Going to Ireland - Tips and Suggestions Welcomed

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The Rock of Cashel is awesome, one of the favorite places I visited. Killarney National Park is also very pretty.

As for hotels, the Westin in Dublin is also very nice and had a good location. Another site to see is St. Patrick's Cathedral in Dublin - wonderful stained glass windows. It is also on the hop-on/hop-off bus route. Dublin Castle is cool too. I'd skip Dublinia - the medieval Dublin exhibit by Christchurch Cathedral - that was boring.

I think it's cool that you're taking a solo trip there. I went on a group tour (Adventures by Disney) and while that was okay, I think if I ever get to go back I'd like to take a trip like you're doing.

My favorite sign from the Cliffs of Moher - http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/vGy9phG3zbkGub_mHORWSA?feat=directlink

One more tip - give yourself time to rest when you first get there. Even flying from the east coast, jet lag kicked my butt (and the overnight flight didn't help either).
 
Yeah, my plan is to fly into Cork and then just spend the day loafing around, maybe doing a little exploring, but basically relaxing as much as I can and figuring out how in the hell to deal with jet lag.

First stop, though: driving around the parking lot when I pick up my rental car, trying to learn how to drive over there really damn quickly. :wink:

I definitely want to see Rock of Cashel; unfortunately, it's not near anything else I'm planning on doing, so I'm going to have to miss it this trip.
 
I can drive stick - it's what I drove for most of my driving life, but when I go home now to visit the parents, it takes me a minute or two to remember how to do it. It'll be tough to do it with the LEFT hand, and also remember to be on the correct side of the road.

I'll at least look into renting an automatic - it'll depend on how much more expensive it will be.

Good to know about Cork - maybe I'll see if I can pick up the car in the city instead of the airport and at least have the luxury of public transportation into the city, so it's not complete culture shock all at once, on top of the jet lag. :wink:
 
Oh my friend and I took the train from Limerick to Dublin. You might want to look into that option vs. the bus.

I can send you the names of the B&Bs I stayed at while I was in Dingle & Kinsale (you should make a day trip to Kinsale! ) . I splurged when I was in Dublin the first time, by staying at The Clarence. They treat you like a VIP and the staff greets you by your name every time you leave or return back to the hotel. Worth every dollar! Oh and I had my first Guinness in a cozy pub in Doolin.
 
The Clarence is still at the top of my list for hotels in Dublin! Would love to see recommendations for B&Bs! I haven't gotten that far yet, but I'll add them to my ridiculously-long (and growing) lists of information.

I'll be doing the train from Galway to Dublin. That's the only big stretch I'll have where I won't have a car. I'm really looking forward to taking the train, even though it's just a few hours.
 
corianderstem said:
The Clarence is still at the top of my list for hotels in Dublin! Would love to see recommendations for B&Bs! I haven't gotten that far yet, but I'll add them to my ridiculously-long (and growing) lists of information.

I'll be doing the train from Galway to Dublin. That's the only big stretch I'll have where I won't have a car. I'm really looking forward to taking the train, even though it's just a few hours.
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The train was one of my favorite parts of my trip to Ireland. I was soooo tired and just wanted to use those hours to sleep but I forced myself to stay up the entire time and soak in the Irish countryside :drool: I think, if I remember correctly, we took a train to Cork one day and Limerick another day. Our trip to Limerick then took us to the Cliffs and Galway. We bought a day trip tour for that so it ended up to be a guided bus tour once we got to Limerick. But for Cork we were on our own other than a bus tour to Blarney. I think we wandered the streets of Cork but otherwise I don't remember seeing anything meaningful there other than the castle.

Sorry...didn't read the thread to see what others wrote so forgive me if I repeat something. We bought a Dublin pass for a bus and also sites to see so we got a somewhat guided tour of Dublin and it took us to all of the major sites. The only sucky thing, from what I remember, was most places were not open past the dinner hour so I remember feeling rushed to see everything on our list. Another really cool thing we did was the very first night we got there we went on a pub crawl with 2 musicians in Temple Bar. It was cool hearing about the history of some of the pubs and the area. I do remember everyone being incredibly friendly and helpful. Cab drivers actually took us directly to where we wanted to go and didn't take us all over town like I've had happen in some US cities. I remember an older woman on the street was worried we would get lost when we asked for directions. I thought she was going to show us to our destination even though she was going in the complete opposite direction. We also went to London that week and did not receive the same welcome when asking the locals for help but the people of Ireland were amazing.
 
arw said:
Sorry...didn't read the thread to see what others wrote so forgive me if I repeat something.
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No, no! I'm happy to read everyone's comments and experiences, even if everyone went to the same places. :)
 
Be sure to try some Bulmer's Pear Cider--a pint of that goes down really easy!

070109BulmersPearCider.jpg
 
I'm so jealous that you get to go! I know you'll have an amazing time.

arw said:
I do remember everyone being incredibly friendly and helpful.
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Yes - this is very true. I spent a few months there as part of a university exchange, and I met some of the nicest people there. If you even look remotely confused, someone will no doubt come up to you and ask you if you need help. One time I got myself hopelessly lost, and this kind woman ended up walking with me to my destination. Afterward she invited me over to her house to her family's BBQ! :lol: It was so awesome, being randomly invited to go hang out with people at their house. I stayed in touch with the family for a few years after I had left. When they hear your accent they'll definitely be willing to talk with you about anything and everything, and help you out if you need it. :)

I don't have any new information to add, as everyone's said all the things I would have suggested, but I had to chime in about the friendliness of everyone there. :)
 
That's awesome to hear from multiple people, and it makes me even more excited about going!
 
corianderstem said:
Cider with a Guiness chaser? Or vice versa? :wink:
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The cider is just lovely by itself, but it *is* a "hard" cider. I'm not a fan of Guinness. Our tour bus driver told us "Sometimes the ladies add blackberry cordial to their Guinesss to make it taste better." Tried that at Paddy Burke's Pub in Clarinbridge, but it was just nasty!!
 
