Dublin to West coast

givman152 · Member

Dublin to West coast

Itallian Chauffeur · Moderator

Welcome to Michele's Forum! biggrin biggrin

You have the 'bones' of a good, sensible plan. Given the timeframe, I think your best options are either Dublin / Galway, or Dublin / Killarney -- with a third, slightly lesser choice of Dublin / Limerick -- as those three offer the greatest choice of tour options.

From Galway -- Day Trip to Inis Mor, a bus tour of Connemara, a bus tour to Cliffs of Moher and through the Burren, a bus tour to Cong (Quiet Man).

From Killarney -- Bus tour of Ring of Kerry, day tour of Gap of Dunloe, bus trip / tour of Dingle.

From Limerick -- Bus tour to Cliffs of Moher and Burren, day trip to Galway city.

Of course, there are numerous variables -- What do you hope to see / experience? What's your budget? Accommodation choice -- B&B / Hotel?

givman152 · Member

Well, first thing - I am not renting a car. So, I was hoping to travel by train and or Bus Eirean. I'm thinking to travel fron Dublin to Galway and then on to Bunratty or nearby town. I want to spend my last night here to attend the medieval banquet at Bunratty Castle - as a last-night sendoff.

Of maybe instead of Dublin should I fly into Cork instead and start my trip from thete..

givman152 · Member

For accommodations, I'm pretty open. Something decent and not real expensive should be ok.

Itallian Chauffeur · Moderator

There are better day tour options from Dublin, rather than Cork. Likewise, there is a direct train connection from Dublin to Galway, as well as 'Express' bus services, but the Cork to Galway (or Limerick) options can be rather convoluted.

Bunratty is quite close to Shannon Airport and a short, quick (and relatively inexpensive) taxi ride away.

Where are you flying from / to? The US, Canada, UK, Mainland Europe . . . ???

What time of year / month????

givman152 · Member

Sorry, what I meant to say was that I could possibly fly into Cork and go from there to Limerick/Bunratty area. If I did this, I'd probably skip Dublin. Then I'd fly home from Shannon.

*I will be flying from East coast USA - specifically Philadelphia. I would like to go on Aer Lingus. How are flights from East coast USA - no big deal? This is my first transatlantic flight, so I'm a tiny bit nervous. But I'm sure it will be fine once the flight gets underway.

-- Edited by givman152 on Saturday 15th of August 2020 01:53:02 PM

Itallian Chauffeur · Moderator

I'm not sure if there still will be any direct flights into Cork from the US East Coast. I fly from Florida and the only flight availability into Cork for me is via England. Not sure how it will be post-Covid.

Flights into Dublin are often cheaper, but East Coast flights into Shannon aren't bad. I've flown out of JFK (NY), EWR (Newark) and BOS (Mass) at various times without trouble. USAIR flies from PHI, I think and Aer Lingus offers flights from Washington, DC, as well as New York. They also partner with Jet Blue for connecting flights to other airports.

Without renting a car, your choice needs to consider convenience (as well as availability) of Public Transport. Some routes will 'eat up' a lot more valuable, 'Vacation Time' than others will.

Some places to search:

Buses: https://www.buseireann.ie/

Train: https://www.irishrail.ie/

Taxi: https://www.taxifarefinder.com/main.php?city=uber-taxi-dublin-ireland Default is Dublin, but you can change it to Cork, Killarney, Galway, or wherever, by typing the name into the 'Search' section in the top, right-hand of the page.

General transport search: https://www.transportforireland.ie/journey-planner-app/

https://www.rome2rio.com/s/Shannon-Airport-SNN/Killarney

Michele Erdvig · Host

A lot of flights in and out of Shannon have been cut back or canceled during Covid-19. It is important to check on where you will arrive and depart before making a plan.

When is your trip planned for? There are currently restrictions on people visiting Ireland. This changes frequently so you need to keep updated on that.

bdokeefe · Veteran Member

Givman- Hope you're safe and well. Nothing like a global pandemic to make any planning almost impossible.

As always, Michele and Mr Italian have given you great advice.

Assuming yo only fly into Dublin and out of Shannon, a nice guided tour from Dublin you can take would be one in the Wicklow mountains and Glendalough. The monastery and setting are serene and beautiful, depending on how long you are there a hike up to the far lake is peaceful. Try and get one with the smaller 19 or so passenger buses. It will be a bit more but worth it. Not sure if any of the tours include Avoca Gardens or the knitting mill; both are interesting.....and I was supposed to be taking my wife to last April. I've been to both before, so was stoked to show them off.

Galway is a good second base for you, easy to get to, fun town for a pedestrian, lots of day tours to chose from, easy transition for your last night to airport and Dunratty.

Flight: Once it's safe to travel, from Philly try and get a direct flight, if not, shuttle up to Newark. You don't want an overseas connection. Big thing, get to the airport early. Once you check in, just go with the flow. If possible, sit in a quiet spot away from the busiest of gates if you have an hour plus to wait. With phone apps, you can get instant flight status so you know when boarding starts. If you do Ambien or another sleep aid/motion sickness...make sure you don't get super loopy, as it really isn't a long flight. I have a daughter who is toast after a regular Dramamine (she's 22), that first day 'in country' is lost to her.

The flight is quick, you stumble and mumble through customs and baggage claim, follow the crowd, and airlink buses are right outside. Pretty convenient to get to lodging, just pay attention to the stop locations when booking.

Lastly, bring raingear and layers. And Lordy, I hope you can go real soon!