Ireland is one of the easiest countries in the world to travel independently in. Whether you are an older backpacker or just someone who prefers to travel independently – then Ireland is a great place to begin. Why do I say that? Quite simply travel in Ireland is easy because:
- for English speakers – English is the language of Ireland (though sometimes you will wonder…);
- Ireland is relatively small and compact;
- Ireland has awesome international connections with the main international airports at Dublin, Cork and Shannon. There also many ferry ports for connections to France and the UK;
- Ireland is one of the safest countries in the world;
- Ireland has an awesome culture both living and history.
So would you spend money on a tour or travel Ireland independently? At the end of the day – Ireland is not a cheap place to travel in. Even though recently its been going through difficult financial times the Euro is still quite strong. Taking a tour is almost always more expensive – after all the people running the tour have to make a profit. The difference is if you are getting shared accommodation that you can’t find for yourself if you are traveling solo. The sad fact is – world over – that if you are travelling with someone else you are going to pay less per a person.The only other alternatives are camping or dorms in hostels.
Some FAQs About Independent Travel in Ireland
When is the best time of the year to travel in Ireland?
Ireland is wet – that’s where all those picture postcard green views comes from – but its not an extreme climate – snow is quite rare for example. July and August are the most popular times to travel in Ireland – but that’s not to say that that is the best time to travel – unless you enjoy crowds. I’ve had excellent weather in May -and pretty good weather in April – and not another tourist in sight! November/December/January will get you the worst weather and some hostels and camping grounds will close over winter – but if you want to enjoy the crack in a Pub - it doesn’t matter what time of the year it is.
Which is the cheapest way to get to Ireland?
Well most people will fly. Airlines to check include Ryan Air and Air Lingus – note carefully the actual price not – the seat price – especially if you are planning on bringing in luggage with you you will be paying a lot more than the headline rate. Other options are ferries which run regularly from Scotland, Wales, England, France and even Spain.
What’s the best way to travel around Ireland?
Ireland has a train service between the major towns but if you are planning on exploring the beautiful west coast of Ireland then you will be relying on local buses or you will need your own transport. Cars and petrol (gas) are both expensive – but the distances aren’t huge – in fact most of the charm of Ireland is the quaint country roads – smaller is definitely better as far as vehicles are concerned. In the warmer months you will see plenty of cyclists out as well.
Is a week long enough to see Ireland?
Nope – you’d need closer to a month really to have a good look around the entire island – and it would be silly to miss Northern Ireland while you were here. That said you can still have a great Irish holiday if you only have a few days – but you will have to prioritize and maybe focus on part of the country.
Independent Travel: Ballyvaughan to Cork
First we went to the Barren Experience Centre – audio visual show at €5/person which was a good introduction to the neolithic stone tombs of the area and the limestone karst geology that made them possible. A few wild flowers were out and it was remote and beautiful in the area. Then we drove over [...]
Independent Travel: Galway to Ballyvaughan via Corcomroe
Weather a lot drier and warmer today. We drove the loop around Corcomoroe. Stopped at Kylenoc (sp?) house €10 to see the grounds and the house – hardly worth it. But they did have a nice gift shop – I bought a jade dolphin to add to the collection – and they tried to charge [...]
Independent Travel:Dingle – Galloway
The weather turned nasty so our attempt at long distance walking ended in failure. Its interesting compared to the UK Ireland is really not set up for walking. The concept of common ways doesn’t exist in Irish law and tracks seem very poorly marked – you really need to have the detailed topo maps – [...]
Independent Travel: Kilkarney to Dingle
In the morning the weather wasn’t so bad so we went to see the grounds of Muckross House in town. Walked to the bottom of the Torc Waterfall which was about 4km return – and on the return it started raining again. Still cold with snow on the hills. Didn’t go into the house – [...]
Independent Travel: Killarney and the Ring of Kerry
Raining still in the morning but it did improve during the day. There had been snow on the hills overnight and it was a lot colder and windy compared to what we had been having. Drove the Ring of Kerry the Ring of Beara’s more famous sister. We took a €5 car ferry over to [...]
Independent Travel: Glengariff to Kilkenney via the Ring of Beara
Well this was supposed to be the highlight of driving the Beara Ring – less famous than the Ring of Kerry but apparently arguably even better. Unfortunately I can’t really comment – because through the mist and the rain we didn’t see a lot. And the roads were very narrow so the driver really had [...]
Independent Travel: Baltimore to Glengarif
Took the short ferry trip over to Sherkin Island – 15 minutes and €7 pp. Walked the length of the island – three hours. Quiet with very few other tourists – warm and fine weather. Got back to Baltimore about 3pm just as it started to rain. Skibbereen was a bit wet – but did [...]
Independent Travel: Cork to Baltimore
Skipping over the whole family visiting – kid focused activity bit – we are finally off out of Cork for a tour of the west of Ireland. We are boring a dinky little 2 seater van my brother owns so I can’t tell you much about the cost of hiring a vehicle – but I [...]
Kinsale, Ireland – Is It Worth A Visit?
I’ve been to Kinsale several times over the years – the first time because my brother decided to hold his wedding reception there – which included booking out a local restaurant and paying for a B&B for the night. Kinsale is about an hour’s drive south of Cork in Ireland’s south. If you are new [...]
Non-Stop Auckland Ireland – I Love JetLag!
Smooth flight out of Wellington at noon heading to Auckland – though a little late leaving not a good start. AirNZ flight to connect with Emirates in Auckland. 2.5 hours in Auckland International Airport to check out the duty free and not do much else. Had to check in for the Emirates flights here – [...]