Flight to Shannon –> The Burren –> Doolin –>Cliffs of Mohor –> Ailwee Caves
Our flight left NYC at 6pm Friday, so we got in to Shannon at around 5am Saturday morning. Neither of us were able to sleep on the plane- too excited π
When we landed, we picked up our rental car and set out in the still dark morning to head toward Doolin on the west coast. This was Joe’s first time driving on the other side of the road & car! It was a little tricky Β to say the least!
We realized after leaving the car rental place that the GPS we brought with us didn’t recognize Ireland as a country! Hello old school map…I remember you!
Somehow we made it to The Burren, which is Β a huge national park and we stumbled upon the perfumery. Unfortunately it was only about 6:30am and nothing was open!
So, we continued on taking pictures along the way.
And, after a few wrong turns and many confusing road signs, we made it to Doolin!
We were starving and managed to find a place that was open for breakfast (strange note- people in Ireland sleep in! like nothing really opens til noon!)
Joe got the full Irish breakfast everyday of our trip, but said this was the best one. I had the veggie breakfast here and it was by far my best breakfast of the whole trip too!
Then, we found a bed & breakfast for the night, took a quick shower and headed out to explore. We were starting to get a bit tired having not slept all night, but felt it would be better to push through and wait til the night so we could adjust to the time zone. After exploring Doolin a bit (it’s adorable), we headed south to the Cliffs of Mohor. AMAZING!!!!
After the cliffs we headed north to the Ailwee Caves and took a really cool tour of the inside!
Then we visited cheese shop and sampled a bunch of different types.
We bought a smoked gouda to snack on during the ride back to doolin, stopping on the way to take pictures at a really cool spot where people rock climb…too bad we didn’t have our gear!
When we got back to Doolin, we headed straight to Gus O’Conner’s which is a very well known pub that EVERYONE in town goes to.
After a few pints of Guinness and some dinner, we listened to the locals all singing old Irish songs together. But, by 10pm, we had hit hour 52 of being awake and couldn’t take it anymore. We went back to the B&B and fell into bed!
Day 2 coming up!
Have you ever driven in a country that drives on the left side? Do you like Guinness?
I don’t know how the two of you managed to stay up for 51 straight hours, but bless your heart!! π Doolin looks like such an adorable town! Love it!
I know! It was completely nuts, but we were just so excited to be there we didn’t want to waste time on sleep. lol
Can’t say I blame ya. We probably would’ve been the same way.
You two are so adventurous…I love it! It looks amazing over there. My husband has been to Italy, France, and a couple of other places (I have not, lol). He loves Guinness…I do not, haha! Can’t wait to hear more about your trip…it really looks awesome! Oh…but I do love me some Gouda!
mmmm-thinking about that gouda makes me hungry right now. I’d actually only had guinness once before going, but it also tasted waaaay better in Ireland.
wow! It’s so pretty there! I love the scenery π
I know! I keep staring at the pictures…think I want to wallpaper my apartment in them. haha
Oh goodness, it is so beautiful there! I’ve driven there in Ireland and in the BVIs and it is HARD!!! Can’t wait to see more pics π
You are brave- I totally made Joe do all the driving!
that place looks beautiful!! i have never driven on the opposite side, but i hope to one day π glad to see you enjoyed your trip π
I didn’t try the driving this time, but I definitely want to next time π