Travelling to Ireland on

Good afternoon.

I am looking to travel to Ireland In early July. I am new to traveling and would like any help on what to do once in Ireland where to go what not to see/? How to plan my time around the certain things to see. I will be staying for just over 2 weeks and traveling to wales for two days via Ferry. I want to plan my time accordingly. I have to go  to a place called Banbrdige as my ancestors were from there. I want to explore this town and get a feel where they lived. I also want to explore the local attractions the Blarney castle the cliffs, the guineas storehouse.Am I wasting my time to travel to the smaller towns? I hear they have smaller places you kinda just stumble on while out touring. I will not be using a car rental and will be traveling with the dart train taxis

Any info would be much appreciated as I want to explore history trails etc within a short time and still get to see the most amazing well worth places.I am also looking forward to renting bikes to get around if possible and getting lost will be half my experience,
Thanks for your help.

It might be worth contacting Banbridge Genealogy Services, contact details on their website at www.banbridgegenealogy.com 

Hi Alison,

• Travelling without a car

Enjoy your trip!

Hi,

If you are going to Banbridge you must continue on up the coast and enjoy the Causeway Coast.  There are some really nice places to stay such as the Lodge Hotel, in Coleraine, the New York in Porstewart, The Bushmills Inn in Bushmills or the Ramada in Portrush only to mention a few.

I run a daytour along the Causeway Coast from Mussenden Temple to Carrick-a-rede rope bridge which is stunning, this includes the giants Causeway and Dunluce castle.  You can check it out on my website at www.glenara-elite-travel.co.uk.

The North Coast would be a beautiful place to spend a couple of days in, theirs also the famous Bushmills Distillery.  If you would like anymore information don't hesitate to give me a call on 0044 28 70354600

Hi Alison,
I agree with Glenara Elite Travel - if you are going to Banbridge, you must continue along the Causeway Coast.
It is really beautiful. As you have two weeks you could follow the Causeway Coastal route onto the Wild Atlantic Way.
Moving along the coast you can visits counties such as Donegal, Sligo, Mayo, Galway and Kerry and Cork.
If you are looking for accommodation in Ireland - be sure to experience staying in a bed and breakfast.
Just to give you a bit of background about us -  we are B&B Ireland - we have over 800 B&Bs on our website that you can book instantly. Staying in one of our bed and breakfasts offer you the chance to stay in an Irish family home. The B&Bs are all independently owned and reflect a charming diversity of style and character where quality and service is paramount. Have a look at our website and if you need any help please do not hesitate to contact us.
http://www.bandbireland.com
Karen - B&B Ireland

Hi Alison

There are so many places you can visit on your trip to Ireland.  I would suggest you also visit the history City of Armagh, which is only 45mins from Banbridge.
Armagh has a great association with the history of St. Patrick and has numerous attractions, places of interest and activities.  You can check the website out at www.armagh.co.uk
One of the highlight attractions in Armagh is the Navan Centre & Fort, which takes you through the history and archaeology of Navan Fort in a fun and interactive way.  We even allow you to become a Celt and to experience how the Celts lived in our very own Iron Age Dwelling!  See www.navan.com for all the information.

 

Thanks for your amazing insight to my trip to Ireland.Just a few questions. I will be looking into some day tours or two day tours while In belfast and dublin just to make sure I see the most specific sights. I will be doing a belfast tour of the Titanic and than continue on to the Giant's Causeway.Than I will take a bus which I learned will travel every three hours to Banbridge, I was wondering should I use Belfast as my main artery and go tour on my own around Northern Ireland? Also tour to the cliffs and Burren is something I am looking at and will travel around that area on my own after I know the one tour has Galway city as a spot but it does not give you enough time to explore, What are my best options as to tour around this area? I think my main city will be Dublin as there is so much to see.This way I can explore places on my own through the dart, taxi,train? Should I be spending more time In Dublin as there is more to see there?I am arriving a few days earlier than planned as my flight is cheaper, so I have a few more days to get to see more local sights once off plane. I also want to take the ferry over to Wales for  few days than get back on the ferry and come back to Dublin get my plane and go.Thanks for any help. I am seeing so many new places I want to travel but also don't want to sell myself short

Hello Alison, if you are looking for Day Tours from Dublin to the Cliffs of Moher we offer this and many more - www.railtoursireland.com 

You have a lot of places to choose from Alison. :) As Railtours Ireland already mentioned, there are options to explore the west coast from Dublin by rail where you get to see Galway and the Cliffs of Moher. You can also pick between one of the many coach tours that leave from the capital. Maybe a multiple day tour is an option? This way you'll have more time to see everything you would like to see. 

It's really easy to explore the Causeway Coastal route and Northern Ireland by coach from Belfast, so it's a good place to use as a base. Take a look at the options here.

Getting around Dublin is easy, and you've got several types of transportation to choose from. Depending on where you would like to go you can hop on a bus, DART, or Luas, and you can use this handy Journey Planner to plan your whole trip. My advice is to make a list of the things you wouldn't want to miss and see how many days you would need to visit them all. The Dublin Pass is a time saver because it's a ticket to 33 popular attractions in Dublin, and you won't have to stand in line. :D 

On our website you will also find all of the different ferry companies that go from Ireland to Wales and back. 

I hope this makes the planning of your trip a wee bit easier, and just give me a shout if you'd like to know more!

Hello Alison,

it's always exciting to find out about your own ancestry and once you have seen the place they used to live you get a much better idea of them.

In addition to the other useful information you already got we would like to give you some more information:
Firstly, if you go to Belfast it may be worth your while to visit PRONI in the Titanic Quarter. It's the Public Records Office of Northern Ireland where you can research about your ancestry.
Secondly, we would like to make you aware of the Mourne Mountains, Downpatrick and Strangford Lough as these places are very close to Banbridge and are areas of outstanding natural beauty or significant Christian Heritage sites.

If you visit Belfast ( which you really should because it's simply fantastic ) please visit us in the Welcome Centre for some more fabulous information.