# Ireland, not what I thought



## tel999

Hi
We are in the first week of our Irish tour, hopefully two months to go.
We have been really disappointed with the lack of parking for a Motorhome, it seems every lay by and beach car park has height barriers in place.
We gave travelled from Rosslare to the Hook, superb, then Dunmore East, The free camping and parking area has barriers and only a kind hearted workman saved us from sleeping behind the ice plant.
Travelled to the old head Kinsale, bad pub, bad signage and not a lot more.
Headed off to Crookhaven, stunning views but nowhere to park and the roads are horrid. I like to meander, so spread is not important, but if was struggling to feel safe at 30.
Decided to hit the main road and get away from the tourists, so hit the N71, going north lost a wheel trim and gained many more grey hairs, so far not a great road.
The good news......we are parked on the side of a mountain with spectacular views and have opened a bottle of bubbly to celebrate the wife's 60th. The bad news, it has just started to rain, still it is Ireland.
Have just finished reading the info on here and am sure it will become more to our liking as we head North.
Please don't think me an Ireland basher, I lived there for four years, had a pub and then purchased a trawler in a drunken stupor and I think it is one of the greatest places ever, I guess I forgot about the roads. As for the tourist industry, how about making it easier for us to spend our cash in your wonderful country


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## Glandwr

Know what you mean about the roads. We really got shaken to pieces doing the Ring of Kerry, it was worth though. Make sure you go around anti clockwise and pull over now and again or you will have huge tourist coaches overtaking on blind bends  

Dick


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## barryd

Maybe things have changed. I used to go with "the boys" in the mid to late 80's on "fishing" trips.  

We would take a boat on the shannon for two weeks and 6 of us would sleep on that and 4 in the camper van.

We found loads of great places on the and around the Shannon and Lough Derg. The two places that really stood out that we kept going back to were a place called Garry Kennedy and Mountshannon. Both little ports on Lough Derg. The Barge Inn at Garry Kennedy was a mecca for musicians. We just parked on the green next to the Harbour and on the actual harbour at Mountshannon.

Its a wonderful area to visit or at least it was.

Maybe things have changed.

If you go to the Barge Inn and bump into Denise Ryan. Tell her I still love her!  (If she is like a house end with 10 kids dont bother)


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## McGeemobile

I know the wild camping place at Dunmore East is no longer there, but we have visited Ireland for the past few summers and have never found a problem finding places to stay. 
In fact, there are now a few official aires around e.g. Cobh, Midleton, Letterkenny, Askeaton and some more in the North although some are just glorified car parks.
From the N71 you should be able to park at the pier in Bantry, a large car park in Castletown Bear, and at the pier in Kenmare. Last year there were vans parked near the Golf Club in Waterville. Two pubs close together as you drive down through Camp welcome motorhomers. 
Hopefully this will give you a few ideas. You can fill up and empty at the aire in the Leisure Centre at Askeaton. Lots of marinas also allow motorhomes to use their facilities and we stayed at Terryglass and Portumna on the Shannon, Leitrim marina and a few others.

Hope the weather improves.


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## tel999

Hi.
Have done the bubbly, and made inroads into a selection of real ales. The world has become a better place.
Thank you all for your recomendations, we will try to try them all.


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## erneboy

The east and south coasts can be difficult. There is wild parking everywhere on the west and north coasts all the way from Limerick round to Londonderry, just turn towards the sea, Alan.


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## seanoo

erneboy said:


> The east and south coasts can be difficult. There is wild parking everywhere on the west and north coasts all the way from Limerick round to Londonderry, just turn towards the sea, Alan.


derry 8)


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## erneboy

Yes Sean, I know. I was born in Derry but on the maps it's still L'derry I think.

Hope you two are well, A&T.


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## dghr272

That's because it is County Londonderry.

Terry :lol:


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## erneboy

I would settle for stroke city but most on here wouldn't understand, would they?


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## dghr272

We can agree on that Erneboy, any connection to the Lough ?

Terry


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## erneboy

Yes, spent a lot of time there over the years and still have a house on the shores though we rarely go home these days, too cold and wet for us. Was home for a while last summer, brilliant. We would stay if that weather was normal, Alan.


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## dghr272

We had static holiday home in Castle Archdale for years, then bought motorhome to travel. Was down two weeks ago for a week, the weather was great, but sadly not the norm. As local once said, "you can't have all these lakes without the rain"  

Terry


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## dghr272

Tel999,

Motorhomecraic.com is a good site for motorhoming in Ireland info.

Terry


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## Glandwr

Wasn't there a presenter who was to save R4 who was given a 5 day/week slot from Stroke city half a decade ago Alan? What was his name again? Shot to obscurity I seem to remember  

Dick


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## dghr272

Gerry Anderson was the guy, he actually coined the name Stroke City. (Derry/Londonderry)

He came back to Radio Ulster where he was understood. :?: 

Terry


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## ChrisandJohn

Glandwr said:


> Wasn't there a presenter who was to save R4 who was given a 5 day/week slot from Stroke city half a decade ago Alan? What was his name again? Shot to obscurity I seem to remember
> 
> Dick


I remember him, what was he saving R4 from? I'm very glad he was successful.

Chris


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## tonyt

Perhaps that explains why so many caravan tugging Irish people choose to live elsewhere.


