Tony,

Traveling with a small child has its challenges, which is perhaps why your wife thinks it is a crazy idea. Were you thinking of doing an all-inclusive organized bus tour of Ireland? If so, you should know that taking a one-year-old on one cannot be done. She is too young for such a tour. If you want to do a self-drive tour, it is doable with good advance planning.

When traveling with a child you will want to minimize time in the car and plan short hops with fun things to do. You may want to consider self-catering rental houses and have a home base for a week. You could then stay at a few castles. Most castle hotels are extremely expensive and when people learn how much they cost, many of them decide to skip it. I have a complete listing of castles on my "Castle Hotels" page. Just click on IrelandYes Index and Castle Hotels.

Have you traveled with your daughter before? Maybe a weekend trip to see how she handles it might be in order. Also, you will have jet-lag to contend with. That might upset her sleeping pattern for a while. They are all things to think about before planning such a trip.

Michele