Two weeks ago, the Stoy family came to Ireland on holiday, and agreed to share their experiences of travelling from Dublin to Cork and Galway with The Irish Times. Here, they give their final verdict on the experience
BEA ‘My favourite place was Dublin’
I would describe Ireland to my friends at home as rainy and cold, so you couldn’t get tanned. Ireland has a nice, green landscape and you can see a lot of things, like old castles and churches.
I enjoyed staying in our cottage in Ahakista, Co Cork and the hotel in Galway. The cottage was good for relaxing and Agnes, the landlady, took good care of us.
The hotel had a good breakfast and a big indoor swimming-pool and a fitness centre.
We did a lot of tours and museums, which were difficult to understand from time to time.
For me the highlight was the small towns with all the different coloured houses. My favourite place was Dublin, because it had so much to do. My least favourite was Limerick, because there wasn’t really anything special to see and it didn’t look very nice overall.
I would like to return to Ireland, and to other nearby countries, such as Scotland and England. I would maybe like to go more into the centre of Ireland.
ENYA ‘It didn’t rain as often as I expected’
I loved the beautiful landscape and the friendly people. Sitting in the car for hours was less enjoyable.
Surprisingly, it was very sunny on a few days and didn’t rain as often as I expected.
The highlight for me was seeing the “fake” solstice sunrise in the tomb at Newgrange. My favourite place was one point on the Ring of Kerry, where the view was amazing.
If I ever have the chance to come back to Ireland, I would love to return. I think I would want to spend more time in one place to really get to know the culture.
Ireland is a country with beautiful nature, really nice people and great musicians. If I could change one thing about the holiday, I would have slept more.
ANDREJ ‘We were surprised to find a great jazz band, between all the folk music’
I enjoyed seeing the many historic buildings and sites that are still here and are sometimes even integrated into modern buildings. I liked the smaller roads and the fantastic views. The very long car rides were tiring, as was the weather on some days.
In Galway, we were surprised to find a great jazz band, between all of the musicians playing folk music. My highlight was the Ring of Beara. My least favourite place was our small hotel room in Dublin.
I might come back in a few years with some friends, to go driving along the landscape in a car or on motorcycles. Ireland is pretty green and unpopulated (compared with Switzerland).
MARIA ‘We definitely have to come back to find out if the Cliffs of Moher actually exist’
I enjoyed the bright green nature in combination with the stone walls, sheep and beautiful houses, walking through the nice towns and villages, and the friendly people.
Unfortunately, we had to drive in the car for long stretches, because we underestimated the distances. Usually it looked much closer on the map, but on the small and curvy roads it took much longer than expected.
We were surprised that the articles about us in The Irish Times were so big and that quite a lot of people read them, and recognised us on the street.
My highlight was the Galway Bay Jazz Band. They played really good music in a pub in Galway.My favourite place was the Ring of Beara. Ireland is a land with beautiful countryside, very nice people and you can spend hours just looking at nice houses, soaking in the breathtaking views and listening to good music in the streets and in the pubs.
If I could change one thing? It would be to visit the Cliffs of Moher when they are not hiding in the midst of clouds. So we definitely have to come back some day to find out if they actually exist.
GUIDO ‘The weather forecast was very unreliable, so planning was difficult’
I really enjoyed the variety of Ireland: Dublin with its cultural offerings, the Irish towns and villages with their Irish flair, and the great landscape in different shades of green, with mountains, hills, cliffs and the sea. And, of course, the friendly, helpful people we met.
The weather forecast, even for the following one or two days, was very unreliable, so planning was difficult. Although generally the weather was better than I had expected.
The best part for me was learning about the long history of Ireland and seeing many of the ancient, historical sites. I also liked driving those narrow, curvy roads. Most of the time this was fun and better than driving just boring motorways.
I liked the Ring of Beara very much, with its wide variety of colourful villages, cliffs, beaches and narrow streets.
Maria and I might return to Ireland in a couple of years, when the kids are not coming on holidays with us any more, so we will do the things that perhaps they don’t enjoy so much. I would like to visit some of the places we didn’t have time to see and go hiking, maybe on the Sheep’s Head or the Ring of Beara.
I will tell my friends at home that Ireland is worth a visit, if you are are not looking for constantly warm and sunny weather and are interested in more than just a beach holiday.
Family values: The Stoys' verdict on their Irish holiday
How much did you spend including flights, accommodation and spending money?All in all, approximately €5,800.
Do you consider this a cheap or expensive holiday?We think it was good value, considering that we are five people, we spent 15 days here, and all the different areas we visited and the many things we saw and did.
What did you buy to take home?A tin whistle, T-shirts, sweaters, Guinness, many postcards and other souvenirs.
Did participating in The Irish Times project change your holiday, and if so, how?We spent more time thinking about what we did, taking photographs to send to The Irish Times and we spent some time writing down our impressions of the country. This will help us to remember our visit with more detail.
Some people recognised us. It gave a special flavour to our holidays. Generally, it was a good experience.
What are your overall thoughts on visiting Ireland?We spent a lot of time together as a family, in the car, in museums, restaurants, sitting inside when it was raining.
We did a lot of cultural activities, with lots of museums and visitor centres, and we saw a lot of impressive natural scenery.
The Irish Times would like to thank City of a Thousand Welcomes, Dublin's free service that connects tourists with locals, for their assistance with this series. cityofathousandwelcomes.com
The Swiss tourists rate Ireland
The food ***
The pub ****
Friendliness ****
Tourist facilities *****
Transport ***
Tourist information *****
Prices ***
Accommodation
– Dublin **
– Others ****
Driving ***
Weather ***
Shopping ***
Music *****
