Should I stay in a city, a small town or a village for my first rural base?
Pick a small town. A town such as Killarney, Ennis or Westport gives you a choice of beds, pubs serving food into the evening, tour pickups, a supermarket and parking that does not fight you, while the countryside still starts at the edge of town. A city base suits travellers without a car, who need the station and the bus network more than the quiet. A village stay is the most atmospheric and the least forgiving: dinner may mean the one pub, services are thin, and you will drive for everything. Save the village for the second rural base, once the trip has its rhythm.
Useful pages: Plan your journey · Public transport in Ireland · Dublin · Belfast · Plan your Ireland itinerary · Dublin and the East in 3 Days · The Grand Tour in 10 Days · The Full Island in 14 Days · Ennis · Galway city · Experiencing the Irish coastline · Guided versus self guided tours · Where to stay · Ready-made itineraries · Coming home · County Galway · Cashel · Northern Ireland · Travel notices
Sources
- Irish Escapes itineraries, planner trip type data and road dataset: shared/itineraries.json, shared/roads.json and planner code, irishescapes.ie
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