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| Posted: 04 May 2008 13:54 | ||
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Posts: 2 Join Date: May 2008 |
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Hello, I have found the information in this site very useful. Family vacation to Ireland May 13 through May 21. Here it what we got so far in erms of interniary.
Day 1 (05/14)- Arrive Dublin Airport 6:30 a.m. Next time we will fly into Shannon. Pick-up rental car and head up to Bru Na Boinne Vistor Centre in Newgrange. Perhaps Newgrange Open Farm if not too tired. First night stay at Trim Castle Hotel. Day 2 (05/15) - See Trim Castle First thing in the morning. Take a 3 1/2 drive to Galway visitng Clonmacnoise near Athlone. Time permitting see Connemara Marble Factory Centre, some shopping in Galway, turn in early for a good night sleep. Second night stay at Quality Hotel and Lesiure in Galway. Day 3 (05/16) - Cliffs of Mohor with Boat ride, The Burren, and perhaps the Aillwee Cave. Do you think we can fit all 3 in one day. I also was thinking of lining up a tour of the Burren via www.burren-tours.com. Distination of hotel room uncertain. Do you have any sugesstion. Day 4/5. (05/17 through 05/1  Stay with a friend trying to fit in the Lakes of Killarney, Ross Castle, Killarney National Park, Muckross House, and Carrigafoyle Castle in 2 days. Try to line up a guided tour for Killarney National Park, Muckross House, and Ross Castle due to sriving concerns.
Day 6 (05/19) Take off towards Dublin stopping half way trying to decide 2 sites among Fota Widlife Park, Irish Natural Stud and Gardens, Kilkenny Castle and Rock of Cashel. Which sites do you suggest that we could fit in and city of destination for overnight stay. Day 7 (05/20) Stay at Cashir Castle in Dublin trying to take in as many sights as Dublin as we can before departing 6:00 am in the morning for the aiport for 9:00 am flight home. Hopefully you get this in time for your feedback. Your knowledge in this matter would be greatly appreciated. |
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| Posted: 04 May 2008 18:27 Last Edited By: IrishFlair | ||
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Registered User Currently Offline |
Posts: 287 Join Date: Dec 2005 |
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Terry,
Overall your itinerary looks great. I would make a few small changes but that would be it. Hope this helps with your trip! Day 1 (05/14)- Brú na Bóinne opens at 9:30 in the morning so you guys will probably be the first ones there. It's an hour long drive from the airport to Newgrange and 2 hours is plenty to get you off the plane, through Customs, collect your luggage and get your rental car. Just double check that the rental car office will be open nice and early the day you arrive so that you don't have to wait around until 8am or something before you can pick up your car. Seeing both passage tombs and the visitor center at Brú na Bóinne will take 3 or 4 hours, that plus the drive to Trim will put you at your hotel about 3pm so you will still have time to walk over to the castle and see it on this day. IMO it's important to stay as busy as you can as long as you can that first day because once you sit down you will get very tired very quickly. So keep moving! Last admission to the castle is 5pm and it's open until 6 with dinner after and perhaps a walk around town you can stay up to at least 9 or 10 that night. With a full night's sleep you should be able to get a good head start on beating jetlag. http://www.heritageireland.ie/en/MidlandsEastCoast/BrunaBoinneVis ... http://www.heritageireland.ie/en/MidlandsEastCoast/TrimCastle/ Day 2 (05/15) - If you didn't get to Trim Castle on Day 1 then you certainly can on this morning. Clonmacnoise is a great place to stop, too, making an excellent place for lunch if you are in Athlone at about that time. You will want to check into your hotel then head around Galway to Moycullen and the Connemara Marble Visitor Centre. There are many things to see in the Connemara area which is one reason why I suggest seeing Trim the first day and then heading out first thing on your second day. Thursday is late night shopping in Galway so you can get to the city a bit later (say 3 or 4pm) and still be able to do some shopping, grab dinner, etc before heading back out to your hotel in Oranmore. http://www.qualitygalwayhotel.com/index.html http://www.galway.net/galwayguide/visit/connemara/todo/ Day 3 (05/16) - If you got a good early start to the day (you are on the road by 9am) then you may be able to fit in all three items you have listed on your itinerary. From Oranmare head south on N67 past Ballyvaughan and follow the signs to Aillwee Cave, a 40 minutes drive. Aillwee opens at 10 so be there first in the door and get in your tour. I see they have added a Bird of Prey Center though I've yet to experience it myself. I wouldn't linger too long however at Ailwee. In fact, if you have to give up one sight then this would be the one to chose. Continue on R480 to R476 and Kilfenora to do your Burren walking tour. Another item on my own To Do list so I hope you have a great time at it and please let us know how you like it. Don't take one of Stephen's All Day Tours. You want to be at Doolin before 4pm to get in that boat tour of the Cliffs of Moher. The last boat leaves at 4pm - just make sure you have called them earlier in the day (or even the day before) to make sure they are still going out. Rough seas or low tide can mean a cancelled boat trip. If you are not able to the do the boat cruise you can still visit the Cliffs of Moher (south of Doolin) and a place you should stop, IMO, anyway. Either on this day or