Staycation Ireland.. Anyone doing it

Plumbthedepths

sasta le wrote: »

Is it really that bad?In tourist spots?Or they just very unfriendly

No it's not, sometimes it's best to ignore randomers on the net. NI is as beautiful as any part of the country and the people up there are friendly and warm.

GoneHome

Plumbthedepths wrote: »

What Orange marches? Do you watch the news at all?

Oh god believe me I watch the news, I've relations up in Tyrone and Belfast and they get out of there for July every year, they usually come down to us in Limerick but this year with Covid they couldn't. This is the type of thing they are getting away from - https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-northern-ireland-53381699

sasta le

shenanagans wrote: »

Rubbish. Family member just returned from there. Very impressed by area. Less than half the Killarney prices for accommodation. Kids loved it. Fab beaches and no parades.

I'm sick.of being ripped off doesn't have to be 5 star.And sick of the Irish crowd all I met was D4 knobs or middle class Aislings&Johns

Plumbthedepths

GoneHome wrote: »

Oh god believe me I watch the news, I've relations up in Tyrone and Belfast and they get out of there for July every year, they usually come down to us in Limerick but this year with Covid they couldn't. This is the type of thing they are getting away from - https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-northern-ireland-53381699

So you watched the news that told you the marches were cancelled this year?. The north is a lovely end of the country and one of my favourite cities is Derry. I spent many a childhood holiday in the north, foreign trips were beyond my family's means. Never a bad experience. Btw your link doesn't work but I suspect it's not form this year.

GoneHome

sasta le wrote: »

I'm sick.of being ripped off doesn't have to be 5 star.And sick of the Irish crowd all I met was D4 knobs or middle class Aislings&Johns

Where was that Sasta?

adocholiday

Just back from a long weekend in Killarney. The hotel we stayed in was great but expensive. The front desk said that they were completely full for the whole weekend though. Standard of food was excellent and the staff were lovely. As a big bonus the bar served alcohol to guests in the bar until late. Social distancing well enforced was as safe as you could get.

Killarney itself seemed quiet enough in terms of footfall but was impossible to get food in any decent place without 2 days advance notice. Pubs strictly enforcing the rules too. Neither of us had been there since we were kids so did lots of the touristy stuff. It was kind of bittersweet to have lots of the attractions to ourselves but Killarney having a lot less buzz about the place. Overall an expensive but enjoyable and relaxing weekend. When you get the weather Ireland is truly a spectacular place.

shenanagans

sasta le wrote: »

I'm sick.of being ripped off doesn't have to be 5 star.And sick of the Irish crowd all I met was D4 knobs or middle class Aislings&Johns

Belfast is nice. I've been there in recent years but for a few days I'd try Portrush. I was there years ago. It's much nicer than Bangor area (which is very Orange).

Portrush is the biggest tourist town up North (outside Belfast). All I know is a family member went there with kids etc and they loved it. Said it was immaculately kept, very clean, loads of places for good food, fab beaches etc. Much cheaper for accommodation compared to down south.

Coastal area is better for staycation IMO.

shenanagans

adocholiday wrote: »

Just back from a long weekend in Killarney. The hotel we stayed in was great but expensive. The front desk said that they were completely full for the whole weekend though. Standard of food was excellent and the staff were lovely. As a big bonus the bar served alcohol to guests in the bar until late. Social distancing well enforced was as safe as you could get.

Killarney itself seemed quiet enough in terms of footfall but was impossible to get food in any decent place without 2 days advance notice. Pubs strictly enforcing the rules too. Neither of us had been there since we were kids so did lots of the touristy stuff. It was kind of bittersweet to have lots of the attractions to ourselves but Killarney having a lot less buzz about the place. Overall an expensive but enjoyable and relaxing weekend. When you get the weather Ireland is truly a spectacular place.

Great place but a total rip off this year.

GoneHome

Plumbthedepths wrote: »

So you watched the news that told you the marches were cancelled this year?. The north is a lovely end of the country and one of my favourite cities is Derry. I spent many a childhood holiday in the north, foreign trips were beyond my family's means. Never a bad experience. Btw your link doesn't work but I suspect it's not form this year.

