Michele, Helen, Italian Chauffeur, Youngka, Cowboy, others

Richard Leeds · Veteran Member

Michele, Helen, Italian Chauffeur, Youngka, Cowboy, others

Richard Leeds · Veteran Member

Let me try and attach the attachment again.

Richard

Michele Erdvig · Host

Richard,

Welcome back to the forum. Can you post your itinerary on the forum as text? I recently got my Twitter account hacked by clicking on a link. I am locked out of Twitter and cannot use my account. Now I am not clicking on any links like that ever again. Sorry.

Now on to the questions I can answer.

1. No one will shun you at the pubs. You can order wine, soft drinks (called minerals in Ireland), tea, coffee, Irish coffee.

2. Once I can view your itinerary I can give you some tips.

Will answer the other questions when I have more info.

Michele

tony2phones · Guru

Ireland Itinerary 2012

location in parenthesis is the evening location

Day 1 - Enniskerry Vilage, Powerscourt Gardens, Avoca Mill (Glendalough)

Day 2 - am Russborough House, pm Kilkenny (Kilkenny)

Day 3 - Kells, Callan, Rock of Cashel, Cahir (Kilkenny)

Day 4 - Thomastown, Jerpoint Abbey, Inistroge, JFK Forest, Tintern Abbey (Kilkenny)

Day 5 - Waterford, Tramore, Cobh (Blarney)

Day 6 - am Blarney Castle, Blarney, Ballincollig, pm Kinsale (Blarney)

Day 7 - Timoleague, Courtmacsberry,Butlerstown, Dromberg, Castletownshed, Baltimore, Skibbereen, M izen Head (Bantry)

Day 8 - Sheeps Head, Garmisch Gardens, Allihies, Caha Mountains (Kenmare or Killarney)

Day 9 - Ross Castle, Muckross Abbey, Craft Shop, National Park (Kenmare or Killarney)

Day 10 - Ring of Kerry (Kenmare or Killarney)

Day 11 - Tralee, Dingle (Castlegregory)

Day 12 - Foynes Flying Boat Museum, Adare, Adare Manor, Limerick (Bunratty)

Day 13 - Bunratty Castle & Folk Park, Bunratty Village, Qiomm Abbey, Knappogue Castle and Ennis Friary (Ballyvaghan)

Day 14 - Loop Head Drive, Cliffs of Moher (Ballyvaghan)

Day 15 - am Burren, pm Galway (Galway or Salthill)

Day 16 - Roscommon, Stokestown, Shannonbridge, Clonmacnoise (Galway or Salthill)

Day 17 - Aran Islands: Inis Mor (Galway or Salthill)

Day 18 - Ashford Castle, Recess, Cashel, Clifden, Roundstone (Clifden)

Day 19 - Letterfrack, Kylemore Abbey, Connemara National Park (Clifden)

Day 20 - Achill Island, Ceide Fields (Ballina)

Day 21 - Carrowmore, Lough Gil, Lough Key Forest Park, Stokestown if not seen on day 16, Florence Court house/grounds (Enniskillen)

Day 22 - Castle Coole, Devenish Island, Boa Island, Kesh, Belleek Factory (Enniskillen)

Day 23 - Donegal, Killybegs, Glenties, Burtonport, Bunbeg, Gleaveagh N.P. (Londonderry)

Day 24 - Londonderry (Londonderry)

Day 25 - drive around Inishowen, ferry Greencastle-Magilligan Point, Giants Causeway, Dunluce, Cushendun (Ards Peninsula)

Day 26 - Ards Peninsula, Mount Stewart house/gardens, Ulster Folk Museum (Ards Peninsula)

Day 27 - Belfast on/off bus tour, castle, botanic garden, city hall, Belfast castle, Ulster Art Museum (Ards Peninsula)

Day 28 - Carlingford, Newgrande (on weekday), Hill of Tara, Dublin (Dublin)

Day 29 - (Dublin)

Day 30 - (Dublin)

Day 31 - (Dublin)

tony2phones · Guru

Had a cursory look at this last night and will need time to consider the Northern part. Ards Peninsula I presume is something pulled out of a guide book referring to The County Down above Belfast? could just be something I have never heard of before.

