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Connemara or Sligo for 3 Days

Posted by (NYC) on

Hi Forum,

After doing a bit of research, I’ve narrowed down an 8-day trip in mid-May to two options. What’s I’ve got so far:

*Fly into Shannon, stay in Galway City for 2 full days.

*Either Connemara, with Clifden as base for 3 full days OR County Sligo with Sligo town as base for 3 full days

*End trip with 3 full days in Dublin, leave out of Dublin airport.

I’ve only ever been to Dublin, and my family has never been to Ireland at all. Our interests are probably typical: some of us are history buffs, some of us are hiking aficionados, we all want to see authentic live music. We’ll obviously do some touristy things, but also want to leave time to get lost. There are six of us, and therefore we’d have a fairly large car, so I’m not sure if that makes a difference in terms of what area has fewer narrow, windy one-lane roads.

I love that Connemara is a Gaeltacht region, but it looks like we’d do more driving there then we would in Co. Sligo and I don’t want to spread ourselves too thin. Both look stunning, and I’m having a devil of a time deciding where to go given we don’t know when we’ll be back next.

Thanks for your input and an early Happy New Year!

Posted by
3561 posts

When I spent two weeks on the west coast of Ireland last summer, I thought the Connemara region was the most beautiful part of our trip. However, I have not been to Sligo. We stayed in Clifden, which is a great little town.

Posted by
409 posts

I stayed in Delphi Resort and Leenane Hotel in Connemara last August and cycled and walked around alot. Did a few driving trips, too.... the Killary Fjord boat cruise; the salt water baths at Leenane; Kylemore Abbey --- all of Connemara is just so fantastic, I can't stress it enough!

It's worth the driving!

Susan
Expat living in Waterville

Posted by
512 posts

Max,

Connemara hands down over Sligo. It's the most beautiful region in Ireland, and Clifden is a lively place despite its relative smallness. County Donegal is a close second. Besides Clifden, you can duck down south of the N59 to Roundstone, where you can visit a bodhran-production shop and store owned by Malachy Kearns. There are a number of tiny Gaeltacht villages in that neck of the woods, and you'll get lots of practice negotiating those slim back roads. Besides, narrow, winding roads are all over the country, especially the West. Irish drivers are very patient, courteous and respectful. I've bicycled all over Ireland on numerous occasions and have never had anything approaching a bad road experience.

Leenane, squished between three mountain ranges at the tip of Killary Harbor and Ireland's only fjord, is in the most beautiful setting in the country. The Blackberry Restaurant serves exquisite meals (dinner reservations recommended) and is the only real eatery in the village. The two pubs offer many fewer options for eating.

Sligo is worth visiting, but with only eight days, see County Galway first.

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