My friend Kristy

My chauffeurdrive business has been good to me in many ways but its greatest gift has been the many lovely new friends it introduced into my world. I have just visited the web-site of one of these friends and i am recommending that you have a look at it too. Kristy and her friends, Rose and Debra, toured with me a few short years ago and we had a really great fun time. It was always obvious that Kristy was never going to be short of words and it does not surprise me in the least that she is now in the process of working on having her first book published. Kristy has a great zest for life and, backed by a wonderful imagination, a wacky, dry, tongue-in- cheek sense of humour,what more do you need to write a great book. You can read samples of her work on her site. I know that for one i look forward very much to reading her book when this happens. There are some wonderful photos of Ireland on this site and i am even included in one of them with the Irish wolfhounds. I am the one with the glasses. Have a look.
All the best with your work Kristy and keep us posted on your progress.

Kristy's address

www.kristyhutchison.weebly.com

Chauffeur Ireland West

As we draw closer to the end of another season i can look back with a lot of satisfaction at what was a surprisingly good year for me. I know that i have my friends to thank for a lot of this as referrals are a major part of my business. There is no better way of finding new customers and i would like to take this opportunity to thank all of you who helped me in the past year. I hope that this does not sound like i am closing down for the winter already as i usually find that i have plenty to do right through October, and even into November. The off-season can still be surprisingly busy at times as people still come to Ireland during this period to visit their children(young adults) who are here doing extra studies in Irish Universities. They take the opportunity to do some touring and they are only delighted to find a driver/guide to bring them around. Others come because they just have holiday time and want to avail of the opportunity. There are also those who come on business trips and maybe bring their spouse with them and spend an extra few days having a look around Ireland. Our winters can be very mild and sometimes just as nice as Springtime or Autumn.The weather at the moment is really nice...cool and sunny with a little cloud, but very little rain this month. This would be a nice time to take a break if you are in a position to do that so give me a call if you need a driver.
I am disappointed in the lack of comments on my Blog and feel that if there were more of these it would be a lot more interesting. If i can help pass on any information or advice on Irish Holidays or Chauffeurdrive holidays, or simply just help with your plans, please just let me know. Maybe some of you are finding it difficult to leave a comment for some reason i am unaware of and if this is the case please e-mail me and tell me what the problem is. I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Chauffeurdrive Ireland

September has really turned out to be a pleasant surprise as we have had really nice weather throughout most of it and we look set for some more according to the forecast. Today once again our temperatures are in the mid-sixties and that is really nice. Most of my touring lately has been in the west of the country where i am really at home. If you are thinking about hiring a driver/guide or a chauffeur then i do have some free spaces between now and the end of October. These can be lovely months in Ireland and there are not so many tourists about so you have a lot more comfort. Prices are also on the decrease and i can offer special deals. At this point in time i am already working on plans for future customers for next year and if you are thinking about coming over then it would be wise to start planning now. I can only look after a limited amount of clients as i operate alone so if you think you would like to discuss your plans with me just let me know. It costs nothing to make an enquiry. Holidays in Ireland are special and i like to think that i can help to make them extra special for you.

Chauffeurdrive Ireland

Oh how lucky are the holidaymakers who are presently enjoying Ireland in the sun. The good news is that there is more of it on the way so anybody who is in a position to come here at short notice should jump on a plane and get here as quick as they can. There is no nicer place than Ireland when the weather is favorable. Our temperatures at the moment are hovering in the low sixties and the air is clean and fresh. The countryside is showing all of its forty shades of green and the Autumn leaves are just begining to fall. As a private driver/guide i am loving every minute of my work but then i always do regardless of the weather. I love showing Ireland off to my guests.... and i love just being Irish. This country has so much to offer especially in the countryside where rural life still has that calm relaxed feeling about it that unfortunately is changing in the cities. Ireland is still thinly populated in these rural areas and i love that feeling of having places to myself which you can still find in so many off the beaten track areas. I suppose that is where i differ from many driver/guides as i do like the backwaters. You will not find tour buses on many of the roads i travel and it is amazing the beauty that can surprise you as you round a corner on some out of the way country road.....a mountain lake, a winding river, view of the ocean between two majestic mountains. These are the places you will not find in any guide books and these are the places i love to discover. I have been around a while and i still have a lot of exploring to do. My quest in helping others to trace their roots has brought me to many places i would never otherwise have discovered. I could never be happy just going on the same route all the time and it always changes for me as a result of some long lost relation or obscure address handed down through the years. Long may it last.
October is fast approaching and i expect to be busy for some time yet. If you are hoping to come my way then just send me a message and i will see if i can help.

