We fly into Shannon airport on Friday morning and can't decide where to spend our first night. Should we stay in Doolin, Lisdoonvarna or Ennis? It's only for 1 night, and we aren't renting a car, so we want to be able to walk to dinner, and around the town. We plan on doing the Cliffs of Moher on Friday, and the Burrens on Saturday on our way to Galway.
Posted by
Colorado Mountains, USA
7350 posts
We traveled by bicycle in 2011, and stayed in a B&B just outside the town of Lisdoonvarna, but it would be a bit of a walk to get to/from town. The town itself is nice, and we had dinner twice at the Wild Honey Inn (http://wildhoneyinn.com). Among other things in town is a smokehouse, operated by a Norwegian woman who relocated there, and her smoked salmon is absolutely fabulous. The Cliffs are up the road a bit from Lisdoonvarna (a long, uphill grind by bike - but it was easy to get bike parking once we arrived), but how are you planning on reaching The Cliffs the next day? We skirted Doolin (renowned for its music pubs) on our bikes as we started the climb up towards Lisdoonvarna, and later passed thru Ennis (a bigger city) by bus. Transportation to The Cliffs might influence your decision on where to stay.
Posted by
OP
US/PA
21 posts
We are going to hire a driver for Friday and Saturday. Thought it would be easier then trying to rent, since it's only for 2 days. Once we are in Galway, we can walk around Galway, and plan on spending a day in Aran Islands. We are taking the train from Galway to Dublin. If we rented a car at Shannon airport, we would have to find somewhere to return it near Galway.
Maybe we will stay in Lisoonvarna or Doolin. We aren't much into biking, especially after a few pints!
Posted by
Colorado Mountains, USA
7350 posts
On Inis Mór, the biggest of the islands, you actually can rent bikes, but there are hills and sometimes wind to deal with. You'll find drivers, too, who can get you around quicker and serve as tour guides, if you're interested. Getting to the Dun Aonghasa fort does involve an uphill hike, but it's well worthwhile. You might need a Guinness before or afterwards to recover ;-)