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Itinerary help please

We are going to be in Ireland for 7 nights/6 days in mid June. Tickets are already booked and are in/out of Dublin (flying on miles after 4 days in London, that was what I could make happen - I realize it would be better to fly into Dublin and out of Shannon, but that's not happening this time). We are: 3 generations -- son (18), mom (46), grandma (let's just say older, but you would think she's in her 50s). I am the mom in this scenario and have recently discovered I'm a quarter Irish on my dad's side. As such, I'd like to visit for heritage reasons but have no idea what county my family is from. We like: meeting people, museums, art, hiking, history, live music, art workshops (where you can make something to take home), cooking classes, tea, whiskey, and some shopping. One of us is a vegetarian eater, which seems to indicate larger towns/cities as bases. We want to avoid moving around a ton and so I am viewing this as a first trip and don't need to see everything. Grandma isn't especially excited about my renting a car, so I thought we'd limit ourselves to what's accessible by train and look at day tour operators for the driving part. That seems to eliminate Dingle.

So, the question is: if you were going to do this trip, what might you choose

Option 1: Dublin + travel to Cork and then over to Kinsale
Option 2: Dublin + Belfast/Atrim Coast in Northern Ireland
Option 3: Dublin + Galway area
Option 4: Dublin + Someplace else I haven't thought of
Option 5: Just stay the whole time in the Dublin area and do day trips from there

Thanks for your advice, in advance!

Posted by
703 posts

With just 6 days, I would stay in Dublin and maybe do some day trips. Dublin has lots to see & enjoy. We spend 4 nights there on our last trip and just scratched the surface. Highlights in Dublin - Dublin Castle, Trinity College & the Book of Kells, Christchurch Cathedral, Dublinia, Kilmainham Gaol, Guinness Storehouse, St Stephens Green, pubs, pubs & more pubs so lunch and dinner are super easy. You could do Belfast & the Giants Causeway as a day trip pretty easily. Or Malahide Castle & Howth as a day trip. Have fun!

Posted by
362 posts

I'm also voting for Dublin + Belfast. You can find a tour to take you out to the Giants Causeway in Northern Ireland, and it's an incredible sight. And Dublin has loads to do. Same for Belfast.

Enjoy your trip!!!

Posted by
5196 posts

Suggest Option 5 without any hesitation for one simple reason. It is amazing the amount of time lost when relocating from one place to another and you only have six days so you really don't need to lose any of your available time.

Posted by
111 posts

Thanks! I am going to go with Option 2 or 5, depending on what I can figure out hotel wise. Unfortunately we are getting in right at the tail end of the James Joyce festival, and cursory research shows a lot of hotels are already full (or just holding their rooms closed, I guess).

We were supposed to go to Ireland this year (had to cancel due to some health issues) and I kind of already suspected that going south or west as we'd originally intended would be frustrating as we'd just end up rushing.

Appreciate the responses!

Posted by
136 posts

Given that you have Irish roots, I definitely recommend checking out Epic, the Irish emigration museum that opened last year. Its multimedia format is engaging and terrific for all ages, and I definitely learned a lot. You can also take a free guided tour at a couple of times each day.

Posted by
111 posts

Thanks Maria - which city would that be in? Dublin?

Posted by
136 posts

You're welcome, Kerry - it's in Dublin and a very short walk from the famine memorial.