Itinerary help for a newbie, please

TCTraveller · Newbie

Itinerary help for a newbie, please

Michele Erdvig · Host

Hi TC,

Welcome to my forum. Melissa5 also posted a complete trip report on my website with photos. If you search for her name they will come up. I hope you will take Melissa's advice about not trying to do too much. She spent many months planning and agonizing about her trip. Although she cut out many things, she observed that she didn't miss what she did not see. Instead she enjoyed what she chose to see.

You are trying to fit a lot of vast distances into your trip. If you were my client I would advise you to cut out a lot of your planned sightseeing. Of course, it is your trip so feel free to ignore what you will.

I have visited Newgrange Lodge and it is very close to Newgrange. To me it seemed like a cross between a hostel and a guesthouse. It is run by a manager rather than the owner, who has several properties in the Dublin/Meath areas. It was clean when I visited. My area recommendations would be D Hotel in Drogheda, Trim Castle Hotel or Tankardstown. Now for your day to day plans:

Thurs PM - stay near Newgrange * Fine

Fri - visit Newgrange, try to reach the Ultster AFolk Museum Emigration Center to spend an hour or so before it closes (Is this worthwhile?--not open weekends) * If you plan on visiting the visitor's center at Bru na Boinne, Newgrange and Knowth you will spend half the day there, if not more. That is provided you get in right away. Your plans to include the Ulster American Folk Park are not practical. The UAFP is open on weekends: http://www.folkpark.com/visiting_information/Opening_Hours/

Sat - Derry, Ulster Folk Museum, perhaps the Causeway and Dunluce or leave those for another trip with Antrim, Belfast?? * Wow! Green Blur alert! Way, way too much. This could fill two - four days. If you mean the Ulster Folk and Transport Museum near Hollywood, that takes a good portion of one day all by itself. The complex is massive. I would devote a whole day to the Antrim Coast with the Giant's Causeway, Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge, Dunluce Castle and all the little beaches and coves along the way. This is one of Ireland's most scenic drives. It would be a pity to speed through it and not enjoy. Now you know why I suggested concentrating on part of Ireland not the whole island. Many tourists don't build time into their itineraries to actually see anything. They only think of the driving time. Then there all those photo stops, walks, lunch, etc.

Sun - whatever we didn't complete Sat, travel to Donegal for PM * I am exhausted already.

Mon - Donegal and on to Westport * Donegal is a huge county. Don't think you will get to see much of it. Just whatever is along the drive.

Tue - Westport...Achill? Creogh Patrick (not sure about a climb since that's so long...)? * Too much.

Wed - Westport toward Galway, toward Doolin not do full Connemara * Long day.

Thur - Burren? Cliffs? on to Doolin * Okay.

Fri - on to Dingle * Okay.

Sat - Dingle * Okay.

Sun - on to Kenmare * I assume Kenmare is just an overnight stopping place. What a pity because it is my favorite small town in Ireland.

Mon - fly out of Cork at 2:30 to London * Okay.

I think you need to go back to the drawing board, cut some things and overnight stops out. Concentrate on your top "must sees". Be brutal and cross off the others. You just don't have the time to do justice to the areas you are covering. You will average 35 mph on little, winding, scenic roads where you will find photo ops and interesting things to see and do at every turn. Ireland is not a place you rush through. Unless that is your prefered way of travel. Some people don't mind seeing Ireland through their windshield. What is your style?

Michele

TCTraveller · Newbie

Thanks.
I guess I wasn't very clear. The only "planned' part of the trip includes Newgrange, the Ulster American Folk Museum/Park (Omagh, not Belfast Ulster Folk and Transport) Dingle and Kenmare, on our way to Cork.

We don't plan to do the Ulster American Folk Museum/park on Friday, just the Emigration Center at the park as it is only open M-F. It closes at 4:30 so I thought we might get an hour or an hour and a half there before it closed. Then Saturday or Sunday we would return to do the whole park, as well as a bit of Derry. Thought we might be able to squeeze in the Causeway and maybe the castle on the weekend as well. We weren't planning to see Belfast or the Antrim coast this trip although we'd heard of some folks doing Derry, the Causeway and the castle in a day trip from Donegal town so thought we might fit those two sites in. Realize Donegal is large so we hadn't planned on trying to "cover" Donegal just pass through, spend the night if necessary or appealing.

