wannagonow
Registered User
Posts: 1
(6/13/05 4:36 pm)

 Ireland in October--Am I nuts?

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I'm planning a 7 to 9 day trip to Western Ireland in October. My plans are to see the Cliffs of Moher, the Burren, the Ring of Kerry, Connemara and possibly the Aran islands. I have read so many articles, books (including Michele's and looked at so many websites that my head is spinning.
Since I'm travelling overseas for the first time and am on a tight budget, my question is:

Is it better to go with a package that includes airfare, rental car and B & B vouchers or to try to do everything separately? I've seen some good deals on packages using B & B vouchers, but I gather that these are not welcomed by the local B & Bs. Also, I've opted to go with a self-drive trip versus a tour. Wise?

Any input would be helpful and appreciated. Thanks!!




k

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stannseniors
Registered User
Posts: 148
(6/13/05 9:39 pm)

october trip

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We went in October and it was GREAT! You can't expect to get tropical awesome weather in Ireland anyway so we figured - "what's the difference". We planned October because it was cheaper and not in the middle of the busy season. Everything and everywhere we went was so cool - hardly anyone there and easy to see everything. I got the most awesome photos of the landscape with no one in the pics....unusual. Cliffs of Moher was great - yhou could take all sorts of pics with no one in them or just you. Blarney was so slow we marched right up into the castle and waited for two people to kiss the stone....summer you would wait a lot longer. We were prepared for really cold weather but we are from the midwest - it was beautiful and most days in the 60s. We hit 55 one day and in the 70s another and it only rained hard one day and only in the morning (then off and on) but it didn't hinder the traveling.
It is my opinion that we saved money by getting the cheapest airfair, the cheapest car and NOT getting vouchers but getting the first and last night booked and relying on the B&B owners to book ahead. Not everyplace took vouchers. That's just my opinion

Michele Erdvig
Administrator
Posts: 3188
(6/13/05 9:57 pm)

Re: Ireland in October--Am I nuts?

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wannagonow,

You are not nuts. As stannseniors has just said, she went in October and had a great time. I was there last October and found prices lower, good sales going on in many shops, 2 days of really heavy rain out of 15 days.

This is what to do:

1. Comparison shop.
2. Get prices on all-inclusive fly/drive/voucher packages.
3. Figure out how much it will cost doing it yourself. Really only three things to check on: car, B&B prices (around 35 euro per person), airfares. You can check these online.
4. Add everything up and see what your best bargain is.

As for vouchers, they are welcome by B&Bs that accept them. And in October B&B owners will be happy to take vouchers with tourists in short supply. It does narrow down your choices of where you can stay as not all B&Bs accept vouchers.

If you can get a really excellent low package go with it. Otherwise, put the three major pieces of the puzzle together yourself.

Michele

wannagonow
Registered User
Posts: 2
(6/14/05 10:51 am)

Re: Ireland in October--Am I nuts?

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Stannseniors and Michele,
Thank you so much for the good advice! I'm feeling better now and have been pursuing the suggested course of action. So far, the best deal has been an inclusive 9 day package for roughly 1,100. Will do more checking to see if I can beat this, but so far so good. Anyone have any experience with Vacation Outlet.com?
Thanks again!!

Michele Erdvig
Administrator
Posts: 3190
(6/15/05 12:42 am)

Re: Ireland in October--Am I nuts?

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wannagonow,

Sorry, I haven't heard of Vacation Outlet.com. Try Sceptre Tours and 1 2 Travel. Or go to Tourism Ireland for a list of tour operators: http://www.tourismireland.com
Keep in mind that the price is per person when comparing costs.

Michele