Do you holiday in Ireland?

Robert_Beach

Do you holiday in Ireland? If not, why not? I mean the benefits are many: environmentally, you get to explore and know your own country, boost the local economy and keep cash here.

gifted

Dingle hotel...this Friday and Saturday night...2 adults and 2 kids... €416 for b & b.....that's for November... thats not including lunch or dinner
Or snacks, also can't guarantee good weather at any time if the year.... can you imagine the price in the summer time?? ....so No.

I'm not going there...that was just a quick search on the hotel website.

nkl12xtw5goz70

The unpredictable weather and rip-off prices are a deterrent for many.

Deebles McBeebles

I summer in the Hamptons and winter in the Swiss Alps, dawwwling. Ireland isn't up to my standards.

Infernal Racket

Not a chance. If I'm gonna spend ridiculous money in a holiday then I'd rather have sunshine. Ireland is much too expensive and we are being ripped off at every given opportunity. Irish tourism can suck my balls

castletownman

I don't know if the rip-off culture is as bad as its made out. One thing I have noticed about Ireland, is that we far excel the UK in particular when it comes to affordable restaurants that you don't need to pre-book. I mean I was in Manchester only last week, and genuinely found the food options were better in Wexford town or Killarney.

Okay, the hotels can be a bit expensive, but in general for a nice break away, Ireland has a wealth of good options. Under-rated if you ask me.

Quite often during the summer months. The Med can keep their heat, hiking in Connemara does it for me. Waterproofs and all. So much natural beauty on our doorstep.

theteal

I have done exclusively for the last 3 years. Not great from an environmental point of view as there's flight or ferry trip involved in getting us back over. There'll be less trips home next year as I'm definitely getting away for some sun but we will have a good break over the wesht at some stage.

Thelonious Monk

Yes but only for a night or two, on bank hol weekend me and partner went to Sligeach and did a couple of hikes and had the most beautiful weather. It can be done pretty cheaply if you stay away from fancy hotels. I don't bother planning anything in Ireland far ahead as I wouldn't bother going away if it was a washout, which is often.

Thelonious Monk

castletownman wrote: »

I mean I was in Manchester only last week, and genuinely found the food options were better in Wexford town or Killarney.

Do you not get out much, if this is a revelation?

Antares35

Wouldn't be bothered except we like to go somewhere with the dog every so often rather than farming her out to people to mind. If it wasn't for that consideration, I would never holiday here again. Everywhere is a complete rip off, weather is shíte etc.

JohnnyFlash

I do. Lovely country, great hotels, top class food, and plenty of pubs. I think this rip-off Ireland thing is exaggerated as well - Spain, France,
Portugal can be almost as expensive.

Thelonious Monk

JohnnyFlash wrote: »

I do. Lovely country, great hotels, top class food, and plenty of pubs. I think this rip-off Ireland thing is exaggerated as well - Spain, France,
Portugal can be almost as expensive.

No way, Portugal and Spain are ridiculously cheap if you stay away from tourist traps. 3 course meals of a decent standard for less than a tenner I've had in Spain, and 60c glasses of the house wine in Portugal.

I don't 'holiday' in ireland, so much as I partake in "city breaks" or "weekend breaks" in Ireland.

I live in grubby, dirty drogheda. So i enjoy wandering around leitrim and donegal and the quietness of it all. However, I consider a 'holiday' to be about a week long, and I've never done that in Ireland. Max I'd ever do is 3 days/2 nights at a time.

Ken Tucky

Camped the last 3 years in Ireland. Seen one days rain in about 24 days overall.

Got so lucky but im getting out next year. I will still do a small bit of camping but not to the level of the last 3 years. SO SO lucky and have seen some amazing places. We had a brilliant time and because you are slumming it works out very cheap.
Its not for everyone but i cant sit by a pool for a week. Id go mad.

LirW

I'd like to see more of Ireland, I'm here for a number of years now but there's still so much I haven't seen.
Realistically I don't have the time or spare cash to do it because for us visiting my family once a year (living on the canaries) has a higher priority.

I have to say though, my husband and I were spontaneously looking into going to West Cork when he was off to Cork city for work. It was impossible to find something remotely reasonable that we could justify financially.
I wouldn't mind going to the West Midlands but it's hard to himself over.

ednwireland

camped in keel achill mid june - chipper closed on a saturday night only open fridays - welcome to ireland tourism

i was in west cork a couple of years ago and a lot of the restaurants were closed mon-wed in august

Colmurph75

Nothing better than Kerry on a sunny summer day. Perfection.

Mango Joe

I really, really try and holiday abroad somewhere sunny with nice friendly people who provide services, accomodation, entertainment and food and at good to reasonable value for money prices and without constantly getting the feeling that I'm being cynically ripped off at every opportunity.

