erm........... i dont know

7aken

im living abroad and was asked the other day by one of my colleagues why he would go to ireland for a holiday........ the above was my answer, followed by the normal, the people, the culture, the craic. but it was a crap answer and to be honest, it was the best i could come up with! i have no idea why anyone would want to go on holiday to ireland? im not going to rant about prices etc this is a legitimate question....... i obviously loved the life i had in ireland but how would that translate for a tourist?

whats so great for a tourist to see/do in ireland?
even tourists aside, whats so great about it?

Jean05

I think the climate is one of the best things about Ireland, not to mention the clean air, the way you can drink the water from the taps, absence of mosquitos. can't really beat it.

tba

The free blackjack and hookers.

Mexicola

7aken wrote:

whats so great for a tourist to see/do in ireland?
even tourists aside, whats so great about it?

the people, the culture, the craic.

Thats all I can think of too. I think Ireland is a great with the exception of one place - Dublin. Simply put, its a kip. The other cities seem to have a bit more of a personal feel to them. Now wait till all the Dubs read this...

The people, although in recent years people have lost their friendliness and sense of cummunity as the big euro takes hold of their lives. Most people today dont even know their neighbours.

The culture, again being lost I think as a consequence of the above.

The craic. Well its good to see that alcohol consumption is still going strong and fuelling the so called 'craic'.

Dragan

It depends on what you looking for....we live in a beautiful country that most people just don't appreciate to be honest.

I remember last year me and a load of friends just went to Achill for a week, just chilled out, wrote some songs, had some beers, some smokes and some laughs.

What more do you want?

Oral Slang

Yeah have to agree (as a Dub) that Dublins a kip..
Although, tourists seem to enjoy it. If they're coming for 2 weeks or something, they'd probably enjoy touring around & then ending up in Dublin for 2 nights or something. Tons of scenic towns around Dublin with plenty to do & see. Most tourists seem to like Dublin though due to the vast amounts of different amounts of pubs and restaurants.
Fine for 2 nights, but living here obviously Dubs have a different perspective.

L31mr0d

Yeah Ireland has a lot of stuff, its just there is always somewhere else in the world that does it better. Scenery? There are loads of places in the world that have better more awesome panoramas. Culture? most of europe has a more exciting History than being trounced by the english and scandis repeatedly. Craic? After being to Canada for 8 months I can't say i've ever met a more generally easy going, kind, giving and up for a laugh people. Ireland has lost that welcoming atmosphere in a lot of places, in dublin i constantly fear the drunken loat at the bar getting ready to smash that pint glass over someones head "dirty old town..." but you'd expect some "hi, howareyas" in the west, not so. They have been scarred so much foreigners that all you get is a scowl over the shoulder and a muttered "we donts like yo kinds around ere"

r3nu4l

It's always hard to appreciate what you grew up with. Most Dublin people have never been to the Guiness Store House and tramp across the Ha'penny bridge just going form A to B.

I interviewed a German client of mine for an article I was writing and when asked where her favourite place in the world was...her answer was the South-eastern coast of Ireland!! This lady has travelled the world and she chooses Curracloe beach (bit like Dermot from BBLB).

Also an Austrian friend of mine went on a Cycling holiday in Ireland 20years ago and when I first met him last year he couldn't stop raving on to me about the beauty of the Wicklow Mountains.

Also, lot's of people like Castles and do Tours that include Kilkenny Castle, Cahir castle and Blarney Castle.

I had never heard of Cahir Castle until I met my gf (from Cahir) and then when I told an American friend of mine I was going out with a Tipp girl her first reaction was [typical Southern USA]"Oh my God, I love Tipperary, Cahir castle is my favourite castle in the world!"[/typical Southern USA].

So I guess there is a lot we don't see because we have become immune to it. For us, Ireland is where we live and work (not me any more boo hoo) and we have become immune to it.

Dragan

L31mr0d wrote:

After being to Canada for 8 months I can't say i've ever met a more generally easy going, kind, giving and up for a laugh people.

