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Having collected my thoughts, I hope you will permit me to recount my experiences in some detail of a recent visit to Sligo. Towards the end of September I flew from mainland Britain to City of Derry Airport, on the North coast, by way of RYANAIR (£20 sterling each way). Staying one night in the North, I travelled to Derry to catch a Bus Eireann Expressway bus (no. 64), down the West coast to Sligo town and from there, 8 km. due West to Strandhill, a lovely little coastal resort, and stayed a week at Strandhill Lodge, which has an adjacent set of self-catering rooms at Knocknarae lodge next door (the same proprietors). My stay cost 18 Euros a night in rooms with shared accommodation, self-catering. I would warmly recommend Strandhill as a base for exploring the coast - but our own transport is important to access the more remote and less accessible parts of the coast. With Donegal an hour's drive northwards, Galway an hour to the South and Mayo in the West, we would be well placed.
A note on Car Hire. It would make sense to go for better rates in sterling by hiring vehicles in Northern Ireland, maybe at Derry City Airport. The usual car hire firms, Hertz, Avis, Europcar, have up to 8-seater vehicles. You can find the rates and terms on the Internet. I emphasise that I do not drive, so did not hire a vehicle. A Bus Eireann Open Road ticket for 3 out of 6 consecutive days, cost 49 euros, extendable for further travelling days at a cost of 14 extra euros per day. It suited me to cover big distances to obtain value from this ticket. Buses are not frequent, and access to coastal areas is limited.
With our own transport, then, Strandhill is a good base. It has 2 lively Pub-restaurants, a Chinese restaurant, a Pizza place, 2 cafes, a small shop for provisions, and up the road, a small SPAR supermarket with an ATM machine for cash. and self-catering essentials. It is in close proximity to a fine surfing beach, sand dunes and a Golf course and seasonal Caravan site, and is very close to Sligo airport - but I know only of 2 destinations - Dublin and Manchester, though there must be others! Anything else we need to consider in choosing a location?
Hier muss Ich sagen, dass Ich verstehe etwas Deutsch und auch kann Ich ein wenig sprechen. Daher konnen wir ein bisschen ubersetzen! Eine Moglichkeit schliesst nicht die Andere auf...
Over to all of you. Do you like the prospect of Strandhill? It is certainly an option.
Signing off,
Rodney Yates
I booked my flights. :-)
Definitly coming.
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