wannagonow
Registered User
Posts: 4
(7/6/05 12:36 pm)

 very rough itinerary

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Hi Everyone!
Thanks for all the great advice on the early stages of my planning. I've booked everything but accomodations and I have some ideas about those, thanks to Michelle's book. Here's my (very) rough itinerary--I think I'm underestimating things, so feel free to comment! My brother and I are primarily interested in eating some good food and seeing great scenery. Our trip is nine days long and in October.
Here's what I have so far:

Day One:
Land in Shannon early, sort ourselves out at the airport.
Drive to Bunratty, explore Folk Park
Drive to Ennis, lunch on the way
See Cliffs of Moher
Explore Burren
Drive to Doolin--stay at Cullinan's, eat there, hang out and enjoy some music

Day Two:
Drive up the coast (northeast)
Eat/Sightsee in Galway
Continue to Clifden/Stay at Abbeyglen Castle overnight

Day Three:
Explore Connemara
Drive up to Westport (?)
Circle back down to Galway--stay in Salt Hill

Day Four:
Explore Galway
Drive down to Dingle.
Overnight Dingle

Days Five and Six:
Explore Dingle Pennin. (Connor Pass)
Ring of Kerry
Shop in Killarney/Explore
Overnight(s) in Dingle

Days 7 and 8 are a bit fuzzy. Would like to drive to Blarney and then to Cashel. I've thought about staying in Limerick and doing the Rock and Blarney as daytrips.
Our last day I planned to see Adare Castle, stay at Bunratty Lodge and see the Celli there that night . I think I've front-loaded the trip though. Anyone have any thoughts? I want to see as much as possible but avoid the blur of green. I eliminated a trip out ot the Aran islands (even thought I'd love to see at least one of them) because I thought it was too much.
Thanks,
Amy

 

eliteshooter
Registered User
Posts: 14
(7/6/05 3:10 pm)

Re: very rough itinerary

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Sounds Fun!

 

Dude
Registered User
Posts: 45
(7/6/05 4:39 pm)

Itinerary

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Looks good to me, although I'm not sure where you'd have lunch between Bunratty and Ennis. Maybe lunch at Durty Nellies, or lunch in Ennis. Can't recommend any place to eat in Ennis, because we didn't go into town at all.
Have fun!

Judy

Andi
Unregistered User
(7/6/05 5:49 pm)

itinerary

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I haven't spent time around Dingle, but have been twice to Clare, Galway, Mayo. I'd suggest spending 2 days around Connemara. If you sitesee Galway on day 2, you'll just be sleeping in Clifden. On day 3 you have lots of options in Connemara. You can visit the coastline, including Roundstone, a great small village surrounded by pristine beaches. On the way up to Westport you can visit Kylemore Abbey, with its beautiful gardens. A visit to Kylemore can easily take several hours. There is Connemara National Park, well worth walking around. You should drive up to Westport via Killary Harbor and Leenane, passing by Dough Lough after leaving Leenane. These are some of Ireland's most scenic areas. If you spend a night in Westport, there are a couple good pubs, and Westport is a nice little town. If you drive down to Galway via Cong, you can visit the grounds of Ashford Castle, or just stop briefly in Cong. It has an interesting ruined abbey and a beautiful river walk. This is only a sample of possibilities. Whatever you do, have a great time!

Michele Erdvig
Administrator
Posts: 3242
(7/7/05 1:07 am)

Re: very rough itinerary

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Amy,

You are on the move for most of your trip but in October you can generally play it by ear. You won't have the long daylight hours of spring and summer so some of the sightseeing might go by the wayside. I suggest trying to do your "must sees" first on any given day. That way if you don't get to the rest you won't be that disappointed.

Below are my day-by-day comments:

Day One:
Land in Shannon early, sort ourselves out at the airport.
Drive to Bunratty, explore Folk Park
Drive to Ennis, lunch on the way
See Cliffs of Moher
Explore Burren
Drive to Doolin--stay at Cullinan's, eat there, hang out and enjoy some music Michele's Answer:  * Since this is your first day in the country you may feel jet-lagged. If that is the case you can always get in a nap and then do more sightseeing. The cliffs at sunset are lovely and the circus-like crowds disappear as the evening approaches. Check with Cullinan's to see if they are doing dinners on this night as they are closed on Wednesdays.

Day Two:
Drive up the coast (northeast)
Eat/Sightsee in Galway
Continue to Clifden/Stay at Abbeyglen Castle overnight. Michele's Answer:  * Fine.

Day Three:
Explore Connemara
Drive up to Westport (?)
Circle back down to Galway--stay in Salt Hill. Michele's Answer:  * Wing this day. If you don't get to Westport that's okay.

Day Four:
Explore Galway
Drive down to Dingle.
Overnight Dingle Michele's Answer:  * Galway to Dingle (main roads) is about 4 1/2 to 5 hours. I wouldn't spend too much time in Galway but proceed south.