I'm gonna back that by saying i have never met a Canadian i didn't like....however i will say the scenery is relative, as is culture and crack....Ireland can offer a very different type of beauty to people who wake up everyday and see the Pyramids, or Niagra Falls etc.

abercrombie

Mexicola wrote:

the people, the culture, the craic.

Thats all I can think of too. I think Ireland is a great with the exception of one place - Dublin. Simply put, its a kip. The other cities seem to have a bit more of a personal feel to them. Now wait till all the Dubs read this...

The people, although in recent years people have lost their friendliness and sense of cummunity as the big euro takes hold of their lives. Most people today dont even know their neighbours.

The culture, again being lost I think as a consequence of the above.

The craic. Well its good to see that alcohol consumption is still going strong and fuelling the so called 'craic'.

As a dub i agree too!!

But my favourite place in Ireland has to be Kinsale in Cork..though that may have something to do with the fact that I love sailing...! But it's such a pretty town, packed with tourists in the summer and there's so much to do. There's beautiful scenery, a great night life, loads of sports, historical sites, tours (e.g the ghost tour!!) and it's also a place to relax!

Plus my friend moved there last year so now i have an excuse to go to there whenever i want

Beruthiel

7aken wrote:

whats so great for a tourist to see/do in ireland?

For many tourists Ireland is a wild and natural place with people who will talk to you (I'm talking down the country)
I know a lot of French people who love it here. They especially love places like Connemara, Donegal, Galway. My friends have walked into pubs and straight away people have started chatting to them. This just amazes them
We don't even see stuff like this because we are so used to it.

galah

It really depends on what you are looking for in a holiday - but Ireland has wonderful scenery, old castles, historic sites, the Atlantic coast, the craic is pretty good, there are great festivals all over the country, the music (if one likes trad), culture (well, drinking culture, most of all, but culture nonetheless), friendly people (mostly)...

You would NOT want to come here for the weather unless you have masochistic tendencies; and if you expect value for money, this is also NOT the place to go (overpriced restaurants, expensive drinks, expensive hotels ans B&Bs, and the list goes on...)

But as a nature-holiday scenery sight-seeing destination: unbeatable!

Dyr

Dublin has become an expensive, unfriendly kip and it there isnt much in the way of tourist attractions now that the much vaunted atmosphere it was meant to have is long gone. Add to that the fact that yer average tourists hopes of interacting with someone who's "local" are pretty low and you might as well be in any anonymous kip of a european city

EWheelChair

I remember last year me and a load of friends just went to Achill for a week, just chilled out, wrote some songs, had some beers, some smokes and some laughs

Closer each day.. down at the bay.

7aken

tba wrote:

The free blackjack and hookers.

hmmmmm.............

what about for younger people, 15- 30. surely theres only so much scenery that can 'do it' for you. im not thinking leonardo dicaprio and his snake blood drinking escapades, but surely theres more to ireland than scenery and a 'few' friendly pubs.

galah

Jean05 wrote:

I think the climate is one of the best things about Ireland, not to mention the clean air, the way you can drink the water from the taps, absence of mosquitos. can't really beat it.

??? Please tell me this is pure sarcasm...

r3nu4l

galah wrote:

??? Please tell me this is pure sarcasm...

I doubt it, it's the very reason my gf loves Ireland as a place to live. A lot of people have a real dread of mosquitos etc. I do also know people who don't like hot sun and love rainy days and cloudy skies :eek: Seriously!

Not sure about the clean air bit? I wouldn't imagine our air is that clean, there's so many cars, vans, trucks and tractors on the road these days, never mind the regular pollution from cities and large towns .

boy_wonder

Personally i love Dublin and would rather live nowhere else. A lot of people forget how far Dublin(and Ireland) have come over the last few decades to be a huge draw for tourists and locals too. I'd rather be here today rather than Dublin(Ireland) 20 years ago!! We still have the charm, craic, people etc etc etc you only need to know where to look

galah

r3nu4l wrote:

I doubt it, it's the very reason my gf loves Ireland as a place to live. A lot of people have a real dread of mosquitos etc. I do also know people who don't like hot sun and love rainy days and cloudy skies :eek: Seriously!

