help with itinerary

annabelled · Newbie

help with itinerary

annabelled · Newbie

Anyone????

Michele Erdvig · Host

annabelled,

Welcome to the forum! Sorry I couldn't answer right away but I had to take my husband to the doctor today. I generally check in a few times a day but once in a while I'm off doing other things.

day 1 - sightsee in Dublin * Fine.

day 2 - Cashel, Cahir, Jerpoint Abbey, Waterford Crystal - stay in Cashel or Cahir * You have too many choices today. You need to decide what is most important and skip the others. If you stay in Cashel or Cahir just do those two things. Sightseeing takes time.

day 3 - 4 Kenmare, see Blarney Castle, Kinsale, and Charlesfort along the way. * Again, too much. Either skip Kinsale and Charles Fort or spend the night in Kinsale.

day 5 - 6 Dingle, Ring of Beara or Ring of Kerry? Killarney National Park. * Choose two things. Where are you staying?

day 7-8-9 Galway area. Would like to find a Bnb central to all the sights in this area, but preferably on the water. Help! * Personally, I would cut out Galway and add the extra days to the southwest. That will make it a much better paced trip.

day 10 - head back toward Dublin, stay in the Birr - Tullamore area. * The drive across the country takes about 4 hours. You could do it in one day. Of course if you plan on heavy sightseeing that may be why you are stopping where you are.

Michele

annabelled · Newbie

Thanks Michele,

Sorry about sounding impatient, but we are excited, confused, and stressed with the planning. Plus, we only have 52 more days until we leave!!

The only reason we have Waterford on our itinerary is that my sister wants to buy Waterford crystal. Can it be bought cheaper elsewhere or is actual Waterford the best place for this?

We chose Kenmare to be near the Killarney National Park and the Ring drives. More days here needed???

We chose Galway area to be near the Cliffs of Moher and The Burren, and possibly Aillwee cave, but being from Kentucky and close to the Mammoth Cave area. Too many days here? Or just do these as day trips from elsewhere? We had recommendations for staying in Ennis, but we would rather stay on the waterfront (ocean).

We had also considered Doolin but there seems to be a lot of people who dislike Doolin. Kilkee? Ballybunnion? Or would that be too much of a drive to get up to The Burren and Cliffs?

The reason we wanted to go back to Dublin through the Birr area was to stop off at Leap Castle and Charleville Forest Castle.

fennellkevin · Senior Member

Hello Annabelled,

I originally planned to arrive (with my wife and daughter) and depart from Dublin, but Michele and others here on the forum kindly advised me to consider departing from Shannon.

It cost a few bucks to change the reservation, but it was well worth it, because once we were in the West, we could relax, knowing we didn't have to trek back to Dublin for departure. It was like gaining a whole day an night to do other things.

Don't get me wrong, we loved Dublin--I would spend six months there if I could. But we spent three nights at the beginning of our trip, and that enabled us to get a feel for the city in a beginning way.

But as I said, not having to return to Dublin made us more at ease and afforded us more quality time in the West. Michele's advice is very good. She set me straight right at the beginning in a very friendly way and then she and others here helped me refine our plans again and again. And we had a blast!

Michele's philosophy of "less is more" is very good. Don't worry about getting everything in. Every place you go in Ireland is Ireland. You're already there.

Best wishes,

Kevin

yesiree · Guru

You'll have no problem finding Waterford Crystal (and other fine Irish crystal) throughout Ireland. The only advantages to going to the factory is the tour, and they might have a few hard to find items. Although prices vary a bit from place to place, it isn't really cheaper at the factory...stores like Blarney Woolen Mills (in Blarney, Dublin, Bunratty and Carrick-on-Suir), the Belleek Shop in Ennis, Duty Free at the Airport and many others have great selections and frequently run sales on various crystal - those sales are usually the best price you will find.

Galway is a better base for Galway city and Connemara. I'd choose one of the towns in County Clare as a Cliffs, Burren, Caves base. There are several seaside towns in Clare. Aillwee Caves are much smaller than the touring caves you can see in Kentucky.

Be sure to contact Charleville Castle before you arrive to make sure they can tour you around.

-- Edited by yesiree at 09:07, 2006-08-03

Michele Erdvig · Host

annabelled,

As Corey (yesiree) has advised, Waterford Crystal is readily available all over Ireland. If your sister does not need to see the crystal actually being made and only wants to purchase it, you can skip the Waterford Factory.

You could see the Cliffs of Moher and Burren in one day. If you wanted to spend more in-depth time in the Burren hiking or on a special tour then two days might be advisable. Ballyvaughan is a nice place for an overnight stay. That might suit you needs.

Give your itinerary another try and see what you can come up with now that you have everyone's advice.

Michele