Ireland Adventures - The Rock of Cashel
- Cat Holladay
- Sep 29, 2017
- 2 min read
On June 28, 2017, we boarded a plane with most of our worldly possessions in three overstuffed suitcases to head back to the US. Departing Finland wasn't easy. A piece of our hearts was certainly left there. But spirits were lifted at the thought of spending a full week in Ireland, a country that had been on our radar for years.
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We decided to break up our return trip by hitting some amazing destinations for several reasons. One, the flight deal we snagged from Helsinki to Dublin was too insane to pass up at $75 each on Norwegian Airlines (check out our handy travel hack for this airline here). And two, because we honestly don't know when we will be on this side of the world again.
After arriving in Ireland mid-morning, we headed to our car rental stand. Travelers take note: Ireland appears cheap when booking rental cars. Beware that they charge you numerous "required fees" upon arrival. Luckily, we were saved by our Chase Sapphire card and didn't have to pay a single added fee. If you are interested in the perks this card offers, you can use our affiliate link here and get 50,000 bonus miles when you sign up. The nice man behind the counter at the car rental office explained that most credit card companies did not cover the additional insurance required for Ireland - weird quirk I guess. A quick call to Chase and we were emailed a letter indicating that they DID in fact offer this coverage on all rentals, including those in Ireland.
We upgraded our car to a Volvo XC60 because of the additional money saved. But it wasn't exactly a winner. Driving on the left side of the road is already daunting, add to that a manual gearshift AND diesel engine, and it made for some hilarious and jerky stalls. But we managed.
Our first stop was a 2 hour drive away to Rock of Cashel, a hill with buildings dating from the 1100-1200s. Legend has it that in the 5th century, St. Patrick converted the King of Munster here.
Several of the buildings remaining on the hill had just undergone a major renovation and were spectacularly done. Sitting on the hill overlooking the gorgeous green countryside, we fell in love with the peaceful bucolic view.
Though the day was dreary, it was the perfect introduction to Ireland.
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