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Post Info TOPIC: First-time visit in August 2017
John Hewitson


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First-time visit in August 2017
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Dear all,

Looks like a great forum!

My wife and I plan a first visit to Ireland in August this year, and need help in planning.

We live in Cape Town at the southern tip of Africa. We are experienced travelers in other parts of the world, and have done quite a lot of "overlanding" in Africa - traveling almost self-sufficient and camping - and try our best to do everything as cheap as possible so that we can do more ...

We are thinking of 7 days, arriving and leaving to/from Dublin, and hiring a car. We like the idea of getting to know the culture, seeing the beauty, walking a bit (we're both 63, so not too far!) Our reading has made us lean towards a southern circuit (approximately Dublin - Cork - Killarney - Galway sort of thing)... looking for beautiful country, but we also like exploring history and meeting the people. There is clearly an enormous amount of choice, hence this request for some pointers ...

So our questions:

1. What "mustn't miss" places to suggest? Or areas? I know this is rather vague, but never having been there and not having any personal links (apart from a distant ancestor in the early 1800s) makes it difficult to choose.

2. Is camping an option, are there plentiful campsites and are they well equipped etc.? (We have friends in England who would lend us equipment). If so, would we be able to just turn up at campsites - i.e. leaving our itinerary more flexible - or would we need to book?

3. If we don't camp, would B&Bs need to be booked well in advance, or would there be any chance of flexibility there?

We may well have more detailed questions as plans firm up, but answers to these would help us get down to more details. 

Thanks so much for any help!

John & Diana
Cape Town



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John
tony2phones


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Welcome to the forum.

August is peak season and Irish School Holidays so places will be busy and could do with pre booking. 7 days is not so long on the ground and driving times will average 35mph on a good day. Slightly more on the few motorways but slightly less on rural scenic routes.

Camping might entail the problems of getting the equipment across and Ireland not really grasping the concept with both hands as it were. There are camp sites but few and far between. That might dictate your itinerary? www.facebook.com/groups/571151062976027/ might be a good place to ask about campsites ect.

B&B's typically cost 70 for a couple per night.

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Michele Erdvig


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With only 7 days I think I would opt for B&Bs over camping and having haul stuff around, set up and take down. As Tony advised you will be traveling during high season. You really should consider making a firm itinerary and booking B&Bs ahead. Here is my Top 10 List: http://irishfireside.com/2008/11/08/top-10-ireland-sightseeing/

Most first-time visitors want to hit the highlights such as:

Glendalough & Powerscourt (Co. Wicklow)

Blarney Castle (Co. Cork)

Killarney & Dingle (Co. Kerry)

Cliffs of Moher (Co. Clare)

Those would certainly fill your 7 days in Ireland. 

 

 



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John Hewitson


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Thanks for the quick responses.
I think we'll go with the B&B option, and book in advance - it seems that's advisable.
Using your suggestions, Michele, we're working on an itinerary something like:
Dublin - Glendalough - Kenmare - Galway/Connemara - Dublin ... taking in some of your "top 10" suggestions en route.
We'll post again more detail once we've researched the options some more.

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John
John Hewitson


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Dear All,
I'm back with a question ...
Firstly, we now have an itinerary and have booked most of our accommodation and a car . . .
Fly-in to Shannon on 8th August, for 8 nights.
Night 1 - Ennis
Day 1 drive to Cliffs of Moher and surrounds and then up to Galway.
Night 2/3/4 in Galway and driving in Connemara etc.
Long drive south to Kenmare area.

Here's the question:
We want to spend another 3 nights somewhere in Kerry . . . with drives in Beara and maybe other places around there.
Where should we choose as a base?
Then we'll head back towards Shannon for our last night before flying out.

Thank you for any advice.

John

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John
Michele Erdvig


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Either Killarney or Kenmare will work as a base for the SW. Kenmare is closer to the Beara Peninsula but Killarney is closer to Dingle. The two towns are about 40- 60 minutes apart, depending on which route you take. Killarney is a larger town. Kenmare is smaller but both are nice.

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"Ireland Expert"  Michele Erdvig

Click links for Michele's Book or Custom Ireland Itinerary

Visit Michele's Irish Shop for unique Irish gifts and beautiful photos of Ireland.
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