The link works perfectly, I just clicked into it there myself again to check, it's from a BBC news report last week about the orange marches, but sure come here what ever you love N.I. and I love going up there as well and as I say I've extended family living in Belfast and Tyrone and head up there every year but just not in July
(that's when they come down to us in Limerick to escape )

sasta le

adocholiday wrote: »

Just back from a long weekend in Killarney. The hotel we stayed in was great but expensive. The front desk said that they were completely full for the whole weekend though. Standard of food was excellent and the staff were lovely. As a big bonus the bar served alcohol to guests in the bar until late. Social distancing well enforced was as safe as you could get.

Killarney itself seemed quiet enough in terms of footfall but was impossible to get food in any decent place without 2 days advance notice. Pubs strictly enforcing the rules too. Neither of us had been there since we were kids so did lots of the touristy stuff. It was kind of bittersweet to have lots of the attractions to ourselves but Killarney having a lot less buzz about the place. Overall an expensive but enjoyable and relaxing weekend. When you get the weather Ireland is truly a spectacular place.

What hotel may I ask?
If I was paying for a hotelmid want to be able to have a drink in a bar or lobby after dinner

GoneHome

shenanagans wrote: »

Great place but a total rip off this year.

Totally and that's why I'm recommending everyone to wait until later in the year to do the staycation, July and August are prime rip off months for a staycation, why can't people see that

adocholiday

GoneHome wrote: »

Totally and that's why I'm recommending everyone to wait until later in the year to do the staycation, July and August are prime rip off months for a staycation, why can't people see that

We were limited to this time of the year unfortunately

sasta le wrote: »

What hotel may I ask?
If I was paying for a hotelmid want to be able to have a drink in a bar or lobby after dinner

Sorry I'd prefer not to say in case somebody reports them. I think there are a few possibly doing the same thing though.

JP Liz V1

Kerry seems popular

Plumbthedepths

GoneHome wrote: »

The link works perfectly, I just clicked into it there myself again to check, it's from a BBC news report last week about the orange marches, but sure come here what ever you love N.I. and I love going up there as well and as I say I've extended family living in Belfast and Tyrone and head up there every year but just not in July
(that's when they come down to us in Limerick to escape )

The parades are muted this year, you can't knock the friendliness of the people. Ran the Derry marathon two years ago large group of us from the Midlands can't mistake the accent and the reception was awesome.
Btw Limerick is a lovely place and definitely defies it's negative rep. My son is in college there and I have a good friend living in Moyross. Actually ran the Limerick marathon in 2016.

Plumbthedepths

JP Liz V1 wrote: »

Kerry seems popular

Holidayed in Kerry in 1997 , never had a staycation since.

GoneHome

Plumbthedepths wrote: »

The parades are muted this year, you can't knock the friendliness of the people. Ran the Derry marathon two years ago large group of us from the Midlands can't mistake the accent and the reception was awesome.
Btw Limerick is a lovely place and definitely defies it's negative rep. My son is in college there and I have a good friend living in Moyross. Actually ran the Limerick marathon in 2016.

Plumb, you're on my wavelength here I was just saying I love the North and have had some great times there but just I wouldn't be heading up there in the summer months when all that orange order s^%t is going on, that was my point

Plumbthedepths

GoneHome wrote: »

Plumb, you're on my wavelength here I was just saying I love the North and have had some great times there but just I wouldn't be heading up there in the summer months when all that orange order s^%t is going on, that was my point

Sorry I probably got the wrong end of the stick. I'm a regular visitor to the north . Even during the troubles I loved visiting the region. Majority of my father's family lives in NI. Yet my grandparents lived just outside Lifford.I only discovered after my grandfather's death why he refused to go across the border, seems he was wanted.

Banana Republic.

In Ireland the hotels, restaurants and bars are always crying out for “staycations” the minute it becomes popular boom prices hikes on a massive scale and they wonder why people don’t explore Ireland more.