the next. My advice is to stay overnight in/near Doolin since you will be here anyway. By getting into town before the boat tour you can find your B&B, drop off your luggage and prep yourselves for the boat ride beforehand. Lots of places to stay in and near Doolin. Katherine recommends Ballinalacken Castle which is close but not in Doolin village. If not here then look to a closer B&B in Doolin so that walking to the local pubs is not a big deal for the whole family. http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotels-g214506-c2-Doolin_County_Clare- ... B&Bs are a better value than hotels in Ireland and you get a much more personalized stay. Family rooms or double rooms with two twin beds is quite common, you just need to let the hosts know exactly the number of rooms and the kinds of beds in each you need. http://www.aillweecave.ie/index.htm http://www.burren-tours.com/index.html http://www.cliffs-of-moher-cruises.com/schedule.html Days 4 & 5. If you did not see the Cliffs from above the day before stopping here first thing in the AM is a Must. Another stop the family may enjoy is Bunratty Castle just north of Limerick. There's shopping, the castle and an entire Folk Park to explore. But don't linger too long! Killarney has many things to see and do, too. Having friends in the area will be a huge boon for you. Enjoy your couple of days in Killarney! Day 6 (05/19) If this were my trip, of the places you listed I would head first to the Cahir Castle, go on to the Rock of Cashel then Kilkenny town. If you have a free night then stay in Kilkenny or a small town outside of Kilkenny, like Inistioge, Thomastown, Mt Juliet or Graiguenamanagh. Katherine has many places listed in Co. Kilkenny and because she is a local in this area her knowledge cannot be beat. Day 7 (05/20) I'm not familar with Cashir Castle in Dublin, can you provide more info about it? Also, if I'm reading your post correctly it looks like you are trying to fit in sight seeing on the day you depart? If so then I will tell you here and now that that won't be possible. If you have a 9am departure at Dublin Airport on this day then you will need to be AT the airport by 6am, 6:30 at the latest, and no sight seeing will happen on this day. If you do indeed have a 9am flight then your last night in Ireland needs to be much closer to the airport. Kilkenny is a fine place for a last night but it's a good 2 hour drive from the airport so you would really need to be up before the crack of dawn to make it on time to Dublin airport. I would not suggest staying at the airport itself but nearby Malahide is a mere 10 minute drive away but is a nice town to stay in. I think you maybe have an extra day not listed on your itinerary (ie. you depart Ireland on Day 8?) so will wait until I hear back before recommending an alternate place to stay. My husband and I will actually be in Ireland at the same time you, perhaps we'll bump into each other? 
Safe travels, Wendy |
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| Posted: 04 May 2008 20:35 | ||
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Registered User |
Posts: 2 Join Date: May 2008 |
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Thank you Wendy, your advice and opinion on our internary is very much appreciated. My wife is nervous about our first trip abroad with 3 children, but I guess it is challenging trying to plan a drive vacation, planning sites to visit plus places to stay. Hopefully she will be a little more relieved with your expert advice.
Day 8 is when we depart from Ireland to get back home with a 9:00 a.m. plane departure. The Castle Hotel in question on Day 7 is the Clontarf Castle Hostel claiming to be 10 minutes from Dublin Centre and 5 minutes from the Airport. The rate is $400 for a family of 5 not bad for a Castle Hotel in Ireland. I thought we could grab one of those Dublin buses to see a few select sights. Another option on Day 7 could be seeing other select sites south of Dublin. The Fota Wildlife Park and Irish National Stud and Gardens was of some interest but we cannot do everything in one week. Again your feedback would be great! Your quick response was amazing. It would be great if we bumped into each other in Ireland. Thank you again. Terry
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| Posted: 06 May 2008 04:28 | ||
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Registered User Currently Offline |
Posts: 287 Join Date: Dec 2005 |
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OK, I see now. That makes a lot more sense; so glad you aren't trying to fit in sightseeing before you leave!
So Day 7 you wil head into Dublin and do some sight seeing. I suggest dropping off your rental car since driving in Dublin is tricky at best and down right unnerving at worst. No need for a car being so close to downtown. You can easily take a cab to/from the airport from downtown Dublin or even the Airlink bus. The Hop On, Hop Off bus is a great way to get around Dublin and see a good many sights. So many places including Dublin Zoo and Phoenix Park which are a bit outside the main area of Dublin but still a great place to visit if you get the weather for it. Not sure of the ages of your kids but Dublinia is a fun experience for the younger ones. It is diffficult to fit in everything you want to do into such a short trip; in fact, I always advise people to take a minimum of two weeks to visit Ireland just because there's so much stuff! But you do what you can and try not to overplan because there is always something "extra" that will pop up now and again. It's nice to take some free time and enjoy it when it does. Safe travels, Wendy |
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