Is it crazy to plan the nights 1 (Newgrange area) 2 & 3 (Derry area) and from the back end of the trip nights11 (Kenmare) 10 & 9 (Dingle) and leave the middle free to let it unfold?

What do you find the most appealing about Kenmare or is it the surrounds? We were hoping that we'd be able to see a lot on Sunday driving from Dingle to Kenmare as it looks as if it is only a couple of hours drive total.

Truthfully, the thought of trying to do any of the heavy touristy areas is not very appealing--I know that includes Dingle and much of the south and southwest--but maybe we should just can the thought of Northern Ireland since we're stuck with leaving from Cork. Or, do we do the little bit (Derry and Omagh) to get a feel for NI and feed the need for ancestral connection and then head south through the Midlands (?) down to Dingle, and not attempt any of the West where there will be many tourists at this time of year? Perhaps Westport, Connemara, Doolin, the Burren would be better in late June or early September (I teach so can't do other times of the year) when the tourists would be fewer. Would that be any less time intensive?

Thanks.

I

Michele Erdvig · Host

TC,

Thank you for clarifying your plans. Sometimes it is difficult to read between the lines (or read minds!) especially when the names of museums are very similar.

Do you plan on spending time at the Ulster American Folk Park near Omagh or just speed through it? The reason I ask is that there is a lot to see and you can easily spend the whole day there. It is spread out over many acres with the museum, houses, cottages, churches, a town, a ship, etc. to visit and people to interact with. Have you looked at their website? Planning one day to see the folk park, Derry, Dunluce Castle and the Giant's Causeway is unrealistic. Two days would be a minimum.

The midlands of Ireland are certainly less touristed in August than the highlights you wanted to hit. Although the coasts of Ireland tend to hold the most spectacular scenery. The midlands are a gentler landscape.

Do you plan on having any reservations anywhere? Or do you plan to "wing it" in the middle of your trip?

Since your goals are Newgrange, Omagh, Dingle and Kenmare perhaps you should skip some of the west and put in an intensive driving day to head south from No. Ireland.

Dingle to Kenmare is about 3 hours, depending on your route. However, there is a wealth of things to do in Killarney and many photo ops in Killarney National Park, Moll's Gap and the portion of the Ring of Kerry between Killarney and Kenmare. If you spend any time sightseeing it could take all day for the journey. But that is how Ireland is. There is a wealth of things to do along the way, many distractions, natural beauty that will have you stopping here and there. It is so different from driving in the US where you speed along at 70 on an expressway with the cruise control on watching the billboards go by. You are going to average 35 mph. You will want to stop around every bend.

You can just "let things unfold" if you want. Although I recommend reservations on Fri & Sat nights. If you have some places that you really want to stay, I would book them. And if you find yourselves stuck for a place to stay anywhere the local tourist office will find accommodation for you for a small fee.

Michele

TCTraveller · Newbie

What makes Kenmare your favorite small town in Ireland?

wojazz3 · Guru

I think Kenmare has a lot to offer. It's a small town, always very clean (winner of many tidy town awards), lots of nices choices of places to eat and to stay and nice shops. With all that there is in town, it retains a comfortable small village feel. The scenery is beautiful with the Macgillycuddy Reeks rising over the Ring of Kerry and the Caha Mountains and the Kenmare River (Bay) between them.

From a travel point of view, it is an ideal jumping off point. It sits right at the spot where the Beara and Ivera (Ring of Kerry) Penisulas meet. It's a fairly short trip (40ish minutes to Killarney Nat'l park for things like the Gap of Dunloe. Gouganne Bara is not far away and even Sheepshead and the Mizen Peninsulas are within a full day trip. An early start on a clear day could get you to the jumping of point for the Skellig Rock tour and the list goes on and on.

Kenmare certainly has a fair amount of tourism but is not really scarred by it for the most part. Prices are probably a bit higher than some places but not nearly as high as Dublin. I have stayed in Kenmare most of the times I've been in the area and always liked it.

Bill

Michele Erdvig · Host

Ditto Bill. Plus very friendly people.

Michele