Ireland 2024 Trip Advice

[cmckay]

I'm working on putting together a first time trip to Ireland for 2024 and was seeing if there was any advice on these two itineraries as I cant decide which to do. First itinerary has a lot more driving, bouncing around and little more expensive, second itinerary is Northern Ireland focused with less driving. Any changes to either itinerary you would do? Also was thinking of going June or September, good time to go with weather + pricing? Going as a twosome both in early 30s and would rent a car. Appreciate any help and advice for a once in a lifetime trip to Ireland! 

 

Itinerary 1

Day 1 - Morning arrival Shannon, Ballybunion 

Day 2 - Lahinch, Cliffs of Moher visit

Day 3 - St Patrick's Links

Day 4 - Royal Portrush + Portstewart

Day 5 - Royal County Down

Day 6 - The Island

Day 7 - Portmarnock, afternoon departure Dublin

 

Itinerary 2

Day 1 - Morning arrival Dublin, County Louth 

Day 2 - Royal County Down 36

Day 3 - Royal Portrush Dunluce + Valley

Day 4 - Portstewart

Day 5 - The Island + Portmarnock

Day 6 - Departure Dublin

[sabram]

Those are two really good itineraries. As you said, #1 has a bit more driving, but I'd opt for #1 with the following modifications. I'd probably skip Portstewart and play the Valley course at Portrush on the day you play Dunluce. I'd also add one of the other Rosapenna courses while there .

 

Whichever option you choose, you have a list of memorable courses

[hammergolf]

I have been fortunate enough to have played almost all of the courses on your itinerary in the last two years. Between your options, I would choose #1. However, you are driving by the best experience in Ireland and maybe the entire world imho. I would drop The Island or Portmarnock from your itinerary and add Carne for Day3. Carne is simply the most amazing piece of land I’ve ever played golf on. I prefer Island to Portmarnock personally, but honestly I would play Baltray (County Louth) before either of them. Plus it’s only another 20 minutes further from the airport than Island. It’s also on the way from RCD.

 

September will be less crowded and your car rental and hotels will be cheaper. One other thing, I would not recommend playing Bally straight of the flight. You will be exhausted and battling jet lag, so I would recommend adding a day to your trip to maybe play an easier course near Shannon for your first round. Doonbeg or Dromoland would be good options, then get a good nights sleep before you play Bally. You’ll want to enjoy it and getting off an 8+ hour red eye flight, another hour to get your bags and rental car, then driving another 1.5 hours to Bally and you’ll be done before you even tee off. 

Edited December 1, 2022 by hammergolf

[Chanceman]

Playing Ballybunion after a long flight and then two hours driving? I don’t get that. 

[cmckay]

14 hours ago, Chanceman said:

Playing Ballybunion after a long flight and then two hours driving? I don’t get that. 

 

I was thinking Day 1 arrival at Shannon, play Ballybunion in the afternoon, sleep near Ballybunion. Day 2 drive Ballybunion to Lahinch, early afternoon play Lahinch, then drive to St Patricks. 

 

Day 2 I know a lot of driving. Ballybunion to Lahinch to St Paticks, not ideal

 

Trying to figure out with the itinerary for visitor days if its possibly to slide in an off day for the long drive Lahinch to St Patricks. Difficult figuring out what days you can play as a visitor 

[ajgoodal.704]

How about reversing the trip?  

 

Day 1 (Sunday) - Morning arrival Dublin, The Island - Stay in Belfast 2 Nights

Day 2 (Monday) - Royal County Down

Day 3 (Tuesday) - Royal Portrush Dunluce - Stay at Rosapenna 2 Nights

Day 4 (Wednesday) - Rosapenna St. Patrick's Links & Old Tom Links, Sandy Hills Links or Portsalon

Day 5 (Thursday) - Lahinch PM, Cliffs of Moher - Stay in Lahinch or down the coast near Kilkee 

Day 6 (Friday) - Ballybunion Old & Cashen (If you want more golf) - Stay in Adare, Limerick, Etc. or go back to Kilkee

Day 7 (Saturday) - Depart Shannon (Flights leave around 1PM, so getting 18 in prior will be tough)

 

Adding Carne between Rosapenna and Lahinch would be awesome, but it would push Lahinch and Ballybunion back a day and Ballybunion doesn't allow visitor play on Saturday.  