Anyway for the area I live closest too. Days 12 through 14 or 15 I would spend in Ennis which is by far the best touring base in Clare. I might also be tempted to have this time co-inside with the Fleda at the end of May.

http://www.visitennis.ie/contents/?PG=festivals.html

(watch this space) http://www.fleadhnua.com/

Day 16? I am unsure whether it would be better to head north east before going to Galway and maybe put a night into Athlone?

How about an overnight on Inis Mor between there and Clifden

Ashford Castle (not sure its open to non residents?) is out of the way to the rest of your itinerary for the area.

Ballina, no problems there.

Will need a cfs free head to tackle the rest so will come back later on that.

Richard Leeds · Veteran Member

Tony2phones,

Appreciate your thoughts.
We will have a car and a good deal of luggage for the month in Ireland, that is why I thought we would go to Inis Mor for just the day.

Originally I was thinking of staying in Ennis instead of Ballyvaghan. It just seemed like the B&B offerings were much better in Ballyvaghan than Ennis. Then you mention the festival in Ennis in March. I clicked on the URL you gave me and watched a clip of the festival. It seems like the streets of Ennis are over run with people which means very busy accommodations, restaurants, etc.

I could add two nights to the vacation and stay in Ennis but we usually do not like to see places when they are full of mobs of people?

Richard

Richard Leeds · Veteran Member

Michele,

Does it make any sense to fly into Dublin and take a bus to Belfast to pick up a rental car for a month, then drive back to start my itinerary.

I realize that accommodations are somewhat subjective. I am actually torn between choices in many of my stops and would appreciate hearing from you and others.

Glendalough area: Bramble Rock B&B or Glendalough Heritage Center cottage

Kilkenny: Newlands Lodge or Hillgrove B&B

Blarney: Blarney Vale B&B or Ashley Lodge

Kenmare or Killarney: not sure which location, Friar's Glenn

Castlegregory: the Shores

Bunratty: Headley Court

Ballyvaghan: Cappabhaile House

Galway/Salthill: Jameson Court Apartments

Clifden: Mallmore House or Race Course Lodge

Enniskillen: Abocurragh Farm

Londonderry: Troy Hall B&B (actually I had stumbled across a very interesting property outside Derry where many special people have stayed, such as U.S. presidents, and they do have some less expensive accommodations. I seem to have lost the name of the place and I am unable to find it. Any ideas????

Ards Peninsula: Edevale House or Dufferin Inn. This is a very tough choice as they are so different.

Dublin: no idea for four nights: apartment stay, B&B or small hotel

Should I consider staying at some special place as a splurge: Bantry: Bantry House, Ballina: Belleek Castle????

I assume most people that visit Ireland for 1-2 weeks do not buy the Heritage Pass for two people. The site lists so many places and I am confused at what are must see places on the list.

thanks,

Richard

Michele Erdvig · Host

Richard,

Wow! You have enough packed into every day for a few trips. I suggest doing the most important things because many will fall by the wayside. Although you will have long daylight hours in April/May many of the sightseeing venues close around 5 pm and last tours are usually an hour prior to that.

It is good that you have mostly multiple-night stays.

Here are a few things that jumped out at me:

Day 21: Strokestown is the odd man out here. Don't think it is good for this day as it puts you in an entirely different direction.

Reverse Day 23 & 24. You will spend part of 23 driving to Derry. Best to see Derry on that partial day and do Donegal the next.

Day 25: Whoa! Skip Inishowen and only do the Antrim Coast.

I think I would choose Doolin over Ballyvaughan merely because it is closer to Loop Head and you plan a day trip there.

Keep in mind that everything on your list will take time. How much? Depends. Some places you will visit only have private guided tours. If you arrive at an in between time or the tour is full, you must wait for the next tour. Also visiting places takes time. How much? Depends on your interests. I could spend all day at Mount Stewart and another day at the Ulster Folk and Transport Museum. Heritage Ireland gives approximate times but if you are extremely interested in something I would add to their estimates.

Once you have been in Ireland for a couple of days you will start getting the hang of it and can adjust your schedule.

It makes no sense to rent the car in No. Ireland if you will be returning it in the Republic. There will be a big drop-off fee for that.

Have you looked at my Lodgings page for some other suggestions? Of course, I have many more with reviews in my book, which you may already have. Plus take a look at my last Trip Report for a few new places.

You may be interested in this pass also: Heritage Island.

I was not impressed with Belleek Castle.

If you can get a reservation at Edenvale, jump on it! The breakfast alone makes it worth the price.

