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Visiting Ireland with a 4 year old!!!

Moab, Utah
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64 posts
Visiting Ireland with a 4 year old!!!
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I am a single mother of a 3 year old boy! I have always dreamed of going to Ireland and now it seems is the right time. We are hoping to go about this time next year. My son will be 4 almost 5 then. I need lots of information!!! I do not know if we should go on one of those guided tours. I really do not like the constriction of someone telling me what I have to do, expecially if my son gets too tired or gets bored! Which happens a lot!!! Then again if we go on about by ourselves I would not know what to do or where to go! I know there are places I want to see, but am very unsure of how to go about things! This will be our first plane ride ever and our first time being anywhere more than 250miles from home! So as you can see I am a bit anxious!!! Any informaton would help a ton!!!

Limerick, Ireland
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1. Re: Visiting Ireland with a 4 year old!!!
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I personally would NOT take a 5 year old on a guided tour.

Where are you planning to fly into?

If you are flying into London, and then over to Ireland, might I suggest you take a day to visit Legoland, which is near Heathrow Airport. It would be a nice day for your son, and it is very near the airport.

Let us know where you are planning to fly into, and the places you would like to see, and we shall do our best to help.

Some of us are parents of young children.

Austin
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2. Re: Visiting Ireland with a 4 year old!!!
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Our daughter was a young four and had a blast.

Major advice from traveling with our kiddo for my hubby's work (Australia in two weeks!!!!!):

1. Don't up and move each night.

2. Get your son in the mood with stories and books about Ireland and related items. We bought a pop-up castle book which got our daughter completely excited about thrones, moats, kings and queens. We also read children's books, including one about a harpist who meets a fairy.

3. Dollar Store for items to bring on the plane -- buy a backpack with lots of pockets to hide items. (I could write a book about the plane ride alone...)

4. You will see less than you think you will. But no biggie, go with the flow.

Check out my TA trip report from a fabulous trip this summer whose title is too long so this is not the link:

Dingle_Trip_Report_including_costs_and_kiddo_favorites-Dingle_Peninsula_County_Kerry.html

Have fun.

Earth
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3. Re: Visiting Ireland with a 4 year old!!!
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First you need to read up on Ireland. Go to the library and check out lots of books. They will probably not be right up to date but will give you a good overview of the country and what to see. Once you find a book you like buy the most recent copy of it.

Most guided tours will not take such young children. Instead rent a car and do it yourself. Ireland is a user-friendly country and mothers with small children are very welcome.

Consider renting a cottage. Your child will feel at home staying in one place for a week. You will be able to cook simple meals and there is room to spread out. Bed time and play time will be much easier for you. Many cottages have children's outdoor play areas.

Do not fall prey to trying to see it all. You simply can not do it with a youngster. Instead enjoy what you do see and take it easy on the driving and car time.

Do your research and then you will know how to prepare for your trip, where to go and what to see. We can only give so much info. You need to do the footwork yourself as only you know what you like.

Cavan
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4. Re: Visiting Ireland with a 4 year old!!!
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Seeing as this is your first ever trip abroad and not used to air travel, foreign currency etc, I would be inclined to advise that you think about booking into a good quality hotel in the middle of Dublin or another large town and ask them to guide you on what services are available regarding places to see and guided tours.

You will only be creating problems for yourself if you wander off into places where you are not familiar and certainly don't bother about hiring a car in Ireland because before you know it you will be lost and made even more confusing by driving on the oposite side of the road. Keep it simple is my best advice and be very careful with your purse.

Dublin, Ireland
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5. Re: Visiting Ireland with a 4 year old!!!
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as someone said do research of places you would like to visit then narrow it down to must see.you could spend a night in dublin and do a short hop on/hop off tour and go see dublin zoo.if you were to come in the summer there might be more to do with a 5yr old ,eg going to the beach.we stayed in corrib village just outside galway city years ago it had a club for kids so you could get a break ,i think its only availabe during summer months.we did a day tour around the galway countryside on a bus with a 3 and 7 year old..do the research then get an idea of what you want to see and you will get loads of help here.

Limerick, Ireland
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6. Re: Visiting Ireland with a 4 year old!!!
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One thing - bring along something for him to suck on (lollipop etc) for 10 minutes after take off & 10 before touch down - he probably wont be able to adjust his ears himself, and this helps. Ear pain is the usual source of upset for small kids aboard aircraft.

Books & activities during flights - although there's a good chance he'll sleep through most. Our kids invade our area (use us as pillows - that's what we're there for :-) but once that happens, sleep is not far off.

Water & multiple toilet breaks - another thing to prep!

I would consider getting a place that has a pool & play area, on days where you want to lie low - found the Maritine in Bantry useful last Summer. Got a knock down rate for a huge room(s) that had a dining room & basic cooking facilities.Great base to explore, good kids facilities and right by a cinema, chemist & grocery shop.

Dream Ireland have rental units attached to hotels (that have these leisure facilites) so that might be a good place to start.