 

 

Edited December 2, 2022 by ajgoodal.704

[hammergolf]

12 hours ago, cmckay said:

 

I was thinking Day 1 arrival at Shannon, play Ballybunion in the afternoon, sleep near Ballybunion. Day 2 drive Ballybunion to Lahinch, early afternoon play Lahinch, then drive to St Patricks. 

 

Day 2 I know a lot of driving. Ballybunion to Lahinch to St Paticks, not ideal

 

Trying to figure out with the itinerary for visitor days if its possibly to slide in an off day for the long drive Lahinch to St Patricks. Difficult figuring out what days you can play as a visitor 

I think you’re discounting how tired you will be after the flight and jet lag. I’ve done the Ireland and Scotland flights many times. I and can assure you that flying 8+ hours then driving 2 hours, then trying to play Ballybunion exhausted isn’t going to be ideal.

[El Gringo]

56 minutes ago, ajgoodal.704 said:

How about reversing the trip?  

 

Day 1 (Sunday) - Morning arrival Dublin, The Island - Stay in Belfast 2 Nights

Day 2 (Monday) - Royal County Down

Day 3 (Tuesday) - Royal Portrush Dunluce - Stay at Rosapenna 2 Nights

Day 4 (Wednesday) - Rosapenna St. Patrick's Links & Old Tom Links, Sandy Hills Links or Portsalon

Day 5 (Thursday) - Lahinch PM, Cliffs of Moher - Stay in Lahinch or down the coast near Kilkee 

Day 6 (Friday) - Ballybunion Old & Cashen (If you want more golf) - Stay in Adare, Limerick, Etc. or go back to Kilkee

Day 7 (Saturday) - Depart Shannon (Flights leave around 1PM, so getting 18 in prior will be tough)

 

Adding Carne between Rosapenna and Lahinch would be awesome, but it would push Lahinch and Ballybunion back a day and Ballybunion doesn't allow visitor play on Saturday.  

 

 

Or, one could play Baltray (not as good as Island, but far more forgiving for a tired round) and spend the night in their dormy accommodation. Head out in the AM for RCD then bed down somewhere or push on to Portrush for the night. 

[cmckay]

Very true on being exhausted after a long overnight flight @hammergolf. @ajgoodal.704 good point on switching the route

 

What if it was this

 

Day 1 (Saturday) - Dublin arrival, Island afternoon, Guinness Tour - stay Dublin

Day 2 (Sunday) - Portmarnock morning - stay near RCD

Day 3 (Monday) - RCD - stay near Portrush

Day 4 (Tuesday) - Portrush + Portstewart - stay near Portrush

Day 5 (Wednesday) - St Patricks - stay Rosapenna

Day 6 (Thursday) -Day off, drive to Ballybunion, see Cliffs of Moher along way - stay Ballybunion 

Day 7 (Friday) - Ballybunion - stay Ballybunion or Lahinch

Day 8 (Saturday) - Lahinch - stay Lahinch (think wont be able to make afternoon flight out of Shannon)

Day 9 (Sunday) - Depart Shannon

 

Is that too crazy!? 

[ajgoodal.704]

3 hours ago, cmckay said:

Very true on being exhausted after a long overnight flight @hammergolf. @ajgoodal.704 good point on switching the route

 

What if it was this

 

Day 1 (Saturday) - Dublin arrival, Island afternoon, Guinness Tour - stay Dublin

Day 2 (Sunday) - Portmarnock morning - stay near RCD

Day 3 (Monday) - RCD - stay near Portrush

Day 4 (Tuesday) - Portrush + Portstewart - stay near Portrush

Day 5 (Wednesday) - St Patricks - stay Rosapenna

Day 6 (Thursday) -Day off, drive to Ballybunion, see Cliffs of Moher along way - stay Ballybunion 

Day 7 (Friday) - Ballybunion - stay Ballybunion or Lahinch

Day 8 (Saturday) - Lahinch - stay Lahinch (think wont be able to make afternoon flight out of Shannon)

Day 9 (Sunday) - Depart Shannon

 

Is that too crazy!? 

