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Best of Ireland 14 Days - pre and post tour plans

Posted by (Minneapolis, MN, US) on

I am now booked (a slight change) on the 14 day Ireland tour, April 21 - May 4. My current plan is to fly into Dublin 7 days early ... get over jet lag (I don't sleep on planes), explore some things in Dublin that are not covered by the tour (the tour covers very little), and take several day trips out of Dublin (have many things identified from reading posts and guidebooks).

Then, at the end, (tour ends at breakfast on a Saturday), stay in Belfast one extra night for the Saturday market (also on Sunday) and to explore a bit more. Then, on Sunday, take one of the buses to the Dublin airport, and stay at a hotel at or near the airport, and fly home on Monday, the 6th.

?thoughts on this plan? The only real negative I can think of is if I wanted to shop in Dublin .. I would have to ship home or lug around for the tour.

Appreciate any advice from those who have done pre and post. I don't want to do a lot of moving around since will be moving around alot during the 13 night tour.

Posted by
136 posts

If you shop before I believe the "coach" has deep storage if you wanted to use it. Best double check with the office just in case.

Also before please go visit https://www.newgrange.com as it is not to be missed if you like history. Also, you might want to visit the museums, and the Guiness factory and or a distillery while you are there. Loved Dublin and looking forward to another trip at some point. While it was a bit ago now you can look thru my TR on the site. Look for the 2014 book on Ireland
https://www.ricksteves.com/tours/scrapbooks/tour-alum-scrapbooks

Best wishes for a super trip. I am taking his Scotland trip next May and can hardly wait.

Posted by
23 posts

@Steph: Thanks! I will check on the deep storage just in case I want to shop (not generally a big shopper) .. and yes, I am tapped into the Newgrange tour (they don't start taking 2024 reservations until November 1).
Thanks for the trip link!

Posted by
4 posts

We loved doing the Musical Pub Crawl in Dublin—not sure if that’s the name, but you’ll figure it out. Very fun! We also enjoyed the “Meet an Irishman” at the Dublin Museum. Schedule ahead of time. They gave us vouchers for a nearby pub, and we just spent a couple of hours talking to farmer Joe, so fun! Also, our guide the first night told us about Riverdance, appearing in Dublin, which was incredible. Do go to the jail and to the Guiness Brewery.

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