Michele

Michele Erdvig · Host

Tony,

The Ards Peninsula is just east of Belfast. It is the part of No. Ireland that looks like an elephant's trunk. The ocean is on one side and Strangford Lough on the other. That is where Mount Stewart House and Gardens is. It is a very peaceful and scenic area yet is close to Belfast. Shh, keep it secret!

Michele

gabbaroo · Veteran Member

I highly recommend doing the Black Taxi tour in Belfast, where they take you to the Catholic and Protestant areas and explain the conflicts. We used Paddy Campbell's Famous Black Taxi tours but there are several companies. It is 30 pounds for up to 3 people.

Jackie

tony2phones · Guru

Ennis does get busy for the Fledh but the only time the streets are packed is for the opening and closing processions and there are always quiet places to hide as we did with pops last month. There are a number of good B&B/Guesthouses and at least 2 first class hotels. My thought were that it would be a sensible base for 3 nights rather than a one and two night stop.

We met up with a couple who were staying at Racecourse lodge in Clifden whist over last month. Reports are that is fairly good. My legs wouldn't get me up the hill after a night in town so we stayed at Dun Ri off the bottom of town, first time we have used this guest house and we are going back next Friday for our night out.

I did spend some time out east of Strangford Lough in the early 80's but never knew it had a name, (it was a bit secret though).

The brain is coming back on track slowly after a couple of misty days but we have visitors this weekend so I will just keep looking in now and then.

-- Edited by tony2phones on Friday 21st of October 2011 04:08:08 PM

Richard Leeds · Veteran Member

Tony, thanks for the suggestion on the Race Course Lodge. I wrote it down a few days ago and I am torn between Race Course Lodge and Mallmore in Clifden.

Jacie, thanks for suggesting Paddy's taxi in Belfast. Which would be better that or the on/off tour bus or should I do both or too redundant?

Michele, you just saved me a bunch of money with the discounts, thanks so much. That with the Heritage Card should save a bundle over one month.

Michele, you did not commit on the timing for my trip. After reading about your terrible month in May I am wondering if I should go in June, but I wanted the wildflowers everywhere and less people. Weather is no longer predictable. Should I go April 15-May 15, or May 1-May 31, or May 15-June 15th?
I am following your advice that Belleek Castle is not worth the splurge and I am changing and eliminating as you suggested as I am just trying to do too much. Everything looks so close, I think I can fit so much in between 9-6, dinner at 7-8, and it is still light out.

Michele, I do not know where to stay, should it be Killarney or Kenmare. If it is Kenmare we stay out of town at Friar's Glen, but I read that Kenmare is a nicer town and Killarney is too busy. Where would you stay if it was your first trip?

Again, Michele, you suggested we stay in Doolin vs. Ballyvaghan. Cappabhaile House looked so much nicer than anything in Doolin, I felt it was worth driving an extra 1/2 to find nicer accommodations. Am I missing something?

On the day trip to Inis Mor, should we do the plane roundtrip or the boat. Actually I would like to go plane one way and boat the other. I imagine that is not possible.

Michele, you said stay at Edenvale House if I can. I had picked two spots outside Belfast and inquired about rates. Edenvale three nights at 90 pounds each, that is $150 per night. When I said three nights to the Dufferin, the proprietor said if we stay the third night, its free. So obviously, they are not very busy in May mid-week. Big difference, $100 per night vs. $150.

Michele, I have no idea how long it takes to see certain area. I have two days and two nights for Clifden to see the area. Do I need a third night here or do I need to add another night to any area. We might not make it back, so if I should add 1-2-3 nights to the trip, I will.

thanks again for everything (one more thing, your book is pretty heavy to travel with, would you consider offering it to Amazon.com for a Kindle edition so we can carry it around for the day)?

Richard

Michele Erdvig · Host

Richard,

You can not depend on the weather so can't really plan like that. One May is great, the next is horrible. One April is the pits, the next is fabulous. And on it goes from year to year. Having said that, I think I would choose mid-April to mid-May. That will usually give you optimum blooming time. If you can hit the Glenarm Tulip Festival on May bank holiday weekend, I highly recommend it.

I am working on an e-book for next year. When it is available I will announce it here.

Could Edenvale be your splurge? Perhaps you can email them and ask about a discount for a 3-day stay. Mention the other one. Look at Ballynester House. I stayed there last time and really liked it.