You'll want to verify that you can play the Island and Lahinch on Saturdays.  The weekend tee times are more difficult to get.  Its certainly doable.  A little more road time than I prefer.  Driving on those tight roads is tiring.  

[hammergolf]

7 hours ago, cmckay said:

Very true on being exhausted after a long overnight flight @hammergolf. @ajgoodal.704 good point on switching the route

 

What if it was this

 

Day 1 (Saturday) - Dublin arrival, Island afternoon, Guinness Tour - stay Dublin

Day 2 (Sunday) - Portmarnock morning - stay near RCD

Day 3 (Monday) - RCD - stay near Portrush

Day 4 (Tuesday) - Portrush + Portstewart - stay near Portrush

Day 5 (Wednesday) - St Patricks - stay Rosapenna

Day 6 (Thursday) -Day off, drive to Ballybunion, see Cliffs of Moher along way - stay Ballybunion 

Day 7 (Friday) - Ballybunion - stay Ballybunion or Lahinch

Day 8 (Saturday) - Lahinch - stay Lahinch (think wont be able to make afternoon flight out of Shannon)

Day 9 (Sunday) - Depart Shannon

 

Is that too crazy!? 

That’s better, but I would drop Portmarnock. It’s not in the same league as the other courses you are playing. I find it to be very overrated. If I was going, here’s how I would set the itinerary:

 

Day 1 Sat Arrive in Dublin drive to The Island, (15mins) take a nice shower in the locker room to refresh, have breakfast, then play. Drive into city center (30mins) take Guinness or Jameson Tour, or both and have some fun in the city

Day 2 Sun Wake up and drive to County Louth Golf Club (1hr) and play Baltray. Then drive to NewCastle (1.5hrs) stay there

Day 3 Mon Play RCD then drive to Belfast (45mins) or to Portrush (1.75hrs) and stay

Day 4 Tue Play Portrush and Portstewart. Will be a tough day as both are long tough walks. Stay in Portrush. You’ll be exhausted after that.
Day 5 Wed Drive to Rosapenna (2hrs) and play St. Patrick’s. Stay at the resort

Day 6 Thu Drive to Belmullet (3.5hrs) then play Carne. Either stay in Belmullet, or drive to Castlebar (1hr) and spend the night there.

Day 6 Fri Drive to Lahinch (2hrs) then play Lahinch. Visit Cliffs of Moher stay in Lahinch.

Day 7 Sat Drive to Killimer Ferry (45mins) then take Ferry to Tarbert (20mins) then drive to Ballybunion (30mins) and play Ballybunion Old and if you’re feeling more golf, take a cart and play The Cashen Course. It’s very tricked up but if you have the right frame of mind it can be fun.
Day 8 Drive to Shannon Airport (1.5hrs) fly home. 

 

I can’t recommend Carne enough. Of all the courses you’re playing I guarantee you Carne is the most breathtaking and will end up being the favorite course you play. You can see the Cliffs after or before you play Lahinch, it’s about 20mins from the course and an hour is plenty of time. If you can time it, it’s a great place to take in the sunset…. Also make sure to go by and see Paddy in town when you’re in Lahinch at The 19th! Best Guinness in Ireland.

Edited December 3, 2022 by hammergolf

[Chanceman]

My suggestion is

day 1 Shannon, drive to Carne, play Kilmore 9

day 2 play Carne 18, drive to Rosapenna

day 3 play St Patrick’s, drive to Portrush

day 4 play Portrush / PortStewart, drive to Newcastle

day 5 play County Down am/pm

day 6 drive to Dublin (play The Island or Portmarnock or Baltray or even Corballis) . Fly home.

