Ireland: The Rough Guide, First Edition

I used this book for a 10-day driving trip around Ireland with my mom. My mom had brought Frommer's and Fodor's guide books, and we kept coming back to the Rough Guide. I'd used my first Rough Guide in Ecuador and loved it. What I love is that they cover everything, not just the tourist traps that the "mainstream" guide books do. The book's recommendations are right on and they have information on even the most out-of-the-way places. The book's best suggestion was climbing Mount Errigal - quite a hike, but so worth it. Even the maps in the book are excellent. We ended up using the Rough Guide maps combined with a tourist map we got at the aiport for a large-scale view of the country. The Michelin driving map we brought ended up being too complicated to use. After several great experiences with them, Rough Guides are now my guide book of choice. You won't be disappointed with this one!

This was the 3rd "Rough Guide" I've used, and in my opinion they are the best resources for travel to new countries. They not only cover the "standard" areas and sites in detail - including a good range of lodging and dining options - but also take you off the beaten track, exposing nice gems not covered in other books. If you like to really EXPLORE a country, rather than find the next good shopping area or find the most economical place to sleep, this book and ALL of the "Rough Guides" are for you!

I was weaned on the Blue Guides when I first did international travel. I loved the detail about towns and historic sites in those guides along with the suggested tours. The Rough Guide lived up to this standard for me. It provided a good level of detail to enjoy our touring with an organzization of the information that made sense.

This book is wonderful! Full of pictures, text, history, everything you want to know. My mom actually picked it up, started reading it and asked if she could keep it. (She will be getting her own copy shortly). Great book! Very thorough.

I used this book during by trip to Ireland last summer. It was extremely helpful when I got out of the cities and was in the countryside. The books directions got me to several sites in County Meath and Donegal that I don't think I would have found without it. I ended up spending 3 nights in the Trim area which wasn't covered in the other guide books I looked at. Very useful and complete, I highly recommend it.