At what age did you first go abroad?

galway_lad

I saw this alluded to elsewhere and am wondering at what age did you first leave Ireland? I think there might be a significant generational divide on the matter!

I'm an 80s kid and I was 19 (Spain). Obviously paid for it myself, I remember being worried about what to do in the airport in the lead-up to it. You wouldn't even dream of going abroad as a kid. None of my friend's did. I remember there being a lot of excitement when a friend of mine's family went away when we were about 13? They were excited for the whispered potential of seeing a nude beach.

biko

Holidays abroad with parents at 4/5 (mainly camping) but left to travel with friends first time at 17.
Trains around Europe, awesome!

The Mighty Quinn

Went to Lourdes when 17 in 2003. About 50 of us from 25 secondary schools in Wexford.

Introduced me to lots of unholy things.

Thelonious Monk

3 years old, 1984, Le France

Dial Hard

1987, I was 5, we went to Portugal for two weeks.

jam_mac_jam

4 or 5 I think. In the eighties. France.

On my own 14 or 15 to London. Then Paris at about 19 or 20.

Witchie

I was 10 months old when we emigrated to Canada in the mid 70's. We came to Ireland on holidays when I was 2 so that's probably the first holiday abroad. Moved back to Ireland in 1978 and went to America on holidays in 1980.

I blame my parents for my wanderlust and life in recent years as a digital nomad.

Badly Drunk Boy

1984, when I was 11, went on a day trip on the ferry to Holyhead. Due to problems disembarking, we only spent less than an hour on foreign soil.

The first time proper was in 1995 when I was 22. I flew from Dublin to Frankfurt to Amsterdam to Munich and then back to Dublin. Not a day trip.

Thelonious Monk

Thelonious Monk wrote: »

3 years old, 1984, Le France

I just remembered that they took photos of my family and I and used them in the holiday brochure the next year. I knew I should have been a model.

Tzardine

First trip was to Bultins Wales when I was about 10. The first "proper" trip was to Spain when I was about 13.

First trip without the parents I was 16 (had finished leaving cert) and went to Santa Ponsa with friends. Alcohol poisoning ensued.

ThewhiteJesus

i was 20 (long time ago) and it was my first time on a plane aswell, i went to australia for a year with my mates !

Wibbs

8 to Spain and France, back in the 70's.

AMKC

I was 12 it was the early 90s and we went by ferry to The Isle of Mam. It was a lovely little Island and I remember enjoying it there. It's very hilly do my older sister was working at a hotel there at that time. Then in 96 first time on a jet with younger sister and the parent we went to the Canaries. It was lovely and so warm like a whole other world.

w/s/p/c/

Went to Butlins Pwllheli in Wales with the family and cousins in 1988 aged 6. Other than that the school tour to Paris in 99 aged 17 (first proper time on a plane, other than a trip to Shannon from Dublin with the Scouts, we went down on the plane, back on a bus!).

First proper holiday away with the mates etc was Tenerife in 2001 was 20.

Zaph

Had my second birthday while the folks were visiting family in England. Don't remember any of it though, I presume I blacked out from all the booze at the birthday celebrations. First time without the parents was a school trip to Paris when I was 15. Due to what went on on that trip and the school trip to Germany the following year, if I had kids there's no way I'd ever allow them go on a foreign school trip.

Gregor Samsa

Went on the ferry to Liverpool when I was about 7 (1980 or 81) with my family as my Dad was doing an exam over there.

Next time, and first time ever on a plane, was when I was in second year in college (age 20), where I went to Barcelona in 1993 on a college trip. I think I've been abroad at least once a year since then until this year. All three of my children were abroad before they were one.

HorseSea

4 weeks! Flew to London.

My mother asked the doctor "Would it be ok for the baby to fly", he replied it would be very unusual, they don't have wings!" Then said yes there should be no problem. We flew back 6 weeks later.

Strumms

The Isle of Man when I was 1 and a half.

I’ve no recollection of the trip obviously but I was shown the photo recently, I put a couple up on Facebook ... my older cousin commented... “ Jesus, you were so damn cute, what happened ?” .... Much appreciated that was !

Mad_maxx

galway_lad wrote: »

I saw this alluded to elsewhere and am wondering at what age did you first leave Ireland? I think there might be a significant generational divide on the matter!

I'm an 80s kid and I was 19 (Spain). Obviously paid for it myself, I remember being worried about what to do in the airport in the lead-up to it. You wouldn't even dream of going abroad as a kid. None of my friend's did. I remember there being a lot of excitement when a friend of mine's family went away when we were about 13? They were excited for the whispered potential of seeing a nude beach.

two months shy of twenty one

Dublin to Auckland via London - Bangkok - Sydney

theteal

Florida at 15 (~1998)

My first born was 8 weeks old on her first trip.

Half-cocked

5 years old in 1974. Parents drove me to Portugal via UK, France and Spain in a VW Beetle. The carnation revolution happened while we were there.

French Toast

Germany, 5-6. Had an uncle working out there so it was a handy enough holiday for my parents at the time.

Can't wait for organising the next holiday, whenever that'll be.

L1011

9 with my parents, 15 with school and 17 on my own.

Last trip abroad was the end of October 2019 and that 14 months is longer than any gap since I was ~12.

NewbridgeIR

12 - I was in 6th class. We went on a school tour to London. Ferry from Rosslare on a Wednesday night. On the ship, we watched Liverpool beat Roma in the European Cup Final. Saw Madame Tussauds, Natural History Museum, Science Museum, HMS Belfast, Tower Of London, Buckingham Palace. Went shopping on the Saturday - Hamleys, HMV & Virgin. Had the nicest burger ever. A half-pounder that cost £1.78. I can still remember how good it tasted. Arrived back home on the Sunday morning. Reagan was in Ireland.
Three days later (6 June) I went to Irish College for the rest of the month. What a few weeks that was. Always grateful to my parents for making the sacrifices and giving me the opportunity.

smellyoldboot

Went to London to visit relatives when I was about 7. Was in England/Wales a few times then after that. First "real" holiday was to Ibiza aged 19. Got Sunstroke from drinking and falling asleep on a beach, slept on a beach as I forgot where my hotel was. Drank everything, took everything. It was deadly.

Sarn

Went to Malta when 2 or 3 back in the late 70s.

Mad_maxx

theteal wrote: »

Florida at 15 (~1998)

My first born was 8 weeks old on her first trip.

so you had your first born at fifteen ?

branie2

Six years old, and I went to Lourdes

McGinniesta

15.

I got a hand job too.

r93kaey5p2izun

I was 10, in the early 90s, an aunt brought me to England. She brought me to Florida when I was 13 too. My own family never went abroad ever. My father has never been abroad. Went to Switzerland on a school trip in 5th Year. After that I went to Greece after my first year in college. I have not been abroad since 2015 though. I haven't been more than 15 miles from home in 5 years. Feels like I'll never get away anywhere again.

Graces7

Sounds so odd seeing the UK being referred to as "abroad"... Isle of Man?

As for me; a camping holiday all round Europe aged 7. At that age memories tend to be ...unusual. One such is that we kids slept in sleeping bags in the car and in france it got infested by ants. So a white circle of DDT was created round the site...

Some of the other memories are best left unsaid :eek

I did write a diary at school about it all that was well received by the teachers!