[sabram]

I'm a contrarian regarding play just off the plane. I've done a half dozen golf trips to GB & I where I've taken a red-eye and played shortly after landing. Granted, I am a good sleeper on flights. I've never had a problem energy-wise on the first round and heading straight to the golf course from the airport and staying active until after dinner makes it a lot easier adjusting to the time difference. A whiskey and some chamber music on the ear buds can help to doze off on the flight

[Chanceman]

On 12/4/2022 at 1:01 AM, sabram said:

I'm a contrarian regarding play just off the plane. I've done a half dozen golf trips to GB & I where I've taken a red-eye and played shortly after landing. Granted, I am a good sleeper on flights. I've never had a problem energy-wise on the first round and heading straight to the golf course from the airport and staying active until after dinner makes it a lot easier adjusting to the time difference. A whiskey and some chamber music on the ear buds can help to doze off on the flight

I actually agree with you on that. If you arrive early it can be good to go to a course which is not too far and not one of your mainstays and spend a few hours getting tired before the evening. We did Ardglass after coming into Dublin and it was a perfect intro to the big guns. And I once went straight to Sharp Park from SFO . Playing Ballybunion  after a long flight and a long drive is another matter. 

[cmckay]

Ended up booking the below itinerary. Decided not to add the SW courses thinking it would be too much driving and wouldn't enjoy the trip as much. Was tough with the logistics since there were so few tee times at RCD and Portrush. Besides changing RCD and Portrush anything I should change / add / subtract to make it a better trip? I think all the other courses I can change the tee times. Was thinking maybe add Cruit Island the day we play St Patricks. Feel like around 8 courses in 6 days is a good number where we're not going totally overboard and won't be killing our bodies. Definitely want to play a lot but want to be able to enjoy the rounds!  

 

Any hotel recommendations in Newcastle besides Slieve Donard? Barely going to be at the hotel so figured don't need to go all out on spending. 

Any restaurant/pub recommendations for the towns we will be in?

 

Sat - Depart evening

Sun - Morning arrival, Ardglass 3pm / Sleep Newcastle

Mon - TBD Annesley or RCD + RCD 256pm / Sleep Newcastle (trying to get RCD 36 were on the waitlist for the morning) 

Tues - Porstewart 1150am / Sleep Portrush

Wed - St Patricks 1pm / Sleep Portrush (I would put this tuesday, but they are doing maintenance that day)

Thur - Royal Portrush 1228pm / Sleep Dublin

Fri - The Island 930am + Portmarnock 4pm / Sleep Dublin

Sat - Morning depart home

 

 

Appreciate any advice! 

[Chanceman]

17 hours ago, cmckay said:

Ended up booking the below itinerary. Decided not to add the SW courses thinking it would be too much driving and wouldn't enjoy the trip as much. Was tough with the logistics since there were so few tee times at RCD and Portrush. Besides changing RCD and Portrush anything I should change / add / subtract to make it a better trip? I think all the other courses I can change the tee times. Was thinking maybe add Cruit Island the day we play St Patricks. Feel like around 8 courses in 6 days is a good number where we're not going totally overboard and won't be killing our bodies. Definitely want to play a lot but want to be able to enjoy the rounds!  

 

Any hotel recommendations in Newcastle besides Slieve Donard? Barely going to be at the hotel so figured don't need to go all out on spending. 

Any restaurant/pub recommendations for the towns we will be in?

 

Sat - Depart evening

Sun - Morning arrival, Ardglass 3pm / Sleep Newcastle

Mon - TBD Annesley or RCD + RCD 256pm / Sleep Newcastle (trying to get RCD 36 were on the waitlist for the morning) 

Tues - Porstewart 1150am / Sleep Portrush

Wed - St Patricks 1pm / Sleep Portrush (I would put this tuesday, but they are doing maintenance that day)

Thur - Royal Portrush 1228pm / Sleep Dublin

Fri - The Island 930am + Portmarnock 4pm / Sleep Dublin

Sat - Morning depart home

 

 

Appreciate any advice! 

