3.7.2026
With my husband’s Irish roots, visiting Ireland felt less like choosing a destination and more like answering a call. When we finally made the trip in 2019, we were greeted not by the country’s famously moody skies, but by ten days of mostly sunshine. It was a small miracle that felt like our own four‑leaf clover. Fresh off the plane and buzzing with excitement (and jet lag), we headed straight for Bunratty Castle and Folk Park, our first glimpse into Ireland’s layered past.
Bunratty Castle and Folk Park
At Bunratty Castle and Folk Park we not only got a chance to explore the castle and see the murder hole, but also got to learn about what life was like in the 19 century through the accompanying village. All the workers were very knowledgeable and friendly. Bonus: We got to see the extremely large (and sweet!) Irish Wolfhounds in person. Photos online hadn’t prepared me for how tall these pups are, but I understood when we saw them in person. If one of those pups decided to stand upright next to me, I would have been a little over half its size. Yikes! Since our visit was from the early morning to early afternoon we didn’t make it to the medieval banquet. That said, I’d venture it would be an awesome experience to attend a medieval banquet at a medieval castle. I’m always looking for excuses to visit again…
Driving
From Bunratty we traveled on some large motorways and smaller national roads through part of the Burren to get to our hotel. When I say the national roads are smaller, I do mean relatively. In Ireland the national roads are not much smaller than their motorways, but as far as US roads are concerned these roads are barely larger than one-way roads. As we passed cars going in the other direction each car had to move a bit to leave space in the middle resulting in the hedgerows on the side of the road smacking against their vehicle’s door/side mirrors. As we expected, the fields and hedges were exceptionally green given the amount of rain Ireland typically gets. The Burren landscape is almost otherworldly – seemingly flat, but in fact craggy limestone rocks with various outcroppings.
Gregans Castle Hotel
We booked a classic room at Gregans Castle Hotel in Ballyvaughan. Our room was on the second floor and had a great view of the Burren. It was large, quiet, and decorated in a very homey way, making us comfortable immediately. In the common space, we enjoyed sitting by the fireplace (where they were burning peat) while having a drink. After our long flight over and the events of the day, we opted to dine at the hotel. The four-course meal pushed us a bit outside our picky eater comfort zones, and although we didn’t enjoy everything we tried, it was all plated impeccably and we found most items delicious. The hotel also had an extremely old and large patch of rhubarb on the property, which was interesting to us gardeners since the leaves were almost as wide as Terry’s body.
As we drifted off that night in our cozy room overlooking the Burren, we couldn’t help but feel that Ireland had already worked its magic on us. And this was just the beginning. The Cliffs of Moher, Galway, and countless winding roads still waited ahead—each with its own story to tell.