Please talk to me about Ireland

[Dancergirl]

We're thinking of visiting southern Ireland in the summer but I don't know where to start in terms of where to stay etc. We will probably have about 5 days, possibly a week at the end of August.

Our dds will be 11, 9 and 5 then. They do enjoy a bit of sightseeing, castles etc but also the usual swimming, beaches and things like that. I was thinking about maybe around the Cork region...?

Also can anyone recommend somewhere to stay? We prefer hotels over self-catering if possible.

Thanks.

West Cork is stunning. Its approx 2 hour drive from Cork airport. My parents brought us to Barley Cove beach as a child and I am itching to go back with my own kids. There are lovely apartments overlooking Barley Cove beach now, very well appointed. You could also stay at the the Barley Cove Beach Hotel if you don't want to self cater. The white sandy beach is the main attraction here but there is plenty more to do around the whole area including a ferry trip from Schull to see Fastnet Lighthouse which the kids would love, there is also a ferry to Cape Clear Island which is a great day out. Crookhaven is a little harbour village where all the sailboats dock, there is a great bar there called O'Sullivans who do a great pint of Guinness and seafood dishes. The kids would love Barley Cove.

I have family in Cork so I have visited there regularly. The beaches are nice and I loved them as a kid. My family live about a 40 mins from the airport in Glasheen

Also Garretstown is lovely and has a great beach. There is also a zoo called Fota that you can get a little ferry to which is great.

Innchydonney hotel in west cork is amazing

I would recommend Kerry and Killarney. There's lots of lovely scenery and opportunities for walking,cycling,swimming. You could go to Blarney Castle and kiss the blarney stone.Or to Dingle to see Fungi the famous dolphin. We have stayed in self catering cottage and camped in and near Killarney.

Thanks, some great ideas here. I really like the sound of Cork.

Now my next question.....would you recommend flying or ferry to Cork? I like the idea of having our own car but how much driving is involved? Where do you get the ferry from?

We live in London btw.

If you are only going for 5 days, fly. You can get an overnight ferry from Swansea to Cork. Or ferry from Fishguard to Rosslare and drive.

How long is the ferry from Fishguard? Is it choppy??

I'd second the advice to fly & hire a car when you get there, you'll save a good bit of time (important with only 5 days hol) & will be less tired.

Make sure you get a hire car with satnav for the west Cork roads.
Cork is a lovely part of the world, you can visit the city as well as the country for some good eating/shopping (kills me to say that as I'm a Dub & there's some friendly rivalry!)

Fishguard is about 3.5 hours, I have been on it when it is very smooth and when I have been clinging on to the seats.

Oh dear fivegomad, thats out then, I dont like boats!

Think we'll fly, we can go from Luton. How longs the flight to Cork?

county clare is stunning - beaches, the burren, ferry to aran islands at doolin, also great music, think there's a festival in ennistymon at some point during summer

The area around Cork is lovely. There is a nice Titanic exhibition in Cobh which your older dd's might enjoy. Also Fota Park is a fun day out.
There is also a drive-in movie in Cork which sounded like it might be fun.

One thing to be aware of, having just visited Ireland we found it quite expensive to eat out and often quite dissappointing, so you might want to get some restaurant reccomendations before you go.

The whole of the Southwest is stunning (I live in Clare btw) and during the summer there's plenty to do.

Dingle's worth a visit, as is Lahinch if the kids fancy surf lessons.
The Burren is worth a look, come up as far as Galway for a bit more "culture" and the Oyster festival
Over the summer there are loads of Irish music festivals in Co Clare.

Bring a cagoule though as the weather can be unpredictable at times

Donegal is fab, I would combine it with the north Antrim coast, and finish off in Belfast. and visit the new titanic quarter. The north is gorgeous too, the giants causeway etc is fab, and lots of great hotels etc. Also better value as not in euro, and cheap flights to Belfast.

If you do go to Cork, make sure you visit Kinsale - it is a gorgeous wee town with lots of cool bars and cafes.

Carrick on Shannon is nice, if you wanted a hotel the Landmark Hotel is nice. There is quite a lot to do for kids, about a 10 min drive away between Carrick on Shannon and Boyle is Lough Key www.loughkey.ie/ which has a high wire adventure course that the whole family can enjoy and lots of other activities. It's also about a 45 minute drive from Sligo for beaches.

I live in cork and I love it here

Fly and drive . Cork airport is small and only 10 mins drive direct into to the city centre .

City centre itself is an island . Stay in jury's hotel which is on the river. Stroll over to the lovely Fitzgeralds park and visit the museum .

Get the open top bus to take you the 15 mins out to blarney village. Visit the castle and kiss the stone . Another really good stop is the old gaol (jail) complete with spooky tour.

Go to the train station and get the train to fota for a fun day out . A couple more stops up the line is cobh with its titanic museum for a really full day out.

There are beaches galore . Inchydonney is my favourite , it's stunning . There is an amazing spa hotel right there on the cliff overlooking the beach if you wanted to divide your time between two places.

Finally an absolute gem is gouganbarra national park in west cork . A good hour drive but it's amazing .

Any questions , fire away

Thanks rice33, that's really helpful. Sounds lovely, I can't wait!

Just can't decide whether to stay in Cork city itself or on the beach. Inchydonney looks lovely but very ££. I was also looking at Barleycove Beach Hotel that someone mentioned above but it's got mixed reviews on Trip Advisor and it looks a bit cut off from anywhere else....?

How far is it from Cork city to the coast?

My kids love open top buses!

Think Jury's Hotel is now called the River Lee Hotel - looks very nice.

I've found a couple of nice-looking hotels away from the city:

www.gouganebarrahotel.com/

Posted too early there!

And then Inchydonney that someone mentioned above looks lovely too.

Gougane Barra has the most amazing views - set on a lake - but I'm wondering if it's too cut off?