I would not recommend the long 3hr drive from Portrush to Dublin after golf on the Thursday. Suggest stopping overnight somewhere in between like Dundalk eg. It would be cheaper than Dubs, less traffic trouble on arrival, and easier to get to the Island next morning.

[hammergolf]

On 6/24/2023 at 10:24 AM, cmckay said:

Ended up booking the below itinerary. Decided not to add the SW courses thinking it would be too much driving and wouldn't enjoy the trip as much. Was tough with the logistics since there were so few tee times at RCD and Portrush. Besides changing RCD and Portrush anything I should change / add / subtract to make it a better trip? I think all the other courses I can change the tee times. Was thinking maybe add Cruit Island the day we play St Patricks. Feel like around 8 courses in 6 days is a good number where we're not going totally overboard and won't be killing our bodies. Definitely want to play a lot but want to be able to enjoy the rounds!  

 

Any hotel recommendations in Newcastle besides Slieve Donard? Barely going to be at the hotel so figured don't need to go all out on spending. 

Any restaurant/pub recommendations for the towns we will be in?

 

Sat - Depart evening

Sun - Morning arrival, Ardglass 3pm / Sleep Newcastle

Mon - TBD Annesley or RCD + RCD 256pm / Sleep Newcastle (trying to get RCD 36 were on the waitlist for the morning) 

Tues - Porstewart 1150am / Sleep Portrush

Wed - St Patricks 1pm / Sleep Portrush (I would put this tuesday, but they are doing maintenance that day)

Thur - Royal Portrush 1228pm / Sleep Dublin

Fri - The Island 930am + Portmarnock 4pm / Sleep Dublin

Sat - Morning depart home

 

 

Appreciate any advice! 

Just stay in Ardglass. GREAT little town with everything you could need and 30% - 40% cheaper than NewCastle with no additional driving after your round in Ardglass. Two great B&Bs, Burford, Margaret’s Cottage, as well as many rental apartments. I always try to stay in smaller villages on my trips as the prices are normally lower and the people are even more friendly and your business is appreciated even more. Old Commercial, and Lighthouse are great pubs, and Aldo’s has great food. You also have Curran’s, a seafood restaurant 5 mins away in Chapeltown. 
In the Portrush area, I stay in Coleraine since it’s a bit cheaper since it’s not a coastal town. It’s situated in between Portrush and Portstewart and a 10 minute drive to either. Too many pubs and restaurants to list, but my fav pubs are Queen’s Arms and Patsy’s in Coleraine,  Harbor Bar and The Station in Portrush, Portstewart Arms in Portstewart. Coleraine has plenty of restaurants since it bigger than the other towns. The Tides between PR and PS is good. 

[AltC]

Agree with staying in smaller locations and enjoying the local stuff versus the big flamboyant hotels - jeez the prices of hotels in central Dublin would make your eyes water - stayed in a nice wee b&b in Dun loughaire in April,  pretty suburb of Dublin on the seafront -only  30 mins on the metro into central Dublin - perfect and 1/3rd the price!

[cmckay]

Great idea to stay in Ardglass instead of Newcastle, didnt even think of that. The hotels in Newcastle just looked alright and with us having a full day at RCD were barely going to be at the hotel. Those B&Bs look pretty good, might as well go there and help with the cost of the trip

 

Portrush I think were going to stay at Golflinks Hotel, its right across the street from Royal Portrush. Hotel looked pretty nice. For Dublin were going to stay at the Grand Hotel Malahide, its right in between The Island and Portmarnock 

 

For Cruit Island is it worth it to make the trip out there? For that day we would drive from Portrush to play St Patricks in the morning then go over to Cruit Island in the afternoon then make the drive back to Portrush. Thought about staying out there but want to be well rested and close by for Royal Portrush the following day 

[hammergolf]

