Scotland and Ireland tour

[ilovethiswebsite]

hi- I am looking to book a trip following a conference I have in Edinburg Scotland in June. Does anyone have any suggestions re. tours in Scotland and Ireland? I am interested in staying in some nice castles and b8b's in the countryside. I prefer smaller tours or privately escorted tours. I am also open to renting a car or traveling by train if they are easy to do.

 

[ElizabethR]

Hi,
I can't give you specific companies to use, but you may find what you are looking for here: http://www.visitscotland.com/
Also, renting cars and taking trains are both very easy to do in Scotland and Ireland.

 

[Jennifer W]

I don't know about tours, but here are a few websites that list castle hotels. The last one on the list is nice - I had my wedding reception there. It's about 40 minutes drive from Edinburgh, but if you fancy it, do specify if you'd like a room in the castle - they also have an old farm steading converted to hotel accommodation on the same site.

Hiring a car here is easy enough, but if you want an automatic, do let them know. Most cars here aren't automatic and it might be hard to track one down unless it's booked in advance. Travel by train is fine, but if you're looking for slightly off the beaten track castles and B&Bs, you might need to plan it carefully, since most won't be too near a station.

My other tip would be to book asap - Edinburgh in particular gets really busy in summer.


http://www.celticcastles.com/

http://www.scotland-inverness.co.uk/Chatelaine/accomm.htm

http://www.airthcastlehotel.com/

Hope you have a fantastic time!

Jen

 

[movie zombie]

road trip in scotland was one of the best trips of my life. check the schedule for ferries to the orkney islands. there is usually one day of the week that is a "bargain" and you can take your car out for about the same price as just going. worth doing. having a car really makes the difference between seeing the real scotland and not. there is so much to see....so much history and a lot of standing stones. worth the trip.

ireland is easy driving and also worth renting a car.

admittedly, i'm not a tour person. i do use tour brochures for planning trips though....and for determining time frames to avoid certain places. nothing worse than visiting a special place when the tour buses show up.

MoZo

 

[ilovethiswebsite]

Wow thanks guys! We don't mind driving but were worried about 1) not having an automatic and 2) driving on the opposite side of the road than we are used to. Sounds like driving really makes a difference between seeing the real Scotland and not. Does anyone know how long it would take to travel by car from Edinburgh to Iverness then back to Glasgow??

 

[ilovethiswebsite]

PS: Can you drive a rental car from Scotland to Ireland?

 

[movie zombie]

you can make the trip in days or weeks. much depends on your purpose. let scotland seduce you and meander a bit. don't lock into a timeline other than arrival and departure. take it a day at a time and don't be disappointed if you don't see all the tourist spots you thought you wanted to see.....because there is a lot that you'll miss in only making those stops. however, Culloden is a must do.

you'll need to research on the web and work with your rental provider re being able to take the car over to ireland. there are ferries that cross so i'm guessing that some may and some may not. west coast ireland is a must.....and only at most a 3 hour drive from dublin.

some go to scotland to do the scotch trail. some go for the castles. i went for the "old places". decide what your purpose is and plan your trip accordingly.

MoZo

ps scotland is dear to my heart.......

 

[ilovethiswebsite]

you can make the trip in days or weeks. much depends on your purpose. let scotland seduce you and meander a bit. don't lock into a timeline other than arrival and departure. take it a day at a time and don't be disappointed if you don't see all the tourist spots you thought you wanted to see.....because there is a lot that you'll miss in only making those stops. however, Culloden is a must do.

you'll need to research on the web and work with your rental provider re being able to take the car over to ireland. there are ferries that cross so i'm guessing that some may and some may not. west coast ireland is a must.....and only at most a 3 hour drive from dublin.

some go to scotland to do the scotch trail. some go for the castles. i went for the "old places". decide what your purpose is and plan your trip accordingly.

MoZo

ps scotland is dear to my heart.......

Great advice! Thank you movie zombie!

 

[Jennifer W]

Wow thanks guys! We don't mind driving but were worried about 1) not having an automatic and 2) driving on the opposite side of the road than we are used to. Sounds like driving really makes a difference between seeing the real Scotland and not. Does anyone know how long it would take to travel by car from Edinburgh to Iverness then back to Glasgow??

DH does this journey quite often. It takes him about 3.5 hours to drive from Edinburgh to Inverness, and about 4 hours to drive from Inverness to Glasgow. That's without stopping, though. If you're hoping to see things along the route, obviously it will take longer.

You'll be able to hire an automatic if you reserve it in advance - my aunt does this when she comes from NYC. You will be on the wrong side of the road though. Oh, and the wrong side of the car, too.

Check out NewEnglandLady's thread in Hangout - she's posted some gorgeous photos of her UK trip.

Jen

 

[Haven]

I am so very jealous! DH and I went to Ireland last summer with my sister and her FI, and we had an amazing time thanks to many wonderful recommendations from PSers.

I'm not sure if you're still thinking about going to Ireland, but I posted a trip report here with lots of details:
https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/back-from-ireland-pictures.144263/?hilit=ireland

And this thread has a ton of excellent Ireland advice/tips from PSers:
https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/one-week-in-ireland.139542/

Enjoy your trip!

 

[ilovethiswebsite]

I am so very jealous! DH and I went to Ireland last summer with my sister and her FI, and we had an amazing time thanks to many wonderful recommendations from PSers.

I'm not sure if you're still thinking about going to Ireland, but I posted a trip report here with lots of details:
https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/back-from-ireland-pictures.144263/?hilit=ireland

And this thread has a ton of excellent Ireland advice/tips from PSers:
https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/one-week-in-ireland.139542/

Enjoy your trip!

Thanks Haven! Those links were great and very informative! Now I wish we were visiting Dingles!!! But alas - we are staying 2 nights in Killarney instead and will be driving the ring of Kerry. We leave in 3 weeks!

 

[ilovethiswebsite]

I caved! Going to be staying 1 night in Dingles now. I couldn't resist your pictures, Haven.

So here is our final itinerary. We are going to be renting a car and driving:

Scotland:
- 6 nights in Edinburgh (had to stay there longer as I am going for a conference)
- 2 nights in Fort Williams (used as a base to explore the highlands). Was originally going to stay in Inverness but found Fort Williams to be a closer drive and had cheaper hotels.

Ireland:
- 1 night Dublin
- 1 night Kilkenny - explore town and enjoy countryside
- 2 nights Killarny - Visit the gap of dunloe and the Killarney National Park.
- 1 night Dingle - drive the Dingle Peninsula
- 1 night Galway - drive the the Cliffs of Moher on the way.


So excited! I pray the weather will be decent. Last year we went to northern Europe and it was horrendous....

 

[Pandora II]

Have fun!

You should be able to check the long-range forecast online.

Whatever the weather, it is always chilly in the evenings so bring a warm jumper - although Scotland and Ireland are THE places to buy warm jumpers!

 

[ilovethiswebsite]

Have fun!

You should be able to check the long-range forecast online.

Whatever the weather, it is always chilly in the evenings so bring a warm jumper - although Scotland and Ireland are THE places to buy warm jumpers!

Thanks for the tip Pandora! I will definitely pack warmly