Advice?

[Rambis]

I am headed over to Ireland in April and wanted to know if anyone had any recommendations?
I am a big Irish traditional music fan (main reason I want to go) so I am headed to the temple bar area of Dublin for a couple of days. I am thinking about the Paul Brady concert in Limerick since I will miss the Galway and Waterford shows by a couple of days. What I am really looking for is a place like Dingle but the dolphin seems to have made the place a bit touristy is that the case? I have heard good things about McGann's pub on the west coast. My folks ran across Altan there a few years ago and I would love to see them at their local. I had a chance to see them in Chicago last year and they were almost as good as Danu. I have tickets to see them two nights in a row in Cedar Rapids Iowa next week.
I am a bit worried that since I have heard about some of these places they might be tourist traps.
I just want to sit down with a good pint and relax to some good music period.
Any information would be much appreciated.
Slainte!

[mcscajun]

1. Just returned from two weeks in Ireland.

A couple of Dublin recommendations:

The Arlington Hotel in Dublin on Sunday nights has Step Dancing from 9:30 PM.

Oliver St. John Gogarty's Dublin Restaurant in the Temple Bar has traditional music as a draw, and good Irish food to boot.

Sláinte!

[Rambis]

2. Thank you

I will check it out. I just want to avoid going and sitting with the budweiser drinking americans in a hard rock cafe atmosphere. I am looking forward to music pints and food in that order. What is the point of going to a foreign country and sitting with or being around people I could be around here in the US. I remember my wife hating the Hofbrau house because there wasn't a German speaker in sight. They went to a local house were they could stumble through their German and the folks received them warmly.
Sláinte!

[mcscajun]

3. Well, if you want to mingle with the locals, get out of Dublin.

It's more of an international city these days than a purely Irish one.

Go West, Young DUer, go to the West of Ireland! :)

Galway or Donegal in particular. Or, for something closer to Dublin, try Athlone, a fine town somewhat west of Dublin (about 82 miles) and pop into O'Neill's Bar for a carvery lunch and a chat at the bar with some locals enjoying their pints and a good rugby match.

[Rambis]

5. Galway is on the list

I have to wait for a friend to fly into Dublin that is why I am there for two days. I am not much of a big city person myself. I usually like the version of tunes that originate in Donegal so that is a good piece of advice as well. I have seen a couple of sessions advertised on Thursday night and Sunday afternoon in Dublin and I plan on that for sure. Informal sessions can be magical at times and if they don't turn out I would have to sit and sip a pint what a shame. My neighbor here in Iowa is from county Wexford so we might head down there to a beach front cottage for a day. thanks again all

[CountAllVotes]

17. you'd be surprised how many drink Budweiser/Miller in Ireland

They order as much as here. Not everyone there drinks Guinness and Harp nor Smithwicks.

I thought it was funny. They were charging 4 euros for a bottle of Miller. I told the bartender *ack*. Miller! Hell, they call that "horse piss" in the USA as it tends to be cheap and being you can see through the bottle, it looks like piss. He laughed at that one and drew me up a pint of Guinness.

I'd say head north to Donegal if you can fit it end and stay there for a few days. It is one of the last parts of Ireland left that still has many of the old ways and the people there are incredibly nice. :D

Have a great trip!

Sláinte!

[Rambis]

18. No Bud or Miller for me here

so I'm not going to start drinking the piss water there:) The only thing I am going to avoid is the potcheen. There used to be a bunch of Irish cops in my town who would sit at the end of the local bar and sip away. Never again for me-
I truly like the taste of Guinness and I plan on liking it even more in the unpasteurized form.

[Rambis]

23. Cheers, thanks

I got very good advice on this board for my trip.
Got outta Dublin asap
Skipped Galway accept for the 3 hour traffic jam-

Clifden was perfect- We sat down at the bar and there was a guitar player and a box player. They started a tune and I turned to my friend and said this is lakes of ponchartrain by Christy Moore. The bartender got a huge smile on his face and we were off to the races. He closed the doors at 11:30 and we stayed until 2:45am when the session ended.

Gerard at white heather house http://www.stilwell.co.uk/show_town.asp?Q=bb%7CL4074581%7CP2324159
asked us where we were off to and we told him Doolin and he said to look up his cousin who was the bartender at McDermotts in Doolin. We had an absolute blast there. The session there was blazing fast which was a change from the night before and it was great.

We hit the only brew pub in Ireland the Biddy early brewery in Ennis and that was a great time as well. Went through Lisdoonvarna and Kilfenora. The record shop in Doolin was heaven I got music I couldn't even dream of getting in the states. I ordered a couple of things off of Amazon at X-mas that still aren't here yet.

On the way home I ended up trading mini discs with a guy that sat next to me. I gave him some stuff he didn't have and he gave me Christy Moore and Sharon Shannon.
Great trip!

[Maeve]

24. Thank you for the report!

NOt THAT is the way to see Ireland!

