March trip in the works - help please

JulieMarieRay · Newbie

March trip in the works - help please

CowboyCraic · Guru

Dia Duit Julie,

Shannon to Dublin is a long drive and even longer on your first day when fighting jet lag. You can use this site to calculate your drive times and plan your routes, http://www.aaireland.ie/routes/default.asp. I would suggest that you head up to Galway, staying there two nights, then over to NewGrange, staying there for two days, then down to Dublin and your stay at Clontarif, then to Kilkenny, where you can base for two nights then to Dingle for two nights and then Bunratty for your final night.

Two nights in Galway allow for both your passions, upon your arrival head for City Centre and the shops. On your second day, book a Connemara Bus Tour with Lally Tours. There are many tours but this one will stop at the Spiddal Crafts shop, satisfying both of you.

NewGrange is fabulous and shouldn't be missed, if at all possible

If you are only spending one night in Dublin, then take advantage of the Hop-On/Hop-Off Open Top Bus Tour,www.irishcitytours.com. This will allow you to see all of the major sites in Dublin without the hassle of driving in Dublin and fighting for parking.

Using Kilkenny as a base you can do the waterford tour, wander the streets of Kilkenny, which is a fabulous medieval town and then take in the Rock of Cashel on your way to Dingle. If you save your stubs from the Dublin Bus tour, you will get a discount on an Open Top Bus Tour of Kilkenny.

This Routing allows you to see a bit of each area and moves you in a loop.

With your travel dates, you will want to lock in your accommodations before you leave and as early as possible. This is especially important for St. Patrick's day weekend. If you are wanting to attend the Medieval Banquet at Bunratty that last night, You will definitely need to make your reservations soon, as that is a popular night.

Welcome to Michele's Forum. Take advantage of the pages that Michele has provided here. She is the cream of the crop! She, along with the rest of us, will work to help you make this trip fabulous!

Slan Agus Beannacht,

Bit Devine

Cowboy Craic

Michele Erdvig · Host

Julie,

Welcome aboard. I hope you find the forum a fun place to gather info for your March trip. Cowboy has already given you a lot of good info and as you plan and ask other questions the other members will share their knowledge too.

Since you have driven before in Scotland you will know that it takes much longer to travel around countries like that than what you may be used to. Driving from Shannon to Dublin will take 4 hours or more, depending on traffic. I do not recommend that right off an international flight when you may well be jet-lagged. It just does not make sense. Instead re-think your plan and make some changes.

It seems that you and your sister have different priorities. I suggest you each make your own list of "must sees" or "must dos" in order of importance. Then mesh the list so that you each do a bit of what you want each day. That way neither of you will feel deprived.

If it were me I would cut out the east coast entirely. You will hardly see anything with a 4 hour cross-country drive and one overnight in Dublin. Hardly worth the cost of a castle hotel or the price of gas to get there if you see nothing. If your vouchers include a castle hotel, perhaps you can choose another during your trip.

As for pacing: less is more! Think of staying put in a few areas for at least 2 days at a time and sprinkle in a few one-night stays where it makes sense. You will both be glad not to have to pack up, move on and find another B&B every day. Since this is a holiday period consider making reservations over the long St. Patrick's Day weekend.

As far as your car rental, be sure to read the fine print. CDW insurance will cover you but usually with a large deductible. But you may have purchased Super CDW and eliminated that. Double check to be sure.

Let us know if you have any other questions.

Michele