Dublin Travel Forum

Hi,
Planning a trip to Ireland & Scotland end of Jul. I have total of of 17days. I will flying into London from Singapore. From London, I tot of flying into Dublin. 1st part of my holidays..I tot of spending in Ireland. Can any members..suggests to me on the routing that I should do? Should I drive while there (ireland/scotland)to explore the places? From Ireland, which city should I fly to in Scotland? I want to end my stay in Ediburgh before flying back to London. Hope to hear any suggestions from VT members. Cheers!

If you are happy to rent a car, and comfortable with driving on the left, then you will see much more of both Ireland and Scotland than you would by using public transport.

Remember that journeys will always take longer than the map suggests. Rural roads are often narrow and winding, so that it is easy to be stuck behind slow-moving traffic, and traffic congestion is common in and around towns and cities (depending on time of day).

http://www.theaa.com/route-planner/index.jsp?database=B

will give you an idea of point-to-point routes and estimated driving times.

You should book your car in advance, especially if you want an automatic.just google the place name + 'car hire', get some quotes and choose the company which is most convenient for your and your budget.

For Ireland, I would suggest that Newgrange, Galway, the Burren, the Cliffs of Moher, Connemara, ring of Kerry and the Dingle Peninsula are 'must-sees'....but there is much more....

For Scotland: Glasgow, Edinburgh, Inverness, Loch Ness, the Highlands, Glencoe, Skye.....much too much to see. So it will depend on your particular interests as to where you want to visit.

Have a look at the VT pages for both countries, and also at the official tourist information sites;

http://www.discoverireland.ie/

http://www.discoverireland.ie/

http://www.undiscoveredscotland.co.uk/ is a good site (although nowhere is actually 'undiscovered' in Scotland, of course).

Where you fly to in Scotland may depend on which fares are best. Either Edinburgh or Glasgow will be fine. You have almost left it too late for cheapest fares (there are no last-minute cheap fares, and prices rise the nearer you get to departure) so you need to look, decide and book as soon as possible. www.whichbudget.com lists all European budget airlines and their destinations.

Remember strict hold baggage limits (20kg for most but only 15kg for Ryanair) and strict check-in times. A couple of minutes late and you will miss your flight with no refund.

Hi

Have you thought about hiring the car in Ireland, driving to Belfast or Larne then getting the ferry either to Stranraer or Cairnryan (about 90 minutes from Glasgow) or to Troon (only 40 mins from Glasgow) www.poirishsea.com or www.stenaline.ferries.org I would base myself in Glasgow for a couple of days, Glasgow has lots for tourists depending what you are into ie architecture, museums, shopping and nightlife. then head north to Inverness (about a 4 hour drive) and from there you could tour the highlands and islands or even head further north if you really want peace and quiet. Hope this is a little bit of help to you

Janice

Hiring a car in Ireland and then leaving it in Scotland might well result in a hefty one-way hire fee......so do check this out before you decide what to do.

Thanks so much for your valuables tips ;)