Cork (Cobh) - what to do other than Blarney?

We will be in Cork (Cobh) twice, once in April and once in September. One time we will do the Blarney Castle/Kinsdale (in September). For the other day I am debating on seeing Rock of Cashel, The Vee, and Lismore, or the alternative is Clonakilty, Glengarriff and Gougane Barra National Park. I know each involves quite a bit of travel time, but wondered if anyone has done either of these. Any recommendations? Which would be more scenic?We will be in port from 9:00am to 8:00pm in April.

The Rock of Cashel is very interesting and the countryside is beautiful. I've heard that Lismore is charming, but I haven't been there.

We will be in Cork (Cobh) twice, once in April and once in September.

Whilst in Kindale, go into a pub and try a pint of Red Rocket. It's brewed locally. Enjoy! Have one for me...

Thanks to both of you for your replies. I had been leaning to Rock of Cashel and I think we will go that route. And thanks for the recommendation for Red Rocket--will definitely have to try that out! I love trying local beers.

We took the train which stops beside the ship to Cork. It was easy and inexpensive. We were able to us a CC instead of euros. However, after we returned to Cobh we walked around a bit and wished we had spent our time there. There were a couple of lively pubs, great gift shops and the cathedral [which we did not have time to see].

For scenery and atmosphere I would pick the Clonakilty, Glengarriff, Gougane Barra trip, however it will be a long trip. The road to/from Gougane/Glengarriff is narrow and twisty. The road from Gougane to/from Cork is long and twisty. Are you renting a car for this, or is it an organised trip? There is also Garnish Island on this trip!

Rock of Cashel is nice and a stop at Cahir Castle 15 miles before it, is a must. The landscape will be green and you will see the mountains, however the Clonakilty/gougane trip has the raw wildness of West Cork.

Just thought I'd throw this out. We went to Blarney Castle, but also went to the Jameson Experience. But don't know if you're an Irish whiskey fan. We love our lunch there.

Thanks for the additional suggestions. I'll take another look at doing Cork and Cobh. And we are more "try all the local beers" people rather than Irish whiskey. The excursions are through Princess. Usually we do a mixture of private, on our own, and one or two with Princess. With all the driving, if we do an excursion, we will just go with the big bus tour realizing its limitations! When we do Blarney Castle, we will do a private tour. Thanks again everyone.

For scenery and atmosphere I would pick the Clonakilty, Glengarriff, Gougane Barra trip, however it will be a long trip. The road to/from Gougane/Glengarriff is narrow and twisty. The road from Gougane to/from Cork is long and twisty. Are you renting a car for this, or is it an organised trip? There is also Garnish Island on this trip!

Rock of Cashel is nice and a stop at Cahir Castle 15 miles before it, is a must. The landscape will be green and you will see the mountains, however the Clonakilty/gougane trip has the raw wildness of West Cork.

We are a 24-person van quite set on Cobh-Cahir (0830, 1000 tour) and Cashel (noon tour). At 1330 we thought we were doing a visit to Lismore and lovely ride there from Cashel, but I've received estimates of 1 1/2 hour ride Cashel/Lismore and Lismore/Cobh, giving us an hour at Lismore to gulp down a sandwhich! Now thinking it makes more sense to head back towards Cork at 1330, or lunch at Cashel (?) -- any ideas of reduction of afternoon road time (3 hours driving/1 hour out of van). Could jet down to Kinsale? Wondering what speeds a van can do on M8 and if there is anything of visit merit between Cahir and Cobh? All advice much appreciated!

DJ:)

Check out Tom's port guide for Cobh

http://www.tomsportguides.com/uploads/5/8/5/4/58547429/cork-cobh-06-24-2015-part1.pdf

http://www.tomsportguides.com/uploads/5/8/5/4/58547429/cork-cobh-06-24-2015-part2.pdf

http://www.titanic.ie/tours/the-titanic-trail

We had the loveliest day in this region...we had a private van which took us to Hore Abbey, Rock of Cashel and Cahir Castle....due to time constraints, we had lunch at the Guiness Pub in the Cashel Palace Hotel, which is in walking distance from the Rock. It is very charming.

http://www.cashel-palace.ie/guinness-bar

The countryside is stunning and we had a very enjoyable day out.

For those that simply want to walk around in Cork the City Council offers some suggestions and a brochure with a map.

http://www.discoverireland.ie/getmedia/de15a29c-5205-4443-86e3-17cc85d63b35/BrochureCityIsland_English.aspx

Just thought I would pass that along.

We are a 24-person van quite set on Cobh-Cahir (0830, 1000 tour) and Cashel (noon tour)... Could jet down to Kinsale?

If you make it to Kinsale, go into a local pub and try a pint (or two) of Red Rocket. Yummy! Have one (or two) for me. Cheers...

Brazilgirl

Can I ask who did you hire for your day to Hore Abbey, Cashel and Cahir?

Thanks

Brazilgirl

Can I ask who did you hire for your day to Hore Abbey, Cashel and Cahir?