So no I never, ever holiday in Ireland unless things are going very, very badly wrong for me.

I read a really insightful post on Tripadvisor once - "Holidaying in Ireland is like standing under a cold shower ripping up €50 notes."

Cushtie

Have done so for the last 10ish years. Mobile home in West Kerry every Weekend from Easter to End September and 2 weeks during summer aswell.

Love it but getting to the point of needing some guaranteed sunshine.

(actually typing this from Perth Western Australia, first holiday abroad in 10 years)

IAMAMORON

Yes I do and do often. However not because it is a bargain or anything.

A burger and chips and a drink in a pub in Dingle 4 will set you back € 26 , that is basically € 30 if you are going to tip and/or have a coffee. That is right € 30 for a pint and a burger.

A lot of our most famous tourist attractions are overpriced rip-offs.

Sleepy

We tried it one summer and found it cost more than a week on one of the French campsites or a holiday resort in Spain. Haven't bothered to do it again since tbh.

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

We alternate between going abroad and holidaying in Ireland. Ireland has some fine hotels and fantastic scenery but the weather is the problem. Irish breaks are usually at short notice, so we can take advantage of decent weather.

tastyt

Nope, another vote for it being an absolute rip off.

Holiday in Portugal last yr. 2 euro for a lovely coffee and pastry every morning sitting in the sun. Reckon your paying 7/8 here.

Evening meal about 15euro a head, and sipping pints at the beach bar for 1.50.

Its a no brainer really

Berserker

Far too expensive. Tried a weekend in Mayo a few years ago and the prices were an absolute joke. €7 for a cheese sandwich. Rooms were far more expensive than most of the European cities we'd visited around them. Have some time off in early December and we are looking at trips. Can fly to Milan, Venice or Bologna for €27 return with Ryanair. Must be a dozen other destinations which will cost us less than €50. Hotels, food and weather will be far more favourable than Ireland also.

namloc1980

Too expensive. And the landscape, which can be beautiful, is blighted by one off houses. There are far more beautiful places. Went to Scotland some years back and drove through the Highlands. The raw beauty and compete lack of bungalows was striking compared to Ireland.

Invisibleman

Robert_Beach wrote: »

Do you holiday in Ireland? If not, why not? I mean the benefits are many: environmentally, you get to explore and know your own country, boost the local economy and keep cash here.

I do, i go to Kilkee in County Clare every year,
absolutely love the place, and the west in general.
Apart from the obvious, scenery and lots of different swimming spots and golf courses, the people are just so much nicer than here in Dublin.
Also, most are irish.

Jonybgud

Du u no d way?

Snow Garden

Yes indeed. I holiday on the west coastal counties mainly (Cork, Kerry, Clare, Galway, Mayo, Sligo and Donegal).
There is no such thing as bad weather, just soft people. Swimming on a magical beach in the rain is heavenly.

BPKS

namloc1980 wrote: »

Too expensive. And the landscape, which can be beautiful, is blighted by one off houses. There are far more beautiful places. Went to Scotland some years back and drove through the Highlands. The raw beauty and compete lack of bungalows was striking compared to Ireland.

Good point.

What we need along the Atlantic coast is 20 storey apartment blocks every 5 miles or so in order to improve population density.

Always. Since I got over the idea people push that you have to go foreign, I never travel outside Ireland any more for a holiday. I love the south west more than anywhere.

There's absolutely nothing I want to see in a European city anyway and the sun ones are just pure tack. Road trip and no airports is also bliss.


.

JohnCleary

6 weeks in SE Asia every year.

Few cheap European breaks.

1 Irish weekend away.

cashback

castletownman wrote: »

I mean I was in Manchester only last week, and genuinely found the food options were better in Wexford town or Killarney.

I find this hard to believe, living in Manchester, having been to Wexford and Killarney plenty of times. Where were you looking?

Food is definitely improving in Ireland, that's not in doubt.

namloc1980

BPKS wrote: »

Good point.

What we need along the Atlantic coast is 20 storey apartment blocks every 5 miles or so in order to improve population density.

Spot on

jimgoose

No, aside from a few weekends away during the year, because you wouldn't get a piss-wet weekend in Leap for the price of a week in Lanzarote in the off-season.

MrAbyss

Yes, but not Galway city. No sane Irish person would go there.

jimgoose

MrAbyss wrote: »

Yes, but not Galway city. No sane Irish person would go there.

Spent a great weekend in Salthill during the races this year.

Graces7

Sad re costs. I have friends in the US who come over to Ireland every two years. They tour; get B and B, and we spend a couple or three days together. We eat out at pubs and never the kind of prices for accommodation or food that some quote here.

