First trip to Ireland-itinerary plans and open to suggestions

It seems like a lot of back and forth between Belfast and Dublin to me, but I'm not sure of the reasons for that. If it were me I would fly into Belfast and stay there until you are finished with the memorial, and seen the Titanic museum, then go to Dublin and fly out from there. There are many day trips you can take out of Dublin, including one that will include Newgrange, the Hill of Tara and a couple of other stops. The sights around Dublin are easily done on the hop on/off bus including the Trinity College/book of Kells, Kilmainham jail, St. Patrick's etc. Many places are all within walking distance, though, and you may not need to use the bus. The Temple Bar area, Grafton St., Connelly St., Dublin Castle, Bank of Ireland, Ha'Penny bridge St. Stephens Green, Guiness Brewery, the National Museum just to name a few are all easy to walk to. I spent four days in Dublin, and was able to see many of these places, plus do the day trip to Newgrange , and get in some shopping. There is a very large Marks and Spencers on Grafton St. In the evening I did one of the musical pub crawls that was a lot of fun. If you want to hop on the train then I might suggest Kilkenny as it's only about an hour down the track. A photogenic town with another nice castle. Galway was actually my favourite town, and is also easy by train, but I'm not sure how much you want to squeeze into one trip. In Belfast I did a half day trip that included the castle and the political murals, but one surprise was visiting the city hall. It's quite a nice building, and the tour is free, and they even let you try on the mayor's robes if you want.

There's some awfully good advice posted above.

I would not spend a day in Ireland on a Game of Thrones tour, but to each his own.

Bring an umbrella, hat and raincoat and expect some kind of moisture every day.

Hello again everyone! Anita,thank you for all of the wonderful suggestions! Maybe I should take you with me instead of my husband! You'd be a great tour guide! LOL

We were looking at staying in Belfast the first few days as we had planned the memorial for the 3rd but had to move it back a couple days due to a scheduling issue with the boat we've chartered.The captain has been gracious enough to offer us a slot after his usual hours so we can have 2 hours to ourselves for the service and at a very nice rate as well.The apartment manager in Dublin has also been kind enough to offer us the apartment we booked for the extra 3 days free of charge to help offset the mixed up schedule. Normally,I wouldn't do the back and forth thing either but it worked out well this way I think.

Bodo,thank you also for your advice! It's coming in handy for deciding what to pack. The Game Of Thrones tour is looking like less of a possibilty-mainly wanted to do it for the scenery factor. I had hoped to see the Cliffs of Moher but don't think I'll fit it in this time as it is a short trip...always nice to have a good excuse to go back again!

A minimum of two nights in Belfast. You'll love the Titanic Museum and Mourne's seafood chowder is definitely the best I've ever had. While in Belfast you should visit the Crumlin Road Goal (prison) and take a Black Cab tour of Shankill Road to see the Peace Wall, learn about The Troubles and Belfast history. A visit to St George's Market should also occur and if weather is clear the Botanic Gardens are very nice. If you are staying at the Premiere Inn at the Titanic Quarter there are movie theaters right next door at the Odyssey Arena or take the lovely walk under the overpass and then over the River Lagan walkway, stoping to look at the Love locks and t take your picture with the Big Blue Fish sculpture before crossing the street and enjoying a meal and a pint at McHughs. More than likely you'll find some traditional music being played in the back room. Belfast City Hall is quite lovely. If you like photography check in advance to see what's happening at Belfast Exposed. Should check out to see who might performing http://www.androichead.com during your stay as well. Lastly, if you want to do a GOT tour, do a GOT tour but I would also consider doing your excursion to the Giant's Causeway while in Belfast. There are tour buses you can arrange.

You've got some great ideas here! I'm living in Dublin currently and just to throw out a few more ideas beyond the city center...you can take the DART train (dublin area rapid transit) which is the train that runs along the whole of Dublin Bay to a number of cute little towns along the bay. Malahide and Howth are both north of the city and are both lovely. Howth is a fishing village you can walk out on the piers and see the fishing boats and the town is full of delicious seafood restaurants, a farmers market on the weekends, and other cute cafes and shops. Malahide has a castle on beautiful grounds, which you can tour, as well as a cute town with lots of upscale restaurants, and also a harbor and beach. Similar towns to the south of Dublin would be Dun Laoghaire or Dalkey. Again all of these can be easily accessed by public transport and are about 30-45 minutes outside city center. You could also check out a tour of the Wicklow mountains, particularly Powerscourt Estate or Glendalough. Tour buses go to these and they're about 45 minutes outside the center but feel like a different world. Enjoy -- it's such a beautiful country!

Claudia,thank you for all of your suggestions! I really love that you told me about that nice scenic sounding walk and the big blue fish-I think my kids would get a kick out of a picture of that one! Thanks also for telling me about the theater near Premiere Inn,that is exactly where we're booked that first night and DH might really enjoy that!

Ilana,thank you very much as well! I really appreciate all of the information about the local area and the Dart trains! I think your advice is really going to come in handy for checking out the area close by,kinda want to see Dun Laoghaire and Howth.I love the smaller quiet scenic places very much.

If you are arriving in Dublin from the US on June 2 then traveling to Belfast that same day, you probably won't need to plan any entertainment for that evening. It's always been my experience that after arriving in the morning, staying busy all day, and having dinner, it's usually an early night for me. Then the following day I awake ready to go. To me, it would be a mistake to go to a movie in the evening - I would probably fall asleep once I was stationary, in darkness.