Start by selecting general areas from http://www.discoverireland.ie

Dublin, Ireland
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7. Re: Visiting Ireland with a 4 year old!!!
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Bear in mind that if you visit in November it gets dark around 4.30.

If you are nervous renting a car there are good transport links between major towns and cities e.g Dublin and Galway but it will be difficult to visit the smaller towns and villages. As somebody else mentioned it would be nice to base yourself somewhere for a few days and take some day trips.

From Galway there is the possibility of taking day tours to The Burren and the Aran Islands.

There is also an aquarium and swimming pool complex in Salthill a bus ride from Galway City Center.

http://www.nationalaquarium.ie/

http://www.leisureland.ie/swimming.html

Have a look at this recent thread for some ideas

http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g186591-i88-k1559536-Base_for_touring_HELP-Ireland.html

Dublin also has some good things for children if you plan to visit.

Have a look at this recent thread for some ideas

GUERNSEY, CHANNEL...
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8. Re: Visiting Ireland with a 4 year old!!!
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hallo!

how do "you" feel about driving abroad? If you, like me, actually enjoy driving, then perhaps it will not hold so many fears for you :-) ? Ireland is one of the few countries where I feel quite happy driving - ok, I'm not having to drive on the "other side of the road", but then, I hired a car in Spain a few years back, and didn't find it as complicated as I'd expected!

Great advice for the plane journey (I've two young children, too). I recommend flying, if possible, into Shannon or Cork (not sure if there are flights into Cork from US???) rather than Dublin, as they're far smaller airports and alot easier to get around, and pick up/drop off a car.

Again, I'd recommend selfcatering. We find it alot easier with young children to be able to "feed/water" them :-) when they want, rather than going down to a hotel restaurant, or out to a cafe/shop. Plus, if your son is tired, wants a lie-in you don't have to worry about missing breakfast, or vacating the room so it can be cleaned.

Personally, I certainly wouldn't go on a tour with a young child - for exactly the same reasons as yours :-)

What places in Ireland do you want to see? Again, advice about not being too ambitious this first trip is wise.

Nerja, Spain
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9. Re: Visiting Ireland with a 4 year old!!!
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Hi,

I live in Ireland with 4 and 6 year old boys and still scratch my head as to how to keep them amused (and parents sane)! We've hauled the boys to the US many times, and around Europe with us, and many of the previous posters have excellent advice on surviving the plane trip:

- Bring many interactive toys (LEGO, Playdoh and Knex are favourites for us)

- Ration the games/activities over flight; don't use up everything in the first hour

- Consider buying a video iPod/video player with headphones so he can watch his favorite shows on the flight over. We recently flew to JFK and our boys spent the entire flight watching Lazytown, Thomas the Tank Engine and various other movies. Bliss!

- Make your own sandwiches/food and over pack on fruit. We bring tons of grapes/mango/apples/cheese and rolls on with us; children do not eat on airplane flight schedules (as you well know)

I completely agree with previous posters - do NOT take him on a guided tour.

I recommend a large rental apartment in Dublin, a self-catering holiday home or B&B with large family room to spread out and let him have his play space. We do that all the time with our boys and it works out very well. Home life routines can be preserved and everyone's stress level is more manageable.

To keep him amused and you sane I recommend (Dublin area):

- Dublin Zoo (always a winner with kids!)

- Newgrange Farm (http://www.newgrangefarm.com/) has a great petting zoo and Farmer Bill gives you a personal guided tour.

- Malahide Castle (http://www.malahidecastle.com/malahidecastle/default.asp) next to where I live has 250 acres of land. Your son can run for 15 minutes and still be in your line of sight on green grass. Plus there is a fabulous wooden playground that our boys love, and the Fry model railway.

- Newbridge House and Demense (http://www.fingalcoco.ie/CommunityRecreationandAmenitiesDepartment/Parks/ParksHeritageProperties/NewbridgeHouse/) again has vast green lawns, a petting zoo and another great playground (see a theme emerging here?)

- Viking Splash tours (http://www.vikingsplash.ie/) are every little boy's dream - you drive around in a boast and roar at the top of your voice. Our boys loved every second of it!

- Hurly Burly (http://www.hurlyburly.ie/) - for the inevitable rainy days. There are many of this type of location scattered around Ireland. Your son jumps around inside a padded play area and you restore your sanity over a cup of coffee with other Mums and Dads. You'll get to chat to some locals and realize that kids drive their parents nuts the whole world over.

- Dublin Airport (http:www.dublinairport.com) - watch the planes land and take off from the road beside the runway. Our boys absolutely love to stand at the fence (about 50 yards from the main runway) and watch the planes come in. Buy some snacks and coffee and join all the other plane spotters parked along the viewing areas here.

- Feeding the ducks in Stephen's Green - still great fun for kids and parents alike. Bring your sliced pan with you (you'll understand what that means when you get here).

Hope that helps,

Mark

Limerick, Ireland
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10. Re: Visiting Ireland with a 4 year old!!!
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Mark. Great advice for Dublin area - some of which I'll use in the near future :-)

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