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Post Info TOPIC: 4 Day mid-week vacation in West Ireland
Lourens


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4 Day mid-week vacation in West Ireland
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Hi

I am planning a trip to Ireland for my wife and I and my parents. We have only 4 days in Ireland, and will fly to Shannon airport. Although we enjoy seeing sights, we typically avoid touristy places that charge a lot of money. We are more than happy to drive around and just take in the lovely scenery. I have been to Ireland before for a weekend and we stayed at a B & B in Portmagee. During that weekend we saw the Ring of Kerry, lake Killarney and the Dingle peninsula. I would like a similar experience, but would also like to see other parts of Ireland.

Our current plans are to stay in Doolin. I would like to know if this is a good base to explore from. Also I would like to know which scenic places you can recommend and which roadtrips you can advise on.

Thank you.
Lourens.

-- Edited by Lourens at 18:08, 2008-05-24

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Michele Erdvig


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RE: 4 Day mid-week vaction in West Ireland
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Lourens,

Welcome to my forum! What time of year will you be visiting Ireland? Doolin can be a good base for seeing west Clare, but it depends on what you are looking for. Doolin is quite small. At certain times of the year it can be very crowded with tourists, campers and backpackers. If you want a larger place to base out of consider Ennis. It is a good size town with many amenities. Like Doolin it is a mecca of traditional Irish music.

Give us some more info and we will be happy to help with your trip.

Michele



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Lourens


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RE: 4 Day mid-week vacation in West Ireland
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Hi Michelle

Thanks for offering to help out. Our trip is planned for 10 to 13 Jun 2008, which is pretty soon. I realise this is peak season, so I am content with the fact that prices will be higher and there will be more tourists. We are not particulaly biased toward Doolin, I just wanted a cozy place from where we could drive around to explore the beautiful country. We don't mind staying in a small village - in fact, I would prefer a smaller place than a bigger city. Also, I like the ocean and it would be a plus if we could go for walks on the beach or watch the sun set over the ocean.

Thanks.

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youngka


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Lourens,  Glad you found this site, it is a good one! 
Place near Doolin -- in case you don't stay in Doolin, in Kinvara near the ocean(SW of Galway across the Bay)  Conneelys B&B --sheilaconneely@kinvara.com  Also has a nice guest house     Shiela's place is fun and she has a wonderful breakfast!
Place to eat in Kinvara:    Keoghs Bar & Restaurant  --  Excellent sea food  -  www.kinvara.com/keoghs
B&B in Adare:     Adare info page   http://www.adare.org/    B&B web page:   http://www.adarecountryhouse.com/   email:  adarecountryhouse@eircom.net
Skibereen in the SW part of Ireland, is a nice town and nice driving to it from the Doolin area (if you stay in Doolin)
Have a really fun time and it should be very pretty in September!   Youngka


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Michele Erdvig


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Lourens,

Doolin might suit you. However, the beach at Doolin is rocky and not sandy. If you want a sandy beach you might be better off in Lahinch or Ballyvaughan.

Michele

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Garry Dufford


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Hi Michelle,

I'm glad you mentioned Lahinch. I remember there being a fairly nice sandy beach there. Is it pretty "beachy"? By that I mean a place to spend at least a few hours with the kids, playing in the sand/water?

We'll be there in a couple of weeks. Any idea how warm (cold?) the water should be?

I'm getting old and don't trust my memory as much...

Thanks

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Garry Dufford


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I really liked the Skibbereen area. You can get to Clear Island from Skull. I don't know if I'd want to drive all the way to Doolin for such a short trip.

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youngka


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I remember our first drive to Doolin. It seemed pretty far out to the little town and there was a boat landing to take folks to the island. Like Larry Dufford was saying. Lahinch is in the area of the Cliffs of Moher amd just about the same location of The Rock Shop, very niceplace to buy Connemara necklaces, rings, bracelets, and many other thinks from the Connemara Area. They also have a nice restaurant in the same building. You can easily tell if you want to take time in the shop when you walk in. If you are going to take a route this year, which seems like our trip for next year, I like to find different places I may want to stop for the night just in case we end up in that specific area and know what is available before I get there. Good Luck.......Youngka

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Michele Erdvig


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Garry,

Lahinch is "beachy" and has a long sandy beach backed by dunes. The water is cold at all times of the year. But I lived in Florida for so long anything cooler than 85 degrees is cold water! If you are a member of the polar bear club perhaps the water at Lahinch will seem warm.

Michele



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Mark D


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I really enjoyed the beach at Rosses Point, The one just below the Yeats Country Hotel is very, very nice. If you are anywhere near Sligo, it is well worth the visit IMO.

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Michele Erdvig


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Mark,

For a really beautiful beach try Inchydony south of Clonakilty. WOW!

Michele

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KCJohn


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just back from 10 days in Ireland, several in the area near Doolin.

We stayed near Lisdoonvarna at the Slieve Elva Farmhouse. Wonderful B&B and fantastic hosts Aiofe and Gerry Swords. This is a great spot for exploring the Burren and both Doolin and the Cliffs of Moher were only 15 minutes away. We went to Doolin several evenings for music and had no problems driving back. Lisdoonvarna is a pleasant town with some good places to eat, and the Roadside Inn has music several nights a week. The nearby town of Ennistymon also has some nice pubs and restaurants.

If you want to experience Doolin, the Cliffs, the Burren and possibly the Aran Islands this is an excellent spot. And it only took us an hour to drive back to Shannon.

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Michele Erdvig


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KC,

Thanks for the B&B recommendation. We would love to hear more about your trip when you have the time. Many forum members report back in the "Trip Report" section. It makes for good reading. Did you get to the Aran Islands?

Michele

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KCJohn


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Michele

we did not make it to the Aran Islands this trip but will definitely do so next time. We did spend a day on Achill Island, which was very enjoyable.

I'll put together a trip report later this week.

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Michele Erdvig


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KC,

Glad you got out to Achill Island. It is a special place. Looking forward to your report.

Michele

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