Ireland or Scotland?

goodcat

Earning My Ears
Joined
May 5, 2014
I am traveling with a 13 year old young lady this August. We have been on my trips together and are very adventurous. We only do one "big" trip a year, and we are thinking of Scotland or Ireland. We love castles, hikes, outdoors, culture, architecture, etc.

Any opinions which one to do in August?

If we go Scotland, we will surely stay longer (or arrive earlier) to see the Edinburgh Military tattoo. has anyone done this? Was it worth battling the crowds?

I am thinking of ABD, but we have also travelled with NG, TB, and TFA and have had great experiences. I understand ABD does not go to Blarney stone, but that is not a deal breaker for us.

I have heard rumor many of the staff at those 5 star resorts favored by ABD and TB are not locals (ie, neither Irish or Scottish respectively). So, to interact with locals, you have to stay at smaller boutique hotels (also less $$) favored by TFA or NG.

Thanks to all. Welcome all opinions!
 
We've done a regular Tauck to Ireland and it was wonderful-I don't think you could go wrong with a TB there. While there is a more multicultural staff at the Dublin hotel, there were lots of Irish staff at Dromoland and The Hayfield. It was a wonderful trip.

That said, Scotland is my favorite "to go" European vacation so for me it's always Scotland if I have to either/or!
 
I haven't been to Ireland, and the Scotland ABD is pretty much completely different from the itinerary I did in 2014. So I really can't help with that choice. However, I do *ADORE* Scotland, and Edinburgh is one of my favorite European cities. You really can't go wrong with Scotland. :)

Sayhello
 


If you’re comfortable driving you can easily do Scotland or Ireland or a combo by yourself. We drove around Scotland last year and saw a bunch of Outlander sites. The northern part along the sea is fabulous. And we have been to Ireland a few times. The Blarney Stone is no big deal. A long wait for a few min. Although the castle and gardens are lovely. The driving is so easy and you could do the cliffs of mohr, the dingle peninsula, Dooley with. Fantastic pubs and great music in all of them and stay in any number of castles and just drive the small roads looking at Stone homes and hundreds of sheep. The ashford Castle is Devine. There are thousands of places to hike. Dublin is lovely too. A good travel agent could come up with s great itinerary and offer ideas on castles and inns to stay in. Or you might find that hiring a private driver is very affordable. And then you can decide what to do or when. We are just not big on doing tours for countries that are easy to do on your own.
 
If you’re comfortable driving you can easily do Scotland or Ireland or a combo by yourself. We drove around Scotland last year and saw a bunch of Outlander sites. The northern part along the sea is fabulous. And we have been to Ireland a few times. The Blarney Stone is no big deal. A long wait for a few min. Although the castle and gardens are lovely. The driving is so easy and you could do the cliffs of mohr, the dingle peninsula, Dooley with. Fantastic pubs and great music in all of them and stay in any number of castles and just drive the small roads looking at Stone homes and hundreds of sheep. The ashford Castle is Devine. There are thousands of places to hike. Dublin is lovely too. A good travel agent could come up with s great itinerary and offer ideas on castles and inns to stay in. Or you might find that hiring a private driver is very affordable. And then you can decide what to do or when. We are just not big on doing tours for countries that are easy to do on your own.
I understand what you're saying, but in my experience, the driver misses *SO MUCH* of the countryside, especially when you're driving on the left side of the road, which can be very nerve-wracking!

Sayhello
 
the driver misses *SO MUCH* of the countryside, especially when you're driving on the left side of the road, which can be very nerve-wracking!
Yep, we had this experience in Scotland last year. I was in the passenger seat oo-ing and aw-ing and my DH was driving and pretty much panicking the whole time.

I haven't been to the Tattoo, but August is the most crowded time in Edinburgh (outside of New Years, or Hogmanay as they call it) not only for the Tattoo, but for the Fringe Festival which takes place throughout a large part of the city. Whether or not the crowds are worth it will be up to you, but there will definitely be significant crowds. It will still be high season in Ireland, but you shouldn't have as big of a concentrated crowd there as you would see in Edinburgh. The being said, Edinburgh is one of my favorite cities that I've visited and I am dying to get back.

