France or Ireland - Help!

Hi,

My friend and I are planning a trip to Europe and can%26#39;t decide between Ireland %26amp; France we only have time to do one place. Any suggestions or advice from travellers would be much appreciated.

Thanking you in advance.

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If you have never been to Europe before, France. If you have traveled before, try Ireland. Been to both several times, and both are great!

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What are your interests and budget? Do you speak any French? How much time do you have?

I%26#39;d be happy to give suggestions, but be more specific in what you%26#39;re looking for in this vacation.

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What are your interests and budget? Do you speak any French? How much time do you have?

I%26#39;d be happy to give suggestions, but be more specific in what you%26#39;re looking for in this vacation.

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Thanks for your intrest. We are planning on going for two and a half weeks to three weeks. We are both into tourist type stuff not big on the galleries and muesums though. Old European towns and buidlings would be cool to see. As for budget we will both have a couple of grand saved after airfares. Neither of us speak any french (apart from the odd word here and there). Neither of us have been to Europe before so were not sure what we are in for. We have heard that Ireland is beautiful but also France is that must-see place in Europe. The reason we are trying to decide between France and Ireland is that we are going to be based in London and France and Ireland are the closest places for the time that we have to visit. Any suggestions would be welcome.

Thanks so much!

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With that much time you can easily spend a week in Paris, with side trips to Versailles/Giverny, and a week in Ireland, focusing on the Dublin to Ring of Kerry portion of the country. Language issues will not be a problem in Paris. Enjoy!

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As an Irish Woman who loves both France and Britain - I%26#39;ve got to agree with Freddd. There is so much to do in both France and Ireland - and you will have two completely different experiences.

Suggestions - stick to the experts on this forum for absolutely fab advice on wonderful France.

However, with regards to Ireland, I would suggest after you read this post that you take a cyber trip over to the Ireland Forum and read some of the posts there.

You will notice a couple of differences, particularly the uber laid-back, irreverent attitude plus at times the rather odd sense of humour.

IMHO, you might consider the following:

Flight from London to the South West of Ireland. Ryanair (www.ryanair.com) fly to both Shannon and Kerry International Airports and are great value. My suggestion is to take a flight from London Stanstead to Kerry International Airport which is roughly 10 miles from Killarney in one direction and 10 miles from Tralee in the other. Killarney is nicer. Base yourself in Killarney, from where you can visit the following (all discussed at length in the Ireland Forum, just do a search):

Ring of Kerry

Muckross House and Gardens and Torc Waterfall

Black Valley, the Gap of Dunloe coming out at Kate Kearney%26#39;s Cottage(Sheer heaven)

Killarney Town itself, Ross Castle and Island, The Lakes

Glenbeigh Town and Rossbeigh Beach (Truly Magnificent)

Inch Beach across the bay from Rossbeigh (It APPARENTLY has a nudist section at the far end, but it can get quite breezy, which is why there are suggestions that it is called Inch, haha!!)

Dingle and the Dingle Peninsula

Also - the pubs and the craic (Irish for mighty fun) and the magnificent seafood (which I detest, but others love) and the wonderful food and the Most divine Ice Cream in the Universe from Mac%26#39;s Restaurant in Main Street, Killarney

And Finally - the people of Ireland. Generally very friendly, open for a laugh, laid-back, and irreverend!!

If you want further information, do come over to the Ireland Forum - we%26#39;d love to stop and chat with you.

Take Care ;o)

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Thanks so much for replying to this post, I%26#39;m still not sure where I%26#39;m going but its great to know that both places are great to visit.

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Adding to what was said above.

Fly into Kerry from Stansted... do the Kerry part and make your way upto Shannon (a night in Galway is always great). From here you can fly to Paris (Beauvais) with Ryanair (good value again)

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London is quite expensive, so on your budget you may want to limit your time there. If I had never been to Europe I would probably get a 5 country eurorail ticket. Fly into London and leave from Munich. It doen%26#39;t really cost anymore to fly into one place and leave from another. I don%26#39;t think England is included in the rail pass. If you plan it right you can get sleepers during travel time on the trains which will save on Hotels. But make your way to Paris from London (4 days) and then plan on a whirlwind tour of Europe. Paris (4 days) (overnighter) to Barcelona (3 days), Barcelona to Rome (4 days) (overnighter), Rome to Venice (or Saltzburg) (3 days), Venice to Munich (3 days) and then fly home. You could also go to London fly Aerlingus to Dublin and then fly Aerlingus to Amsterdamn and then train to Paris even stop off in Brussles if you wanted. Aerlingus has specials for around 25 to 30 euro to fly! if I had three weeks and never been to Europe I would see more and only spend 4 or so days in each. It gives you a wonderful overview. I really loved all of these places, Paris and Irleand I%26#39;m seeing for the first time in Nov. But all the others I menchioned I Loved especially Italy! .. and Germany and Spain and Holland......I loved it all!!! Each has something wonderful to offer. Have a great venture!