Ireland itinerary assist?

I have some ideas. We just came back from Ireland and spent 13 days Dublin-Galway-Dublin. You have 6 days, if you include the day you arrive. How do you feel about just spending 1 night at a certain place? Do you enjoy driving? How long would you drive in 1 day? Do you want to spend any time in Dublin? Is this your first time in Ireland?

We have no problem with staying one night here or there. We will spend the last three nights in Dublin. The last night is New Year's Eve and we fly out very early in the a.m.

Thanks!

If I were you, I would head toward Limerick, not because there is anything particular to see there (there isn't), but because just beyond Limerick is Shannon. And very near Shannon airport is Bunratty Castle. From there you could continue toward the coast to Lahinch or Liscannor. Lahinch is a cute little coastal town with a world famous golf course which is beautiful even in the winter. Just beyond Liscannor is the Cliffs of Moher. Their relatively new visitor center will be open. Just before you reach the Burren you will encounter Doolin, considered the center of trad music in the west. Drive through the Burren and THEN head for Galway. You haven't allowed time in your itinerary for actually seeing Galway, either, so you will want to do that.

Galway is a lively university town with a fun pedestrian only shopping or "high street". Spend the night at the reasonably priced Griffin Lodge in Galway after enjoying Galway and take the Rossaveel Ferry from near Galway for a wonderful day on the island of Inismor in the Aran Islands. Go to Dun Aengus Fort and there are cliffs there to take your breath away. The Cliffs of Moher are a circus, while the cliffs anywhere in Inismor are magical and relatively quiet. If you can splurge 40 Euros, take a pony cart ride around the island. They will take you to Dun Aengus. The pony carts and taxi drivers meet all the ferries arriving on Inismor. If you need directions on how to arrange the ferry and how to contact Griffin Lodge, write me. Esther

Just arrived back from Ireland. Are you used to driving in Ireland? We used our GPS to get to Glendalough and it was quite a drive!! Beautiful and one of our top 2 places, but a little nerve wracking as the roads on to Kilkenny were especially narrow and winding until we came back to a major road and that wasn't for about an hour and a half. What about a Dingle Peninsula drive? That is on the way to Galway and you could stop in at the Cliffs of Moher and see some of the Burren, too.

Esther, at that time of year it's unlikely that the ferries to the Aran Islands will be running regularly. They are completely dependent on the state of the water, and it can sometimes be days between trips. As far as the Cliffs of Moher are concerned, I have been there three times (twice in February) and they are far from a "circus". We were nearly alone there on my most recent trip, and the visitor center is beautiful. The Dingle peninsula drive is quite far out of the way heading from Rock of Cashel to the Galway area, and you don't seem to have time in your itinerary for that.

Thank you, everyone, for your help. I think we will definitely get to the Cliffs of Moher and Galway with other stops on the way. I'm not sure if we will go as far as Dingle, but may try to get to the Burren. We are very excited about this trip and hope to finalize our plans soon. Some of it will be unplanned to allow flexibility for unexpected adventures. Thanks again!

Jan,

With all due respect to previous posters, Dingle is NOT on the way from Cashel to Galway. You could go to Dingle, which is a great place to visit, but it would only make sense if you are going to spend more than one night and drive the Slea Head Peninsula. Plus, the drive from Dingle to Dublin would be a very long one.

Is there any particular reason you are going to Galway? I thought it was a nice enough town, but we mainly used it as a base to see the Cliffs, Burren, and Aran Islands (which aren't really an option in December). If you want to explore the Cliffs/Burren, you could stay in one of the County Clare towns like Doolin, Lahinch, etc.

If you are heading from Galway to Dublin, you can visit Newgrange, an ancient historic site, on your way to Dublin. Usually, you'd arrive too late to get in, but at that time of year it shouldn't be too busy. You could also check out Trim Castle.

Hello Jan,

A couple of things to keep in mind with your planning. Many of the roads in Ireland are 2 lane - which means you won't be averaging 60 - 70mph - plan on closer to 30 mph. Also, at that time of year, it gets dark rather early so figure that in as well.
We were in Ireland this past summer and we took the train from Dublin to Galway and picked up a car there - from there worked out way down the coast - toured the Burren, saw the Cliffs and went to Dingle and did the Slea Head Loop and ended up in Killarney and took the train back to Dublin.

Michael/Nancy, thank you. As I talked with my husband about this today, we (actually I) were feeling that trying to get to Galway might add more busy driving than we would really want on this trip. We want to have the flexibility to see what the day brings us and to feel that we can truly explore without the commitment of being somewhere by a certain time. We really have had some wonderful experiences when we've allowed for serendipity. Maybe we won't get so far afield as we were thinking. I just don't know, but I do know I want to be open to possibilities rather than locked in.

You've all been so helpful and I appreciate that.

One other question some of you might be able to answer[INVALID]-would it be too risky to leave it to chance to find lodging our nights away from Dublin? We have reservations in Dublin, but like I said, we don't want to be locked in to being somewhere, so we'd like to leave it to chance. I know it wouldn't be a problem in the summer, but what do you think about in December. Thank you all.

No, it wouldn't be too risky to wait. I never book ahead. While it's true that some B&Bs close for the winter, there are many that don't. Get a B&B directory from the Tourist Information at the airport. It lists all registered B&Bs and whether they are open all year or not. We had no trouble getting a B&B in Lahinch on the spur of the moment.

You need to check ahead and see if some of the places you want to visit are open that time of the year. A lot of Ireland closes down from Christmas eve until after the first of the year,especially the day after Christmas,St. Stephen's Day.

IF YOU HAVE TIME DO YOUR BEST TO VISIT THE DINGLE PENINSULA. OF COURSE THIS WOULD HAVE TO TAKE INTO ACCOUNT THE WEATHER AT THAT TIME. CORK AND COBH WOULD ALSO BE A RECOMMENDATION. BUT WITH JUST ONE DAY I THINK I WOULD DRIVE THROUGH THE BURREN REGION AND STAY IN DOOLIN. GREAT SCENERY AND PEOPLE. BACK TOWARD DUBLIN I ENJOYED VISITING THE NATIONAL STUD FARM AND ITS GARDENS IN KENMARE. NEWGRANGE AND TRIM ARE ALSO GREAT CHOICES IF YOU ARE INTO HISTORY. HOPE YOU HAVE A GREAT TRIP!

On the way back from Galway to Dublin, you could visit the other "big" ecclesiastical site of Clonmacnoise. It's very close where the N6 crosses the Shannon. Rick's book doesn't give any details but my wife and I thought it was well worth the visit. Plan on an hour. I would put this below going to Newgrange/Knowth, Trim Castle and other sites just north of Dublin. However, darkness will come early and I don't know what will be open when you're passing through. Check the Ireland Office of Public Works site for hours. If you go to very many OPW sites, it's very easy to justify the OPW card. Check the Michelin site for driving times. I found it to be very accurate. Take a GPS and a decent map as backup. Drop your car off at the Dublin airport and take the bus into Dublin. Trying to drive to Kilkenny with a good stop in Glendalough will be a full day but doable. Seven days just doesn't do Ireland justice.