Sept trip to ireland--need help with itinerary

rosn · Newbie

Sept trip to ireland--need help with itinerary

Michele Erdvig · Host

Nancy,

Welcome to my forum. How great that you won a trip to Dublin! I assume you will be departing from Dublin as well? Will you be flying out and if so, what time is your flight? That may determine where you have to spend your last night in Ireland.

You have picked some good spots. Kilkenny is my favorite city in Ireland and Kenmare is my favorite small town. You will find lots of good restaurants in both places.

Are you renting a car during your time outside Dublin?

Give me some more info and I will be delighted to give you some input.

Michele

rosn · Newbie

thanks so much for your help!. We will be arriving at 8:30 am departing the night before from Chicago. Our return flights departs at 10:30 am. We will be staying the last 4 nights in Dublin and this cannot be changed as such was arranged through the prize forfillment. We arranged our outbound flight so we would have four nights at the beginning of our trip on our own. We do plan to rent a car although after reading about such, I'm a bit leary. When we're based in Dublin, we're also considering one of the railtours as a long day trip. Again, thanks much for your help. Nancy

tony2phones · Guru

The Giants Causeway trip is well thought of but a long day. I would also suggest perhaps taking the Bus Across to Galway for a couple of days and taking Conamara/Kylemore Abbey, Burren/Cliffs of Moher tours.

Michele Erdvig · Host

Nancy,

Thanks for the additional info. I now understand your plans better. Good idea to not go to far on your first day in Ireland. Kilkenny is about 2 hours from Dublin so is just right for day one. There are walking tours of the city from the tourist office, Kilkenny Castle, design workshops (across from the castle), St. Canice's Cathedral and a nice walk by the river. Certainly no shortage of sightseeing for your first day.

You could consider a route that would take you through Cashel and Cahir to either Kenmare or Kilkenny. Then you could see the Rock of Cashel, Cahir Castle and the Swiss Cottage on the way.

Let us know whether you decide on Killarney or Kenmare and we can suggest sightseeing from there.

Michele

rosn · Newbie

thanks so much for your help and thoughts!.......do you have any thoughts on the pros/cons between lodging in either Killarney vs. Kenmare as a base.? To complicate things further, another thought was to alternatively spend one night in Kilkenny and then head towards Dingle. Also, is it best to base ourselves toward the edge of towns (ie Sheen Falls Lodge in Kenmare, The Lake Hotel in Killarney) or would it be better to base ourselves more towards the cnter of town.Should we spend all three nights in one hotel or two in one and a third elsewhere? I'm concerned about venturing into town in the evening in terms of parking and/or driving after dark. But the appeal of some of the settings away from the city is a draw. In terms of sights, we are looking for scernery, charm, strolls more than long hikes. In terms of lodging we're looking for good deals on mid level and up choices.

Michele Erdvig · Host

Nancy,

Killarney is larger and has more infrastructure such as a cinnema, more restaurants, pubs, etc. Kenmare is more of a village. I love it because of its charm, extremely friendly residents, its scenic situation on the Ring of Kerry, the small-town atmosphere, excellent restaurants. It just depends on what you are looking for.

Personally, I would do three nights in either Killarney or Kenmare and do day trips from that base. You can include Dingle as a day trip.

A lot of people prefer to stay within walking distance of a town especially if they want to indulge in a drink or two at a restaurant or pub. Ireland has very strict drinking and driving laws. One way around that would be a taxi into town for the evening and then back to your accommodations that are farther away. Or you could have a designated driver.

Michele