My husband and I are planning to take a 2-3 week trip to Ireland and renting a car as needed. With work commitments, we are limited as to when we can take the trip. Our options are June or January. Any recommendations/preferences? We are slightly concerned January might be too cold for hiking and driving could be treacherous. However, June will have more crowds and we like the idea of cozy pubs in the winter. Thoughts? Thanks in advance 😃
Posted by
Paris
9617 posts
June, absolutely. Especially as your trip is two to three weeks, and you sais you love hiking. You can truly enjoy what Ireland has to offer in June (and you may still have a day or two when you find a pub to be a cozy respite in June!).
Posted by
Lake District, England
5845 posts
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Posted by
Lincolnshire, UK
1861 posts
June would be nuch better and early June is still before peak holiday season. You have really long days and everywhere will be gree with lots of wild flowers.
Posted by
Colorado Springs
2831 posts
No contest - June for sure.
Daylight hours in January will be extremely short, cold and wet - ie not a lot of fun to be outside. Or to be driving for that matter.
The standard workaround for the crowds of summer is to get an early start to your day. The popular tourist sites don't start to fill up until the tour buses start to arrive around 9 AM, and you won't have to deal with any crowds at all on any of the hiking trails.
The pubs are as cozy in June as they are in January ... and the Guinness goes down just as easy after a long day out and about.
Posted by
Moncton NB
1039 posts
I went to Ireland in January and I've never been as cold in my life. And I come from CANADA! Its not the actual temperature; its the damp and the lack of proper insulation in many old buildings. I would love to go back in June.
Posted by
OP
5 posts
Thanks everyone for the feedback/responses. Much appreciated. We will visit in June. Next step, is to plan the trip. I see lots of nice itineraries in this forum + I have Rick’s guidebook so we have lots of materials to help with this planning!
Have a great day everyone.
Posted by
Lincolnshire, UK
1861 posts
As well as RS, also look at DK Eyewitness guides for Ireland. They have a lot of information and pictures covering many smaller places ignored by the other guides.