"We are New York"

Congratulations to my friend Sandy Poster for here recent success with the TV series We are New York. Sandy and her husband John toured with me and we had a great time together. He always laughed at my use of, and my pronunciation of, the word "gorgeous". Have a look at Sandy's interview by clicking on the link provided. What a pity we cannot follow the series here. It was a great idea and i am sure this series will be of great benefit to many immigrants. Congrats to Sandy and all others concerned.
I watched it myself John and would have to say that Sandy is indeed "gorgeous".

Three generations visit same Beehive Hut

When Pam Vasquez showed me the photo of her grand-aunt standing in front of a beehive hut on the Dingle Peninsula she was amazed when i told her i thought i knew the exact spot. The photo was taken way back in 1974 and eventhough there were slight changes which left me just a little doubtful as to whether or not i had the right one, i felt i had and was more than delighted when this turned out to be the case. The door frame had been removed from the hut and the stone shed to the right had also been knocked down. The photos from top to bottom are Pam's auntie, Pam herself and finally Pam's daughter Jessica. Three generations of the one family in exactly the same spot.This of course created great excitement as to find the right hut when there are literally hundreds of them in Dingle was a huge surprise. It is with great pleasure that i am adding these photos to my Blog and would like to thank Pam for granting me the permission to post them. I would also like to thank them for choosing my service for what was for me a lovely tour with a lovely family. Pam's husband Bill and their son Will were also great company and we did have great time together.

Touring the South West of Ireland

The Cliffs of Moher are one of Ireland's premier attractions and what a wonderful day it was today for anybody lucky enough to be there. I have visited the cliffs on many occasions and in all kinds of weather and the experience is always amazing. I have been there when it was impossible to even attempt to scale the cliff-side walks with gale force winds blowing in from the broad Atlantic. The raging ocean eight hundred feet below gives you a first hand view of the power of nature. I have been there in the rain and even on foggy days when visibility was zero and i have witnessed my travelling companions disappointment when they were robbed of even a glimpse of these magnificent cliffs. I have rarely been there on a day such as today. You could not have asked for a nicer day as the sun shone all day long and the ocean was like a blue lagoon. The Aran islands looked like tropical islands at the mouth of Galway Bay and the thought of just diving in to that warm and welcoming water seemed like the perfect idea. The air was fresh and eventhough it was warm it was not that paralyzing heat that you get in warmer climes. There is no place like Ireland when the weather is good...and we do get our share of it despite the bad publicity we get with regards to the rain. I must admit that the last couple of months have not been up to much but i have toured consistently and have not had any clients who were sorry that they came to Ireland. As a private driver and guide i meet all kinds of people and i have never yet had touring companions who left ireland with anything other than praise for this country. Nobody comes to Ireland for the weather and Ireland has so much more to offer and they can overlook the rainy days when they get them. Right now the forecast is for this spell to continue and it really does look settled. What a difference it makes to be a chauffeur/guide when the weather is like it was today. Long may it last.
It looks like there are more special offers on flight prices so this is a good time for anybody in the position to come here at short notice. Are you one of the lucky ones?

Chauffeurdrive in Ireland

It has arrived at last.....Ireland is basking in glorious sunshine, and what a difference it makes. Now is the time to jump on a plane and make your way here as it looks set to stay for awhile. Those people who are already here are blessed as there is no nicer weather than Irish weather when the sun shines. It never gets too hot and the air is always fresh and clean. We are not eaten alive by bugs and the days are still long as it is still bright late into the evening and the sun is in the sky in the early morn. I have done my own share of traveling to places where the sun shines but i have never been anywhere where the weather is as comfortable as in Ireland in the sun. I have a free day today and i am heading for the beach near where i live for a swim. The water right now is really nice...remember we have the Gulf Stream here off the west coast and that keeps the temperatures up. I have mentioned this here before as many people are not aware of this and forget to bring swim-wear with them when they come to Ireland. Come prepared and enjoy.
Early September has seen the usual slowdown of tourists as many people are busy getting their children settled in school etc. We can expect an increase in the numbers again as we move into the middle of the month and i know that i will be busy for another while yet. I do have vacancies at the moment so if you want me just give me a call or drop me a message. I look forward to hearing from you.

