First time visitors to Ireland-two weeks?

Question

My daughter wants to go to Ireland as a graduation gift. I want to take her but I am leery about traveling outside U.S. I would like to educate ourselve as much as possible but I'm sure it wont compare to your answers as you are the experts of your own country. We would arrive in Dublin. She wants to visit Cork, I believe. Some say that hostels are very obnoxious, and others say you can actually stay with local folks. How would one go about this? We are willing but ignorant of where to actually start. Any info. would be wonderful! Please, only serious help as we are truely in need of it! Thank-You! Also, is two weeks tooo much?

Answer 1

two weeks is good, theres lots to do and see there but it will be chilly.
Check out some of the websites
www.ireland.ie
www.map-ireland.com
www.ireland.com
www.ireland-information.com
www.travel.away.com

Answer 2

I am from the U.S., but I have traveled to Ireland 3 times. Your daughter will love it there as long as she doesn't mind the weather. In my visits, I have never stayed in hostels, but have stayed in both hotels and Bed and Breakfasts. Bed and Breakfasts are very nice and a great way to learn more about the locals, as they are usually people's homes or working farms. I've also found them to be much less expensive than hotels. Most hotels run around $100 to $150 per night with breakfast included. Bed and Breakfasts are typically around $40 to $50 a night including a breakfast. Both hotels and Bed and Breakfast (or B&Bs as they are often called) can be booked online. Just look up "accomodations" under the city of choice. Dublin has hundreds of places to choose from. Almost every city also has a tourist office that can help arrange for accomodations. It's also easy to just knock on the door and ask if there are any vacancies. Most places will have a sign clearly marked in the front stating that there are guest rooms.(Often the signs are white with a green shamrock on them.)

Cork is actually my favorite place in Ireland that I have visited. If you haven't booked flights already, you might want to compare prices between flying directly into Cork vs. flying into Dublin. Cork has its own airport. When I flew last December, it was about $200 less than if I would have flown into Dublin. Cork has a lot of great shops, beautiful countryside, plenty of music, and a wide variety of restaurants (anything from traditional Irish foods to Chinese and pizza). I liked it better than Dublin, because even though it is a large city, I don't think it's as well known as Dublin and less crowded and touristy.

I don't think two weeks is too much. I stayed a week there, and would have loved to stay longer. If the city gets to be a bit too much, there is a great bus system (known as Bus Eiren) that runs all over Ireland and is very inexpensive. For just a few Euros (I think around $2-$3.00) you can ride about 15 minutes away to Blarney and tour the Castle (and kiss the Blarney stone if you're brave---You have to literally bend over backward to do so. I was too chicken!). Waterford with the famous crystal factory is not far from Cork either. I think it was about a 2 hour ride.

I hope you do consider letting your daughter go to Ireland. It is truly beautiful. The only downside is that the weather can be nasty. It's true that it rains there a lot and can be pretty cold. Otherwise, it is a wonderful place to visit.

Answer 3

True enough some hostels aren't the best. The Kinlay House Hostel in the city of Dublin is very good however and recommended by the tourist office. I never heard of staying with the locals in all the time I live here. Maybe people mean bed and breakfast accommodation. Visit this website for all the information you need. It will give you links for the accommodation websites also. Dublin and Ireland generally is expensive. Don't know much about Cork. Ye should visit Kerry, Clare and Galway. Sligo is also very nice. Good luck with your plans.
www.visitdublin.com

Answer 4

The Guiness factory is a must even if you don't like the beer the tour is facinating.

go to some of the pubs just off the river front in Dublin the music and atmosphere is fab

Happy days

Answer 5

Oooh, Ireland is awesome! (I'm american too, and I spent a week there this past summer) My favorite place was Sneem, and tiny villiage in county killarney (i think). They have lots of nice B&B's there. I went with an educational student tour group, so everything was planned for us. If I went back on my own, I'd definetly go back to Dublin.

Answer 6

the hostels are not obnoxious - they are an excellent , friendly and cheap way to stay especially if you are coming for two weeks - look up Shielas on hostelworld.com - its excellent . two weeks would be good but plan to visit places and maybe stay overnight - Blarney , Dingle , West Cork , Kinsale , you could even take a train up to Dublin - have fun and welcome when you arrive

Answer 7

two weeks is too much..8-10 days should do...spend around 4 days in dublin and then go check out the rest of the country!

Answer 8

Hostels can get very expensive. I went for two weeks and we stayed in bed and breakfasts. the people who own those are very friendly!! We stayed in two castles while we were there as well. Do not pay in vouchers though. I did and I found out that it's basically paying them minimum wage...

Answer 9

contact the Irish tourist board they will give toy all the information you need the bed and breakfast are very good and they are reasonable although it is chilly this time of the year i am sure you will enjoy your stay good luck

Answer 10

dont know, but just make sure you go in an irish pub, theyre the best.