Ireland 2017

Our holiday started with a flight into and a few days in Dublin, the first time either of us had visited.

Our holiday started with a flight into and a few days in Dublin, the first time either of us had visited.

Also known as Brú na Bóinne, Newgrange is an ancient tomb, estimated to have been built approximately 3200BC.
The fabled Hill of Tara, home to faeries and ghosts and a centre of myths and magic.

A day on a Hop-on/Hop-off included a visit to the Guinness Factory, which was really cool!.  There are 6 or 7 levels to factory that you work your way up through, ending in a bar where you can have a Guinness!

Used as a location in several Game of Thrones episodes,The Dark Hedges is a spooky place. When we visited there was a light drizzle and a little mist, which made it feel even weirder!

The Giant’s Causeway is an area of about 40,000 interlocking basalt columns, the result of an ancient volcanic eruption. It is located in County Antrim on the north coast of Northern Ireland. The day we were there it blew a gale, which I suspect is situation normal for the area. Spectacularly beautiful spot, well worth the effort to get there.

Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge (locally pronounced carrick-a-reedy) is a famous rope bridge near Ballintoy in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. The bridge links the mainland to the tiny island of Carrickarede. Unfortunately the weather conditions had the bridge closed the day we visited 🙁

A very quick stop in the Capital of Northern Ireland, which looked very beautiful from the little we saw. Definitely worth a longer look!

Wicklow is the county town of County Wicklow and the capital of the Mid-East Region in Ireland. Very pretty town.

A quick stopover in Rosslare Harbour, which is one of the Ferry Ports. Not a whole lot to see or do here.

We noticed this quaint abandoned Church and Cemetary on the side of the road, and had to stop for a look around.

The Hook Lighthouse (also known as Hook Head Lighthouse) is a building situated on Hook Head at the tip of the Hook Peninsula in County Wexford, in Ireland. It is one of the oldest lighthouses in the world and the second oldest operating lighthouse in the world. The guided tour is really well done and worth the money.

The Most Haunted House in the UK (So they say!) Unfortunately the house is closed most days, including the day we were there.

Home of Waterford Crystal. Dani went in for a look while I had a rest and a coffee in their cafe 🙂

The one and only Ferry crossing on the whole journey!

The grounds around Blarney Castle are just beautiful, and would take a couple of days to explore completely, I suspect. We saw the Blarney Stone, but declined to kiss it on hygiene grounds.

Once a stately home, now Bantry House is open to the public (for a fee, of course!)

I Stumbled across this little gem whilst researching, and was glad we made the effort to visit. Only a small collection, built by a family over many years, I really enjoyed chatting with the owner whilst taking my pictures.

It was a wild and wet day when we drove to see the Cliffs of Moher. It turned out to be way too misty to see much, but the surrounding area was just stunning.

Muckross House is a very stately home, on a beautiful grounds. There is a lot of history to explore here.

Bunratty Castle is a restoration of a very old Irish Castle. It gives a very good idea of life in medieval times.

We thought it would be funnier.

A Drive around the "Rebel County"

An outing to view the Cliffs of Moher was a bit of a flop due to bad weather, but we drove through some other beautiful spots!

Our last night in Ireland was an overnight stop in this delightful village, with a fantastic pub meal!