Traveling to Ireland for the first time

metaoblivia

Hello! My folks just booked 7 day, 6 night holiday in Ireland for late March 2011. Neither has ever been out of the States before, and they're really looking forward to it. They'll be flying in and out of Dublin and plan to spend a few days there, but otherwise they have a lot of freedom with their schedule.

She's in her late 50's, he's in his mid 60s and has diabetes. He almost lost his foot several times over the past few years, so while he can walk, he can't do it for very long. They told me that their main objectives are learning about the history of Ireland/seeing the country and doing some shopping.

Do you have any suggestions for what they should see/avoid?

moonstreet

first point is Dublin Tourism Site, tons of info http://www.visitdublin.com/

My advice would be to get a hop on hop off bus tour. My parents are of similar age, and they have enjoyed this type of sightseeing in both London and Edinburgh. These bus tours give an overview of the ity, with the chance to explore the different attractions at your own pace. You dont have to worry about finding your way from one attraction to the next as you just rejoin the tour when you are ready
http://irishcitytours.com/hop_citydublinlanguage_english.htm

Dublin itself is pretty compact, think Central Manhatten in New York, almost everything is within walking distance.

must sees are
Trinity College Library which houses the Book Of Kells
http://www.bookofkells.ie/

Christ Church Cathedral and Dublina Exhibition
http://www.dublinia.ie/
http://cccdub.ie/

Dublin Castle
http://www.heritageireland.ie/en/Dublin/DublinCastle/

Shopping wise, Dublin has 2 main areas
North of the river, just off the main street (O'Connell Street) is Henry Street, a pedestrian area, with mainly mid range department stores and 2 shopping malls.

South of the river, is another pedestrian area called Grafton Street, with mainly high end department stores and 1 shopping mall.

Both these areas are within walking distance of the main street, about 15 mins apart.

The best store to find tourist gifts is a chain of stores called CARROLS, they sell everything from tshirts and hats, to jewelery, music, and everything else you could think of as an Irish souvenier. They have many little branchs dotted around the city centre and a large branch near the main bridge, O'Connell Bridge

Fratton Fred

You might want to check out how much walking is involved, but the Wild Wicklow Tour is meant to be very good.

glanman

This may be of interest if your father is 66 or over,

http://www.discoverireland.com/us/ireland-plan-your-visit/facts/golden-trekker/

I would certainly suggest getting out of Dublin for 3 or 4 of the days if possible, both Cork and Galway are very well worth a visit and have their own charms. Both are about 2 to 2.5 hours from Dublin.

Do they have the option of getting the return flight from Shannon Airport in Limerick/Clare, if so it gives them a lot of options of getting to see a lot more of the country. There are a lot of bus tours and hop on/hop off so research these to sort out the best plan for them

Squeaksoutloud

Dublin is great but with only a week in the country I would say 2-3 days there at most. Get out of the cities and see as much of the lovely countryside as you can along the west coast. Galway is my favourite city away from the capital and the Kerry, Glaway and Mayo countryside are my favourites to see. Enjoy!

BuffyBot

Some of the packages on cietours.ie might be quite suitable for your parents.

r_obric

Galway

Shellshocks

metaoblivia wrote: »

Hello! My folks just booked 7 day, 6 night holiday in Ireland for late March 2011. Neither has ever been out of the States before, and they're really looking forward to it. They'll be flying in and out of Dublin and plan to spend a few days there, but otherwise they have a lot of freedom with their schedule.

She's in her late 50's, he's in his mid 60s and has diabetes. He almost lost his foot several times over the past few years, so while he can walk, he can't do it for very long. They told me that their main objectives are learning about the history of Ireland/seeing the country and doing some shopping.

Do you have any suggestions for what they should see/avoid?

Hi metaoblivia,
The countryside is the best of Ireland and the west coast is absolutely gorgeous - a wild place apart. Dublin is nice to wander around. Take the DART train down along the coast to the charming little seaside village of Dalkey with its old towers. www.dalkeyvillage.net.

However, if they want to see lovely countryside near Dublin, then Wicklow is beautiful - a guided tour to Glendalough would be really nice. www.glendalough.ie. A really mystical monastic settlement beside lakes - go on a weekday to avoid the hordes of people.

Of the west though my faves are Donegal and West Cork. Kerry (especially the Dingle Peninsula) is also beautiful and does have a lot of ancient monuments - you will be tripping over them - in gorgeous countryside and fabulous beaches. For my money, avoid Killarney and Ring of Kerry unless it is mainly other Americans you want to meet.

For my money West Cork is the most magical and beautiful place - you feel like time has stood still and the friendliness of the people is great.
You could start with (from Discover ireland website: www.discoverireland.ie/southwest) "the picture postcard seaside town of Kinsale, just south of Cork City, with its quaint, narrow streets and more gourmet restaurants than you’ve had hot dinners. After lunch, potter along the coast past the Old Head of Kinsale, the charming coastal village of Timoleague with its ruined Franciscan Abbey and onwards to Clonakilty, which boasts some of the country’s best beaches including Inchydoney and Owenahincha.

Beyond Clonakilty, let the coast road guide you to picturesque villages and vistas that resonate with a palpable sense of history - Rosscarbery, Glandore, Skibbereen, Baltimore, Lough Hyne, Bantry and the Beara Peninsula, famed for its breathtaking walks, prehistoric sites and majestic mountainscapes and valleys. You can also take an alternative route through Dunmanway, the heart of West Cork and home to Sam Maguire)."

Above would mean driving, but you could get coach tours too.

I hope your parents have a swell time.

Scoobydoobydoo

Off the top of my head, coastal Kerry is really beautiful for scenery, and for history I'd recommend the tour at Kilmainham Gaol in Dublin. The Dublin Castle tour isn't bad either.

metaoblivia

Thank you everyone for your replies! I'll tell them about your suggestions.

They will have a car while they're in Ireland, and do want to get out into the country for a few days.

Cheers!

mackey087

2 days would probably be enough in dublin. if they have a car they should try out other places, Galway, Kerry, Cork, Wicklow all have great scenery. The sunny south east is not to bad. Famine ship in New Ross, Curracloe beach where saving private ryan was made, Vinigar Hill in Enniscorthy, 1798 rebellion.

InTheTrees

metaoblivia wrote: »

Thank you everyone for your replies! I'll tell them about your suggestions.

They will have a car while they're in Ireland, and do want to get out into the country for a few days.

Cheers!

The driving may be a challenge if its their first time out of the states. The roads are narrow, the cars are smaller (dont let them rent a big car, it'll be much hard to get around), they'll be on the "wrong" side of the road, and traffic is a lot faster and less forgiving than the US.

There's good train service, i'd recccomend train to Galway, spend the night and get a rental car for the day to drive around connemara, then train back to Dublin. Much less stress.

Just something to think about.