Touring - Help! suggestions for touring Ireland

I am going to bring my sister on a bicycle tour to Ireland in 2003.

Does anybody have any suggestions for routes? We want to tour for about five or six days.

She is not a strong cyclist, so the flatter the terrain, the better.

Is lodging easy to come by? Any suggestions or tips?

When is the best time to tour Ireland by bicycle?

Hi Mike, anywhere along the West coast is perfect for a weeks bicycle touring, Clare (Burren and Cliffs of Moher), Kerry (Dingle pennisula, Ring of Kerry) or West Cork (Mizen and Beara pennisulas). Being from Cork my preference would be West Cork e.g. Skibbereen - Schull - Mizen Head - Durrus - Sheeps head - Bantry - Glengarriff - Castletownbere - Kenmare
Scenery is beautiful, and outside of main towns the traffic is light enough, road surfaces can be a bit uneven.
IMO May / June would be the best time to visit, however it rains alot here so be prepared.
Bed and Breakfast accomodation is the way to go, no need to book in advance outside of main towns. Its also possible to camp in the wild, just ask the landowners permission first. Unfortunately Ireland is becoming an expensive place to visit, in particular restaurants and accomodation.
If you are flying into Shannon airport, there is small car / passenger ferry across the Shannon river (20-30mins) from Killimer (County Clare) to Tarbert (Co Kerry).
Hope this has been useful. Don't hesitate to ask any questions.
Dave

Dave:

Thanks for the advise. It is neat to see someone from Ireland on the Forums.

I am debating to bring a bike over, or buy one in Ireland and leave it there. Can you recommend a couple of shops where I could inquire about purchasing used bikes?

Cork is a good place to fly to. Its a cool city and not far from the beautiful peninsulars of West Cork. There are plenty of private hostels, some of them really good, and you can book ahead to ensure beds. For a beginners week of riding I would chose a base closer to the west coast, say Bantry and do a variety of day rides and the circular route around Beara. (Kerry has much heavier traffic).

There is a good bike shop in Bantry and Cork has a few, but most of the rental bikes are hybrids. They are sufficient for riding, but not as good as your own. If you do rent, consider taking your own saddle and pedals. The bikes come with a luggage rack, but you cant always rent pannier bags. For my first tour I rented a cheap hybrid and used a 25l backpack on the rear rack.

May and June are good, but late August/Sept can be a bit dryer.

My suggestion for touring Ireland-

stop at every pub you come across :-)