U.K. and Ireland - Shannon to Dublin - 4 days

Hello -

I'll be arriving in Shannon and flying out of Dublin for this trip to Ireland. This trip is a very short 5 days including the arrival day in Shannon and the departure day from Dublin. That leaves us almost 4 full days to play with. Other than wanting to spend at least one full day in Dublin before departure the rest is flexible and would like to be spontaneous.

Any suggestions on an itinerary? My thoughts were to spend 2 nights in Galway using those days to explore the west using Galway as a base. Then, drive to Dublin, ditch the car and spend the other 2 nights hanging around the city. Is there anything worth noting between Galway and Dublin?

Many thanks.

If you haven't been, do take in the monastic ruins at Clonmacnoise on the day you travel between Galway and Dublin.

I was thinking Cliffs of Moher, Burren and other points of interest in the vicinity of Galway for the arrival day and the next. Then, on the drive to Dublin, stop at Clonmacnoise and continue to Dublin and return the car.

The alternative is to just spend the entire time in the West and fly out of and return the car to Shannon. I've been to Dublin several times, but my traveling companions have not.

The Cliffs, the Burren and the like aren't really easily accessible by Galway, as Galway Bay is between them. A better base would be Ennis (city), Doolin (village) or someplace on the north end of the Burren, like Ballyvaughan (village). If you chose Ballyvaughan, you could do Galway and the like as a long day trip. From Doolin or Ennis you could day trip on a ferry to the Aran Islands. I second the suggestion of Clonmacnoise.

On the way from Galway to Dublin (sort of) is Kildare - which has the National Stud Farm (horses, not men, more's the pity), Japanese Gardens, and St. Brigid's Well (one of many, but a big one).