Hi all, Not sure if I'm posting in the right place, wasn't sure where else to stick it. Im organising a 9 day trip to Northern Ireland at the end of August and am trying to plan my route and stop-overs. I'm going to be travelling from my home in Reading and meeting up with a friend who lives between Belfast and Larne before going off surfing and camping on the North Coast. The trouble is, I'm not sure what is the best way to get to my destination, do I drive a shorter distance to Liverpool Berkenhead but then a long haul ferry for 8 hours to Belfast.... or do I travel further afield to Troon (double the distance in the bus) and take a 2 hour ferry to Larne? I'll then be looking at doing a return journey or possibly doing a circular trip driving down through to the South of Ireland, ferry from Cork to Fishguard and then across Wales back home. Has anyone done anything similar before and what are your experiences? I want to do this as cheap as possible, but don't know where to start looking online either (do I book the camper as a car or motorhome?) Any help much appreciated!
ive taken one of my vans over a few times in the past. all i can tell you is its very expensive all the time. but if i was going, i would hollyhead it to laughaire/dublin. its a nice drive to hollyhead, no borders in ireland and its not really bandit country anymore. by that i mean its quite safe to travel as anywhere else.then not too much a trip to belfast. i did almost every county in ireland in 92 when the roads where bad and non EU i took two spare wheels incase of damage and punctures fromt pot holes. . loads of camp sites and pubs and irishy type things to see. including the full irish breakfast (identicle to the full english) but lets not split hairs. and american flags too!! i seem to remember. ive also done the rosslare crossig too both ways but for you its good to return that way...direct east and home. i did it from newbury near you.
I've been driving around Ireland for over 20 years, North and South, business and holidays. The roads are a lot better now, with motorways to get the long distances out of the way. Back roads are a bit crap, just watch out for the pot holes. If you don't mind sleeping on the boat, overnight from Liverpool to Belfast is OK, but it's not really a long enough trip to get a good night's sleep, so I prefer Holyhead to Dublin Port. Get the fast ferry and it's just enough time for a sit down and something to eat, then drive to the North.
liverpool is dead on , but the crack and scenery you l have driving up to troon will be better , and easier on the pocket , when you finish in larne , follow the coast road up to ballycastle , bush mills portrush , surfing , then benone beach, derry , give me a ring and come for a few beers for the night plenty of room , then donegal , fahan beach malin head and work your way done the west coast heading back across to dublin , for the ferry to wales owen nw in n ilrealnd ie derry owen nw
When you book the ferry, explain to them that the van is a motorhome / camper, but not a huge winniebago type. Or you'll be charged too much.
have done this trip a few times i would defo reccomend it although Ireland has got really expensive for everything in the last few years.. i paid 35 euros for a bottle of irish whiskey in ireland that was £12.99 in tesco in central london. but anyway. if you are going from reading i would do the Pembroke - Rosslaire ferry getting over there. then head towards the west coast of ireland and drive up through tipp and galway and mayo then head towards belfast through Co.leitrim. on route back you could do the belfast - liverpool but i would head towards dublin then to Holyhead. All depends on time and money really. going in the summer can be a bit expensive but july and august are very busy months with things going on in the towns nearly every weekend. How long have you got to spend there. there is a great parts supplier in the west somewhere who has absolutly everything if you have any problems also. Good Luck
this is the route i would do if i were you.. PS i have always blagged it with the ferry and booked it as a car and blamed the with if anything was said. all the guys that have stopped me about the ferry at the port end up talking to you about THe bus and how they had/wanted one. as long as the height is not to far out. Irish ferries ar doing a deal at the min £79 one way.!!! Good luck
Maximum time on the bus, minimum time on the North Sea (gets a bit rough sometimes) Looks like a great trip ^-^
Thanks guys, some really good info there. I think I'll scrap the idea of doing the Liverpool to Belfast crossing. More time in the bus and less on the ferry is best as I get sea sick very easily! I'll probably leave Scotland for a seperate Highlands tour, and just go via the Welsh ports, doing a circular route (Pembroke/Rosslare outbound and Dublin/Holyhead return). Quite like the idea of going through Snowdonia to finish off the trip. I have 9 days off work in total but imagine 2 or 3 days will be spent driving there and back. Going up the West Coast seems like a great idea. Trying to convince a friend from Port Talbot, South Wales to come along with me, so doing the Pembroke to Rosslare route means I can pick her up en-route along M4. Any particular sites worth staying at on the West Coast and North Coast (close to surfing spots)? I quite like the idea of meeting up with some fellow Irish LateBay members during my trip too!
Nine days is nice. Just enough time I think. The map I put up is a good circular run. Stick to the west coast for surfing but bring a very thick wet suit as the Atlantic is very cold even in the middle of summer. I am going from knock to Tipperary and on to rosslare and the back to London in a few weeks. Visiting friends over there. Get a local paper the day you get there and all interesting things to do will be in it. Good luck and put some pics up when done.
