West Coast of Ireland?

[unicorn]

Thinking of this as a possible for the Summer holidays.

Anybody know any nice/ inexpensive cottages to rent?

any offers???

No idea re rental

But it is a beautiful place, remote and beautiful but the weather is changeable, so be prepared.

try this site
I live in the west of ireland, Will you drive over? or rent a car when you get here??

I'm not too sure which area as yet, need advice on that ...

Where's a good place for kids age 5 and 3?

Please let me know if the rental you have is good.

I always tend to go by word of mouth recommendations these days.

I went near Skibbereen in Cork last year; beaches/countryside lovely but so much rain. Your children are older so it may be better, but there wasn't a great deal to do except go for rainy walks. Roads were very wind-ey so everywhere took a long time to get to, which wasn't good with my son. Lots of watersports there if you are that way inclined.

I stayed here a couple of years ago and would recommend both the property and the area.

which cottage/area were you in Clayhead? (the link is the home page)

Sorry!! Search for property code yhl

It comes up under Galway but is technically just inside Co Clare. We liked it as we stayed a week, 'did' Galway (city), a couple of good museums, lots of nice walks, the Burren, Cliffs of Moher. There were beaches close by and lots of good pubs! One was literally a couple of minutes walk from the property (an oyster place) and others were in Kinvarra, a few minutes drive away (a small town with shops, pubs etc).

The property itself had amazing views so, when it rained, we stayed in and watched the sea.

HTH

the Cork and Kerry coastlines are beautiful (we went there for out honeymoon) - although there is effectively only one road, particularly in Kerry (the Ring of Kerry) which can get pretty busy with coach tours in the summer.

I think all the west coast is beautiful - when the kids get bigger and can take the journey we plan to go to Clare/Connemara/Galway/Donegal

My brother lives in Killorglin just between Killarney and Tralee. If there is anything you want to know I will give him a shout.
Westport is a beautiful place we stayed in westport harbour apartments excellent.

I know the West Coast of Irelan really well, hence the name, any questions fire ahead.

Westport is nice but very touristy. Lots to do in Galway. If you want somewhere on the beach Enniscrone is good. Its near Sligo and Ballina two fairly big towns with lots to do in both. Need any more info please give me a shout.

Minnie1 where are you from?

You probably need to pick an area and then look for a cottage. It's not particularly cheap, especially if you have to go in school holidays and you add in the cost of the ferry/flights. We go every year but that's because we combine it with visits to family.

The beaches are lovely in Galway and Mayo but depending where you are staying, there may not be a lot else to do (on a rainy day for example). West Cork and Kerry are probably busier but then they may have more to do apart from the beach. The weather is often better in West Cork than elsewhere because of the Gulf Stream.

Many auctioneers (equivalent to estate agents here) deal with holiday rentals also and it may be cheaper to rent something through them than stay in a complex of purpose built cottages - which is what you often find in brochures.

If you let us know what county you are thinking of, I'm sure people will be able to give you more specific recommendations.

I think we're looking at the Galway area (but not ruled anything out yet!)

Enniscrone sounds a possibility MissG .

We want close proximity to beaches, but also stuff to do for the kids when weather not so good.

I was thinking that maybe we would drive/ferry... but haven't explored all options yet.

I guess if it all too expensive though we'll have to stay put in this country

When we went it was very reasonable! We did Holyhead to Dublin ferry, ate in quite a bit and did lots of walks/beaches.

What ages are you kids unicorn? This might influence where to go. Mine are still young enough to be happy on the beach, regardless of weather but you won't really find many seaside towns with lots for teenagers to do,like Bournemouth, for example (which is why I like it really). If you did want to stay in a town with more facilities, like Galway, you could always drive out to the beaches I suppose. Though I do find Galway town a bit self-consciously twee myself (sorry MissGalway!)

I haven't been to Galway with kids but most towns in West Cork and Kerry have good playgrounds and I assume Galway would be the same. The bigger towns should have swimming pools, etc. Your best bet is probably to do some research on the internet - lots of areas have websites which will tell you what facilities are available.

Pabla - isn't everywhere twee in its own little way.

Anyway back to the question in hand. Enniscrone has some nice cottages. The beach is long and very clean. has a blue flag I am nearly sure. It is about 10 miles from Ballina which has a really good playground, a childrens activity centre, a cinema and all the main supermarkets along with nice places to eat out in and reasonable enough.

Galway itself has everything. Salthill is by the beach but if you drive a little bit further out you will find nicer beaches. Salthill is a bit hurdygurdy but you could pass a night in Leisureland which has plenty of thngs to waste your money on.

There is an open farm in Bullaun which is lovely. Thats about an hours drive from Galway.

We're off to Galway this year and Miss Galway's help has been much appreciated - there's a thread - just search under Galway. Got our cottage 30 mins from Galway town for 535 pounds sterling for a week and looks really lovely.

Question to Missgalway (or indeed anyone else!)- what's Cleggan like?

Unicorn, I have just read your post regarding the West of Ireland and your planning to go there for a holiday. I might be able to help you as we have just decided last week to rent out our own house that we finished building last year. We live in England at the moment and use it for holidays ourselves. It is in Mayo right on the coast, with beautiful views, if you would like any more information please contact me either here again or else through mumsnet.

ooh you lucky thing...sounds lovely -I have cat'd(??!!) you.

Great unicorn, I look forward to hearing from you.