1 hour ago, cmckay said:

Great idea to stay in Ardglass instead of Newcastle, didnt even think of that. The hotels in Newcastle just looked alright and with us having a full day at RCD were barely going to be at the hotel. Those B&Bs look pretty good, might as well go there and help with the cost of the trip

 

Portrush I think were going to stay at Golflinks Hotel, its right across the street from Royal Portrush. Hotel looked pretty nice. For Dublin were going to stay at the Grand Hotel Malahide, its right in between The Island and Portmarnock 

 

For Cruit Island is it worth it to make the trip out there? For that day we would drive from Portrush to play St Patricks in the morning then go over to Cruit Island in the afternoon then make the drive back to Portrush. Thought about staying out there but want to be well rested and close by for Royal Portrush the following day 

Ardglass is great, and you’re only a few miles to Downpatrick if there is something you need that isn’t in Ardglass. Not to mention, its has best starting holes in links golf imho. You’ll want to spend some time around the clubhouse as well. It’s actually the oldest clubhouse in golf dating back to the 1400’s.

Golflinks is a good choice, on the outskirts of town, but a quick ride into to town or a nice walk. A short drive into Coleraine should you want to experience a bigger town with more pubs and dining options. 

Cruit Island is definitely worth the drive, since it’s only an hour from Rosapenna. Maybe get lunch to go and eat in the car on the drive over. Another plus is that the drive back from Cruit only adds a half hour to what to the return trip back to Portrush woukd be from Rosapenna. For me, I would happily drive an additional 1.5 hours to play Cruit every time I was in the area.

 

Grand in Malahide is a good choice. A little bit remote, but close enough to get to the City if you want and very convenient to the area courses. If you’re looking for a fun afternoon round to add if you have time, take a look at Corballis. Sit on the same land and butts up to The Island. It’s a par 68 that’s really fun to play, and for €35 is one of the best bargains in Ireland. 

[cmckay]

Starting to think about booking caddies for the trip. Would be awesome to have one for every course but unfortunately won't be able to do that. For the courses we're playing which should we definitely book a caddy for? 

 

Day 1 - Ardglass

Day 2 - Royal County Down

Day 3 - Portstewart

Day 4 - St Patricks Links

Day 5 - Royal Portrush

Day 6 - The Island + Portmarnock 

 

[hammergolf]

31 minutes ago, cmckay said:

Starting to think about booking caddies for the trip. Would be awesome to have one for every course but unfortunately won't be able to do that. For the courses we're playing which should we definitely book a caddy for? 

 

Day 1 - Ardglass

Day 2 - Royal County Down

Day 3 - Portstewart

Day 4 - St Patricks Links

Day 5 - Royal Portrush

Day 6 - The Island + Portmarnock 

 

RCD prob has the most blind shots where a caddie would help most. Portrush has a few blinds, and the front nine at Portstewart is a tough walk but don’t necessarily need a caddie. The others you would be fine without one.

[Chanceman]

In my experience, RCD would be the one where a caddy is both useful and interesting. Good storytellers!

[cmckay]

I just saw the Irish Open will be at Royal County Down next year. Is it always hosted in September or do they change it? I have an early June tee time, I really hope they don't make us play from mats or anything

[golfday]

On 8/1/2023 at 2:10 PM, cmckay said:

I just saw the Irish Open will be at Royal County Down next year. Is it always hosted in September or do they change it? I have an early June tee time, I really hope they don't make us play from mats or anything

https://www.independent.ie/sport/golf/irish-open-confirmed-for-royal-county-down-in-september-2024/a197100861.html

September 12-15 in 2024. I think that's far enough from your June time that they won't have you on mats. 

[Copacetic]

On 8/1/2023 at 7:10 PM, cmckay said:

I just saw the Irish Open will be at Royal County Down next year. Is it always hosted in September or do they change it? I have an early June tee time, I really hope they don't make us play from mats or anything

You won’t have any issues, this years open is at the Kclub in 2 weeks and just played it last week as normal.