Saints, Scholars, and Storytellers: A Travel Guide to Ireland
131 pages. Three trips. One very long stay in Kinsale.
131 pages of Ireland. This isn’t a list of the top ten things to do. It’s a personal, opinionated guide to the places we love and the details that made our trips better.
I’m Melissa. My husband Chris and I have traveled to Ireland three times. On our first trip, we stayed for three months. We lived in Kinsale, a harbor town on the southern coast that many tourists miss.
We’ve taken a boat out to Skellig Michael in weather the skipper had choice words for to hike up 618 steps on the edge of a pointy rock (sure seemed like a mountain) to monastic ruins.
We’ve dined in a snug of a fancy gin palace in Belfast that had its stained glass windows blown out more than once, and we’ve walked along the river path Seamus Heaney often tread in his life.
I write about travel, food, and literary places. My work has appeared in Travel + Leisure. This guide is everything I wish I’d had before our first trip and everything I learned by the time we came home from our third.
Twelve destinations from Dublin to Belfast. Where to eat, drink, stay, and what to see. Four ready-to-use itineraries (5, 7, 10, and 15 days). Practical planning advice on flights, driving, rental cars, packing, money, and weather. Plus, our favorite Irish books, films, and shows to get you ready before you go.
For the traveler who wants more than a guidebook. For the one who wants to sit in a snug, hear Heaney’s voice on a riverbank, and find their own story in Ireland.
$17 | Instant PDF Download
What’s Inside
Dublin — Literary museums, a literary pub crawl, where to stay, and the restaurants worth a reservation.
Kinsale — Three months of local knowledge in a harbor town most visitors miss, including the Michelin-recognized restaurants and the walks we came back to again and again.
Skellig Michael & Kerry — How to get a boat to the island, what to expect on the 618-step climb, and what to do when the weather says no. Ring of Kerry and the Dingle Peninsula, too.
Belfast & Derry — Murals, black cab tours, the Titanic, a Victorian gin palace, Derry Girls.
Seamus Heaney Country — The river path, HomePlace, and a landscape that inspired poems.
The Causeway Coastal Route — The drive, the stops, and what to consider skipping.
Plus: Galway, Cork City, Limerick, Kilkenny, Sean’s Bar in Athlone, four ready-to-use itineraries (5, 7, 10, and 15 days), planning advice on flights, driving, rental cars, packing, money, and weather, and our favorite Irish books, films, and shows to get you ready before you go.
FAQ
What format is the guide? It’s a PDF. 131 pages, beautifully designed, and ready to download the moment you purchase. You can read it on your phone, tablet, or laptop, or print it to take with you.
Is this a physical book? Not right now. It’s a digital download only. Many readers save it to their phone so they can pull it up on the go.
How is this different from your free Ireland Insider guide? The free guide covers three cities and is a starting point. This is the whole picture and includes four ready-to-use itineraries, restaurant and hotel recommendations, and the planning details (flights, driving, rental cars, packing, weather) that turn a daydream into an actual trip.
$17 | Instant PDF Download