Two nights in Clifden is fine. Have you looked at Seamist House? Right in town. I thought the rooms at Mallmore were on the shabby side. Although I understand they have a couple of new rooms in an annex now.

Killarney is generally busier than Kenmare as it is larger. It seems from your posts that you prefer a quieter experience. In that case, choose Kenmare. And add the Beara Peninsula to your itinerary. There are many excellent places to stay in Kenmare such as Sallyport House, Arthur's Lodge Wood, The Lodge, etc.

Doolin vs Ballyvaughan: It takes more than 30 minutes between the two especially if you take the coast road. There are some very nice accommodations in Doolin such as Cullinan's, Hotel Doolin, O'Connors, Dubhlinn House, etc. Or maybe you will do your splurge at Gregan's Castle Hotel. Note: Doolin is very busy on weekends.

Another splurge could be Ballynahinch Castle Hotel in Connemara in place of Clifden.

Hope I answered all the ???. If not, let me know.

Michele

gabbaroo · Veteran Member

Richard - personally, I would do the Black Taxi, it is pretty easy to walk around the Belfast City Centre. The taxi company should be willing to adapt to suit your need and can take you other places in Belfast that are outside of the City Centre. We took the train up from Dublin and as it wasn't check in time at the hotel, the driver met us at the station and we did the tour in the interim. I thought it both fascinating and disturbing.

Jackie

tony2phones · Guru

Clifden

Seamist House would be a good choice or perhaps Quay House, Mallimore would not be to my taste and certainly too far out of town to enjoy the evenings down there.

http://thequayhouse.com/

If you are going to be staying at Bunratty then make this 2 nights for the South Clare, Bunratty and Knappogue Castles, Quin and Ennis Abbeys and Ennis Friary and probably Loop Head. Ballyvaughan is fine for the Burren and Cliffs.

Other Discount cards.

http://www.shortbreaksireland.ie/25DiscountCard/

http://www.cultureheritageireland.com/full_list.php

wojazz3 · Guru

Joining a bit late here but my 2 cents like Michele is that you have a number of days with too much in them. Not sure what your plans are in Waterford are and quite frankly, Tramore does very little for me. As far as being too busy, here are some examples:

Day 7 & 8 are very full and you will either drive by those places and wave or leave some of it out. There are a who;le bunch of little towns on your day 7 and I don't know what your plans are for them. You could easily spend an entire day around Baltimore. Skib is fine but not strikiningly different from a lot of other towns it's size and I would choose Clonakilty over it. Not a lot to see in Castletownshend. The castle is only open to guests so you won't be able to visit it. Mary Anne's is a nice stop for lunch if the timing is right but I wouldn't make a special trip with your itinerary. Driving on Sheepshead is very slow and not much different than say Mizen unless you make the muddy but lovely hike out the the lighthouse at the end. That will take a while but it's nice.

Three nights on the Ards peninsula but one day for all of Donegal (the largest county in Ireland) seems like a bit of an imbalance. As Michele pointed out, day 25 is probabaly impossible. Inishowen is a very long slooooow drive.

General thoughts. You may find is about 2 weeks in that you are exhausted driving all those back roads. I know I just did three weeks and it was tiring and I've done it a lot. The driver gets little time to enjoy the sites while trying to prevent death for himself and passengers. It can be fun driving there but it's tiring. You will see a lot of ruins in that time and it may all start to look the same. You have some variety and Dublin will be nice at the end, but keep that in mind.

If you accept that you may miss some things on your list, you're ok. It's not quite the trip I would plan but it's not like my plans are ever a good measuring stick.

Bill

Richard Leeds · Veteran Member

Bill,

It's like the old saying about a person's eyes being bigger than their stomach when they go to a buffet.
I guess I am looking at Ireland as a buffet. I think I have too much on my plate.

Actually, while I have three nights at the Ards peninsula, the first day I am driving from Londonderry to the Giant's Causeway and around to the Peninsula. Then I have one full day for the Mount Steward house and gardens and the villages: Greyabbey, Saintfield & Killyleagh villages. Then the third day takes me into Belfast to do a tour and walk around. So I do not think I have that much time.

I guess I should skip Skibbereen and Mizen Head. That will make day 7 less hectic.

What and where is Mary Anne's?

