If I recall you travel to Ireland a lot so I thought I could hit you up with a question or two...

Looks like I'll have a free day and a half in Dublin over St. Patrick's Day. One of my daughters is marching in the parade with her high school band.

I'll definately hit the Guinness tour. Any other places that you recommend that are close by? I'll have two other younger kids with me, too.

Thanks.

I've been to Dublin twice, including last summer.

The Guinness museum is out of this world. Be sure to go to the top floor (the Gravity Bar). They give you a free drink ticket but don't waste it on the lower levels! Use it at the Gravity Bar. It's about a 3/4 mile walk from the city center.

If you're into history, go to Kilmainham Gaol (pronounced kill-mane-him jail). It's the Irish equivalent of Arlington Cemetery and Lexington and Concord all wrapped into one. Very moving, and a pleasant 3/4-mile walk farther out than Guinness. We took a cab from the city center to Kimainham, then walked back to Guinness, then walked back to the city center.

There's lots of pretty churches in downtown. I actually liked the Catholic ones better than the big touristy Protestant ones that charged admission. One particular gem is Whitefriar Street Carmelite Church, where St. Valentine is buried.

St. Stephen's Green is a pretty park in downtown. My wife liked it a lot.

If you're only there for a day then you're probably limited to the city itself. But if you have a few days then I recommend taking a bus out to Powers Court (south of Dublin). No one would confuse it with Versailles, but the gardens are very pretty.

Take a walk down O'Connell street. It's just North of the River Liffey, over a bridge from the city center. Its the main drag of the city. Statues of famous Irishmen, and be sure to bring a guidebook because there's stories for every monument there. The post office was where the final Irish revolution started, and you can still see the bullet holes in the front of the building.

From what I've heard, don't go North of the Liffey at night as it gets sort of rough. During the day you're fine though.

Both times that we went, we stayed in a B&B in Dun Loaghaire (pronounced dun-leary, I got dressed down by a cabby for pronouncing it wrong). Pretty beach-side suburb, much cheaper than downtown and only a 18 minute train ride into downtown.

As far as food, Dublin is just like any other international city. I remember reading somewhere that the world has become so internationalized that New York and Shanghai are more similar than New York and Albany. Very true of Dublin as well; the food (and the people) is more similar to London or Frankfurt than to Cork or Galway. If you're really looking to meet the Irish, I'd recommend taking a trip to Galway sometime. Still, Dublin is a friendlier city than most.

(02-25-2013 10:27 AM)Captain Bearcat Wrote:  I've been to Dublin twice, including last summer.

The Guinness museum is out of this world. Be sure to go to the top floor (the Gravity Bar). They give you a free drink ticket but don't waste it on the lower levels! Use it at the Gravity Bar. It's about a 3/4 mile walk from the city center.

If you're into history, go to Kilmainham Gaol (pronounced kill-mane-him jail). It's the Irish equivalent of Arlington Cemetery and Lexington and Concord all wrapped into one. Very moving, and a pleasant 3/4-mile walk farther out than Guinness. We took a cab from the city center to Kimainham, then walked back to Guinness, then walked back to the city center.

There's lots of pretty churches in downtown. I actually liked the Catholic ones better than the big touristy Protestant ones that charged admission. One particular gem is Whitefriar Street Carmelite Church, where St. Valentine is buried.

St. Stephen's Green is a pretty park in downtown. My wife liked it a lot.

If you're only there for a day then you're probably limited to the city itself. But if you have a few days then I recommend taking a bus out to Powers Court (south of Dublin). No one would confuse it with Versailles, but the gardens are very pretty.

Take a walk down O'Connell street. It's just North of the River Liffey, over a bridge from the city center. Its the main drag of the city. Statues of famous Irishmen, and be sure to bring a guidebook because there's stories for every monument there. The post office was where the final Irish revolution started, and you can still see the bullet holes in the front of the building.

From what I've heard, don't go North of the Liffey at night as it gets sort of rough. During the day you're fine though.

Both times that we went, we stayed in a B&B in Dun Loaghaire (pronounced dun-leary, I got dressed down by a cabby for pronouncing it wrong). Pretty beach-side suburb, much cheaper than downtown and only a 18 minute train ride into downtown.

As far as food, Dublin is just like any other international city. I remember reading somewhere that the world has become so internationalized that New York and Shanghai are more similar than New York and Albany. Very true of Dublin as well; the food (and the people) is more similar to London or Frankfurt than to Cork or Galway. If you're really looking to meet the Irish, I'd recommend taking a trip to Galway sometime. Still, Dublin is a friendlier city than most.