GoneHome

Banana Republic. wrote: »

In Ireland the hotels, restaurants and bars are always crying out for “staycations” the minute it becomes popular boom prices hikes on a massive scale and they wonder why people don’t explore Ireland more.

It's the time of year though, why does everyone feel the need to flock to Kerry/Galway/Donegal in July or August, why can't people just wait until a different time of year

Plumbthedepths

Banana Republic. wrote: »

In Ireland the hotels, restaurants and bars are always crying out for “staycations” the minute it becomes popular boom prices hikes on a massive scale and they wonder why people don’t explore Ireland more.

In fairness a captive audience is rip for rip off behaviour.
The Irish hospitality industry can't help itself the gouging behaviour is ingrained.

GoneHome

Maybe we're kind of different but though out the year we go for random weekends away like before the lockdown our last night away was in PortLaoise, found a lovely restaurant for dinner on the Sat evening then a few pints in a lovely old style pub and back to the hotel for a great nights sleep , great breakfast next morning in the hotel and back down the motorway home within an hour and a half.

sasta le

GoneHome wrote: »

Where was that Sasta?

I did 2 nights I Donegal and a night in Galway

sasta le

As my father said 15 punts for a stew in Kerry pub around 99 he was done

YellowBucket

I had a look around at pricing and can't find anything I would want to spend it on and it would need to be really safe and probably 2 weeks or so. So, no I won't be doing any holidays this year beyond home.

I also don't really find the whole thing very relaxing with all the requirements for PPE and, while it may be irrational, I don't feel entirely comfortable or safe with hotels, mostly because I can't understand how pillows and so on are clean, unless they're actually brand new / have been sterilised somehow.

Given we're putting so much effort into social distancing and face masks and so on, it just doesn't make logical sense to me that I would want to spend nights in a hotel. How could the cleaning could possibly work, given what the situation has been in terms of everything else. I mean, I was being told to use hand sanitiser before even touching the screen on a coffee machine the other day (even though I'd already used hand sanitiser entering the premises). We can't handle shared menus, yet, it's somehow fine to sleep in a bed that might have been slept in by someone else without replacing the mattress and sterilising the bed frame?

Either we're being totally over the top in every other aspect of life, or this whole tourism thing is still highly risky and we're just prepared to ignore that for the sake of €€

I wouldn't mind doing a few day trips near home, but that's it.

I'd be fine if I had a holiday home somewhere, but for the moment, absolutely no way I'm staying anywhere I'm not entirely in control of.

Mossie1975

Back after a few days in The Kingdom. Plans already afoot for the next mini staycation.

In a self-catering apartment attached to a hotel in Clifden at the moment. It described itself as "luxurious" on the website and charged accordingly. Thought I was doing the "right thing" by choosing to stay here. Quite frankly it's very far from luxurious, and even shabby looking. Drab in the extreme, and I told them that if I owned the furniture I would hire a big skip and through it all in, and maybe get some fresh looking stuff from Ikea. Not even a place to put toiletries bag in bathroom, or a proper towel rail. They asked me how they could improve it for me, and I replied "well, where do you start, it's so obviously bad". I suggested they hire the advice of an interior designer or a Francis Brennan type figure.

I had spent a lovely night in the Lodge at Ashford Castle and have worked out that I could have remained there and enjoyed dinner with wine and breakfast for the same duration, for €500 less than I am paying here. It's a complete rip-off here.

@ss

At the moment I'm staying in a self-catering apartment attached to a hotel in Clifden that described itself as luxurious on the website, and charging accordingly. Booked 6 nights on the basis of it being as described, but it is anything but luxurious. I had just spent a luxurious night at the Lodge at Ashford Castle, and have worked out that had I stayed there a further 6 nights, enjoying breakfast & dinner with wine included, I would ha e come out €500 the richer.

