Hi Rachie ... it depends what you want from your few days. Dublin Airport is of course close to Dublin City, which is great for sightseeing, shopping, nightlife, or for using public transport to move on to other parts of Ireland.

Shannon is little more than an aiport. Public transport is available, but is not great. You may need a hired car to explore the neighbouring area. Bases within a reasonable travel distance of the airport would be Bunratty, Ennis or Limerick, to mention just a few.

David

Hi Rachie
Really depends on what you want- if you want a city break head for Dublin and if you want a more country break go to Shannon. Both have a lot going for them.

One thing I like about flying to Shannon is that it is not an overly busy airport so you get in and out of it very quickly. If you go to Shannon hire a car and you could stay in Ennis - plenty of nice hotels (look for 2/3 night packages with dinner-can work out very reasonable) and Ennis is a well situated town for touring etc. If you want something more rural you could try Lahinch (great coastline) or Ennistymon in Clare. They are about an hour from the airport so you would have to hire a car.

Hope this is of help
B

Thanks both

hmmm we dont really want to hire a car ,will only be there 2 days ,so think Shannon is out

I now also have more destinations to choose from !

Berlin
Hamburg
Paris (orly)
Amsterdam

?!

You should find info on all of those destinations in City Breaks, Rachie.

David

we have booked the penny flights to Dublin !

Hi Rachie,

For a first-time visit to Ireland, Dublin is probably your best bet. It's very easy to get around on foot - several tour buses operate a hop-on-hop off policy and you can usually buy the tickets from the bus driver - these will take you all over Dublin's City centre and up into the Phoenix Park on Dublin's North Side, offering Dublin Zoo, fantastic walks along the main thoroughfare and you can even tour the Irish President's home. For up to the minute Theatre, Music and Entertainment, check out INVALID URL The Event Guide is published free once a week and offers reviews etc of what is available in Dublin. Also check out the Discussion Forum here!

Coffee/Tea/Pastries - if you are both looking for somewhere to rest your feet and watch the world go by whatever the weather, try Bewley's Cafe on Grafton street (high street shopping) (near Trinity College). It's done in old-world dark wood and looks a bit dim when you enter, but walk up to the 1st floor and there is serviced seating. Get a table by the window and you can watch the buskers performing downstairs and the coffees/teas are €1.75 - €2.50. Pastries start at @€2.00 each. It's cheaper than Starbucks across the street and has more character. You can stay as long as you want, bring a book/paper.

Have a wonderful time!

thanks butterfield

someone else has recommended the Bewley cafe so we will def go there
really looking forward to our trip