The good Captain hit it pretty good. I am going back in August and can't wait.

I would add the following:

---Go to Killmainham Gaol. They give a good tour. Parts of the movie "Michael Collins" was filmed there. It is where all 16 of the leaders of the 1916 Easter Rising were imprisoned and shot by the Brits, plus it had many other famous Irish nationalists imprisoned there.

---Garden of Remembrance--Dedicated to the memory of all those who gave their lives in the cause of Irish Freedom. I found it very moving.

--Trinity College---It is a very nice campus. Its library is awesome. Go see the Book of Kells (8th Century) there.

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=...=1&theater

--National Museum of Ireland---It is located in the former Collins Barracks. It has some great exhibits.

---Old Jameson Distillery---Trace the history of Irish whiskey back to the 6th century and witness the craft of Jameson whiskey making.

---General Post Office ("GPO")---It is in the center of O'Connell Street. The GPO was the headquarters of the 1916 Rising. It was here that Patrick Pearse read aloud 'The Proclamation of the Irish Republic' and alongside James Connolly and some of the Irish Volunteers occupied the building for a week.

---Phoenix Park---It is one of the largest parks in Europe. It houses the Irish President and the U.S. Ambassador's residence.

--Temple Bar area---This is the cultural corner and a collection of pubs. You can't go wrong.

---Dublin Castle--Built in 1204 by king John, Dublin Castle was built as a fortress suitable for administration and the defense of Dublin. It served as the administrative nerve center for English/British administration (i.e. "occupation") of Ireland for centuries.

---St. Patrick's Cathedral--The National Church of the Church of Ireland, it was originally built as a church in 1192. It was built on the site that it was believed that St. Patrick performed his first baptism in Ireland in a well on the grounds, which is still there.

--Howth---It is a port on the north side of Dublin. Great views of the Irish Sea. It is on the opposite side of the bay from Dun Loaghaire. It is also where the Irish Volunteers smuggled in the old German rifles that were used two years later in the Easter Rising.

---Newgrange/Hill of Tara---These are out of town, located in County Meath. Newgrange is an elaborate passage tomb and ancient temple. It was a place of astrological, spiritual, religious and ceremonial importance, much as present day cathedrals are places of prestige and worship where dignitaries may be laid to rest.

Newgrange is 5,000 years old, making it older than Stonehenge and the Egyptian Pyramids.

http://www.newgrange.com/

The Hill of Tara is where the ancient High-Kings of Ireland were crowned.

http://hilloftara.org/


--Trim Castle---If you like castles, go to Trim Castle, the largest one in Ireland. It was built around 1176-1206 A.D.

http://www.discoverireland.com/us/irelan...id=FI_9807

--Wicklow Mountains--Located to the south of Dublin, it is a very beautiful area. If you go, visit Glendalough Monastic Site, founded in the 6th century by St. Kevin. Set in a glaciated valley with two lakes, it is one of the most popular and visited sites in Ireland.

http://visitwicklow.ie/


Whatever you do, try riding the Hop On, Hop Off Tour Buses in Dublin. You board them on O'Connell Street. They take you to something like 17 tourist attractions in Dublin. You can get off, see the site, and then hop on the next bus. It is a very easy way to get around Dublin and see everything.

Finally, I have to concur with what Captain Bearcat said. If you want to see the "real Ireland", get out of Dublin and head to Kilkenny, Killarney, the Dingle Peninsula, Galway, the Cliffs of Moher, Connemara, The Burren, County Mayo, County Sligo and the rest of western Ireland.

I think that the west of Ireland along the Atlantic Coast is the heart and soul of Ireland.

Good luck and I hope you enjoy Ireland.

(02-25-2013 09:33 AM)TegaCayCard Wrote:  If I recall you travel to Ireland a lot so I thought I could hit you up with a question or two...

Looks like I'll have a free day and a half in Dublin over St. Patrick's Day. One of my daughter's is marching in the parade with her high school band.

I'll definately hit the Guinness tour. Any other places that you recommend that are close by? I'll have two other younger kids with me, too.

Thanks.

Hello Upstater Tega Cay!

I am in Charleston down here in the Low Country. I go to Ireland twice a year. Incredible place.....great people and they love Americans as almost every family has an immediate family member living in the States.

If you are in Dublin.......Terry is right.....go on the Guinness tour. Hang around afterwards as when they give out the tickets for the beer there will be a number of people who will give you their ticket as they either do not drink or have no time after the tour itself. We took advantage of that and had a rather good time!

