I was approached not too long ago to plan a trip in Ireland for two weeks for the budget traveller- a leisurely exploration of the southern Ireland and Dublin. Once more, the client did not want to have to drive if possible.
My first thought- if she could drive, was that Transat Holidays offers a wonderful “Go-As-You-Please” B&B package including flights for a reasonable price dependent on dates, star category and length of stay…….
On the other hand, she didn’t want to drive if possible, so why not look at a mix of public transportation from Dublin to Killarny to Galway and back to Dublin for the flight home…. And then simply plan day tours and hotels with breakfasts in each?
So in the end that is how I proceeded…..
Ten days was the planned itinerary- so given the number of day trips one can take from Dublin, perhaps 5 days in Dublin, the 4 days in the Killarney area, and then another 4 days in the Galway area before heading back home…. Basically a 3 centre vacation.
Pricing the travel by train first, I discovered that the Dublin to Killarney Express train runs once a day for $116 CAD- if one wanted to however, there are myriad other connections and they could transfer and so pick their times accordingly. Travelling with Bus Eiriann prices were considerably cheaper- about one-third or about $40 CAD- and schedules were plentiful- but no direct routes…..
Heading from Killarney to Galway meant a transfer no matter how one went…..so here I looked at the train first……no go. So back to the bus- with a transfer in Limerick. And again- the prices were excellent- about 27 euros or $40 CAD.
Then heading from Galway back to Dublin- the bus prices again just excellent at about 14 euros or $21 CAD. Therefore travelling around Ireland would cost about $100 CAD to enjoy this three centre vacation! So yes- there are ways for the budget traveller to enjoy Ireland….. Of course, we will need to add on B&B’s, along with day trips, but I think this is an excellent start! And air fares in the fall are under $800 per person…..
Contact me for more information if this is your style of travel! For a planning fee, I can save you time and money to give you an excellent trip within your budget!