Days Five and Six:
Explore Dingle Pennin. (Connor Pass)
Ring of Kerry
Shop in Killarney/Explore
Overnight(s) in Dingle Michele's Answer:  * Dingle is really not the ideal place to stay for a day trip to the Ring of Kerry. Even though it would be nice to stay two nights in one place (for a change) it really makes more sense to do the ROK and end the day in Kenmare or Killarney rather than back-tracking all the way to Dingle.

Days 7 and 8 are a bit fuzzy. Would like to drive to Blarney and then to Cashel. I've thought about staying in Limerick and doing the Rock and Blarney as daytrips.
Our last day I planned to see Adare Castle, stay at Bunratty Lodge and see the Celli there that night. Michele's Answer: * If you want to see Blarney & Cashel then it makes sense to drive on to those places and overnight in Cashel. You could see Cahir Castle on the way and do the Rock of Cashel in the morning. Doing them as a day trip from Limerick is too much.

I generally suggest some two-night stays so you aren't packing up and moving on every day. But in your case it really doesn't make sense. You will be on the go but the itinerary is doable. If you want a trip that is a bit less hectic with some two-night stays you will need to cut out one section. But if you want to fit in as much as you can then leave it as is.

Michele

wannagonow
Registered User
Posts: 5
(7/7/05 12:51 pm)

Thanks for all your input!

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Hi Everyone!
Thank you so much for your input and advice. I'll work on incorporating it into my plan.
Michelle--My biggest reason for wanting to stay in Dingle was that I wanted to stay in Castlegregory at The Shores Country House. It just sounded so inviting. I'm going to rethink things and maybe find a more centrally located place. Kenmare maybe.
I feel much better after getting some feedback--just wanted to make sure it was doable. We tend to be pretty energetic, so maybe it won't be too much, but I still may pare things down a bit. Would it be better to spend more time in Connemara and just spend one day sightseeing in Galway? Is one day enough?
Thanks!
Amy

Michele Erdvig
Administrator
Posts: 3243
(7/7/05 4:36 pm)

Shores

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Amy,

You can still stay at the Shores but if you do the ROK the next day I suggest going on to either Killarney or Kenmare. Otherwise you will have a big back-track. The Shores is a big treat. Even though it is not nearby Dingle town it is worth going out of your way for. If Annette is serving dinner on the night you are there it is totally worth the price for the gourmet quality of her food.

One day in Galway City is more than enough.

Michele

wannagonow
Registered User
Posts: 6
(7/11/05 2:09 pm)

round two

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Hi Everyone,
It's me again.
I got really excited because I thought I had finally had a breakthrough and gotten a grip on my unwieldy and obsessive planning. Now the doubts are creeping in, kerplunk.
Here's what it looks like if anyone would like to muddle through the re-arrangement:
Day One
Land in Shannon early (7:45 am), sort ourselves out at the airport, pick up rental car.
Drive to Ennis, lunch on the way
See Cliffs of Moher
Explore Burren
Drive to Doolin--eat there (at pub or Cullinan's--it's a Tuesday, they are open
Hang out in a nearby pub and enjoy some music. Spend the night at Cullinan's.

Day Two
Drive up the coast (northeast) to Clifden. Gawk at the beautiful Connemara scenery. Stay at Abbeyglen Castle overnight.

Day Three
Explore Connemara
Sightsee—Roundstone, Westport
Drive down to Galway via Cong --stay in Salt Hill.
My thought is, perhaps I should eliminate the trip to Westport and just spend more time exploring Connemara at large. Or should I spend less time in Kenmare/Killarney later in favor of Connemara?

Day Four
Explore Galway briefly.
Drive down to Dingle. Overnight in Castlegregory at the Shores--dinner there.

Day Five
Explore Dingle Pennin. ( If the weather cooperates drive through Connor Pass) Drive Ring of Kerry.
End the day in Kenmare or Killarney. Location TBD.

Day Six
Explore Kenmare and Killarney.
Shop, possibly hike (Torc Waterfall)
Overnight in Kenmare or Killarney. Same location--TBD

Day Seven
Drive to Blarney area. Sightsee (Blarney Castle and the Blarney stone, possibly.) Drive on to Cashel. Overnight there, possibly at Rockside House.

Day Eight
Sightsee Cashel area. Overnight at same place (as long as we like it in Cashel.

Day Nine
Drive to Limerick area.
See Adare Castle, Sightsee.
Stay at Bunratty Lodge for the night and see the Traditional Irish Celli (or another dinner attraction) there that night.

Day Ten
Eat a stupendous breakfast at Bunratty Lodge
Prepare to leave

I think the only problem here is that I'm feeling like I may later regret not spending more time in Connemara. Having never seen any part of Ireland firsthand (or any other part of Europe, for that matter...)I thought I'd give it a more balanced approach and spend roughly equal time all over. Any thoughts? I promise to give it a rest if I am obsessing and annoying you all to no end.
Thanks for your help,
Amy

Michele Erdvig
Administrator
Posts: 3253
(7/14/05 1:01 am)

Re: round two

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Amy,

If I am counting right you will be at the Shores on a weekend? Last year Annette was not doing dinners on weekends. Check in advance.

Reverse Day 5 & 6. Trying to see the Dingle Peninsula and ROK on one day is too much.

Otherwise it looks pretty good.

Michele