Hoping to get back in the next couple of years and it can't come soon enough...

[mohinoaklawnillinois]

25. Sounds like you had great craic...

Mr. Wonderful and myself are going for Christmas. We leave Chicago on Dec. 15th and return on Jan. 8th. I can't wait.

Don't you just absolutely adore Clare. IMO it's the best spot in Ireland. The people, the music, the scenery, I could just go on and on.

We have a wedding to go to in Mayo on New's Year Day, so I'm thinking about suggesting a side trip to Clare/Doolin before heading to Mayo. I don't think I'll have too hard a time convincing Mr. Wonderful. It's been 9 years since either of us have been there.

Glad you had such a great time.

[Rambis]

26. Clare was beautiful

It is everything that I pictured in my mind when thinking about Ireland.
The fiddle style in Clare is a very lilty which I love. The next trip will be to Donegal, Mayo,Sligo and then south of where we went this time.
The friendliness of the people was amamzing. I wish to god I could get a pint of Guinness that tasted that good in the states. Boston is the closest I guess but if I am going there I might as well go all the way to get the real stuff.

[Maeve]

4. Ask the locals where/when you can catch a "session"

That's the usual term for some trad music played by locals and it tends to be some of the best.

[Rambis]

6. Sessions

On the calendars of the pubs I have looked at they are Thurday nights and Sunday afternoons. That is exactly what I hope to catch.
Thanks

[Maeve]

7. If in Galway on a Saturday, check in Shop Street

(or Quay Street, I think it is, that far down). There were a couple of pubs there with sessions going in '03.

[Rambis]

8. Much appreciated

I can't wait to get to Galway-

[DaveinMD]

9. go to Clifden

the Ring of Kerry is too touristy. Clifden is purely Irish.

[mcscajun]

15. Purely Irish, indeed! When I was there two weeks ago, we heard

Irish being spoken by schoolchildren on the streets. :)

[mohinoaklawnillinois]

10. Take the advice of Christy Moore, "if it's music you want ,go to Clare".

Check out Gussie O'Connor's pub in Doolin, Co. Clare. Not only is it known for the sessions, it's also very close to the Cliffs of Moher.

When my husband lived in Ireland, his friends and himself would take off every weekend they could and head down to Clare for the music and the craic..

I don't think you'll be disappointed.

[Maeve]

11. Now don't get me started singing "Lisdoonvarna"!!

Too late....

How's it goin' there everybody,
From Cork, New York, Dundalk, Gortahork and Glenamaddy.
Here we are in the County Clare
It's a long, long way from here to there.
There's the Burren and the Cliffs of Moher,
the Tulla and the Kilfenora,
Miko Russell, Doctor Bill,
Willy Clancy, Noel Hill.
Flutes and fiddles everywhere.
If it's music you want,
You should go to Clare.....

[mohinoaklawnillinois]

12. I adore Christy Moore..

Mr. Wonderful met him and various other Irish artists during his many trips to Clare.

I've only had the privilege of seeing him once here in Chicago, but the craic was ninety that night...

[Rambis]

13. I just got done listening to the lakes of ponchartrain

lyrics by CM song by Paul Brady The liberty tapes.
At the Danu concert last night someone told me to head to Doolin so that is now a firm destination. I can't thank everyone enough for the input.
This website says it all-
http://www.doolinireland.net/

[mcscajun]

14. Lisdoonvarna! One of friends sings that just about any time he sees

road sign for it or the name gets mentioned during a tour of the West.

Lisdoonvarna...where the bachelors of Ireland go to the Matchmatking festival in September to get laid and break the hearts of the bachelorettes, who have slim hope of prying said men loose from their mothers' apron strings before they (the mothers) pass on.

[Rambis]

16. Galway city?

My neighbor from Co Wexford hasn't been to Galway in 10 years so he didn't know what was still a good spot. I have been looking at B&B's and hotels online for the Galway city center Co Galway and it is overwhelming the number of places. Has anyone stayed anywhere in the city center (near trad music pubs) they could recommend? I am looking at 50 Euro per night or so per person. Quay street looks like a good place to be.
thanks

[DaveinMD]

19. if you are going to Galway

drive a little further and head to Clifden.

[Rambis]

20. Plan on spending time there next day

We are going to spend time in Clifden, Dingle and 2 days in Doolin but I wanted to see Galway city.

[mohinoaklawnillinois]

21. Ach, Galway City is nice, but

you'll "defintootely" enjoy Clifden and Doolin. As for Dingle, can't say, Mr. Wonderful doesn't like "touristy" spots and therefore I've never been. To be quite honest, I don't think he likes Kerry at all...

Hopefully, when you get to Doolin and go out to see the "Cliffs" the weather will cooperate. I enjoyed the view from them on a Sunday night in February, 1998 at the sunset of a totally clear day.

Made me appreciate the words, "it's long, long way from Clare to here".

[Rambis]

22. Maybe I will run into Nanci Griffith:)

I have so much music to see I can't wait