Quick Trip to Ireland

slvincent · Newbie

Quick Trip to Ireland

Michele Erdvig · Host

Sarah,

Welcome to my forum. Are you going to be based in Dublin for your four full days in Ireland? If so, I would assume you will not have a car.

You could do a Railtours trip to the Cliffs of Moher. However, I think doing the ROK from Dublin is too much. Some other tours you might be interested in from Dublin are Newgrange and Wicklow.

Don't forget to save some time for Dublin!

Michele

slvincent · Newbie

Hi Michele,

Our hotel is based out of Dublin. We have a car that we are keeping parked at our hotel (free parking!!!) and then we were going to drive and see as much of the country as we can. Day one is planned to see Dublin, and then the following day we are planning to drive. Is this a possible day trip to either the Cliffs of Mohr or else the Ring of Kerry?

Thanks for your help!

Sarah

-- Edited by slvincent on Tuesday 17th of August 2010 04:07:38 PM

Michele Erdvig · Host

Sarah,

So your first day will be Dublin. Then you have two days on the road. Your last night will be near Dublin Airport probably for your early flight out the next day.

I think you are trying to do too much. Although Ireland looks small when you look at a map there are very few motorways once you go beyond the larger cities or for cross-country driving. You could easily spend all your time just driving, driving, driving at 30 - 35 mph. We call that the "green blur tour of Ireland".

To answer your question. Dublin to the Cliffs of Moher will probably take you 4 to 4 1/2 hours drive. Then it is another 3 hours or more to Killarney, depending on your route. The Ring of Kerry takes a whole day to do as a day trip from Killarney. Going from Killarney to Dublin will take 5 or 6 hours, depending on route. Keeping in mind that every sightseeing stop will add more time to your trip, I personally would not try to do such extensive driving that covers such a vast area of Ireland.

Perhaps you should consider doing things closer to Dublin and the east coast. Maybe on another trip you can fly into Shannon and will have more time to devote to the west.

Michele

slvincent · Newbie

Hello,

Thank you so very much for all of your help with this. Your information about time and distance from one place to another was very eye opening. We have been trying to plan this trip using Rick Steves book on Ireland and all the times he has listed are completely different, which is why we thought we could cover so much ground. Since there are certain things we definitely want to see, I am starting to think that taking a rail/bus tour out to the Cliffs of Moher would be a better option, Than we can at least sleep if we get tired during our whirl wind tour. If we decide to opt out and not rent the car, is it pretty easy to find transportation from the Airport to the Dublin without prepaying for tickets? Also is it easy to find transportation to places like Newgrange, the Rock of Cashel and Kilkenny? We were trying to find trains/bus tours but were not lucky. I am not sure if we are just looking in the wrong place. Once again, your help is so greatly appreciated.

Additionally, we are staying at the Burlington Hotel. You mentioned having to leave early for a 10:30 AM flight. Am I correct to assume that the day we fly out, we should leave no later than 6 AM?

Thank You again,

Sarah

Monty · Senior Member

Hi Sarah:

Has been my take on Rick Steves material that although there is always some great information in his books, that it is a much more general overview of the area he is talking about. Since he does publications on several different countries, you tend to get more of an overall presentation instead of anything too specific. Thus, the difference in how long it takes to go from one part of Ireland to another.

The wonderful thing in that regard for this forum is that Michele and the others who help plan routes here have all been through it as "regular" people, driving rental cars and battling with maps and directions -- not as a syndicated columnist who may well have drivers and others helping get him from one place to another.

What you see here tends to be the real thing.

Monty

CowboyCraic · Guru

Good Morning Sarah,

You might want to take a look at Paddywagon Tours as an option. They offer day tours to the West and also offer some 2 and 3 day loop tours. They also offer day tours to Wicklow/Glendalough/kilkenny, as well as Belfast, the Giants Causeway, etc. THey are really fun tours. There is a lot of knowledge put forth by the tour guide and driver, as well as sing-alongs. They are also easier on the pocket than most tours.

That way you wouldn't need a car.

As to Rick Steve's, I have always said that his times were off. As Monty says, that may have to do with teh fact that he has a production crew to get him where he needs to go. He skims the cream but doesn't tend to the fat, so to speak.

Slan Beo (Take Care),

Bit

slvincent · Newbie

Thank you all so much for your input! I will definitely check this out more in depth this evening.

Thanks Again,

Sarah

Michele Erdvig · Host

Sarah,

My opinion is that since you have four days in Ireland, you would be better off to base in Dublin and not rent a car. Since the Cliffs of Moher is high on your "must see" list do the Railtour. It is a long full day by train and bus. But someone else is doing the driving.

Use at least a day to see Dublin (if not more). Then choose another day tour such as north to see Newgrange or south into Wicklow to see Powerscourt Gardens and Glendalough Monastic Site. Mary Gibbons does tours to both and you can book them from your hotel or at the tourist office or online.

That will fill up your four days and you will have a saner trip.

Michele