Not sure about the clean air bit? I wouldn't imagine our air is that clean, there's so many cars, vans, trucks and tractors on the road these days, never mind the regular pollution from cities and large towns .

hm...I'm not sure about the tap water bit - it's filthy, and tastes of chlorine...absolutely disgusting! No mosquitoes, maybe, but midges - just as bad, and harder to spot before they bite you. Clean air - certainly not in the cities. And the weather is just depressing (but that's just me, maybe..;-))

But there are a lot of good things that do make Ireland a nice holiday location - if you're rich that is...

Endurance Man

Jean05 wrote:

I think the climate is one of the best things about Ireland, not to mention the clean air, the way you can drink the water from the taps, absence of mosquitos. can't really beat it.

Drink water from the taps? Not really!

muppetkiller

I think the people who complain about the prices and general lack of things to do in Ireland are just lazy and boring. I mean they're the same people who go out and spend 100-200 on booze over the weekend and think nothing of it.

Last weekend I went to Sligo Sea Fishing and then horse riding for a total of 80 euro. Fishing lasted 6 hours on a boat with stunning scenery and caught some nice fish too which we later had on the BBQ
Horse riding along the beach with the waves crashing beside you for a hour and a half for 20 yoyos !!! Simply brilliant. walked along the coast too and it's simply beautiful up there.

I'm from Galway and if I'm not Kayaking/ sailing / swimming hill walking etc..then I go boozing or a combination of both.

there's so much to do here...and Ireland is one of the most beautiful countries in the world. Maybe because I left it for a number of years and came back I appreciate more. but anyone who doubts me should watch the fog come in over the lake covering Ashford Castle ...breathtaking...
Lahinch surfing followed by a big warm bowl of soup in Looneys pub
Life is great ....and on another point work sucks lol

thelordofcheese

Endurance Man wrote:

Drink water from the taps? Not really!

Maybe not in dublin, but back home [sligo] the water is just fine from the taps.
And i was in dundee for the last few days, if people want to whine about the water from the taps, they should drink what passes for water over there.

tba

Ah sure... its better than Iraq

AnitaMcCluskey

I got so tired of Ireland that all I did was bitch about it. Then I moved..........

Don't get me wrong, France is beautiful, charming and sophticated but it really doesn't compare to Ireland in anyway. The scenery, the people, the sense of humour. When my boyfriend speaks of Ireland to his french friends and to see such awe in there faces as he describes driving through the burren, drinking pints in a pub with total strangers or how we can have food delivered to your door (he's from a very small village in the south of france) well, I've never been prouder to be Irish. "Nobody is perfect but being Irish is as close as you'll ever get" and when I go home, I get to enjoy simple pleasures that only Ireland can offer such as Tayto or King and Batch bread with a cup of tea that me da made.

And the water from the tap might be crap but at least it's free, over here I have to pay to have crap water from the tap whether I drink it or not. In Ireland I don't have to pay money every year, just to be a homeowner which is doubled if I have anything that resembles a garden. The price of alcohol is the same here but salaries are almost half of what you get in Ireland. Sure the summers aren't as hot but the winters aren't as cold. And when we do get a nice day, we appreciate it and truly enjoy a walk along the beach, even if it does have more litter than the city dump!

7aken

it would appear then, that about 8 out of ten posts here would be in the same boat as me, not having a clue whats so good about ireland. its easy to say things like the craic etc, but its not easy to explain it to someone who might be thinking of visiting. i love ireland, i love the life i have there and i will return to it somewhere down the line but is it a bad thing that i cant think of anything great about the place? if you were to stand back from your life and look at where you live, would you honestly be able to say more bad things about it than good?