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Ireland itinerary - please critique

Posted by (Kirkland, WA, USA) on

Hello!

I just bought flights tickets to go to Ireland for 5 days while traveling in continental Europe in Aug. Here is my tentative plan. Too busy? Just right? Please reply any feedback you might have:

Aug 13: Fly from Paris at 1p. Airport bus to Galway. Sleep in Galway
Aug 14: Tour Galway
Aug 15: Bus to Doolin. Stay in Doolin. Walk to Cliffs of Moher and back (doolinhillwalk.com)
Aug 16: Innis oirr day trip. Sleep in Doolin.
Aug 17: Back to Galway, Train/bus to Dublin.
Aug 18: Dublin
Aug 19: Fly out of Dublin @ 1:40p.

I am also planning to stay in AirBnB properties for most of this trip.

Thanks!

Posted by
439 posts

Time wise, I think the itinerary will work. From a previous post you mentioned you liked walking, you may want to look into walking in the country side in Galway. I found the town can be covered very quickly. It is beautiful but I prefer the country side.

Enjoy your trip!

Mary

Posted by
34 posts

Thanks Mary! You're right - I do like to walk around and I am an amateur photo-enthusiast as well. So beautiful scenery and picturesque towns are a delight for me. :-)

I am wondering if Galway/Doolin/Aran/Dublin or Cork/Cobh/Kinsale/Dublin would be a better option. Do you have any thoughts on that, given I prefer to travel by public transport and by foot mostly?

Posted by
9363 posts

The only thing I might caution you about is to have a Plan B in case weather or water conditions prevent you from getting to Innis Oirr, particularly since you are leaving from Doolin. Conditions might cause the ferry to cancel (or cancel once you are out there), so be flexible.

Posted by
34 posts

I am sorry I keep vacillating here. :-)

I am torn between the itinerary I described above vs. below (or going to Cork/Cobh/Kinsale):

Aug 13 - to Killarney from the airport
Aug 14 - to Kenmare, stone circles, back to Killarney
Aug 15 - To Dingle (catch 1p bus, arrive 3p)
Aug 16 - Dingle
Aug 17 - Dublin via Killarney
Aug 18 - Dublin
Aug 19 - Fly back

Which would be less hectic by public transportation and which would be a better 1st time Ireland option, with very little time?

Thanks!!!

Posted by
9363 posts

Your original itinerary makes more sense than the most recent one. You propose going from Killarney to Kenmare (the stone circle will take you all of 10 minutes to see), then back to Killarney, then to Dingle, then back to Killarney to go to Dublin. That's a lot of time wasted on a bus, and you are shortchanging yourself in every location. With your first itinerary, you are covering less ground, so you have more time to see things. If the weather doesn't work out for you to go to Innis Oirr, you maybe could find a day trip into the Connemara area above Galway. You can't see everything, and anything you miss this time will be there the next time.

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