MIKE AND JESS' TRAVEL DIARY
Ireland Trip
About our trip to Ireland
Ireland had been high on our travel bucket list since we had met. Both of Mike’s parents had retired around the same time and had also dreamed of visiting the Emerald Isle. Turns out, Mike’s brother and sister-in law had also been interested in the country. What better place to celebrate retirements and have a family trip, than Ireland!
When: September 2018
Why: It was on our bucket list because of how beautiful it is and the stories of friendly locals.
How Long: 2 weeks
Most surprised us: How narrow the roads are! Also how much we liked towns as we got further north. The southern coastal towns were amazing, but Galway and Clifden were far more interesting than we had thought!
Most disappointed us: The popularity of this country. Many of the towns we visited were more touristy than anywhere we had been prior to this trip. Loads of tour buses filled parking lots and the feeling of authenticity was hard to come by due to this.
Would we do it again: We would like to visit Galway again and want to loop the northwestern part of the Republic of Ireland in with a Northern Ireland trip. We would probably not re-visit anywhere we went on this trip, but don’t regret a single stop of it.
Would we recommend it: Because Ireland is such a popular bucket-list country for people, we have been asked about it since taking the trip. Our recommendation is to instead consider going to Wales. Wales has the same rolling green hills with sheep and stone walls, craggy coastline, kind and welcoming locals, great food, and-best of all-you feel like you’re the first to travel there.