Some of the furniture is only fit for a skip, the dull brown cheap-looking sofa included. Almost bare yellow walls to match, stained heaters, burn marks on table. Cheapest of everything on board. No design whatsoever. I think some prisons have a more upbeat vibe. Luxurious my @ss. The people in charge are lovely, all apologetic etc, and even agreeing it could do with improvement. They even offered to get painters in whilst I'm here to make it better, but I declined the offer of the decorators coming in and disturbing what should be a peaceful uplifting holiday. I actually very rarely have complaint about places I stay, and have enjoyed top notch self-catering in eg Tallinn for far less. I don't know if self-catering standards in Ireland are generally poor as I have had no previous experience of it here.

jonnny68

sen this on whatsapp pretty accurate i reckon :pac::D

Padraig Mor

GoneHome wrote: »

It's the time of year though, why does everyone feel the need to flock to Kerry/Galway/Donegal in July or August, why can't people just wait until a different time of year

Because kids......

woodchuck

Padraig Mor wrote: »

Because kids......

And even though the weather is obviously unpredictable, you've a better shot at nice weather during the summer.

Another big factor is the longer days. Who wants to do a staycation in Ireland during the winter when the sun sets at 4pm?

Having said that, I have no kids and generally I'm a fan of taking holidays during the shoulder seasons (usually abroad though). It's usually less touristy/crowded and there are better deals (and less hot! I'm actually not a fan of the heat..). We did our staycation in Ireland in early July this year though, because frankly I'd just had enough of the restrictions and 2020 in general and needed a break asap or I would've had a nervous breakdown.

tiredblondie

I've done a staycation every year in Ireland for years now as well as a week in the sun!
I always take the dogs for their holiday for a week.
I'm booked to go to Wexford this year, i wasn't planning on booking with everything going on but when they start bringing things forward, i went ahead and done it.....and since then, they delayed the opening of the pubs and i'm worried that they'll push back again and everything will be closed

YellowBucket

The quality of what gets sold as luxury self catering here seems very variable and unpredictable. It’s something Failte Ireland would want to get a grip of as there’s nothing more disappointing than booking what turns out to feel more like a self catering hostel when it’s sold as luxurious.

I’ve experienced exactly the same. The garish orange and yellow interior walls, the cheap pine furniture, the lumpy mattress that you can feel every spring in and my personal nightmare: the weird economy 7 / ESB gold shield heating that never manages to heat the water without all sorts of convolutions. Why in Ireland can’t houses have the same easy to use, cheap to run water heating as everywhere else in Europe? Normally you have an ultra insulated tank that just heats. There’s no heat loss worth talking about so it just says on. We seem obsessed with immersions and timers and stuff that doesn’t work at all and is extremely inconvenient. I replaced my own home system with something a lot more like what’s normal on the continent and it makes a hell of a difference - bills went down, convenience went up.

Also the lack of comfortable heating, especially in bedrooms is awful in this climate. I’ve encountered that economy 7 garbage with nothing but a tiny hardwired convector heater in the bedrooms and it means very uncomfortable nights and it can be cold here in summer. It’s not the Mediterranean and you can easily get 8C at night in May and June.

That and the lack of a proper tumble dryer, even in very top end places, is crazy. The weather is very wet and you’re likely to be doing outdoors stuff. Doing the laundry shouldn’t be a major hassle. A basic set of a washer and a decent dryer isn’t that much to ask. Those awful washer dryers are next to useless as dryers and even damage clothes as they often seem to dry extremely hot. Everything comes out over heated, wrinkled and smelling like rubber.

Anyway, that’s my rant about Irish self catering.

I find at the similar price points the quality in France for example is often better and it’s definitely more regulated and predictable.

GBX

Yeah, were looking at West Cork or Kerry for November. No interest in going abroad anytime soon. That includes our honeymoon for next May!

woodchuck

GBX wrote: »

Yeah, were looking at West Cork or Kerry for November. No interest in going abroad anytime soon. That includes our honeymoon for next May!

