More is Still Less
Fáilte Ireland, the national tourism development authority, have released the Fáilte Ireland Golf Guide—2015 Edition. While I applaud the effort and recommend you view it — if only to learn more about golf in Ireland and hopefully get inspired to take a trip — I find it to be a poor resource for actually planning a trip. Here is why:
Information overload: 130 pages, 54 ads, 392 golf courses, 100s of hotels.
Seven regions are detailed in the guide:
- 01 Dublin (53 courses)
- 02 Dublin’s Doorstep and Lakelands (108 courses)
- 03 Southeast (35 courses)
- 04 Cork and Kerry (52 courses)
- 05 Midwest (24 courses)
- 06 West and Northwest (50 courses)
- 07 The North (70 courses)
How are you supposed to decide where to play and where to stay? Naturally, the tourism authority can’t play favorites and wants to promote all of the golf courses in Ireland, and provide a venue for hotels, tour operators, golf courses, resorts, etc. to advertise their offerings. The result is a very beautiful 130-page magazine, but it doesn’t help you with the decision-making process of planning a golf trip.
When I created my Ireland Golf Adventure Guide my goal was to provide only the information you really need to plan a great golf trip and in the most concise manner possible. If my best friend asked me where I should play and where I should stay, would I give them a list of all of the courses and hotels in Ireland? Of course not. I would provide a short, curated lists of the best golf courses to be considered in each region and for each course a few recommendations on where to stay (in various price ranges).
And that’s what I did. The Ireland Golf Adventure Guide is 36 pages, 57 courses, accommodations (a few in various price ranges) in each town close to the golf courses, and a time-proven process for planning a great itinerary. Less is still more.
The Fáilte Ireland Golf Guide has two excellent articles I recommend:
- “Royal County Down and the Irish Open” (pp. 12-15)
- “Links to the world’s finest” by Brian Keogh (pp. 16–18)
- “Ireland’s Hidden Treasures” (pp. 126–128)
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Rob Babcock
Author/Golfer/The Golf Guide Guy
GolfAdventureGuides.com