To any one else:

What are the differences between the famine-migration musuems at: Cobh, Skibbereen, Stokestown. Which should I see?? Also, there are two tourist sites: one in Omagh and another in Holywod near Belfast. What are the differences and should I try to see only one or both?

thanks everyone,
Richard

Michele Erdvig · Host

Richard,

Good comparison about the buffet and Ireland. There is certainly a lot to choose from. The three days on Ards makes sense to me.

Mary Anne's is a pub/restaurant in Castletownshend. It is good but not if you have to go way out of your way for it. There are other good places to eat all over Ireland.

The Queenstown Story in Cobh combines immigration and the Titanic (which made a stop in Queenstown before departing for its fate). It touches briefly on the famine. The one in Strokestown is for those who want to take their time reading a lot of info about the famine, visiting a "big house" that is not in a good state of repair and seeing the walled gardens. Skibbereen hones in on that particular area with a walk-through exhibit, interactive touch panels, etc. so it has a definite famine focus. Depends on your focus, I guess.

The Ulster American Folk Park traces the journey of Irish immigrants from their culture and heritage in No. Ireland, through departure on coffin ships to their adventures in the new world. It has buildings from Ireland, a town, mock up of a ship and what happened when immigrants arrived in their new homes. The Ulster Folk & Transport Museum has Irish buildings and a town and an extensive section on transport with everything from trains to motorcycles, trolleys to antique cars. Both are worth seeing.

MIchele

Richard Leeds · Veteran Member

Michele,

Last evening I was re-reading passages from your book on the Ulster American Folk Park and the Ulster Folk & Transport Museum. Your book is so thorough. The one thing I would really like would be an index because the table of contents while complete is not listed alphabetically. I hope when I leave in April for this trip, that your e-book version of the travel book will be available and you will consider putting an index that is done alphabetically. I know this adds pages and more weight to the printed version, but that will not be a factor for e-books or iPad users that download from Amazon or Barnes and Noble.

It seems like I should skip Skibbereen and visit Cobh's Queenstown Story. I just do not know if I should visit Stokestown for half a day from Sligo or go north for half a day to see more of Donegal and Co. Donegal????

When I call Dan Dooley should I ask for a particular person to do the booking. I need an automatic for 30 days from April 16th. This is a pretty long rental, when demand should be lower. Any suggestions to get them to provide a discount of 10%. Dooley wants $1746 for the car with CDW. A consolidator Argus wants $1109 with CDW which tells me something might be fishy with Argus car rentals. You do not seem to have any members that have used their services lately.

I am going to go along with your selection in your book on Evandale House in this area. Rather pricey since prices are in pounds.

We met an Irish girl in Australia a few years ago. My wife and wrote to her saying we were going to stay at Ariel House and she said her friends stay in Dublin at the Bestwestern Plus hotel. She siad the Bestwestern Plus is on a somewhat quiet street for Dublin center of city. Rates are pretty good if you get the room without breakfast. The on/off bus stops outside even thought we are told from this location we can walk to all the important sites other than the zoo, prison and modern art museum.

Re: Newgrange - should we stop on a Tuesday in May on the way to the Dublin airport to turn in the car, then take bus or taxi into Dublin? Or should we go on the tour from Dublin? I guess school groups might be more prevalent in May on weekdays. I have seen you mention tours with a guide from Dublin. If we opted to do that, how should we get in touch. Actually, my 4 days in Dublin are pretty full when I allocate one day to take the Dart along the coast, so I didn't want to go back to Newgrange. Your thoughts?

thanks,

Richard

Richard Leeds · Veteran Member

One more thing in addition to my previous post.

I just heard from "Insurance4carrental" which provides coverage for excess CDW on cars including coverage for tires, mirrors, etc.

They said they were no longer offering coverage to U.S. drivers. They did not single us out, just said they will only insure European drivers.

Does any one know another reputable insurance firm that offers this type of insurance? The car rental companies want to charge 14 Euro per day whereas this company was offering a month of coverage for 49 English pounds.

thanks again,

R.

Michele Erdvig · Host

Richard,

I got an email from insurance4carhire too. Evidently they are in the process of changing insurance companies. As I read the email, I got the message that currently they can only insure those living in the EU. But they seem to indicate that in the near future they will again be insuring anyone anywhere. Be patient to see if that happens. If not, we will have to search for another company.

I agree that my book needs an index. It is so time-intensive that I have avoided doing it. Plus it would change every year. I haven't done an e-book before but from what I have been told they don't need indexes. I understand that you can just do a "search" for key words and go right to the page. I need to look into that to find out if it is accurate. I currently don't have an e-reader myself but will have to enter the new gadget world soon to explore possibilities.