As I have moved a lot, we have spent time together in Donegal, West Cork, Kerry and Mayo and always reasonable prices for good food and accommodation. And abundant attractions and scenery.

Also I always know the area I live in very well so am a great tour guide. finding places few know.

B and B here in Ireland is good.

MrAbyss

Ireland is just too expensive. I just had a lovely five days in Malta for less than a weekend in West Cork would cost me.

DaveyDave

I've gone to a few places in Ireland but not anymore, too expensive, ****e weather, mediocre tourist attractions etc.

Anytime myself and the GF price a hotel around Ireland it ends to being very expensive for a decent looking one, add in the cost of a tank of petrol and it's the same price as a city break.

Going to Berlin in 2 weeks for 4 nights, flights with Aer Lingus, accommodation in the city center and airport parking is €380 for the both of us.

I'm not a fan of small towns, I've been to the likes of Dingle before, I'd rather go to a European city, so much to see. Food is much cheaper too, even Paris is cheaper to eat out than Dublin.

patmahe

I just booked a 3 night stay in Nice in January including flights and good hotel for €260 for two people.

I love Ireland and do regularly go away for weekends and nights here and there but its hard to ignore value like the above, try getting 3 nights in a decent hotel in Ireland for the same money.

Plumbthedepths

Priced a 5 night break away in Ireland for my wife and I as part of our anniversary, going to Prague for the same period of time and considerably less. Just in time for the Christmas market win win.

Apiarist

Robert_Beach wrote: »

Do you holiday in Ireland?.

Yes, we (2 adults + two kids) go camping in summer, this is usually combined with visiting some new town to see the sights and have some nice food. In winter, we usually go for a day, for example, we went to Belfast to visit the Titanic museum -- started before lunch, had food there, visited the museum, walked around and drove back. We tend to avoid to stay in hotels.

Zaph

We'll go away for the odd weekend in Ireland, but there's no way I'd want to take my main holiday here. I've done so in the past and I don't feel like I've had a proper holiday unless it starts with a trip to the airport.

blueshade

There are many beautiful areas of Ireland to holiday in but you'll be absolutely gouged holidaying here, so no, we go abroad now. Insanely expensive hotels, overpriced alcohol and ridiculously expensive food why would you spend 7 euro on a glass of wine when you can have a carafe for less than that? There's a lot of blame being placed on Brexit for a drop in tourism, the reality is people are more well travelled, they look at the price of a holiday in various European countries and decide against Ireland because it just can't compete pricewise with other countries.

Mango Joe

I think abroad the emphasis is on providing good food, accommodation and services etc for a fair price with a bit of value while hoping people will come back for repeat business.

In Ireland its all about laying on the poor to mediocre offerings, tapping someone for the absolute most amount of money possible that one time and then simply not giving 2 fu(ks if they leave pissed off because the next busloads of fools is only around the corner courtesy of Failte Ireland,

I says

Yes, done sun holidays(I burn don’t tan)and city breaks, loved Berlin but Vienna wins hands down. Flying is my problem I detest it more the older I get. I normally head to Kerry or Wexford for holidays always go self catering that is usually part of a hotel complex best of both worlds. Pool for the kids, the boss can shop and relax and I can stroll for a pint. I love walking into a pub I’ve never been and sampling the stout.
Off to Sligo the end of the month. Yeah the weather can be **** but who cares. I live in the sticks so walking to shops and pubs is great for the week I’m on hols.

I would have a different view, often holiday in Ireland, a good 4-star hotel or a luxery hotels are very good value here more so on a BnB rate.

Irish Stones

I have been going to Ireland on holiday for the past 25 years, and I hope to be able to continue for many years more.

On my side, I do not holiday in Italy, where I live and was born, apart from a couple of days trips. My holidays are abroad, mainly Ireland.
I think people tend to holiday away from home, and this can understandable, because we would like to spend our best time of the year in places that are totally different than our own one. We can get bored of our place for the rest of the year.

tastyt

And now the big question, why is it so expensive??

I mean hotels pay their staff terribly, a lot are family owned so won't have rental rates. We have tonnes of fresh food produced locally .

Is it something I'm missing or is it plain old greed for higher profit margins?

blueshade

Irish Stones wrote: »

I have been going to Ireland on holiday for the past 25 years, and I hope to be able to continue for many years more.

On my side, I do not holiday in Italy, where I live and was born, apart from a couple of days trips. My holidays are abroad, mainly Ireland.
I think people tend to holiday away from home, and this can understandable, because we would like to spend our best time of the year in places that are totally different than our own one. We can get bored of our place for the rest of the year.

I'll happily switch your home in Italy with my home in Ireland. I absolutely love Italy, well the parts I've seen.