You might want to hit St. Stephen Green as some of the best restuarants and pubs are right around the square. University College is right there too.....very interesting as well.

If you get to go to the Southwest then you want to visit Killarney. A great town......good food and a pub actually on every corner. Are you flying into Dublin or Shannon? If you are in the west of southwest then there are some great things there to do and see as well.

If you are a golfer and want any insight on that let me know. That is the reason why I go over so much.

The economy has taken a real hit there so the exchange rate with the Euro is very good at this time.

Have fun!

I am in Charleston down here in the Low Country. I go to Ireland twice a year. Incredible place.....great people and they love Americans as almost every family has an immediate family member living in the States.

If you are in Dublin.......Terry is right.....go on the Guinness tour. Hang around afterwards as when they give out the tickets for the beer there will be a number of people who will give you their ticket as they either do not drink or have no time after the tour itself. We took advantage of that and had a rather good time!

You might want to hit St. Stephen Green as some of the best restuarants and pubs are right around the square. University College is right there too.....very interesting as well.

If you get to go to the Southwest then you want to visit Killarney. A great town......good food and a pub actually on every corner. Are you flying into Dublin or Shannon? If you are in the west of southwest then there are some great things there to do and see as well.

If you are a golfer and want any insight on that let me know. That is the reason why I go over so much.

The economy has taken a real hit there so the exchange rate with the Euro is very good at this time.

Have fun!
[/quote]

Charleston, love it. Quickest beach for us to get to is Isle of Palms, just awesome.

Thanks everyone for the tips...flying into Shannon so we'll start on the west coast and definately hit the Cliffs of Moher.

I'm going to look over these tips and figure out my new itinerary.

The whole family can't wait either especially since we haven't been here before.

(I don't golf but the golfers here at work are beating me down telling me I can't go to Ireland and not golf.)

Like I said, rent a car. Go to Killarney, drive to/through the Ring of Kerry, the Dingle Peninsula, Galway, the Cliffs of Moher, The Burren and Connemara.

Drive around County Kerry, County Clare, County Galway.

I am particular fond of County Mayo and County Sligo. But, I am prejudiced. My paternal grandmother was raised in County Mayo and my paternal grandfather was born and raised in County Sligo.

(If you have plenty of time, go see the wild landscape and coastline of County Donegal.)

Stop at some local pubs. Go off the beaten path. Meet the local people. Have a few pints, talk/laugh with the locals and listen to some pub music.

That is the best way to see Ireland, in my opinion.

Sorry for the late response but I wanted to thank you guys for the input on the Ireland trip, it was invaluable.
 
The Dublin St Patrick’s Day parade was successful for my daughter’s marching band (although we woke up to snow and cold temps).
 
We started out in Shannon and made our way to the Cliffs of Mohr and had lunch in Lahinch. What a great looking golf course at Lahinch. We got to meet some great people at lunch and since we had time, were able to talk to them a while. Apparently that town will really crank up when the weather changes for golf /  surf season. We spent an hour or so walking the beach just because the volume of rocks (low tide) was so fascinating.
 
The Cliffs were unreal. We had a great time just taking pictures and hiking on the paths.
 
We also travelled the Burren region including checking out one of the tombs. The first thing that blew us away was the quietness as we would stop and take pictures. It was so eerily quiet there which I guess was appropriate. I had never seen anything like the Cliffs and Burren before. It was amazing.
 
We stayed a couple of nights in Limerick which was a neat town.
 
Here are some other attractions we saw while working our way to Dublin:
 
Blarney Castle – tourist area for sure but everyone liked the shopping and the castle itself.

The town of Kilkinney and tour of the castle – very crowded / lots of people as it appears they were having a pre St Patrick’s Day festival. This was a great town and friendly people.

Trinity College and Book of Kells – now there were a ton of people here and massive lines although the family enjoyed the shopping district.

Rock of Cashel - impressive

Guinness warehouse – tour was average at best but worth the view from Gravity Bar. I’m glad I knew about it because many people didn’t head up that way.
 
Overall a great place to visit with expectations of going again.

My wife and I have a 17 day trip to Ireland and Scotland planned for late July-early August.

I am glad that you and your family enjoyed your trip.

Glad to hear you enjoyed your trip! How was Kilkenney Castle? We got there after it closed but it looked really nice from the outside. We were wondering whether it would be worth a stop on our next trip there (sometime in the next 10 years, hopefully!)

Captain:

Kilkenny Castle is a great tour. I liked the Great Hall where reproductions of the original paintings the Butler's acquired over the years are displayed.