I'm going back to visit Ireland next May. My travelling companions are putting some time constraints on our visit, so I'm trying to figure out where to cut back.
We'll be landing at Shannon and heading through the north, then east through Northern Ireland, then south to Dublin--flying home from Dublin. We all enjoy visiting aquariums. There seem to be two nice ones along our route--Atlantiquaria, on the west coast, and Exploris, on the east coast.
Can anyone recommend one of these over the other? I think we'll only have time for one, and from what I've seen so far in tour guides and on the web, I'm not sure which one might offer more "bang for the buck." If you've visited either--or both--I'd love to hear your thoughts!
They are both good but don't expect what you might find in the very best ones in the USA. They are smaller in scale. I would let the weather determine the visit. Since they are indoor exhibits, do one when the weather is unfavorable. If it is a gorgeous, sunny day opt for outdoor sightseeing instead. You really can't go wrong with either one.
Good advice about letting the weather help with our decisions. I think we'll be doing that a lot.
I'm actually kind of relieved to hear that the Irish aquariums are smaller. We spent *hours* at the New England Aquarium in Boston, and the National Aquarium in Baltimore. It's nice to know that that we'll have time for other things, no matter which one we visit in Ireland.
I spent most of the day at the new aquarium here in Atlanta. The ones in Ireland won't take that much of your time, although Exploris has more than an aquarium. They also have a museum and Imax theater. So you could spend more time if you wanted to.