Madison County Kids does Ireland

Dublin

  • Stay
    • The Ashling Hotel
      • A reasonably priced 4-star hotel close to Dublin’s restaurants, cafés, and bars. Family rooms are available including a 2 bedroom connected suite with 5 beds. They have a sensory room with adapted lighting, fun seating, and toys. The staff is incredibly attentive.  When the sensory room wasn't available on our return stay, we arrived to a handwritten welcome on our mirror, a bean bag, fun lighting, and sensory toys set up in our room.  We were also given gift bags upon arrival, cookies, and coloring books. Breakfast was a large buffet with American staples and a full Irish breakfast.   Hot food, pastries, cereals, smoothies, and even blood pudding were served and our waitstaff sang an Irish song as we ate!
      • ​Logistics: Check in 3pm. Checkout noon. Will hold luggage. They often give off season discounts. Easy bus or taxi ride from airport.
  • Play
    • Phoenix Park: FREE, 7 minute walk from the Ashling. Open 24 hrs a day, seven days a week, year round, but don't hang out after dark.
    • Shenick Island: Start at the pretty seaside town of Skerries in north Dublin. At low spring tide you can walk across the mud flats to Shenick Island, where a defensive fort stands. The island might look deserted, but it has nesting gulls, cormorants and basking seals, with great views back to land.  Check tidal times in advance, and return to the mainland within two hours of low tide.
    • National Museum (Archeology): FREE Kildare Street 20 minute drive10am-5pm and Sunday - Monday: 1pm-5pm.  Information desk has scavenger hunts. Upstairs kids’ play room.  Bog bodies could be scary but amazing.
    • National Museum (Natural History):“The Dead Zoo,” over two million specimens, from Irish fauna to giant deer skeletons and the mysterious world beneath the sea.
    • Hugh Lane Gallery: Free workshops for families Sundays 3-4pm. Admission to the Gallery is FREE.
    • Guiness Storehouse: A beautiful factory with beer.
    • Botanic Gardens (30 mins) Open every day, except Christmas. FREE. Drop-in activities and free guided talks on Sundays, and downloadable audio guides. Has exotic orchids, cacti, bamboo, rare trees, fragrant flowers, and endangered plants.
    • Dollymount Strand has seals at the northern end and kite surfers at the southern. Migratory species nest in the dunes, making it popular for birders, while The chilly waters are populated year-round by swimmers.
    • Carrickgollogan Forest Walk is popular with mountain bikers and families, the chimney of the lead mine, has a twisty staircase, and the viewing rock enables great panoramas.
    • Dublin Castle served as a fortress, prison, treasury and seat of English rule for 700 years. Guided tours will cost you, but visitors can explore the grounds for FREE. 
    • 14 Henrietta Street used to be a tenement house with over 100 people living there at once. A fascinating look at how people lived.
    • Public houses where you can order a pint and get lost in the music include The Celt on the Northside of the Liffey, O’Donoghue's on the Southside, The Old Storehouse in Temple Bar, Dame Tavern, Walshs, Devitt's and Doheny & Nesbitt.​

Ennis, Ireland

  • ​Lickaun Lodge (Tina's Place)
    • ​Tina's home was a quiet respite 10 minutes from Ennis on the West side of Ireland. The kitchen had an old fashioned stove (named Mary) and a large Range-Master gas/electric cooker.  There was a dishwasher, fridge, freezer, and all of the dish-ware we needed. Tina supplied us with peat (the traditional fuel for Irish fires) and wood for the wood-burning stove in the living room.  The 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms had their own Irish personality and came fully stocked. 
    • The best part of staying at Tina's Home was the freedom and calm.  We were welcome to run in the grass, enjoy the garden, pet the horses, sit by the fire, feed the chickens, or stop by her sitting room for tea.  We often found fresh baked goods on our front step and Tina's door was always open.
    • Logistics: The trip can be done by train, but I recommend renting a car for this part of the journey. Check in was 6pm and checkout was noon. 
  •  Play
    • ​Cliffs of Moher: (24 mins) €30, Parking included with admission.  Interactive exhibits at the visitor centre.  Paths are well-marked with viewing platforms. The visitor centre has a 4D show and a play area. You can also see the cliffs “from the bottom” via a boat. Doolin Ferry Company.
    • Doolin Cave (22 mins) €55. Known for housing the Great Stalactite, one of the largest free-hanging stalactites in the world. Guided tour takes 45-60 minutes.  Free on-site parking.  Tours fill up. Book tickets in advance. Cave is cool year-round, wear layers. Tour involves walking and steps. The path is well-maintained and safe.
    • Doolin: The little town of Doolin has great views and nice shops. In the evening, Doolin is known for all the wonderful music.
    • Burren Nature Sanctuary: (48 mins) €60. With animals and adventure playgrounds.
    • Ennis Friary a free spot to visit with a kids scavenger hunt. On the way out they could present it for a small prize.
    • Bunratty Castle (45 mins from Lickaun Lodge) offers a window into Ireland’s medieval and early 20th century past.  Wander along an old-fashioned Irish village street, and meet village characters, eager to tell a tale, teach Gaelic language or play a tune or two. Medieval banquet nights feature music and entertainment as well as cuisine. $60 for the park. 
    • Dromore Wood & Nature Reserve: 1000 acres to explore with rivers, lakes, meadows, and trails. O’Briens Castle stands by the lake edge. There are two other castles ruins, two ring forts, a chapel, and a limekiln. There is also a visitor centre.
    • Lahinch is a nearby beach town.
    • Blarney Castle (2.5-hour from Lickaun Lodge): €65, Arrive at 9am to avoid crowds. FREE parking. Short walk to the castle entrance, narrow stairs, and kiss the stone. Explore the Poison Garden with toxic plants (all safely labeled and fenced).  Wander through the  Druid's Circle, the Witch's Kitchen, and the Wishing Steps. Look out for fairy houses and tiny doors hidden among the trees.  Keep a close eye on younger children, especially near the castle's narrow staircases and elevated areas.  
    • Fota Wildlife Park: €50, (2.5 from Lickaun Lodge, 1-hour from Blarney Castle) a 100-acre preserve that allows animals to roam freely when possible. 
    • Aillwee Caves (34 mins)
    • Caherconnell Stone Fort (21 mins) €50 Informational tours of the grounds and sheep dog demonstrations. Sheep dog demonstration includes information about dogs and training as well as meet and greet. 
    • The Burren National Park: Bare limestone plateau characterized by carboniferous limestone abounding in corals, mollusks and other fossils that lived in the shallow seas over 300 million years ago.  The Burren National Park is a place of great natural beauty. There are various marked trails in the Park that take you through many fascinating and beautiful habitats, such as calcareous grasslands, woodlands and limestone pavement. Entry is free, and a free bus service is available from May-August
    • Ennistymon Cascades: One of the most beautiful waterfalls in Ireland is the Ennistymon Cascades in County Clare. These small cascading rapids can be viewed in the town of Ennistymon where the River Cullenagh becomes the Inagh River. Since they can be viewed from the roadside, these are great to see with kids.