I've been to both countries, though neither with ABD, and they are both beautiful, welcoming places. You can't go wrong either way! So just go through the itineraries and consider the crowds and you'll have a great time with either.
 


I understand what you're saying, but in my experience, the driver misses *SO MUCH* of the countryside, especially when you're driving on the left side of the road, which can be very nerve-wracking!

Sayhello

My husband loves the driving and is good at it. So I guess I’m lucky. Another travel group we have used in other countries is Gate1. Usually less costly but still nice hotels. You generally do food on your own and you can stay with group or go on your own to see stuff. We have done India, Vietnam and Egypt with them and have liked the guides very much along with the itinerary
 
I did the Ireland ABD in 2014 and spent 5 days in Scotland before the ABD. We saw the sites in Edinburgh, did a day trip to the highlands with Rabbie's tours, then flew on Aerlingus to Dublin for $65 each. This worked out very well. My son and I both agreed that the best part of the trip was the time we spent in Scotland. I did a lot of comparison between ABD and TB (both of which we had traveled with previously) before choosing which tour for Ireland, and decided on the ABD because I thought my son would be bored with the day in Kinsale on the TB tour where they do pottery and jewelry making. Given the opportunity to make that decision again, I would go with TB or somebody else maybe, partly because I felt there was little to no interaction with locals. Everywhere we went we were surrounded by other American tourists.

Last summer we returned to Scotland during August and attended the Tattoo. We stayed on Princes St across from the train station and the Balmoral Hotel, where ABD used to stay. The Fringe Festival was in full swing. There was a beer garden across the street and live music and dancing all evening, but we just closed the windows and we could block out the noise. It usually ended around 11:00 or 11:30 - the beer garden, I mean, not the festival. There was much more activity and crowds on the Royal Mile, but it wasn't unmanageable - and I am a person who doesn't like crowds. :) I booked a package for the Tattoo that included a tour and reception with some of the Tattoo performers at the Scotch Whiskey Experience. I did this so that we could get better seats than were available at the time without booking a package, but it turned out to be very enjoyable, and I would recommend it. We also did a 6-day tour of the Outer Hebrides with Rabbie's. It's just beautiful there and if you have the time, definitely worth it.
 
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The Ballymaloe School of Cookery? I never thought that the cuisine is high on the Irish list of "musts" ...LOL ...given my mother was from Ireland and not too great a "chef".....
 
I have been to both Scotland and Ireland and I liked Scotland much more. Scotland is on my "must return" list whereas Ireland is on my "nice to see, but it is okay if I don't go back" list. I am having trouble articulating why I liked Scotland so much more because it is something about the feel of the place that requires being there to understand. I did Ireland on my own and Scotland through ABD, so I cannot give you an apples to apples comparison, but that is my opinion for whatever it is worth.
 
I've done Scotland and Ireland and loved them both. They are both places I have been more than once and can see returning to again and again. We did Scotland with ABD in 2013, the year that trip was rolled out. As others have mentioned, the current ABD is very very different from this original itinerary. We did the ABD in August and spent four pre-nights Edinburgh. We did the Tattoo and loved it. I'm not big on crowds, but I wasn't bothered by Edinburgh in August, even with the Fringe Festival and Tattoo going on. We are going back to Edinburgh for three nights this coming August as part of a university scouting trip for my DD, and we bought tickets to see the Tattoo again. Ireland was a Nat Geo hiking trip with my DH (and also a port day in Dublin off of a British Isles Disney cruise). That one was with Nat Geo and was fantastic. I've also done hiking with Nat Geo in England and agree that I like some of the smaller pub style hotels that Nat Geo uses.
 
If you’re willing to drive I highly recommend driving on your own. We drove and loved it because there were so many wonderful ruins we could see on the side of the road. You can’t do that on a tour bus. We spent a month in England and Scotland last summer. Even after two weeks in Scotland my family and I are itching to return.

We flew into London and then caught a commuter flight to Edinburgh. We spent a few days in Edinburgh and then rented a car for 2 1/2 weeks.
 
I am thinking of ABD, but we have also travelled with NG, TB, and TFA and have had great experiences. I understand ABD does not go to Blarney stone, but that is not a deal breaker for us.


What is TFA? I’m looking into doing a Scotland tour next summer and adding a few days in London to it.
 

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