Is Edenvale giving you any sort of a discount for a 3-night stay? As I mentioned before, I had a lovely stay at Ballynester House and it is lower priced. But Edenvale really is a unique experience. Like staying at an Irish country manor or something out of Masterpiece Theater. I stayed there with some friends a few years ago and they said it was the best B&B on the trip. They loved the breakfast banquet and that the rooms contain everything you could possibly need.

Why don't you let the weather determine whether you will visit Strokestown or not? It would be a good "rainy day" choice.

Do Newgrange on the drive to Dublin. I would skip Carlingford and go directly to Newgrange. The drive will take about 2 hours or a little more. Note: It is signposted as Bru na Boinne near Drogheda. Plan on spending a good 4 hours there to see everything on offer.

Michele

tony2phones · Guru

For 3rd party insurance try Chartis

http://www.chartisdirect.ie/Car-Hire-Excess-Insurance_1189_269591.html

or, icarhireinsurance

https://www.icarhireinsurance.com/?gclid=CNPr6KjElqwCFYEZ4QodiggFPQ

or one of the USA creditcards that will provide acceptable cover

Richard Leeds · Veteran Member

Michele,

Edenvale offered a discount from L90 to L85 for the three night stay. So we save 15 pounds. Not that great. I was tempted to stay at the Dufferin Inn where they offered the third night free. Now that was a real discount. We are passing up the Inn for the Masterpiece Theater experience at Edenvale.

We are buying our first E-reader, Kindle this December as the new versions are being released at the end of this month. I like the idea that you can borrow books from public libraries for free and have them down-loaded to your reader. Also, Amazon offers all books prior to 1932 for free down-load and they have 1 million books in that category. The other 1 million books, the newer books are for sale. I think you are right. If you know a place and type it, I believe it takes you to the page. Of course if you do not spell names correctly, I do not think it works. Once you place your tourist sites in order, then you have it for each update as the historical locations do not change.

Tony and Michele, thanks for the input on the insurance and options.

A few more questions:

I see that Waterford Crystal charges 12 Euro per person to go into the site to see people working and see how the glass is made. Also in Dublin at Guinness they want 14 Euro per person to go inside. Do either of these sites warrant that? $30 to see glass made (in Venice they let you go into the places for free). Going into a place to see how beer is made for $40 for two persons. I went through a couple of American brewing plants many years ago when such things were free. I have been to many winery's in Napa Valley, Australia and Italy (all no charge). Of course I do not like cathedrals charging 5-6-7 Euro to go in. I remember the old days when you went into all these types of things for free.

Michele, great plan on Newgrande. I had no idea it would take so long to see a tomb. I thought, stop for an hour and see the underground. This must be something.

ONE LAST THING. SHOULD I JUST CALL DOOLEY CAR RENTAL AND TALK TO ANYONE OR SOMEONE IN PARTICULAR?

THANKS,

RICHARD

Michele Erdvig · Host

Richard,

There is more to see at Bru na Boinne than just Newgrange. They have a museum that simulates winter solstice inside Newgrange. This is a good idea for people who can't make it inside. Newgrange is claustrophobic. Since only a limited number of people can enter the tomb at one time there is always a queue for it. When you arrive you will be given a reservation. Take a bus to Newgrange (included in admission price) and there could be a few tours so you must wait. Take the bus back to the center. Take another bus to Knowth. See it. Bus back. A lot of back and forth and waiting.

The Guinness Storehouse is not a brewery tour. It is a tour of the history of Guinness and its advertising. Reminds me of the World of Cocoa Cola in Atlanta. A big ad for Guinness. Some people love it, others hate it.

You don't have to stop at Waterford Crystal for the tour. The showroom is impressive in its own right and is free. If you already know about the glass-making process, then skip it.

Did you notice that the Heritage Island coupons give 2-for-1 admissions to Waterford? 10% off Guinness? If you study the list a bit more it might help you make some decisions.

Dooley: Noreen was very helpful last time with reservations. 10% discount use code word: dochara. Get a quote online and then phone with your quote #. You can mention IrelandYes if you like to see if anything else is on offer.