Thanks

We essentially visit Port of Cork (moved from Cobh to Ringaskiddy) and did not want to repeat eCoach private tour. The same company rents vans & drivers (Butlers) -- you could start by looking at their website. I have dealt with their Tour Manager (Ciara Fitzharris: claire@butlers-buses.com). She has been very helpful and good at "reality testing" when my ideas exceeded our time limits! They have 3 van sizes; we've selected a 24-seat van and will do Cahir Castle, Rock of Cashel, and then back south to Charles Fort. I've contacted each site and have a guided tour reserved at each. No time for a sit-down lunch, we'll bring fiber/protein bars and have bought bottled water from Butlers. I'd Google these three locations. If you are planning for next season, email me for our experiences. If its before August, can't provide information as we'll be there 21 July.

DJ:)

The Cork City Gaol in Corkand the Titanic Experience in Cobh are well worth a visit.

http://corkcitygaol.com/

http://www.titanicexperiencecobh.ie/

Spent two weeks on the ground in Ireland 3 years ago and visited many of these. Found the rock of cashel very interesting (dress warm, lots of wind). Also enjoyed Jameson tour. If you have some end of day time the titanic experience is worth an hour but won't fill a day. I may get slammed as I have on other boards but I am not a big fan of blarney given all the other available places to go and see.

Spent two weeks on the ground in Ireland 3 years ago and visited many of these. Found the rock of cashel very interesting (dress warm, lots of wind). Also enjoyed Jameson tour. If you have some end of day time the titanic experience is worth an hour but won't fill a day. I may get slammed as I have on other boards but I am not a big fan of blarney given all the other available places to go and see.

People who watch Rick Steves "visit" to Blarney Castle, or read his more recent judgment about the "Disney-esque" nature of this ancient ruin would understand your good judgment. I'll bet you are having problems from the "I did it, I thought it was wonderful" crowd, who have the retrospective judgment that because they selected the experience it was great. (Unfortunately, Cruise Critic is not strong on posting negative experiences, but there is TripAdvisor?) With this in mind, we have substituted Cahir castle and Rock of Cashel.

DJ:)

Brazilgirl

 

 

 

Can I ask who did you hire for your day to Hore Abbey, Cashel and Cahir?

 

 

 

Thanks

http://tourireland.com/customtours/

We did a custom tour and enjoyed it very much. Our driver, Shane, was outstanding.

Another option if you want to stay in town is the terrific Titanic Museum.

Another option if you want to stay in town is the terrific Titanic Museum.

yeah,I posted a link to it a few posts before yours. It is a good experience.

There are some lovely beaches in County Cork. If you have any interest in walking in nature. If you have dry weather it can be a lovely day out.

Also there is a place called Crosshaven, which is maybe 40 min away , there's a very interesting fort there that is a lovely walk and a nice café. Crosshaven is a pretty town with some outstanding walks along the river.

We essentially visit Port of Cork (moved from Cobh to Ringaskiddy) and did not want to repeat eCoach private tour. The same company rents vans & drivers (Butlers) -- you could start by looking at their website. I have dealt with their Tour Manager (Ciara Fitzharris: claire@butlers-buses.com). She has been very helpful and good at "reality testing" when my ideas exceeded our time limits! They have 3 van sizes; we've selected a 24-seat van and will do Cahir Castle, Rock of Cashel, and then back south to Charles Fort. I've contacted each site and have a guided tour reserved at each. No time for a sit-down lunch, we'll bring fiber/protein bars and have bought bottled water from Butlers. I'd Google these three locations. If you are planning for next season, email me for our experiences. If its before August, can't provide information as we'll be there 21 July.

DJ:)

http://tourireland.com/customtours/

 

We did a custom tour and enjoyed it very much. Our driver, Shane, was outstanding.

In Retirement and brazilgirl, thanks for the tips and contacts, I'm planning our BI cruise for June 2017 and would like to do something other than Blarney from Cobh. How much did/are you paying for the tour? We are a family group of 8 but may have 4 others join us.

In Retirement, do revert after you get back, I'm looking for a similar itinerary as yours, though for a smaller group.

Thanks in advance, Prish

In Retirement and brazilgirl, thanks for the tips and contacts, I'm planning our BI cruise for June 2017 and would like to do something other than Blarney from Cobh. How much did/are you paying for the tour? We are a family group of 8 but may have 4 others join us.

In Retirement, do revert after you get back, I'm looking for a similar itinerary as yours, though for a smaller group.

Thanks in advance, Prish

Hello, The multiple tricks of such a cruise is to early book exactly the two adjacent cabins that you want and then to look for price reductions and work with a TA who will cooperate. For our upcoming we've saved thousands that way.

Second, try to disavow your notion of only touring with people you've known for years! Cruise Critic is wonderful in that similarly motivated and often experienced folks will contribute. Whether you 8 buy seats on a private commercial van at 50% discount or plan your own tour by renting a van/driver or even a coach/driver you will save anywhere from 50% to 75% over cruise line prices! Seeing that I'm retired, the time involved was worth the effort and savings! If you want a port-by-port description including highlights and problems experienced, feel free to email me into August for descriptions (balticports@yahoo.com) also note where you are coming from and previous experience with UK/Ireland etc.

DJ:)

We have a tour planned with "About Cork Taxi Tours" for a group of 13 to the above places. I will post a full and detailed cruise log / review upon our return in Mid July.