Customer Reviews

Lonely Planet Ireland 9th Ed.: 9th edition

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I've made 2 trips to Ireland in the past 2 years. Before and between trips, I looked through a number of popular guides to Ireland, and both times this was the only one I actually took with me. It's thorough, the maps are accurate and helpful, the historical/cultural background sections are useful while not being overwhelming, and the restaurant descriptions are generally reliable. The listings of hotels and guesthouses aren't exhaustive, but those change constantly -- especially the B&B's -- and I felt that their general recommendations of what areas to stay in in a particular town were helpful. (I booked most of my accommodations through the Bord Failte, either online or in person, and was almost always pleased with the results.) The book is also good at pointing out less well-known sights -- e.g., the Hunt Museum in Limerick, which is worth a visit. A guidebook can't satisfy every reader equally, but this one did a good job of recommending activities for a variety of age groups, including families with children. Their descriptions of walks, how to get to historical sites in remote places, the alternatives to the standard Ring of Kerry tours, and even where to find a laundromat in Killarney, were VERY useful to me, and I definitely don't fall into the category of "young and trendy"!

I bought 5 books for a recent trip to Ireland and this is the only book I did not even bother to bring with me. Perhaps it is for a younger travel crowd (I am only 43) but it seemed overconcerned with clubs and trendy places, less interested in helping a traveller negotioate thru the rural and rustic parts of Ireland.

This book will be helpful if you already know where you want to go and what you want to do - but when I looked in the index for hostels and hiking - there was no mention. It's not very good if you are at the beginning of your planning as there is not much of a high-level overview (ie: what to bring, when to go, options on where to stay, etc...). I will probably have to get an additional book for the basics.

Can a travel guide get any better? I think not. While no book can possibly cover everything of interest to everyone LP certainly hits more than just the highlights. It's worth reading even if you aren't planning a trip.

I would give it zero stars if I could. What a waste of money. The descriptions given of sights and restaurants were too short and limited to give you a true idea of what to expect. For instance, there are only a few paragraphs on Blarney Castle, assumably a BIG tourist attraction in Ireland--yet the book doesn't even devote half a page to it. It mentions that it's a bit touristy that you will have to fight the crowds, that it's not worth the admission price, yet fails to mention that it is one of the most spectacularly beautiful places and views in Ireland or that you could spend hours wandering around enjoying the amazing grounds and unique foilage. --That seems like an important point to miss. Also when in Dublin, it offered bland reviews on restaurants and pubs not really rating them in any way so that it didn't help us pick where to go. The reviews were a little better for the Ring of Kerry section, but again, it only gave a one to two line description per restaurant.

The whole book felt rushed and incomplete.

If you feel the need to buy it--for pete's sake--buy it USED, heck, you can even have mine, it'll save me the trouble of BURNING it.

This Lonely Planet travel guide book is directed more towards the younger crowd on a budget. It is easy reading, with loads of useful information. I definitely recommend it!!