As Iceland seems to be a non starter, here, by presidential request, is a new thread. But note the title 'Road Trip'.
General Road Trip to Ireland
- Thread starter AndyPM
- Start date
Currently reading:
General Road Trip to Ireland
OP
OP
There are NO green lanes in Ireland, or public rights of way as in the UK. Public roads are tarmaced, all other roads/tracks are privately owned.
OP
OP
The various Land Rover and Trail Bike forums have been arguing the issue of access for years and the consensus seems to be that so long as a track doesn't have a 'Private' sign then it's fair game. The Gardai (Police} are pretty laid back and thought unlikely to trouble you but the land owners are another matter entirely. At least one 4x4 is reported as having had its tyres shot out by an angry farmer! Equally, other people say that the farmers have been very friendly. Local knowledge seems to be crucial to going off the beaten track and as a non-Irishman I wouldn't like to risk it.
OP
OP
The West Coast of Ireland is a great place for a driving holiday but anything off-tarmac seems to be impractical except for very short bits, the crossing to Omey Island for instance. Off-road driving in Ireland is basically restricted to organised sites. Some farmers allow people in on a pay per day basis and some 4x4 clubs rent the access rights to forestry/moorland areas but otherwise, without the landowners permission it's a no no.
OP
OP
Dina and I have had two holidays in the west of Ireland driving bits of the Wild Atlantic Way (google it) staying in pubs/small hotels and sticking to the roads, many of which are Panda friendly - narrow, twisting, often with grass growing in the middle and with great scenery everywhere. The weather was good too, which I'm told is unusual on the West Coast. Our last trip was in late September 2017, we caught the night ferry from Pembroke at 02:45 arriving Rosslare 06:45 (there are also ferries from Holyhead to Dublin for those of you up north) then spent six days driving around before catching the 20:45 ferry home, landing back in Wales at 00:46. Did the Ring of Kerry on our first trip, this last one we drove from Ennis up to Westport doing touristy things like the Cliffs of Moher, Achill Island and of course Father Ted's house.The west coast is a popular area so we tried to avoid the school holidays, think Cornwall in summer, narrow roads and plenty of caravans but once away from the main tourist hot-spots and the major roads there wasn't much traffic and the driving relatively stress free, all very enjoyable and highly recommended.
OP
OP
So how much does it all cost? Well in 2017 the return ferry (1 car, 2 adults and a cabin) was £285.75. Five nights b+b, including one night at quite a posh hotel (couldn't find anywhere else convenient that also had parking) was £640.20. Used about six tanks of fuel, prices pretty similar to here. Took around £800 in Euros and I think we had some left over afterwards, but can't be sure, so what with meals, drinks etc the total cost for two people was roughly £1725.
