Rick Steves' Ireland 2009

This is definitely the most entertaining guidebook I have read. The book also gives some excellent suggestions, such as step-by-step guides for areas such as the Ring of Kerry. If you are willing to buy and read through more than one book, I would recommend it as one of those books. If, however, you are only buying one, I would not recommend this book, for two reasons. First, the author focuses on his favorites in Ireland. Although you still have enough to choose from, he does not even mention some of my favorite sights in Ireland. I recommend reading a more exhaustive guidebook so that you can plan your trip based on your own preferences. Second, the author seems to have great affinity for the city. Although all of Ireland is amazing, the time I have spent in the city was the least amazing. The suggestions in this book are a little slanted toward the cities, so they might lead you off track if you prefer less of the city and more of the countryside.

This was the best of the three guide books that we brought with us. What I liked best about this guidebook was its succinctness and ratings. Rick Steve's gives his judgment on a lot of what he thinks is worth seeing and what can be skipped over. For those who want an A to Z list of what is offered in a country you will want to supplement this with another guide, but you will definitely want this one. For a traveler with just a week or two seeking to view a significant portion of a country though Rick Steve's ratings were instrumental. He rates each site by his own system that gives more triangles to more important sites.

Among other features of this guide that I liked were some of his self guided tours. We used his one for O'Connell Street in Dublin and the Slea Head Drive on the Dingle Peninsula. Both gave detailed information and pointed out many sites that we learned most tourist went by (without even realizing that there was something worth seeing). He also gives...Read more

We just returned from a 13 day 1,200 km trip around Ireland. I can't say enough about how spot-on Rick Steve's book is. His advice about the clockwise drive around the Ring of Kerry beginning in Kenmare was brilliant; we only came head to head with 2 tour buses. We stayed primarily in B & B's recommended in the book which were very easy to reserve with Rick's email addresses. The hand-drawn maps were really valuable in helping to find the B & B's and other locations within towns/cities. Having said all of this, the first 2 days of driving in Ireland were a bit nerve-wracking. We stopped and bought one of the "learner's permits" for the car and that reduced the honking. By day three we had both the driving and the navigation (and the roundabouts) down, and it was just pure pleasure. If you want to get a bit off the beaten path and see some of the most breathtaking scenery in Ireland don't miss the Skellig Ring, Valentia Island and the Mayo Loop!