A car rental is out because we are afraid to drive on the left. Is the trip we plan reasonable depending as it does on local buses? Above all we do not want to spend too much time (we have a total of seven days) struggling with luggage or schedules. We would be very grateful for suggestions of any sort -- hotels, specific destinations, restaurants or what have you! I should mention that we are good walkers, but in our 70s. Thanks so much for your help!
Posted by
Ohio
2161 posts
Hi Thomas, have you considered doing a Rick Steves tour of Ireland? This might be the perfect option for you and your wife. Leave the driving and reservations to someone else and just enjoy your vacation!
Here are the links to the 8 and 14 day itineraries:
Posted by
OP
3 posts
Thanks, Donna!
They are all wait listed for our dates at the moment, but we will follow up. -- Tom
Posted by
RIchmond, BC,Canada
932 posts
You can do a lot of this without a car, but it is best to rely on guided day trips, not public transit since you have so few days. I did a three week trip by bus/train many years ago, and found the best thing to do was base myself out of a larger town and do guided day trips. But, with so few days you are still faced with relying on the train schedule to get from one town to the next, and this will cut into your touring opportunities. If you fly into Dublin you can do day trips to see many places like Newgrange and Glendalough. If you take the train to Galway and spend a couple of days you will be able to do a guided day trip to the Cliffs of Moher and other places. The train to Galway is about two hours from Dublin. If you take the train to Killarney you will be able to do day trips to the Dingle Peninsula and many other places, but the train to Killarney is about four hours. I suggest you do a google search for day trips from each of Dublin, Galway, and Killarney, and figure out what you want to see the most, and go from there. With just seven days you will not be able to get to all three locations by train, and have time to join a day trip to see all the places you want to see. My suggestion would be Dublin and Galway as it easiest and closest by train, and you will have to return to Dublin to fly out.
Posted by
OP
3 posts
Many thanks! I appreciate the details -- this makes good sense. Can I make arrangements for day tours at the last minute, or do they need to be booked in advance?
Posted by
RIchmond, BC,Canada
932 posts
You don't say when you are going to be there. I was there in April and made all of my bookings before I left, but most of the tours were not full. I also just like to have a firm plan in place.