back from ireland

We've been back from Ireland for a week now, and it's time to recap the holiday. Ireland is a very beautiful country, and we had a fantastic time exploring some parts of it. We probably should have spent more time resting in some areas, and driving less (some roads are hectic and can be tiring), but it's just so very tempting to drive to the next town and see what awaits around the next corner.

There are just too many small things we enjoyed along the way to mention them all here. But for me, the main things were the natural beauty of the country, and the old buildings, ruins, graveyards and the statues scattered around the countryside. It's strange driving down a small road and finding a huge statue in the middle of nowhere, with no description or explanation attached to it.

Ansie and I are very keen food lovers, we really enjoy interesting food, food shops and food markets. And this was one area where we were a little disappointed in Ireland. We found a few small food markets, but they had very limited variety, and the shops in the countryside (and even Dublin), didn't have much food that was interesting. We ate at a few restaurants, some were very good, some were absolutely terrible, but I guess that happens everywhere. It was however fantastic being able to find real French Brie (melt in your mouth soft) and creamy English Cheddar in almost every shop. We had a LOT of cheese!

I've drawn our route in red on a map below (click on the map to see a bigger version), and also listed all the places we stayed at (marked with blue dots). We pre-booked two nights in a hotel in Dublin for our arrival, and one night in a hotel close to the airport before our departure, just so we didn't have to worry about the first and last nights. We also pre-booked the first week in Connemara because the first weekend was a bank holiday, and we were worried that we might not find accommodation. The rest of the accommodation we found via road signs as we travelled. I think we were very lucky with accommodation, except for one establishment, every place we stayed at was perfect.



1) We spend the first week in Island Cottage, on the island of Innishnee near Roundstone. This is the perfect place to stay if you want to explore Connemara (there really is a lot to do and see in Connemara). Island Cottage is beautiful, quiet and close to all the sights. The nearest "big" town for shopping is Clifden, well worth a visit. Geraldine, the owner of Island Cottage is a big fan of South Africa, she's been here quite a few times!
2) Castle View Farmhouse just outside Doolin is the perfect place to stay for the Cliffs of Moher, and the music in Doolin. The rooms look quite new, and have nice views, and the place is very close to the village. We generally don't enjoy staying inside the villages and towns, it's more peaceful in the countryside.
3) Slea Head Farm is at the tip of the Dingle Peninsula and has the BEST view ever! The rooms and the house is a little old, but they have THE location, and there are no other B&B's close by, so this really is the best place to stay. Breakfast was great, the hosts very friendly, on hind sight we should have spent another night here!
4) Beach Cove B&B in St. Finian's Bay is at the tip of the Ring of Kerry. New rooms, lovely views, nice beach, good breakfast, very friendly hosts, faultless! Should have spent an extra night here too...
5) Gleann Fia Country House just outside Killarney is a oldish house but very neat and organised. They have a huge property with a river running through it and beautiful garden. It's very relaxing here and the hosts are super friendly. We spent a long time chatting about Ireland and South Africa in the afternoon, and got plenty useful information about the area. It's also very close to Killarney and all the beautiful forests, we should have spent an extra day here too, just to get into the forests again!
6) So this is the only establishment I'm not going to mention because it's just not worth it. In fact, I think it's almost not worth exploring this area because it is so similar to the other parts of Ireland, and there is very little to see around here. I would skip this and go straight to Cork or Waterford from Killarney.
7) Blenheim House near Waterford is such a unique place to stay. It is a beautifull old Georgian house (built in 1763!) and it's just amazing inside. The rooms are huge, the gardens are stunning (they have deer on the front lawn) and all the antique furniture in the house really gives it a very special feeling.
8) We spent our last few days at Riversdale House near Glendalough in the Wicklow mountains. Another perfect location, very new rooms, awesome views, right next to a river, mountain and forests, and close to all the sights. A great place to spend a few days relaxing and walking in the mountains.

And that's it. I need to mention here that we saw plenty of B&B's along the way, so if you're planning a similar trip, don't bother pre-booking accommodation or buying the B&B vouchers, you should manage fine just driving around and following the signs, except if it's peak season. We heard that peak season is mad, with hundreds of people going through the tourist areas, in other words avoid peak season...