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Another Irish itinerary for input and review... please.

Hello folks. My husband and I are traveling to Ireland Oct 7 - 30. We have 4 nights booked in Dublin at the beginning and 2 nights at the end. We'll be renting a car from the airport as we leave Dublin. We've driven in the UK several times so we're not fussed too much about the narrow roads or driving on the other side of the road. My husband has recently learned that his family came to Canada from Cork Co in the mid 1800's so he is wanting to focus most of our time in the SW. He told me his priority is pubs, music, landscapes and history, so that is pretty broad and extremely flexible - and lots of fun! We like to spend several days in one location so we can relax and enjoy the town and then do day trips around the area. We also don't want to be driving too long between overnight spots.

I've got a rough travel itinerary sketched out that incorporates both of our wishes. We're trying to keep our nightly accommodation costs to 80-100E/night, so also have a short list of B+B's that seem to fit that wish. I would love your feedback and any other suggestions you might have.

Cobh - 4-5n = see Cork, Cobh, day trips in area. OR - stay in Kinsale??
Kenmare - 4n = RoK, Beara, Killarney Nat Park, etc.
Dingle - 2n = Dingle Peninsula
Listowel - 2n = market town with castle, something different, looked interesting. Somewhere else??
Lahinch - 3n = Burren, Cliffs of Moher, etc

Posted by
78 posts

If you like beautiful seaside towns you will love Kinsale. The last time we went there we stayed in Cork and traveled to Kinsale from there....it wasn’t far and gave us some extra time in Cork. However, if I had to do it all over again, I would have stayed in Kinsale. Great pubs and great restaurants are in abundance. Either way you win but I was a little disappointed that I didn’t spend the night in Kinsale.

Have a great trip!

Posted by
238 posts

Todd is spot on about Kinsale. Cobh is very interesting and well worth a day trip but I would definitely choose Kinsale as my home base. We enjoyed several nights there--good restaurants, decent pub music and a pleasant town to stroll around. The Old Prestbytery was a wonderful B&B--I'd heartily recommend it. From Kinsale you can easily do trips to Cobh, Cork and Midleton, as well as explore nearby Charles Fort.

Posted by
509 posts

You might want to check rates/availability at Ashfield Inn (Kenmare). http://www.ashfieldkenmare.com/

If you drop the name in the Search field above you'll find numerous favorable reviews. My notes indicate we paid less than US100/night in May 2018. Mary offers a discount for stays in excess, I believe, of 2 nights. She's a terrific hostess (and cook). Great value, we thought.

Pink Pig Airbnb is a few minutes away from the center of Dingle. Another bargain: https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/17935423? Mauza's current site posts a nightly rate of US91 (although we found that the total cost on AirBnB can rise quickly when cleaning/other fees are sometimes added during booking). No breakfast, but plenty of nice choices in Dingle. Sheep and horses grazing outside the windows; nice vibe.

Good luck.

Posted by
432 posts

Thanks everyone - I've put Kinsale back on the list with a b+b short list started for that town. Ah..., decisions, decisions. I noted the Ashfield b+b before, but unfortunately it's booked for the time period we plan to be there. We had been considering apt's in some of our locations as well, but as noted - once the fees are added, it's not cheaper. We have an apartment booked for 8 nights in London after this, so we'll enjoy our own place at that time.