We're in the same boat. Postponed our wedding from Sept 2020 to May 2021. Not even thinking about a honeymoon tbh! If we can actually go ahead and get married with all of our immediate family (siblings live abroad) we'll be happy out. A break in Ireland would be fine, but not holding my breath when it comes to big trip abroad. Before the lockdown we'd been considering places like the Galapagos or Indonesia for the honeymoon :rolleyes:

GBX

woodchuck wrote: »

We're in the same boat. Postponed our wedding from Sept 2020 to May 2021. Not even thinking about a honeymoon tbh! If we can actually go ahead and get married with all of our immediate family (siblings live abroad) we'll be happy out. A break in Ireland would be fine, but not holding my breath when it comes to big trip abroad. Before the lockdown we'd been considering places like the Galapagos or Indonesia for the honeymoon :rolleyes:

Yeah we had ideas of somewhere exotic as well, totally on the back burner now. We may just be holidaying in Ireland for the next few years and that's fine.

woodchuck

GBX wrote: »

Yeah we had ideas of somewhere exotic as well, totally on the back burner now. We may just be holidaying in Ireland for the next few years and that's fine.

We went on safari last year and I'm absolutely delighted we didn't wait to do it! It was a lifelong dream of mine and I always thought I'd do it for a honeymoon, but I got sick of waiting for him to pop the question :P I'm really glad I just said "fcuk it" and made it happen last year.

We're at the stage of life now where we're starting to settle down (buying a house atm, as well as planning the wedding), so the big trips were naturally going to ease off for us as other things started to take priority.

Absolutely sucks for anyone who is coming into the wanderlust years of their life though

GBX

We couldn't make our mind up on where exactly to go. Kind of glad we delayed. The trip of a lifetime can wait till we (and the rest of the world) is ready!

woodchuck

GBX wrote: »

We couldn't make our mind up on where exactly to go. Kind of glad we delayed. The trip of a lifetime can wait till we (and the rest of the world) is ready!

I'd put himself in charge of organising the honeymoon (since I was doing everything else!) so naturally it was put on the long finger. I was p1ssed off at him at the time, but obviously relieved now.

bladespin

woodchuck wrote: »

I'd put himself in charge of organising the honeymoon (since I was doing everything else!) so naturally it was put on the long finger. I was p1ssed off at him at the time, but obviously relieved now.

Reading this has reminded me of ours, we put everything into the wedding and almost forgot the Honeymoon, as a last minute thought I booked 5 days in Portugal on GoHop, we had hols planned with our boys anyway (6 and 4) they were small so we didn't want to leave them very long but my mum said to treat Mrs spin so I did.

Lets just say the hotel I had booked was more of a hostel (metal frame beds etc) and the place itself was right in the middle of nowhere, even the taxi got lost bringing us there - no probs distancing as there was literally nothing to do etc. We came back in the middle of a heatwave here and took the boys off to Cork for a week - it was one of the best hols ever - no exaggeration, Cobh was like something on the Mediterranean. Tans, fun, great food etc brilliant.

Cape Clear

Deleted User wrote: »

At the moment I'm staying in a self-catering apartment attached to a hotel in Clifden that described itself as luxurious on the website, and charging accordingly. Booked 6 nights on the basis of it being as described, but it is anything but luxurious. I had just spent a luxurious night at the Lodge at Ashford Castle, and have worked out that had I stayed there a further 6 nights, enjoying breakfast & dinner with wine included, I would ha e come out €500 the richer.

Some of the furniture is only fit for a skip, the dull brown cheap-looking sofa included. Almost bare yellow walls to match, stained heaters, burn marks on table. Cheapest of everything on board. No design whatsoever. I think some prisons have a more upbeat vibe. Luxurious my @ss. The people in charge are lovely, all apologetic etc, and even agreeing it could do with improvement. They even offered to get painters in whilst I'm here to make it better, but I declined the offer of the decorators coming in and disturbing what should be a peaceful uplifting holiday. I actually very rarely have complaint about places I stay, and have enjoyed top notch self-catering in eg Tallinn for far less. I don't know if self-catering standards in Ireland are generally poor as I have had no previous experience of it here.

Always worth having a look at tripadvisor.

Irish_rat

shenanagans wrote: »

Great place but a total rip off this year.