I generally prefer hard cider to beer, but I am slowly coming around from my previous "Guiness, BLECHHHHH!" stance to actually kind of liking it. And that's just the American-poured version, so I look forward to trying a "real" Guiness.
 
MsPurrl said:
The cider is just lovely by itself, but it *is* a "hard" cider. I'm not a fan of Guinness. Our tour bus driver told us "Sometimes the ladies add blackberry cordial to their Guinesss to make it taste better." Tried that at Paddy Burke's Pub in Clarinbridge, but it was just nasty!!
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That's the only place I've ever had oysters.

Cori, if you order steak anywhere they tend to cook it quite a bit longer than would be standard in the U.S. If you think you'll be in the county Galway for a bit I know a good B&B in Loughrea. Anne always serves a great breakfast and the lake is a block away so you can get in a good run beforehand.:shifty:
 
corianderstem said:
I look forward to trying a "real" Guiness.
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I know everyone says this but it's totally true....the Guinness in Ireland is so much better than anywhere else. I generally only drink Guinness when I order beer so I'm fairly familiar with it and there was just such a different, smoother taste in Ireland. I really wish I would have tried it with cider but I was just too caught up in the moment of being there to even think about it. I always order a Guinness mix at the pubs here.

Also, just a little randomness about food....I've been a vegetarian for almost all of my life so I was very concerned about the food situation to the point that I brought packets of Easy Mac and a jar of peanut butter with me. But I was pleasantly surprised with the veggie options on the menu. Many of them had a notation that said suitable for vegetarians. I think I only ran into one issue with food the whole time there and it was at the Clarence :D There was NOTHING on the menu that I could even make into my own sort of veggie dish so I think I had green beans and bread :der:
 
I'm already anticipating not being able to get a real feel for the food there, as so much of it seems to be meat-based.

I'm not a vegetarian, but my stomach tends to rebel against big portions of red meat these days. I'll probably be okay, and will veer towards soups and seafood a lot, if not outright lighter meals in general.
 
Had seafood chowder at several places, but I think the best was at the dining room at the Atlantic Hotel in Lahinch. We were on a guided bus tour, so the bus would park and everyone would scatter to where they decided to eat. Paddy Martin, our driver and tour guide, said, "Be back on the bus at two-turdy." :lol: We also noticed that the beef, as in hamburgers, tasted different in different areas. Learned on Bobby Flay's Ireland show on the Food Network near St. Patrick's that's because of the different kinds of grass upon which the cattle feed in different areas. And bacon was always Canadian bacon!

Our hotels were arranged by the travel agent who booked the tour. They were very nice, but kinda pricey, I think. Two nights at the Radisson in Galway, two nights at the Killarney Park Plaza, two nights at the Trident at World's End in Kinsale, and two nights at the Radisson in Dublin.

Oh, Cori, you are going to have such a wonderful time--and yes, I am envious! :D
 
corianderstem said:
The Clarence is still at the top of my list for hotels in Dublin! Would love to see recommendations for B&Bs! I haven't gotten that far yet, but I'll add them to my ridiculously-long (and growing) lists of information.
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Last time I went to Dublin, I just looked up B&Bs in the Yellow Pages and ended up in Ballsbridge on the Southside. Can't remember the name of the place and who knows if it's still operating, but they're all pretty much the same. Octagon Bar in the Clarence is good for a drink, or three.... :drool:

And I'm sorry to point and laugh, but I laughed at the comments about the jet lag. After only 10 hours? After a 24 hour flight from Australia to Europe, one tends to look and feel and smell like this... :crack:
 
The farthest I've flown is Seattle to New York, so anything more than 6 hours is completely new to me. Maybe I'm over-worrying about how much jet lag I'll have after landing, but I am a little concerned about hopping off the plane and immediately renting a car and having to deal with learning how to do it without some rest first. Especially since I have such trouble sleeping on a plane. (Maybe with an 18 hour flight, it won't be a problem!)

I'll look at my options.
 
corianderstem said:
The farthest I've flown is Seattle to New York, so anything more than 6 hours is completely new to me. Maybe I'm over-worrying about how much jet lag I'll have after landing, but I am a little concerned about hopping off the plane and immediately renting a car and having to deal with learning how to do it without some rest first. Especially since I have such trouble sleeping on a plane. (Maybe with an 18 hour flight, it won't be a problem!)

I'll look at my options.
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I only got 2 hours on the plane when I went over. :crack: From doing GA 2 shows in a row and that, I had 14 hours of sleep in 3 days.
 
corianderstem said:
Yeah, what's the name of the B&B? I'll add it to my list for looking into. :)
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Noel and Ann Donnellan
Fairhill House B&B
Contact: +353 91 841218

Ann gave me my first glass of whiskey. I know you'd tolerate it better than I do.:sexywink:

I wouldn't worry about jetlag. Stay active, you can sleep in Seattle.
 
No room. I'll bring waterproof hiking shoes. ;)

If I can survive Seattle in the spring without galoshes, I'll be fine in Ireland without them!
 
And get a sheleighly at the airport to keep those Irish boys from getting too close... :sexywink:



Actually, I just like typing words like shawl, galoshes & sheleighly :)

I don't even know what a sheleighly is

Have a great time!
 
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