Would you like to offer advice about my Ireland trip?

Question

My friends - three eighteen-year-olds in all - are going to Ireland in early June. We're spending a little over a week, staying in a hostel on, I believe, lower East Gardener Street, and while I'm doing what I can to plan using guidebooks, I didn't know if the Yahoo! Community had anything interesting to say. We're spending each night in Dublin, so we can only take day trips if we leave, and we know we want to go to Howth and Galway (which I haven't actually researched yet, it was someone else's idea.) Does anyone have advice on:

~ Where to go or not go, either as a city or town or within the specified places? (We can't rent a car, so it's the train or bus or walking for us.)

~ Anything specific we should do in any of the cities mentioned?

~ Anything we should be aware of in order to be as culturally appropriate as possible?

All answers are appreciated!

Answer 1

Dublin.......!......

Go to Temple Bar!!!

Its the most expensive place in Dublin, but if you go during the week, there is often "offers" on drink...

(also, a little trick we do is to slip a small bottle of vodka in my bag so i dont have to buy so much in there lol)

Id recommend.....

Dorans (GREAT live music and food)

Try Barcode (thursdays are cheapest btw!).....i go there all the time and im 18 (its kind of young place, youd love it i reckon!)

21's

Reds

The Viperoom

Whelans

Theres alway great music in Tripod....it a lovely place too

If you want a really "irish" pub....try Johnnie Fox's pub, in Glencullen on top of the Dublin mountains.....out if the way, but it is the highest pub in Ireland lol

Bars aside,

You can visit Dublin Castle

the Dublin Spire is on O'Connells Street (extremely overated but very tall lol)

Depending what youre into, theres lot of museums and art galleries such as the National Gallery and the Irish Museum Of Modern Art.

(as already mentioned) there are some great bus tours

Phoenix Park

Grafton Street/Henry Street (for shopping!) - theres a cool vegetarian cafe called "Nude" near there too lol

If you want to go to a shopping centre, go to "Dundrum Town Centre.

Also, taxis are very costly here....if you can, get the Nightlink (bus) which operates in Dublin in the early hours!!

If you really want to experience "old" ireland, i think you should go to the West....County Clare (QUITE near to Galway.....ish!)

i have family who live in a town there called Ballyvaughan....and its absolutely beautiful

There, you can stay in a thatched cottage and visit the little pubs and restaraunts by the sea - theres often live music.

Theres also lots of cool scenic things there too.

The burren (take a look at the Dolmens, theyre incredible!), the Ailwee caves, The cliffs of Moher.

Theres also a "birds of Prey" sanctuary near the Burren - worth a visit.

In Lisdoonvarna i think, theres a nice aquarium and if you want to do some shopping you can go to Ennis.

The people are SO friendly there and so proud of the County- the accents are crazy too lol.

In comparison to most places in Ireland, its a lot cheaper there

i dont think theres any cultural "rules"

Just, if you have Irish roots, dont go around claiming to BE irish....its seriously annoying (a LOT of americans do this lol)

Have a great holiday!!!!

x*x

Answer 2

Are you sure you cant leave Dublin for a night or two?  I'd consider it- more Irish people will tell you that you really havent been to Ireland if you havent been out of Dublin.  I'd want to do more than just a couple of fast day trips.

Anyway, you cant go wrong with the pubs in Dublin.  They are packed every night of the week.  I wish the bars in the US were like the ones in Dublin.  But I'd suggest you head down to the pubs on Queen Street.  Thats where the younger people go to really nightclub it up.  I think the one place with a lot of friendly women in it was called something like Copper Face Jacks (I remember the slang name for it- Slapperface Jacks much better than the real name).

I would suggest touring the Guinness Brewery and the Jameson distillery in Dublin while you are there.  You can also see the Book of Kells at Trinity College, which is interesting enough.

There's nothing huge culturally to be overly worried about.  Most Irish people I know/knew were extremely friendly, and liked the US.  Just dont start talking about Northern Ireland I guess, lol, thats a good way to get someone's hackles up.

Answer 3

Howth is part of Dublin, you can go there by public transport called the DART, from Connolly Station.

Galway: it's better to go and stay in Galway city for a few days, there are plenty of hostels there also. You can get the train to Galway from Heuston station, or you can bus it from Bus Aras.

Answer 4

Definitely go to Galway.Easy to get to on the train but I'd stay the night in the hostel there which is in the heart of what's happening.Book well ahead.Be careful in Temple Bar,can get rough.