Travelling to Ireland on

Can I visit these places like the Mourne mountains Down Patrick and the Strangford Lough by foot from Banbrdige or dart?

Sorry for the first time traveler. I now have a million questions. So I am arriving June 28 and will be staying for 20 days. I am planning on a running race July  3 at Malahide castle. I also need to travel to banbridge as stated in my first post to visit ancestors. I am also planning a day tour to belfast through to the Giants causeway.Than to see Banbridge and Armagh and the local places around there. Than want to travel back to southern Ireland and do the cliffs of Moher and the Blarney castle. Plus to view all the many castles cemeteries post office bridges parks etc in Dublin. Than to take ferry to wales and visit there a few days, My question is do I do the zoo Phoneix park and the Guineas storehouse.plus the jail. when I arrive first in Dublin than travel to Malahide do race spend a few days there than take tour to Belfast and area or do the Northern Ireland first. Sorry I am not sure what to do. I also found out I can rent a bike and tour to the park and the zoo, which is so amazing. Thanks for any help you might have, Plus I want to check out Temple bar and the music centre. is that too much to ask

sorry for some spelling I was trying to remember it all 

I think that's a good idea, you can stay in Dublin city or else Malahide as it is only about 30 minutes from the city centre on the local light rail (DART) If you wanted to use Malahide as your base you can get the train from Malahide to Belfast really easily (just one change, at Drogheda station). 
Better not to rush your trip to the North of Ireland if you want to see all the sights there and explore your family heritage in Banbridge.

Hi Alison,

Your trip sounds amazing, you have picked some really interesting places to go. For Dublin, all the sites you've selected could be done in one day if you like, however, to really enjoy them and spend some time taking them all in, I would suggest that Day1 you do Kilmainham Jail in the morning, followed by the Guinness Storehouse, then to Temple Bar that evening.
Day 2 head for the Phoenix Park and you can hire bikes at the main gate at the bottom of Chesterfield Avenue. you could cycle around the park for the morning, then go to the Zoo - it's a short walk from where the bike hire office is. 

If you aren't getting the Dublin Pass, I would advise you buy tickets online for both the Zoo and Guinness as the lines at both can be quite long and with online tickets you can skip to the top.

The other option to get around your sites is the hop on/hop off buses, as far as I know, there are three companies offering this option, Dublin Bus, Grayline and Cityscope.

I hope this helps, let me know if you have any other questions,
Sandra.

Good morning, So I am more confused now than ever, I have found many places to stay and now it's just a matter of figuring it all out.I have decided to stay in a place close to the airport 15 minutes away from there. I am an hour walking to city centre. I still have to find a place to Malihide as the place I will be booking is already rented the room out, I was going to explore around where this house is central do my local attractions,than do race spend a few days in Malahide and Howth.Than travel to Belfast. I was going to book a place in Belfast but I really don;t know when I will be arriving as I might fall in love with something in Malhide area that will take in a day or more.I have been looking at places in Belfast and most I will book while I figure out my dates once I know when I am leaving and hopefully they still have places. I am trying to spend less on places to stay as it is just a place to rest my head.Mind you I do want a nice place to be comfortable etc. So having said that where is Phoenix park, the zoo, the temple bar and the jail from city centre? When I take the dart or bus is there a pass I can get for both so I can just get on and off when needed? Also is the on and off bus the double one?Do I purchase for that on line or once I get there and where? Can I book the day tours once I am there at various areas?Like the ones mentioned or the cliffs of Moher and the giants causeway. I think once I am in Ireland I will get more help from the locals plus the places where I will be staying. PLease help in anything you can offer or tell me. I don't want to miss out on anything but more importantly I want to make sure I am getting to see what I need to. Thank you for your time

Hi Alison,

Sounds like you want to be very flexible when you are here. I would recommend getting a Leap card when you arrive, these cost Euro 5 in any local shop in Malahide. They will give you unlimited access to public transport - Dublin Bus, DART and Luas in Dublin for Euro 6.90 per day. You can get more info on www.dublinbus.ie 
The DART is a really handy way to get into the city from Malahide, when you get off the train at Connolly Station, you just walk to the LUAS station outside and get on a Luas that will take you to Heuston Station and this is really nearby the Zoo.

Once you arrive in the City Centre, you can purchase a hop on/hop off ticket from any of the visitor centres in the city.

Have a great time.

Sandra.

Hi Alison - the good news is you can book our day tours from Dublin up until 5PM the day before - so it is easy to Book Today And Travel Tomorrow - hope that helps and shows you can leave some of your planning to when you arrive in Ireland. Our Day Tours run every day from Monday to Saturday and we have lots of choice - https://railtoursireland.com/tours-of-ireland-day-tours 
Helen

Hello Alison, 

Welcome to the Forum! How exciting to be traveling in July!

For such a small country, Ireland has a wealth of places to visit, and things to see & do. Be mindful that July is a very busy time for travel. If you have certain accommodations in mind to stay, its worth checking to make sure they are available ahead of time.

Please feel free to contact Specialized Travel Services at 800-664-7474 in NY ... we also have offices in Ireland you can contact while there if you need assistance booking accommodations, attractions, car, tours, private driver, etc.You can visit our website at www.special-ireland.com for more information.

Mary 

Okay one question is it wrong for me to be absoutely terrified to book my trip now to Ireland?