Hi, We'll be coming to Ireland for the first time in later June. Will be arriving in Dublin and staying there for 2 nights. That leaves us 10 days to travel before returning to Dublin. We will be renting a car to do our touring and would like to stay in a variety of B&B's and hotels. Thinking of heading North and following the coast. We primarily enjoy the nature/scenery part of travel. Could use some help building an itinerary. Thanks in advance.
Do you have any 'Set', "Must See" locations? What pace are you comfortable with / willing to maintain? Ten days really isn't sufficient to do a 'Full' tour around Ireland - but it would be good for a Dublin - Galway - Dublin 'Loop', concentrating on Northern Ireland, Donegal, Sligo, Mayo and Galway.
What is your Budget for nightly lodging? Meals?
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Bob
Help Us to Help You. The more you tell us about your plans (dates, interests, budget), the better we can tailor our advice to suit!
I would say we are most interested in the scenery, with the occasional walking, hiking tour. Not interested in to many museums tours etc. Our budget would be in the 75 to 100 Euro range. Could be stretched for a must stay Castle or viewpoint.
A good way to plan is to make a list of "must sees" and determine where they cluster. If they are scattered all over the island it is time to determine if you want to do the north or south. With the amount of time you have after Dublin - draw a line from Dublin to Galway. See what is above that line or below it. I assume you have a map and guidebook to help with your planning and know what you want to see and do?
Try to have multiple-night stays where possible. The "clusters" will tell you where a good base might be from which to make day trips. Sometimes it is not practical to have a multiple-night stay especially if you are breaking up a long drive between places. In that case a one-night stay makes sense.
If the budget you mentioned is for two people per night then you will most likely be staying at B&Bs. Castle stays can be quite expensive - some upwards of 600 euro per night. Check my Castle Hotel page for some options: http://www.irelandyes.com/castles.html
Thanks for the input so far. The budget I posted would be for room only. We've decided to head north out of Dublin and travel around the coast to Galway. Thinking 4 days between Dublin and Galway. 3 days in the Galway area and 3 days near the Ring of Kerry before heading back to Dublin. Will do single night stays until Galway. Galway area, open to suggestion. 3 nights one spot or 2 and 1 night on the way to Killarney. The same goes for Killarney. May be a little ambitious but trying to fit in as much as possible.