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## erneboy

Poor old Gerry Anderson, his colloquial Norn Irn style just wasn't right for Radio 4 at all. I remember trying to listen several times and finding what I considered mildly amusing on Radio Ulster was just cringe making (for me at least) on Radio 4, Alan.


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## Yaxley

Hello tell999
I can understand your frustration travelling around Ireland. We are only discovering slowly that motorhome owners do not need campsites every time they want to stop overnight. Car parks with barriers are frustrating.
However things are changing slowly and a number of towns are now providing facilities for motorhomes. I think that it is worse in England. The last time I was in Devon I just gave up trying to park and shop not to mind stay overnight. There is a much more relaxed attitude to parking in the smaller towns and villages especially in the west of Ireland. The following is a Dutch website which shows on a map many safe wild camping places in Ireland

http://www.reisverhaleneuropa.nl/camper/ierland/plaatsen.htm

If you click on 'Lijst' at the top of the page it will lead you to a list of 233 safe parking places some with toilets or water and some with nothing. Each of the locations is linked by number back to the location on the map and also shows the GPS co-ordinates.
I found it useful last year.
Enjoy your holiday.
Ian


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## TeamRienza

Hi tel999,

Sorry you are finding it frustrating motorhoming here in Ireland. I guess we make comparisons and perceptions of expectation in reality can disappoint.

We find that we can glean information from others as in Yaxley's Dutch website, or motorhomecraic.com our Ireland wide forum with lists of likely stopping places for a small subscription.

Living here we get to know wether we can 'chance' a wildcamp or park in towns etc. However we are very conscious of the shortcomings of Ireland towards motorhoming and many of us are actively lobbying for change.

I spent a week in N Wales just prior to Easter and was quite wary about parking and shocked at the cost of some carparks. We had similar experience in the lake district a couple of years ago. I would be relatively reluctant to wildcamp in either country.

However next time I would feel a bit more relaxed about it all. Reading some of the posts about England in particular I get the impression it is not motorhome friendly either. The saving grace (leaving aside camp sites) seems to be the network of CLs CSs and schemes such as Britstops. 

Hope your first impressions can be changed as you spend more time here and you enjoy the rest of your trip.

Curiously last night on the autosleeperowners forum there was a thread singing the praises of Ireland, not by Irish members I hasten to add!!

Davy


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## Stanner

erneboy said:


> Poor old Gerry Anderson, his colloquial Norn Irn style just wasn't right for Radio 4 at all. I remember trying to listen several times and finding what I considered mildly amusing on Radio Ulster was just cringe making (for me at least) on Radio 4, Alan.


He should have stuck to making shows like Fireball XL5 and Captain Scarlet.

:roll:


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## erneboy

I didn't even know it was the same bloke Stanner.


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## dghr272

That Gerry died in 2012, the radio Gerry is still kicking.

Anyone remember Twizzle or Torchy produced by the Thunderbirds Gerry ?


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## erneboy

I'm completely disillusioned now.


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## Stanner

erneboy said:


> I'm completely disillusioned now.


Isn't his brother Gary an ex-F1 car designer?


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## Glandwr

Rather poetic that an Irish thread goes off kilter.

May the OP enjoy the rest of the road, bumpy as it may be. I really enjoyed Ireland (both of them) and am trying to persaude the wife again (story of my life). Too expensive she says. They ferry does make you cough a bit mind.

Dick


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## ChrisandJohn

dghr272 said:


> snipped ...That Gerry died in 2012, the radio Gerry is still kicking.


Not any more. I've just heard ( from Radio 4) that he has died.

Chris


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## norrie

If your headed up north then visit Co Sligo and Rosses point, which is a pay site and say a wee prayer that the evening sun shines and gives you a wonderful opportunity for a fabulous sunset

An occasion not to be missed

Norrie


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## erneboy

Sorry to hear he has died. Never much liked his shows but he seemed a good sort.


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## tel999

We have returned and after a couple of days to settle down these are my thoughts.
The Wild Atlantic Way is a joke, not my words but from a lovely Irish man we met in Dingle. After using it I think I would agree. But, each to there own. We really did enjoy Ireland and on reflection, expected things to be as they were, beautiful coasts, mountains and countryside. And of corse the fantastic Irish people. But.... From Dingle up Ireland became like a fantastic painting, stunning to look at but impossible to use. the frustration of driving hour after hour trying to find somewhere to stop and immerse yourself in the beauty. I became angry every time I passed an empty lay bye, picnic area and car park 95% of them completely empty and all of them with hight restriction barriers. I understand the reason for this, but surely there is another solution,
None of this should deter anyone from going, overall we had an incredible time. I think it was just my perception of how the North would be, in my mind it was great scenery, fantastic food and people and the the thought of a lovely country pub with a roaring Peet fire in the corner and a old chap playing the fiddle whilst quaffing pints of Porter. If ever it was like that, I couldn't find it this time.
Highlights of our trip must be The Dingle Peninsula and Inch beach. I do not have the words to describe this area 
, suffice to say National Geographic quoted it as one of the most beautifully places in the world. I could only agree.
Spent a brill week in Kilkenny with my 92 year old mother in law visiting friends from our days as publicans and behaved like 20 year olds at every Irish night in every pub in Kilkenny, what a town.
We are already planning next years trip so would like to thank everyone for ther hints, tips and information, it should make next year even better!


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