Help with 13 day itinerary

You should have received a B&B guide with your vouchers. Most B&Bs anymore have email, so booking shouldn't be hard. I'm surprised, though, that you say everything has to be prebooked -- I've never done that, even when using vouchers. What's wrong with a five star castle? :) Any place with plumbing and electricity won't be a "real" castle, anyway. The Waterford Crystal factory is closed.

Liscarroll, the Burren, the Cliffs of Moher and Aillwee Cave (as well as Doolin and Lahinch) are all in the same area, barely an hour apart from each other (actually, Liscarroll is the closest town to the cliffs, a mere 10 minute or so drive). You might look at www.viamichelin. com or www.aaroadwatch.ie (or even a guidebook map) to see where the places on your list are in relation to each other.

Thanks Nancy,
We did receive a guide, there are just tons of b&bs to choose from. We were asked to prebook, I'm assuming, so our driver can figure out his accommodations, I'll have to ask? Ha, I like the 5 star castle, my mother and her friend don't...I think I'll try and find a haunted one for them ;)I will check out the two mileage sites you listed, thanks.

Donna,

Before you choose B&B's, you need to decide where you're going. Your current list basically includes all or Ireland outside of Dublin AND you'd like to go to N. Ireland AND you have 7 days to do it all. You need to prioritize.

Talk to your companions and come up with a list of "must sees". Everyone should get one or two but no more. Then, make a list of other places of interest that did not make the must see list. Then, check out a reference -- either online or in a guide like Rick's Ireland guide -- to see where everything is and where your must see items are in relation to each other. This will give you a sense of whether you can fit in all your must sees in a week.

If you give us more info, we can be more helpful. For example, what are your group's interests? Museums? History? Scenery? Music? Shopping? If you let us know what you'd like to see, we can tell you where to find it.

By the way, Slea Head, Conor Pass and Gallarus Oratory are all on the Dingle Peninsula, so if you choose to go there then you will hit all three of those places.

Michael,

Yes, unfortunately we need to tone down our list (or stay another two weeks :) We actually have 10 days on the road and 2 days in Dublin. Our interests are ruins, museums, history and scenery. Would you mind giving me your opinion on the following itinerary and what you would see along the way? 1st day, Dublin to Kilkenny (Powerscout gardens, Wicklow gap and Glendalough); 2nd day Kilkenny to Dingle (Kilkenny, Rock of Cashel and Mallow);3rd day (Dingle peninsula, Blasket Center, Louis Mulchay Pottery); 4th day Dingle to Doolin area, we don't really want to stay in Doolin (Glin Castle, Cliffs of Moher); 5th day Doolin area to Athlone, then to Wesport area (Burren, Clonmacnoise); 6th day Westport area to Donegal (Carrowmore, Belleek Pottery factory); 7th day Donegal to Derry (Glenveagh National Park); 8th day Derry to Antrim (Giant's Causeway, Bushmills Distillery); 9th day Antrim to Dublin (Grey Abbey, Castle Ward, Dundrum Castle, Newgrange); 10th and 11th days in Dublin.

Thanks

Whew!! You make me tired just reading your itinerary!

Do you rally want to spend every day in a vehicle at our age (my wife and I are in our 60s) We did a similar tour last September, but included Kinsale and other parts of the south, but... we spent 27 days doing it. I still think you should pare down your trip further and stay more than one night in more places - apart from Dublin, Dingle is the only place you seem to be staying 2 nights.

Remember, the roads are narrow and driving is slow. 30mph is a good average and does not allow for a flock of sheep, a cow meandering down the road, a tractor or other Irish impediments to swift transport.

Whoops, I mixed up my "Lis"s. Liscannor is the closest town to the Cliffs, not Liscarroll. Liscarroll, further down toward Cork from Shannon, has a big castle yard wall. I think it's the 3rd largest 12th cent. castle in Ireland? If that's the only thing you are going to see there, in my opinion, it's not worth the out-of-the-way drive. Just down the road, though, is something that my son and I truly enjoyed - a donkey sanctuary. Donkeys are taken in here from farms that no longer want them (in some cases they have been abused or abandoned), and they are given a home and medical care for the rest of their lives. The sanctuary is free to visit but they happily accept donations. You can read all about it, and download a walking tour brochure at www.thedonkeysanctuary.ie

For the night near Doolin (when you don't want to stay in Doolin), you might check with Moher Lodge in Liscannor, a pretty little B&B right on the road to the Cliffs. It's about five minutes from the Cliffs of Moher, maybe 20 minutes or so from Doolin. The host will tell you all about the Liscannor Stone, slate which is quarried in that area, from which the local fences are built.

Your Day 9 worries me a little. You have a drive, several castle visits, and Newgrange. Newgrange can take awhile to see, particularly since you have to wait for a shuttle to take you to the actual site (you park at the visitor center and they take you in). Then there is the tour, and the shuttle back. And in April there could be enough visitors that you might not be able to get on the first shuttle once you arrive. You might want to consider skipping one of the other places in order to have enough time for Newgrange -- it is well worth it.

Oh, and I can recommend a wonderful B&B near Newgrange, in Navan. It's called Killyon Guesthouse (www.killyonguesthouse.ie). If you get done late at Newgrange, this is only a short drive, and is right on the Dublin road for easy access into the city.

Iain,
Thanks for your note. I'm still working on paring down the trip. We do have a driver but you are right, we don't want to spend all day in the car. I'm now looking at 2-4 hours drive time to each destination, giving us at least 4 hours along the way to stop at sites. And, if there are some we don't get to see we'll just have to come back :) Wow, I would love to have 27 days. I am also looking at staying in two towns for two nights each, good advice.

Thanks again,

Donna

Nancy,

Thanks for the great information. That's funny, Liscarroll is where I read about the donkey sanctuary and that's why I wanted to go there. My friends just laughed, but hey, I am planning the trip ;) FYI, I also saw an owl reserve just outside of Belfast that looks interesting, World of Owls in Randalstown Forest http://www.worldofowls.com/
I was a littled concerned about day 9 as well. Thanks for the heads up about the tour at Newgrange, I really would like to see this so we will cut out something else to get there in time. Do you know if you can prebook tours, I will try and find something on the web? I will also check out the b&b, thanks.

Donna

Hi, on booking tours there are 2 sites here in Europe - isango.com (London) and city-discovery.com (Paris) where you can compare excursions and day trips. They cover Ireland quite well although it remains focused on the classics must dos. You can find plenty of other niche sites on Google (that's actually part of the problem, isn't it).