Hello, taking my family to Ireland for the Gathering. After our reunion we plan to spend a week or so traveling the Southwest part of the country. I currently have B&B's reserved for two nights each in Dingle, Kinsale and Galway. I am torn about whether I should just rent a cottage centerally (e.g. Tipperary) and use as a base. Thoughts on the best Ireland experience?
Posted by
Bloomington, IL, USA
9363 posts
I think you would be better served by moving around as you have planned. Ireland isn't a place where it is easy to locate in one place and do day trips, and yours are too far apart to be efficient - you would spend too much time backtracking. Keep in mind that two nights in a place is only one full day there. That might be enough, though, depending on what portions of days you also have in that location. You can use www.viamichelin.com to see driving times between areas, but add about 25% to their estimated drive times for a more accurate picture.
Posted by
Acworth, Georgia, USA
78 posts
Last summer our family spent a week at Rathellen House in Bansha, just a few miles south of Tipperary. We were three generations with children ages 4, 6, 11, and 17. We found this to be a perfect base for our travels. While there member of our group visited Kinsale, Dingle, Cashel, Lismore, Waterford, Adare, Cahir, and Bunratty Castle and Folk Park. Eamonn and Stella Long who own Rathellen House are the perfect hosts. They provided planning help both before and during the trip. While we rented the entire house for our group of 14, they can accommodate smaller groups. We highly recommend Rathellen House as a base for travel in southwest Ireland.