Is Ireland worth a trip in January?

[HereSince1628]

A friend is contemplating this because the airfares are so low.

[michaelbmoore]

1. Ireland any time of year

is heaven compared to anywhere else. Go to Galway and get a nice sweater.

[Padraig18]

2. No!

Trust me on this one, lass! June, however, is a marvelous time to visit. :)

[Capn Sunshine]

3. SURE! And add the layover in Greenland!

it's totally cheap

[SiobhanClancy]

4. Ireland is always worth a trip...

how can anyone doubt it?:) I've been over lots of times in Jan/Feb....a good time to avoid the tourists.

[Bozola]

5. foolish question..

when you're in a Irish pub, it matters not what the weather is outside.

[DUreader]

6. Unless you're a smoker

[SiobhanClancy]

10. Smokers should be ok till mid-Feb if not later...

The smoking ban is still tied up in legal wrangles,as I understand.

[Maeve]

7. Be aware that the days are very short in winter

There is a REASON why there is a single word that means both "afternoon" and "evening" in Irish. And some of the tourist places may be closed/have very short hours--check ahead. But, as already noted, the weather inside a pub is always the same, the music is still played and it all really depends on what your interests are!

[Padraig18]

8. Take long underwear, a rain coat and a good anti-fungal agent!

:P

[Maeve]

11. You realize, of course, that the above advice

Goes equally well in August.... :crazy:

[Padraig18]

13. LOL!

Aye! :P

[greatauntoftriplets]

9. It'll be cold and damp. The damp will cut right through you.

In all likelihood, it will be green and extremely friendly (well, Ireland is always friendly). There probably will be few tourists, but your friend might encounter a bit of snow. As someone above said, the pubs always will be warm.

As I am typing this, I am enjoying the scent of some Irish turf in my fire. Makes me nostalgiac.

[Padraig18]

14. In the truest sense of the word, ...

... Ireland is always 'warm', because the Irish heart is so. The saying goes that you can come to Ireland, but you can never truly leave. :)

PS--- Travelers please note: the Irish, unlike many Europeans, actually like Americans.

[crimson333]

20. I was there a couple of weeks ago

I agree everyone I met was great. I also found it easy to get around in a wheel chair when I needed to use one.

[TreasonousBastard]

12. Never been to Ireland, but...

I have been to France, Netherlands, Spain, Scotland, Germany, Czechia, and a few other places in mid-winter.

No, you may not want to walk around too much if the weather's really bad, but you'll enjoy the tourist-free life and the locals are a lot less hassled and harried and have some time to sit down and talk to you.

And a lot of other stuff besides airfare is cheaper, too. Dropping into any town and easily finding a cheap room and half empty restaurants is a distinct pleasure. Everywhere I've been, owners and staff love to relax and talk to off-season tourists when the crush is off.

My advice is usually to enjoy that half of the stuff you would do indoors in any season.

I spent a week in Italy one August, when it poured every day. Wanna talk about pissed!

[greatauntoftriplets]

15. Turn on your sound and check out this link. It is great.

Same to Siobhan and Padraig. I love this.

http://www.allcladdagh.com/webcam.htm

[Maeve]

17. I always listen to trad when I'm on the computer

Liveireland.com or accuRadio.com's Celtic channel (They also have a Celtic channel on AccuHolidays.com)

[greatauntoftriplets]

18. Thanks, Maeve.

I love listening to this guy's voice, even if he is selling jewelry.

[Maeve]

19. I totally understand!

That lilt, that warmth...sigh.

[SmileyBoy]

16. It's 50 degrees in Dublin in January compared to 10 in Fargo.

Basically, I could travel almost anywhere in January (save for Winnipeg, Edmonton and Vladivostok) and see an improvement in the weather. So I could contemplate a January vacation to Ireland if I wanted to.

But I'd rather go to Hawaii.;-)

[HereSince1628]

21. Thanks, I've passed all your responses on

I guess I expected cool, rainy weather...

[RebelOne]

22. Yes. definitely, I've been there in February.

Go for it.

[Scott Lee]

23. go this month for Winter Solstice - to Bru Na Boyne

And see if you can get in to see the Winter Solstice illumination of the celtic building on the river. Every year at that time the sun creeps in to light up the interior of a normally dark structure.

I was there, but in August :(

[SheilaT]

24. Go. Ireland is fabulous any time of year.

The best thing about going somewhere in the off season is that you don't have expectations of perfect weather. And as others have pointed out, even though some tourist things will be closed, everything will be cheaper and no crowds.

In 1989 we did a giant family visit there (16 people, two vans) the last two weeks of April. Every day it got greener and greener, and the second week thousands of baby lambs and cows (cattle?) had been born, so there were all these babies frolicking about the landscape. On April 30th, in Dublin, it SNOWED! This in a city where palm trees grow!

It was a fantastic visit.

[RebelOne]

25. Definitely. I was there in February.

But it does get bitter cold at night.