Ireland weekend solo trip ideas

funkey_monkey

Bored of sitting in the house alone. All friends are married off, so just myself now.

Any ideas for interesting weekend solo trips.
I've got my own car. Based in Belfast.

Thanks.

BobbyBobberson

I am very biased but I love Galway. Head down to Dublin and then across on the motorway, will be less than four hour drive. People are friendly, great pubs and food. Plenty of day trips based from the city including Cliffs of Moher or Aran Islands.

Tabnabs

Get yourself a little campervan and the island is your oyster. Lots of interesting places to visit and good pubs to visit.

otnomart

My fave place in Ireland used to be Carlingford. Beautiful and not that far from Belfast.
Kilkenny is also fab for a week-end.

funkey_monkey

Going solo what would you be doing without getting lonely?
How would you handle evening meals?

Thanks for the suggestions?

Wanderer2010

funkey_monkey wrote: »

Going solo what would you be doing without getting lonely?
How would you handle evening meals?

Thanks for the suggestions?

It all depends on how you look at it. Do you "need" other people to have a meal with? Some people cant even go to the toilet without someone near them which is quite sad as it makes you very dependent on other people. For meals, depending on your personality, you could order a big meal and sit down and watch the world go by or if you want a bit of privacy sit away from the crowds, enjoy your meal and soak up the quietness.

If you are more social, you could try and eat near the bar and make small talk with the barman or with the people around you, some of them might be up for a bit of chat too and you may meet interesting people. You could also meet nobody who is interested in chatting but that's the risk you take. Plus many times after sight seeing the whole day you aren't in the mood for anything but a quiet meal! Go and see the country, there are so many beautiful and interesting things in Ireland.

Esse85

Glendalough

OldMrBrennan83

Kinsale.

two wheels good

Rathlin Island and see the puffins. (I''d love to see puffins!)
I also want to travel the Antrim coast road
Visit that famous Beech Walk.

NIMAN

The Inishowen peninsula.

marklazarcovic

Ferry to Scotland maybe, explore there.

ted1

Go to a surf school or similar

two wheels good

funkey_monkey wrote: »

Going solo what would you be doing without getting lonely?
How would you handle evening meals?

Thanks for the suggestions?

Play with your phone. Isn't that what everyone does in a restaurant - solo or accompanied.
Seriously though.. solo dining is a pleasure. Any concerns are only your own anxious perceptions. Sit by the window or on the terrace, bring a newpaper. Choose a quiet informal place, maybe a gastro pub or a beer-garden. Choose a swanky spot and demand constant attention. Get a take-away and sit in the park with the pigeons. Stay in a youth hostel and you'll probably find some pleasant company. Happy travels.

PCeeeee

funkey_monkey wrote: »

Going solo what would you be doing without getting lonely?
How would you handle evening meals?

Thanks for the suggestions?

Try and find a spot where you can eat at the bar. Probably rules out a lot of places though.

Strumms

I’ve done a fair bit of solo traveling, all be it work trips in the main. So you adjust to the whole alone thing. The bar for food followed by a couple of drinks is grand in the evening. Have your book, kindle, tablet with you, that’s perfect for staving off boredom. Though pick a city / place where you can research daily activities such as museums, walks, shopping, sights... I’ve been solo for a couple of work trips in Barcelona, Madrid, Copenhagen, London and found a good itinerary in each city to keep me easily busy and entertained.

gobo99

funkey_monkey wrote: »

Going solo what would you be doing without getting lonely?
How would you handle evening meals?

Thanks for the suggestions?

There's meetup groups around the country for going to gigs. Facebook probably good for this kind of thing. There's a site called meetup.com also.

Louche Lad

Strumms wrote: »

I’ve done a fair bit of solo traveling, all be it work trips in the main. So you adjust to the whole alone thing. The bar for food followed by a couple of drinks is grand in the evening. Have your book, kindle, tablet with you, that’s perfect for staving off boredom. Though pick a city / place where you can research daily activities such as museums, walks, shopping, sights... I’ve been solo for a couple of work trips in Barcelona, Madrid, Copenhagen, London and found a good itinerary in each city to keep me easily busy and entertained.

This. I do a huge amount of solo travel, and it doesn't take long to get accustomed to breezing into a bar or café or restaurant on your own. And you don't feel restricted by having to accommodate someone else's preferences. And thank God for smartphones.

Strumms

I think technology now does make it MUCH easier. You can be chatting to mates, girlfriend in real time either by video or the likes of WhatsApp/Facebook. So you never have that disconnect that say might have existed 15-20 years ago. When I started traveling solo it in 2005 on these trips it was more or less relying on the phone in your room as you could expense it.