What is the best time of year to visit Ireland?
Q. My husband and i are trying to plan a trip for next year to go over there, and wanted to know if anyone could help with what time of year to go? what to do? should we do one of the coach tours, or just wing it on our own staying at some b&b's? Help Please!
A. Weather:
For the best weather Late August/early Septmber are warm and dry more often than not.
To do:
What to do depends on what you are into: www.failteireland.ie or www.google.ie for tours and that in different places. I would say go walking and don't pay for tours when you can buy lonely planet or similar for the cost of one tour.
The impressive things to see in Ireland as far as I am concerned and from what I've seen (others will give you great suggestions as welll).
Clare - Cliffs of Moher
Limerick - Bunratty Castle, Foynes Flying boat museum.
Kerry - the list is too long but go by Conor pass to get there if you can.
Cork - again so much but West Cork I think is fantastic for scenery.
The list is too long to go through each county.
Accomodation:
Look at what they are charging online at www.ebookers.ie for instance, then call the hotel and negotiate. The worst that can happen is you pay the price online anyway!
Transport:
Coach tours sounds like some kind of nightmare. Hire a car or use public tranport. Public Transport will take you everywhere you need to go if you plan it. www.buseireann.ie or www.irishrail.ie.
The driving time from Dublin to Killarney for instance is five hours which can be done in a day, so the country is small enough to see alot in a small time.
I think you should hire a car, take off on the road and deal with it as it comes. I did that for two months last year driving 6000 miles around the US from Chicago to LA and it was good fun.
And above all, I hope ye have a great time.
J
For the best weather Late August/early Septmber are warm and dry more often than not.
To do:
What to do depends on what you are into: www.failteireland.ie or www.google.ie for tours and that in different places. I would say go walking and don't pay for tours when you can buy lonely planet or similar for the cost of one tour.
The impressive things to see in Ireland as far as I am concerned and from what I've seen (others will give you great suggestions as welll).
Clare - Cliffs of Moher
Limerick - Bunratty Castle, Foynes Flying boat museum.
Kerry - the list is too long but go by Conor pass to get there if you can.
Cork - again so much but West Cork I think is fantastic for scenery.
The list is too long to go through each county.
Accomodation:
Look at what they are charging online at www.ebookers.ie for instance, then call the hotel and negotiate. The worst that can happen is you pay the price online anyway!
Transport:
Coach tours sounds like some kind of nightmare. Hire a car or use public tranport. Public Transport will take you everywhere you need to go if you plan it. www.buseireann.ie or www.irishrail.ie.
The driving time from Dublin to Killarney for instance is five hours which can be done in a day, so the country is small enough to see alot in a small time.
I think you should hire a car, take off on the road and deal with it as it comes. I did that for two months last year driving 6000 miles around the US from Chicago to LA and it was good fun.
And above all, I hope ye have a great time.
J
What are the best places in Ireland to see?
Q. I want to go to Ireland but i dont know that much about where to go i just know I absolutley love Irish dancing. I love to shop and i want to learn more about their culture so where are the best places in Ireland to go?
A. Well if I was planning the not-over-touristy, not-too-dreary trip to Ireland with the interests you have here's what I would do:
The Irish Dancing:
Attend the 'Fleadh Cheoil Na hEireann' run every year and get a dose of dancers, musicians from all parts of ireland and ages. 'World Fleadh' run every year in Portlaoise is the over-commercialised equivalent of the Fleadh Cheoil but you could opt for this if dates/locations worked out better.
There are one or two Irish dancing sources in or near Dublin. They tend to attract large group bookings (look up three rock, arlington hotel, johnnie fox's) and if you are travelling alone and trying to get the authentic experience I would opt for Fleadh Cheoil.
Shopping:
Well the bigger the town/city the better the shopping in general terms and you don't say what you might be after but if you have the moolah then there are plenty of places in the Grafton St area in Dublin after arriving here or just before you leave. However to pick one place for shopping and culture and convenient location I would opt for Galway or Kilkenny for a day or two out if coming in through Dublin. If landing in Shannon Bunratty is popular for so-called authentic Irish experience but then so is kissing a 'god knows what/who else has kissed' Blarney stone to get the gift of the gab.
Cultural:
Cultural knowledge implicates history and I guess if you visited Newgrange, Glendalough and Kilmainham Gaol you would get a broad idea of some important aspects of history. If you had more time I would recommend Trim Castle and to get away from the Dublin-centred base try Dingle and Connemara (need car for those destinations but I usually find that any place of interest you can't get to bus/train can be just as good if just for the feeling that maybe just maybe noone but you knows of the place!)
Two weeks of highlights could be Dublin - shop till you drop around south city centre area, visit Kilmainham Gaol, night out in a micro-brewery like The Porter-House in Temple-Bar (for that modern Ireland pub idea without being inundated with stag and hens) perhaps complemented by some market-style shopping in South Great Georges St or Temple Bar. Explore Stephen's Green area. For more culture in Dublin City itself visit the IFI and there may just be an arty Irish film on or you could buy an Irish-focused DVD for watching back home from HMV on Grafton St.
Take a couple of days out to visit Kilkenny, Glendalough and Newgrange while based in Dublin then choose some spontaneous exploration of a west of Ireland area for the rest of the holiday, get to an island if you can but whatever you do in the West of Ireland just loiter around in places your heart says you should and don't itinerise this part of the holiday.
Oh yeah throw Fleadh Cheoil in there too of course if the dates work. Finally I don't know where you are from but if they have that Rose of Tralee competition in your neck of the woods and as tacky as it may sound there is apparently enjoyment had in going to Tralee around the time of the competition but it isn't for me.
