|
|
Post by annkatmcc on Mar 22, 2009 14:42:36 GMT -5
Plan is to go to.....
Ireland for 12-14 days
Brussels/Brugge 3 days
Amsterdam 2-3 days
UK 10 days, flying out of London.
Does this sound like a good itinerary? Going to be staying in hostels. Have about $3000 for the trip. Any help is appreciated. Cheers.
|
|
|
|
Post by Eagle on Mar 22, 2009 16:14:47 GMT -5
annkatmcc, welcome to GFE! I'll start the discussion with a few comments and questions. To begin with, your proposed Itinerary sounds reasonable, however I've got some questions regarding the budget amount of $3000 that you mentioned. It would help to know where you're from and what currency you're working with? Also, does this amount include your air fare and other transportation? You'll also need to consider both Euro and Pounds currency exchange charges. It would also help to have a bit of further information about your plans for Ireland and the U.K., as you'll need to allow transportation costs between locations. I'm assuming you're planning to use open-jaw flights (inbound to Ireland, outbound from the London?). Your best bet for transport from Ireland to Brussels is budget airlines. From Amsterdam to London you could use either budget airline or rail / EuroStar. You might want to have a look at www.hostelworld.com or www.yha.org.uk/ to get some idea on budget amounts (including currency exchange) for the places you'll be visiting. Good luck with your planning!
|
|
|
|
Post by annkatmcc on Mar 22, 2009 16:18:52 GMT -5
Thanks for the reply. The $3000 is in US dollars.
Plan on traveling to all parts of Ireland. UK not sure about, any suggestions would help.
Thanks.
|
|
|
|
Post by Libby on Mar 22, 2009 16:21:58 GMT -5
Annkatmcc: Who's dollars? US? Canadian? Australian?
|
|
|
|
Post by herrbert on Mar 24, 2009 14:25:05 GMT -5
Well it would really depends on what your plans are in Eire and the UK.
I think that three days for Brugge (with a daytrip to Brussels) and another three for A'dam are OK. But it is hard to say something about the rest.
If you want to see most of Ireland. I could imagine something like this:
Dublin (most likely place to start, as I presume your flight will take you there)
Belfast (I think Eagle can advise you best here, but I think an overnight stay is better, than a daytrip.)
return to Dublin, and head for Cork - Killarney - Dingle - Limerick.
From Shannon Airport, you can fly to Charleroi (with Ryanair), which is not that far from Brussels. (If you leave out Belfast at the beginning, you could make the circle complete, and fly Belfast - Amsterdam (Aer Lingus), and take the Eurostar from Brussels to London.)
For the UK (excl. Northern Ireland), there are a couple of options. like I said, you could go Brussels to London, by Eurostar, but as you need to end in London, it would mean you are backtracking at the end of the trip. I would opt for a flight to Scotland, from Amsterdam, and to see something of Scotland. To really see a lot of it you need to take your time, and choose some good sights. (I would always go for Edinburgh and Glasgow, Lake Lomond (which is not that far from the cities.), and when you want to take the time also Fort William and the Ben Nevis region, and ... the beautiful Isle of Skye. Take your hiking boots, and go for some serious hiking here. But you need about a week to do this. (I would switch the days for Ireland and the UK, to about 8-9 for Ireland, and the rest for Scotland/England, but that's obviously a personal choice.)
After Scotland, you could make you way down to the south. (Lake district - Liverpool - London (maybe via Bath) have at least 4 days in London, before flying home.
is the 3000 USD, with or without the flight from/to the US?
|
|
|
|
Post by crystal on Mar 26, 2009 17:19:51 GMT -5
Hi
What are some of your interests? Culture, nightlife, sightseeing, outdoorsy stuff. That might help people make suggestions for places to visit.
If you decide to follow Herberts advice and fly into Scotland then head South ( which make sence to me unless you what to stay close to London) I would add York into the mix. A beautiful small city with bags of history and a really impressive minster. You might also think about stopping off in Oxford.
If you want to fly back into London think about heading west. You could cover places like Bath, Avesbury, Stonehenge also Devon and Cornwall has nice landscapes and beaches (if the weather is right).
If you like outdoor activities Wales is nice and easy to get to from London.
The UK is not huge so travel time between places can be quite short if you plan your journey correctly. With the amount of time you have it would be possible to visit a few different places. I would also keep Herbert's advise in mind about your time in Ireland versus your time in the UK but again that is a personal choice and there may be specific things you want to do in Ireland.
happy planning
|
|
|
|
Post by annkatmcc on Mar 26, 2009 21:47:10 GMT -5
So I think that I have decided to stick with Ireland, 12 days and then over to the UK and Scotland. I am a real outdoorsy person and love to hike so that is in my plans.
Just wondering if I fly out of Belfast over to Scotland, which would be the best location to start and then down to London.
How does this sound? Any advice is appreciated. Thanks.
|
|
|
|
Post by annkatmcc on Mar 26, 2009 21:49:41 GMT -5
Does anyone have any advice on bus travel throughout Ireland??
|
|
|
|
Post by herrbert on Mar 27, 2009 9:31:14 GMT -5
So I think that I have decided to stick with Ireland, 12 days and then over to the UK and Scotland. I am a real outdoorsy person and love to hike so that is in my plans. Just wondering if I fly out of Belfast over to Scotland, which would be the best location to start and then down to London. How does this sound? Any advice is appreciated. Thanks. To get to Scotland from Belfast by plane can be done by flying to either Edinburgh or Glasgow. Ryanair has flights from Belfast-City airport to Glasgow (Prestwick). Other options are Easyjet (from Belfast Int. to Glasgow Int.), FlyBe (Belfast City to Glasgow Int.) You can however also take the boat between Belfast and Stanraer, or Larne to Cairnryan. |
|
|
|
Post by crystal on Mar 27, 2009 10:28:01 GMT -5
I wouldn't fly into Prestwick it is closer to Ayr than Glasgow so you would have an added expense of getting into Glasgow although I think there is a regular bus service. It would depend what time in the day or night you arrived.
I think for outdoorsy stuff you can't go wrong with herbert's earlier advice to visit Loch Lomond and the Ben Nevis area. They have relativly easy access from Glasgow. Edinburgh is one of my favorite cities with loads to do.
You could then travel down into England and visit the Lake District or the Yorkshire dales.
|
|
