The spousal unit and I are considering a one week vacation this year to Ireland & Scotland. We’ve never been, but my family roots trace back to Scotland. Why Ireland, you ask? Two reasons - 1) not sure we need a full week in Scotland (but could be otherwise convinced) and; 2) because it’s there, it’s relatively close and it’s on the bucket list of places to see.
In Scotland we’d be most interested in the Inverness area. Of course, that’s about as far from Ireland as one can get on the 2 isles. Questions include, but not limited to:
How to get from one to the other? Choices are drive, fly or ferry/train combo. Not really opposed to any of the 3 as they each have advantages and disadvantages. What are your opinions?
Should I even consider renting a car? Would there be issues with the rental contract in crossing the boarder?
What is the best way to get around within each country if we do not rent a car?
Any suggestions on things to do would certainly be appreciated, as well as any topics not covered in my questions.
One week for the two countries strikes me as over-ambitious. You won’t get the full benefit of the arrival and departure days, and there’s a day of travel between the two unless you fly between Dublin and Inverness. I’d pick one country - both have plenty enough to do to fill a week.
I’d hire a car. Public transport exists in the more remote areas of both countries, but it’s not great.
Since this is IMHO, I’ll give you a couple opinions without a lot of reasoning. Instead, I will base them on a two-week vacation we took to Ireland and Scotland five years ago. (We’ve been back since, but only to one or the other.)
First, I think you would find that train or ferry would take more time (and more of your vacation) than you would care to spend on that part of your travels. Spending a week in either place would still not be enough.
Second, my wife and I preferred Scotland to Ireland. I won’t go further than that unless severely pressed.
Third, we rented a car for the week we spent in each and had no problems. It gave us the opportunity to go where we wanted and see what we wanted.
Fourth, we spent each week in a rented cottage on the West coasts. Great choice. In Scotland, we stayed in a small stone cottage smack dab in the middle of a pasture. Had to open the gate and stand by as we drove in and out.
TL;DR: Spend all your time in one or the other. If it were me, I’d go back to the West coast of Scotland.
I’d also say you should do at least a full week in each country. My husband and I did that a few years ago and loved the entire trip. We wanted something guided but not a giant tour bus. We got onto a Vagabond (actually Driftwood) small tour bus in Ireland and saw half of the Ring of Kerry. Then we flew over to Scotland and got on a Best Scottish Tours small bus to see the highlands, Skye and on down to Edinburgh. Both tour companies were fantastic, small and personal and fun.
Interesting responses so far. What is going to take up a whole week in Scotland? Is it worth it to drive around the country and lodge in a different place each night? This trip will be a site seeing vacation, not a “sit in one place and relax” vacation. We were thinking that we could hit the high points of each then go back for a more focused trip later, but if that’s not a good idea we can certainly change our minds. Also, when I say “one week” I mean 2 weekends wrapped around one work week - so more like 9 days there mitigated by parts of 2 days for arrival/departure.
In Ireland at least you’re best hiring a car, the cities are all fairly well interconnected but to see the really beautiful parts of the island, you are really limited if you don’t rent a car. There are day tours around most scenic parts and I’ve done some, most are fine, but to be honest, if you find yourself in a place you really like and want to explore you can’t with those tours.
I am Irish, I live in Dublin but to echo a poster above, if you had to pick between Ireland and Scotland I would recommend Scotland.
I’ve only ever flown to Edinburgh or Aberdeen (not sure if this route still exists) from Dublin and flights are relatively short and can be got at a reasonable price from the likes of Ryanair and other local low fares airlines.
Aberdonian here. You could spend a whole week within 20 miles of here. NE Scotland has a huge number of castles. Over 100, if memory serves. Then there are the museums, the churches, the scenery, the distilleries, the wildlife, the restaurants…
Not really. I can’t speak for Ireland but for NE Scotland pick one or two sites - I suggest Inverness and Aberdeen - and spend part of your holiday based in one and part based in the other and venture forth to sights within the locality.
I think you’d spend too much time in your car.
Do hire a car and make sure it comes with an up to date map book as well. Not only will the map book help you get there but it will also show you places nearby. NB The drink-drive laws are VERY strict here, so just don’t do it. Get a taxi for when you go out for a meal if you intend drinking.
I was told that I couldn’t really appreciate Scotland because I don’t drive, but I found that wasn’t the case at all. I started off with a bus tour, and eventually left it to travel on my own.
One week is not enough time for either one, never mind both. I’ve done each. Scotland was 25 years ago and Ireland was 2 years ago. Both were great but I enjoyed Scotland more and found driving in Scotland easier. Of course Scotland I had longer and was a lot younger. Ireland was damp and the roads are very tight by US standards.
I’m wondering whether any North Americans in this thread (especially the older ones) had any worries about driving on the left in Scotland or Ireland. I suppose that once you’re on a main road, there shouldn’t be any problem, but did you ever lose concentration for an instant and almost make the wrong move out of habit, especially while turning into a road or coming out of a driveway or roundabout, for example?
Went a year and a half ago to present at a conference. I flew in to Heathrow, but had to drive up to Keele University, which was quite a drive. I also had plans afterwards to meet a friend of mine for a few days in Brighton, which is an even longer drive. I didn’t want to take hours on public transit after flying from Chicago by way of Warsaw, so I rented a car. I flew business class, but I wasn’t able to sleep on the plane, so I booked a last-minute hotel. Picked up the car, drove the less than two miles to the hotel…
…and then dinged a car in the parking lot. The other car was fine. The rental had 1500 pounds worth of damage.
Other than that, though, it was fine–once or twice I found myself listing more towards the right side of the road on empty roads, but other than that, it was fine.
…except for ending up on a pedestrian way in Lewes. But I blame navigation for that.:o
You will definitely find enough to do in Scotland for a week.
We drive up a couple times a year on long weekends, and still haven’t done or seen enough. Hmm, must plan next trip…
The Inverness area is nice, but might i suggest driving to Edinburgh for at least a night, such a beautiful city!
The Speyside region is quite nice, and a tour of a scotch distillery is more fun than it might sound.
If you’re going to drive south along the lochs I suggest taking the road on the left side. It’s less travelled and very beautiful with some fantastic little stops along the way. Also, if you’re going that far, you might as well visit the Glencoe area. It is the most beautiful place I have ever been, with, again, some amazing stops to take in the scenery.
I second Oban, what a great little town!!
Personally, i don’t think there’s any reason to go to Glasgow. Unless you want a Tim Hortons. Haha. We did that one weekend. 7 hour drive for a coffee. Other than that, if you don’t have the time, don’t go.
Ireland has some nice places. The Giants Causeway and the Cliffs of Moher are very beautiful, but the rest of the country is rather uninteresting. To be fair, we drove around the island, didn’t see much of the interior, and never actually made it to any of the big cities. Though we did stay in Galway one night. Went to a pub, listened to live music(i grew up on Irish music, so it was a bucket list check)cried a bit. Wouldn’t go back. Absolutely nowhere near as beautiful as Scotland.
In much of the Scottish highlands and islands, there is no “left” or “right” of the road. Just a single lane, with frequent “passing places.” Even some A roads (that’s the main roads between towns) are like that.
I actually enjoyed driving there a lot. There’s not much traffic, and it’s all very civilised. You get used to slotting into the passing places to let one another past.
You’re right that when switching to driving on the other side, the big danger is pulling out or turning on to another road (roundabouts, not so much, due to their layout.) In those situations, it actually helps if there is traffic about, to remind you. Also, the fact that you are sitting on the “wrong” side helps too. Most people get used to it quickly.
What’s so bad about Ireland? 