County Galway 2 1/2 days

Hello!

I´m planning a trip to County Galway next weekend and we have just 2 1/2 days to see everything.
I have been searching for good landscapes and so far I found Aran islands, Connemara national park and the Cliffs of Moher (County Clare but close enough I think).
Would you suggest anything else? With that little time maybe is not enough for all those places, which one would you leave out?
And any suggestions about how to get to Connemara and Cliffs of Moher from Galway? We will be using public transport. I suppose for Aran islands it´s easy just go to the docks and take the fery, right? (Does the ferry have a webpage?)

Thank you in advance!! I can't wait to get there!

Sarah

To the docks and get the ferry for the islands. There is public transport to the cliffs and the Bus Eireann can help you there. If memory serves, a return trip will allow you about 90 minutes at the Cliffs.

However, if you do a tour with Healy Tours they will take you to the cliffs and around The Burren. They also do a Connemara tour which is likely to be the best way to do this without hiring a car. There are likely other tour companies and you should websearch for them.

My recommendation, presuming you actually have a full weekend, is to chose two of Aran Islands, Connemara or The Burren/Cliffs of Moher and go with that. Without a car I don't think Aran Islands, Connemara AND Cliffs of Moher are do-able in one weekend.

in Connemara, head for Leenane
Youtube the following : AT YOUR SERVICE PART 1
followed by part 2 and then part 3
enjoy.
Public transport : BUSEIREANN.IE /
Leenane is going to be a bit of a challenge by bus
good luck.

http://www.aranislandferries.com/ runs from Ros a'Mhíl west of Galway to Aran and to Inis Oírr and Inis Meáin. There are busses from Galway to Ros a' Mhíl. The company itself also runs a shuttle to Ros a' Mhíl from Galway.

It is not so easy to get around Conamara by public transport. However, you can check bus schedules on http://www.buseireann.ie/inner.php?id=238 - scroll down for counties Galway and Clare. You can also view the whole network map here: http://www.buseireann.ie/pdf/1282732129-Network-map.pdf (big and slow to load).

If you want to see Conamara, route 416 will take you to Carna along the coast. Route 424 will take you the same way but then branches off down to Leitir Mór and Leitir Mealláin. Route 421 will take you via the inland route to Roundstone, Leenane and Westport.

Route 423 will take you down to Doolin and the Cliffs of Moher.

Be careful reading the timetables, as not all the services run all the time. For example, there is a bus marked as coming back from the Cliffs of Moher to Galway at 1850, but this is only from 27 June til 25 September, so if you are going next weekend it will be no good to you.

I think you have basically three destinations - Doolin and the Cliffs of Moher, Aran, and Conamara (either the coast or via the inland road to Clifden). In two days, you'll only have time to see three of them. There is a ferry from Doolin to Aran, so theoretically you could combine Doolin, the cliffs and Aran, but you won't have enough time to do that in one day if you are relying on the last bus back at 1430.

However, given how little time you have, it might be worth seeing if there are any organized tours run from Galway that would allow you to see some of these places more efficiently.

Typical isn't it? You wait two hours for a post and then three come along at once.

My post above should say: In two days, you'll only have time to see two of them.

Which is the same advice as Mark Fawkner gives.

#5 - and of course, there are pretty impressive cliffs on Aran as well, by Dún Aonghusa.

Thank you very much for all the answers!

I'll take your advice and do Connemara and Aran islands.
Do you know if there's another tour to Connemara apart from the Healy Tours one? Like one in a van instead of a bus, and with plenty of free time? That would be perfect. I'm going crazy trying to figure out a way to get there with those public transport links!
Just in case I don't find anything else, do you know if it's easy to hitchkike there?

Thanks!

Sarah

You can google for other tours. No idea about hitch hiking but while inadvisable it is likely safe.

I had a look for Healy Tours and saw reviews for them and a few other companies on Trip Advisor. http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attractions-g186609-Activities-Galway_County_Galway_Western_Ireland.html

If you're on your own hitchhiking would not be a good idea, same as anywhere. It used be a very common way for locals to get around Conamara but may not be so easy any more as in recent years more people probably have their own cars.

Lough Gur in County Limerick is worth having a look at.Its about 15 miles from Limerick city.If you are visiting the cliffs of Moher it wouldn't take that long to go from there if you had a car but by public transport it might take a long time.You can check it out on loughgur.com.