Television/Film to keep an eye out for if you get a rainy day, sorry WHEN you get that rainy day/week/month (or even as preparation) - The Wind that Shakes the Barley, Michael Collins, The Brylcreem Boys (Jean Butler of Riverdance fame dances a little in this wartime Ireland film), The Late Late Show (hit and miss though at times), naturally Roddy Doyle trilogy films like The Commitments, The Snapper and The Van. Good Irish comedy could include Father Ted, early Killinoskully TV series, Waking Ned, Man about Dog, most things that have Brendan Gleeson (actually In Bruges which is really a story about London Irish gangsters but was written and directed by Neil McDonagh from Dublin is worth watching too if you haven't seen it yet. More thought-provoking films to do with Ireland could include Some Mother's Son, The Garage perhaps and The General.
Hope that gives you some ideas.
The Irish Dancing:
Attend the 'Fleadh Cheoil Na hEireann' run every year and get a dose of dancers, musicians from all parts of ireland and ages. 'World Fleadh' run every year in Portlaoise is the over-commercialised equivalent of the Fleadh Cheoil but you could opt for this if dates/locations worked out better.
There are one or two Irish dancing sources in or near Dublin. They tend to attract large group bookings (look up three rock, arlington hotel, johnnie fox's) and if you are travelling alone and trying to get the authentic experience I would opt for Fleadh Cheoil.
Shopping:
Well the bigger the town/city the better the shopping in general terms and you don't say what you might be after but if you have the moolah then there are plenty of places in the Grafton St area in Dublin after arriving here or just before you leave. However to pick one place for shopping and culture and convenient location I would opt for Galway or Kilkenny for a day or two out if coming in through Dublin. If landing in Shannon Bunratty is popular for so-called authentic Irish experience but then so is kissing a 'god knows what/who else has kissed' Blarney stone to get the gift of the gab.
Cultural:
Cultural knowledge implicates history and I guess if you visited Newgrange, Glendalough and Kilmainham Gaol you would get a broad idea of some important aspects of history. If you had more time I would recommend Trim Castle and to get away from the Dublin-centred base try Dingle and Connemara (need car for those destinations but I usually find that any place of interest you can't get to bus/train can be just as good if just for the feeling that maybe just maybe noone but you knows of the place!)
Two weeks of highlights could be Dublin - shop till you drop around south city centre area, visit Kilmainham Gaol, night out in a micro-brewery like The Porter-House in Temple-Bar (for that modern Ireland pub idea without being inundated with stag and hens) perhaps complemented by some market-style shopping in South Great Georges St or Temple Bar. Explore Stephen's Green area. For more culture in Dublin City itself visit the IFI and there may just be an arty Irish film on or you could buy an Irish-focused DVD for watching back home from HMV on Grafton St.
Take a couple of days out to visit Kilkenny, Glendalough and Newgrange while based in Dublin then choose some spontaneous exploration of a west of Ireland area for the rest of the holiday, get to an island if you can but whatever you do in the West of Ireland just loiter around in places your heart says you should and don't itinerise this part of the holiday.
Oh yeah throw Fleadh Cheoil in there too of course if the dates work. Finally I don't know where you are from but if they have that Rose of Tralee competition in your neck of the woods and as tacky as it may sound there is apparently enjoyment had in going to Tralee around the time of the competition but it isn't for me.
Television/Film to keep an eye out for if you get a rainy day, sorry WHEN you get that rainy day/week/month (or even as preparation) - The Wind that Shakes the Barley, Michael Collins, The Brylcreem Boys (Jean Butler of Riverdance fame dances a little in this wartime Ireland film), The Late Late Show (hit and miss though at times), naturally Roddy Doyle trilogy films like The Commitments, The Snapper and The Van. Good Irish comedy could include Father Ted, early Killinoskully TV series, Waking Ned, Man about Dog, most things that have Brendan Gleeson (actually In Bruges which is really a story about London Irish gangsters but was written and directed by Neil McDonagh from Dublin is worth watching too if you haven't seen it yet. More thought-provoking films to do with Ireland could include Some Mother's Son, The Garage perhaps and The General.
Hope that gives you some ideas.
Where and what places are the best / must see in Ireland?
Q. For my honeymoon I want me and my husband to go to Ireland. But not sure where to start. Where are good places to go that are touristy and more local?
A. Galway is a great little town, always lots going on & a nice vibe about it...nice cobbled streets & beside the sea also, plenty of history here. You can also travel out to Connemara as the scenery is breathtakingly beautiful & it is like going back in time as the Irish language is the main language here & the countryside, mountains & lakes, sea etc unspoilt..I Love it out there as it calms my soul...You could travel to Clifden spend a day or two here while travelling around..or take a little ferry boat over from Cleggen to a small Island Inisboffin, is off the beaten track & lovely...Kylemore Abbey also worth a visit as it sits nestled in the mountains beside a lake, is beautiful. You can also travel to Cong to see where the film 'The Quiet Man' was made that John Wayne & Maureen O'Hara starred in..there is a lovely hotel there Ashford Castle, would be a lovely treat to spend a night or 2 there..is lovely grounds there & also a lake.. ALso a visit to the Aran Islands off the coast of Galway worth a visit as it is full of Irish tradition there also. Kerry is beautiful as well as famous for the beautiful sights around the Ring Of Kerry, Cork and Wicklow also worth a visit... hope this helps but it is lovely driving around off the beaten track & discovering unspoilt places..there are plenty of B&B's and are of a good standard.. if you get to Galway make sure you try the famous Fish & Chips in McDonagh's on Quay Street. Bunratty Castle is also worth a visit as it is a great experience & gives an insight into what life was like .have a great time & hope this helps.. :)
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