road trip and I got the sense that he knew they would be limited as to what they could accomplish in 2 to 3 weeks. Just the fact that they won’t be seeing a lot (or as much as they could if they had more time in these areas) doesn’t mean there isn’t enough value in what they will be able to see to make the trip worthwhile. IMVHO

historytraveler

The main concern should be in deciding if seeing a few highlights is worth spending so much time in transit. Having traveled extensively through Great Britain and with a trip to Northern Ireland, I have almost always found the best part of any trip are not necessarily the highlights or the most popular sites but those less popular, undiscovered ones, off the usual tourist route.

Odin

I've driven all over Australia and the UK for many years, they are very similar IME, same side of the road, some rule and signage differences. Why is driving in the UK and IE NOTHING like driving in Oz?

Of course the trip is feasible but due to high charges for one way drop off fees for rental cars better to fly or get the train or ferry and rent a car at each place, Not everyone is retired and can spend months touring every inch of every country and some might just want to see highlights. Loads of Brits drive their own cars from their homes to Scotland or Ireland etc for holidays, they don't always take the small roads, they take the motorways to get to their destination as quickly as possible and spend as much time there. The ferry from Cairnryan to Belfast takes just over 2 hours.

BritishCaicos

“Loads of Brits drive their own cars”

i drive 20% of this route twice a month. Last week there was snow which slowed us down in Cumbria to around 50mph, on occasions there is heavy traffic near Birmingham,
Reston and Stafford which will slow you down by, at worst 30 minutes. The rest of the time the my journey take 3 hours.

Its probably worth avoiding a long discussion as to what constitutes a “British road trip”or whether the route is possible and actually advising the best options for what is an ENTIRELY FEASIBLE proposal.

Personally. I’d fly into Manchester, drive down to Oxford then drive up to The Lakes and head back to Manchester via Hadrian’s Wall, Dumfries and Galloway, Cairnryan, Belfast, Dublin, Holyhead, Snowdonia, Chester and Manchester. Very straight forward in two and a half weeks but the ferry crossings will be expensive , considering the exchange rate with the pound , you’ll probably regard the cost as pocket change.

let me know if you want any advice about accommodation and places to visit.

janisj

>>Why is driving in the UK and IE NOTHING like driving in Oz?<<

I'm comparing the wide open spaces in Australia vs. the twisty turny/stone wall lined/village speed limited roads where the pretty bits are. I'm certainly not talking about the side of the car one sits on.

IF one sticks to the motorways this is more than feasible . . . but why would one want to do that ?????