Ireland in May

[annkatmcc]

My mom and I are heading over to Ireland on May 8 till the 18...Here is our beginning itinerary......

May 9-Dublin
May 10- Drive to Wicklow mtns, Rock of Cashel. Stay the night in either Kilkenny/Wexford
May 11-Drive to Cork and see Balarney stone and stay somewhere in Co Cork
May 12- Ring of Kerry of Dingle Peninsula, stay the night, unsure of where?
May 13-Cliffs of Moher, Galway. Stay in Galway
May 14- Aran Island, stay the night
May 15- Aran Island, back to Galway
May 16- open day in case we need to stay somewhere an extra night
May 17- Drive to Shannon
May 18- Fly back to Chicago.

We are pretty open on our itinerary. Are we trying to do to much in such a short period of time. We are going to be staying at hostels, maybe a few B&B's. Should we be booking our stays prior to leaving or is it easy to stop in a town and find a place to stay. I have our stays booked for Dublin and Shannon. Any advice is appreciated. Thanks.

[Eagle]

annkatmcc, my first impression of your "beginning itinerary" is that it's fairly ambitous and "busy" for such a short visit. Some points you may want to consider while planning your trip.....

First, I think you'll probably find that you aren't able to achieve the same driving times or speeds that you do at home. I've found that driving in that part of the world always takes far longer than expected. The roads are narrow and especially in some of the rural areas they're not well marked. Using a GPS unit as well as a good Map would be strongly advised! Have either of you driven on the "correct side of the road" before? One other thing to keep in mind is that Ireland is one of the more dangerous places in Europe to drive.

One point that stands out is that you have quite a few "one night stops" in your Itinerary. That's a very tiring method of travel! My suggestion would be to have fewer destinations and schedule at least two night stops if possible.

On May 12th, you indicated you were unsure where to stay. I'd suggest Dingle, as it's wonderful!

I'm sure the others will have a few thoughts as well.

Cheers!