Michele

Michele Erdvig · Host

One more note about Dooley. Last time I checked their website every day and got a quote. The quote is good for a week. After a few weeks of checking the price went down to almost half but just for a few days. I had the quotes emailed to me every day. On the day it went back up in price I took my half-price quote confirmation and called them to reserve. Try that for a while.

Michele

susan · Senior Member

Hi Richard

We stay at the Best western in Dublin http://www.academyplazahotel.ie/

and liked it very much.We had a very good rate by prepaying without breakfast.We found a good local place for breakfast around the corner

http://www.kingfisherdublin.com/. We will stay there again.

Susan

susan · Senior Member

A quick FYI about an Ereader-If you get an ipad you can get a Kindle app for free,so you have a computer and ereader in one.

Richard Leeds · Veteran Member

Michele,

Thanks for the reminders about the discounts. I printed out the list and keep forgetting about it.

You are right about Cocal Cola world. If Guinness is a similar commercial I will probably skip it. Thanks for the detail about Newgrange. Nothing in your book or Frommer on Ireland actually mentioned how much time is required for the site or what is a must see if time is an issue. Perhaps on your next version of your book, you could add a sentence or two on each of the tourist sites as to the amount of time we tourists would need to spend. It would surely help with planning each day to have an idea what amount of time should be spent to see the site in detail vs. just a short visit. I have no idea how much time I need at each place. If you said, "the Giant's Causeway will take 2 hours between arrival, parking, bus to the site, visitor center, return to parking lot" that would be really helpful and no one does that, not you, not Frommer's author, not TripAdvisor.

Thanks for the tip on the car rental site. When you are renting for 4 weeks vs. 2 weeks, price becomes more of an issue.

Susan, appreciate your affirmation about the Best Western. I have been warned the rooms are small, so not very comfortable, so we will just have to leave the accommodation in the morning and not return until after dinner. That should not be difficult with all the things to do in the big city. It's just hard on the feet.

I thought about not taking the netbook computer (3 pounds) for the internet, but the iPad is expensive since the $300 small computer is only 2 years old. So I am going to use that for email and research while in Ireland.

The e-reader only weighs 7 ounces compared to double that for the iPad, so for reading the new Kindel at $100 is a bargain andmuch easier on the hands. When I am walking around in Ireland and having lunch I want to read what Michele says on her commentary on sites and area. For reading for 1-2 hours at a time the Kindel is better than the iPad on the eyes and the hands. Actually I think both devices are necessary. I just hope Michele uploads her 2012 version of the book to Amazon in time for me to buy it for an online version on our trip next April.

thanks,

R.

hammsb · Veteran Member

Richard, my husband and I visited the Ulster Folk Park and Transport Museum in 2009 and thoroughly enjoyed it. the Folk Park is very authentic with lots of interaction with people in costume from the times who knew their history and willingly shared it. Most of the buildings there are original (moved from other parts of NI). The rural area was layed out over a very large area and was a good hike on that clear day. At a high elevation we could even see Belfast Bay. The transport museum was fun too.

We too stayed at Edenvale House and what a treat! Beautiful and very friendly folks took great care of us. (Thanks, Michele) Don't miss Mount Stewart House - in April it was magnificient! Also, do not skip Newgrange. We went there on the least perfect weather day and it was still a very moving, spiritual visit. I'm so glad the weather did not deter us. It is estimated that it took a workforce of 300 at least 20 years to build. The knowledge of technology that existed in that day blows my mind.

Have fun, we plan to follow you in April.

-- Edited by hammsb on Wednesday 2nd of November 2011 03:49:10 PM

Michele Erdvig · Host

Richard,

Actually Heritage Ireland has the approximate times for visits to every site they manage on their website. I am hesitant to do so in my book because each person is different. If my brother-in-law was at a museum that I said could be seen in 2 hours, he would spend 8 hours there. Then there are others who just breeze through in 15 minutes. I suppose it all depends on your interest level. Then there are the places that are by tour only. If you arrived just after the tour left, it might be another hour before you could join up with the next one. Lots of variables. But a good idea - with a disclaimer maybe.

I had a client once who was ticked because his itinerary was not laid out by military timeline i.e. 8 am breakfast, 9 am depart for Kinsale, 9:40 arrive at Charles Fort, 10 am start tour, 11 am finish tour, noon eat lunch, 13:00 depart Kinsale. I think he must have been a drill sergeant or something. confuse I hope after his trip that he realized that Ireland marches to a different tune. wink

Michele