Being from Kerry never get the fascination with Killarney town itself. It's always a ripoff and normally thronged with tourists all summer round. Even more so you would want to avoid it now with the virus

freak scence

Irish_rat wrote: »

Being from Kerry never get the fascination with Killarney town itself. It's always a ripoff and normally thronged with tourists all summer round. Even more so you would want to avoid it now with the virus

yep it and dingle are not nice towns , but are in beautiful areas

Cape Clear

freak scence wrote: »

yep it and dingle are not nice towns , but are in beautiful areas

I think you have hit the nail on the head there both get overly busy, laced in paddy whackery and have clearly set out their stalls to cater for the US coach tour market above anything else.

freak scence

Cape Clear wrote: »

I think you have hit the nail on the head there both get overly busy, laced in paddy whackery and have clearly set out their stalls to cater for the US coach tour market above anything else.

yep kenmare for example far nicer , loads of lovely towns there bar those 2 kips

Salvadoor

freak scence wrote: »

yep kenmare for example far nicer , loads of lovely towns there bar those 2 kips

Kips





If you want kips, go to this thread


https://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2058071490

otnomart

Irish_rat wrote: »

Being from Kerry never get the fascination with Killarney town itself. It's always a ripoff and normally thronged with tourists all summer round. Even more so you would want to avoid it now with the virus

Stayed in Killarney once (many years ago) and was not mad about it myself, I recall the main street being quite drab at that time.
Next time I was in Killarney for a concert, stayed in Killorglin instead, I recall it was quite a nice and lively village.

murphy15

otnomart wrote: »

Stayed in Killarney once (many years ago) and was not mad about it myself, I recall the main street being quite drab at that time.
Next time I was in Killarney for a concert, stayed in Killorglin instead, I recall it was quite a nice and lively village.

tbh id avoid Kerry like the plague, id be more interested in galway mayo Sligo donegal area of the country, much better value too, we did galway and mayo this trip its was fabulous and next time I'm doing Sligo Donegal maybe even do Fermanagh

Spanish Eyes

Enjoyed reading all your posts.

Now can anyone tell me if there is a portal out there where I could book a luxury cottage/house by the sea, near a pub/restaurant/shop, in other words put in your criteria and suggestions will pop up. Not used to booking anything here for years, although we do have a few mini breaks during the year and they are easy enough to find. Suggestions very welcome.

Going to treat us to a nice break, Doesn't matter where and budget is generous, as long as it's got everything we need and is in the right place. Not doing anything else, the few bob is there so gotta spend it at home. September time, no kids with us now.

We could go to a luxury hotel but I'm a bit clumsy and I find it hard to relax around hushed tones, white tablecloths (always spill a few drops of red wine lol), and obsequious attention. So...... Help me please!

krissovo

Spanish Eyes wrote: »

Enjoyed reading all your posts.

Now can anyone tell me if there is a portal out there where I could book a luxury cottage/house by the sea, near a pub/restaurant/shop, in other words put in your criteria and suggestions will pop up. Not used to booking anything here for years, although we do have a few mini breaks during the year and they are easy enough to find. Suggestions very welcome.

Going to treat us to a nice break, Doesn't matter where and budget is generous, as long as it's got everything we need and is in the right place. Not doing anything else, the few bob is there so gotta spend it at home. September time, no kids with us now.

We could go to a luxury hotel but I'm a bit clumsy and I find it hard to relax around hushed tones, white tablecloths (always spill a few drops of red wine lol), and obsequious attention. So...... Help me please!

Rent a posh boat on the Shannon and cruise around lough Derg to lots of great pubs in Garrykennedy, Terryglass, Portumna, Mountshannon, Shannon Bridge etc. Its the ultimate staycation in my eyes and September should have availability.

Failing that a combination of bookings.com, tripadvisor and google maps is a good start.

bladespin

Spanish Eyes wrote: »

Enjoyed reading all your posts.

Now can anyone tell me if there is a portal out there where I could book a luxury cottage/house by the sea, near a pub/restaurant/shop, in other words put in your criteria and suggestions will pop up. Not used to booking anything here for years, although we do have a few mini breaks during the year and they are easy enough to find. Suggestions very welcome.

Have a look at The Beach Bar’ in Sligo, far more than just a pub, properties close by for bb&b and rent, lovely spot and amazing food.