Need input on itinerary, please!

arkitkat · Member

Need input on itinerary, please!

Itallian Chauffeur · Moderator

Welcome to the forum. Take a deep breath and relax -- you've come to the RIGHT place.

Nearly every Irish car hire company permits travel into Northern Ireland, but SOME charge a 'Premium' to do so (generally about 30-35 Euro), while others do not. ALL companies DO require that you advise them of your plans to go there, however.

Entering and exiting Northern Ireland is now seamless -- that is to say that if you miss seeing the sign, you won't know, or care. Having said THAT, there ARE some significant differences that you need to be aware of:\
1) Distances, speed limits, etc. in NI are only given in MILES, while the Republic has converted pretty much everthing into metric (kilometers, kilometers per hour, etc.). Many of the Irish rental cars' speedometers ONLY display KPH, so while you are in NI, you'll have to mentally convert the KHP into MPH to avoid accummulating speeding tickets. They use a LOT of Speed Cameras in NI -- it might be a week or two before you find out that you were speeding outside of Bushmill's, on Thursday ....
And, when the charge arrives at the Rental Car company, they WILL add it on to your credit card --- PRONTO! Likewise, for PARKING tickets ....
2) With the exception of a few, border area shops, your Euros are NOT legal tender in NI -- they are on the Pound Sterling standard, so you'll need to pick up some as soon as possible, after crossing the border -- but not TOO much, because with the SAME caveat, Pounds aren't much use, once you return to the South.

You are doing a LOT of cross-country driving -- 'JUMPING' South to North to South -- is there a particular reason (schedule-wise) for doing THAT???

What are your interests? What is on your 'Must See' list? Ross Castle might work out as the interim stop either going to, or returning from, the North.

Bob

arkitkat · Member

Hi Bob,
Thanks for the welcome and the info. As far as the crossing back and forth, I thought I was making a big circle! weirdface

As far as interests, we love the coastal areas, but don't want to miss the interior either, but I don't want to go too fast to enjoy where we will be staying. I will be doing some genealogical research in NI. We like the history and castles and of course the pubs. Ruins and cemeteries are also on our list. Do you think I have bitten off too much for seventeen days?
Thanks again!
Janie

Merle · Senior Member

A couple other notes about NI. You will need different stamps than the Republic to mail postcards and you will need a different phone card if you use one. The only difference we noticed when we crossed the border last September was the mileage signs were different as Bob has mentioned. The people in NI are just as friendly as the people in the Republic. I too went to NI to see where my ancestors lived. I didn't do any research there because most of them emigrated so long ago, the records are scarce.

Merle

Itallian Chauffeur · Moderator

For me, the Wild Card is the TIMING. One overnight to get to Clonakilty from NI makes for two days of mostly 'driving only' and pretty much precludes visiting/seeing LARGE parts of the East and South East. Since you are trying to match up with a self-catering week, though, I understand your dilemma.

I LOVE West Cork. We spend time there, every year. It will be a great base to cover much of the SW, but with any stops at all, it will take the better part of a day just to get to Dingle. Having said THAT, only one night there IS preferrable to none, at all.

Given all of THAT, I think you might need to LOSE one of your nights in Galway, to allow for an additional overnight, either enroute TO, or FROM, NI...

SO MUCH to see in betwixt and between, it seems a shame to rush by in BOTH directions.

Over-all, your plan is do-able, as is, but BUSY.

Bob

arkitkat · Member

Thank you both for the input! I appreciate it so much. Do you think at this time of year, we could find b and b's to stay at without reservations? Just explore and find accommodations, or should we reserve?

Janie

Michele Erdvig · Host

Janie,

My thanks to Bob and Merle for filling the gap with good info while I was away from the forum for a few days. It can be challenging to mesh some self-catering with B&Bs in between. As Bob has said when going south to north and vice versa it will mostly be driving days. But since you know that in advance there will be no surprises. You may be able to fit in a few sightseeing stops if you plan carefully.

September is still quite busy in Ireland. Most of the days you are thinking of "winging it" seem to fall on weekends. If you have your heart set on staying in a particular place it may be wise to reserve in advance. If it doesn't matter where you stay there will always be something available. Be sure to take a look at my "Lodgings" page for good places to stay.

Michele