Chauffeurdrive Ireland

Do you really want to drive in Ireland? Have you ever driven here before and do you really understand what it means both from a safety point of view and a financial one. If you decide to hire a car then have a good look at the real cost. What insurance have you and do they require a large deposit from you when you come to collect you car? I know that some companies, and maybe all of them, are asking for an upgrade on the insurance you take out online when you come to collect your car here and that this is quiet expensive. If you refuse to take it out then you have to pay a hefty deposit so make sure you double check this out first. Fuel is expensive here also and if you do have even a small accident then you will pay dearly for that.
It is worth considering all the advantages you get when you employ a private driver and guide. No need for insurance as that comes when you employ a proper chauffeur. No need to worry about how you can handle the roads. You can now sit back as a passenger and enjoy the countryside, something you will not be able to do if you have to keep your eyes on the road. No need to worry about your fellow travelers and how their nerves are standing up to the near misses you will be having, and you will have these hair-raising moments. No need to worry about maps and the constant job of trying to figure out where you are. You will also get to see much more in a much shorter space of time as your driver/guide will be familiar with your routes. No need to worry if you have had a Guinness or two with your lunch. It may cost a little more but for all the extras you get it is more than worth it. Remember, you can get a quote and it does not cost you anything. Ignoring your options just might cost you a lot more.
This chauffeur/private driver/guide will be only delighted to help out if you do wish to consider this option. The West of Ireland is well worth a visit, so do it in comfort.

Your Chauffeur and guide in the West of Ireland

Our weather remains a mix of sunshine and showers but the long range forecast is for an improvement. It usually happens that way in Ireland. The sun starts to shine when the kids go back to school and maybe that will prove to be the case once again. Most of my work in the past few days has been around my own area so i have had a chance to catch up with many unfinished jobs that were on hold. The Galway Oyster Festival will be the next big event in my area and that does attract a lot of people. The Galway Bay Oyster is special and has a flavour of its own. The oyster beds are located mainly around the Clarinbridge area which is on the inner shores of the bay on the eastern side. We have very good quality mussels also and these are really popular here. Periwinkles and clams are also here in abundance and of course we have a great range of fresh fish. The mackerel season is upon us now and they can be caught very easily with a hand-line from the shores anywhere along the coast. The promenade in Salthill is a favourite place for this type of fishing and you can see many people fishing here using hand-lines and rods. Sometimes there are so many fish caught you cannot even give them away. As kids we had canoes and would always end up with too many fish. It was great fun though and ruined any interest i might have had in fresh water fishing as i found it very hard to spend all day waiting for a bite that might never come when the sea-fishing was all action. My Dad had the necessary patience for that but forgot to pass it on to me. It was special being born and reared on the shores of Galway bay and eventhough i have lived elsewhere i could never be truely contented living away from the sea. There is a freshness in the air that you just do not get anywhere else. I can remember many sweltering days spent in London dreaming of the lovely cool air on the promenade in Salthill and wishing that i could plunge into the refreshing waters of Galway bay. We swam all day long in the Summertime and i still love to get in there when i have time. When i look back at those times it seems like the sun was always shining. We did not need TV or playstations or computers and video games to entertain us and we were as brown as berries from the sun. To remain indoors was like being in detention and we were rarely under our parents feet, and they did not have to worry about us either. They were good times in so many ways. I love to reminisce with people about the old times as we travel together and find that eventhough we were born far from each other our childhood days have many similiar memories. We did not have a lot but i never remember being badly dressed or hungry in the extreme. If we were hungry it was because we were out in the fresh air getting plenty or exercise and working up an appetite. We were never handed a menu either and you ate what was put down in front of you or you stayed at the table until you did while everybody else went out to play. You would not sit there long looking at your plate knowing that all you had to do was gobble it up and join the gang outside. I still find it hard to listen to the debating you hear between parents and children today as to what has to be prepared for dinner. It makes me wonder who is running the show. I am always grateful for the way it was for us as today i am very easy to please when it comes to food and eat just about everything within reason. Snails are still off my menu, as are sheeps eyes and a couple of other unmentionable things we never came across on our menus.
Now this driver and guide had better get moving as i have things to do but i will get back as soon as i can. If you have a contribution please feel free to write. Talk to you again soon.

Touring Ireland

This morning our son David and his wife Amie arrived home on holiday from New York with their little boy Levi. They left lovely weather behind them and arrived to a wet and windy Ireland but nevertheless were delighted to be here. They will be spending two weeks with us so now i have extra tourists on my hands. They live in Queens where another of our sons also lives with his family. Our eldest son lives in Chicago with his family so we really are major shareholders in the USA. It is great news for us to hear that it has now been discovered Barack Obama has Irish ancestry. They came from the county of Kilkenny. His great great grandfather, Falmouth Kearney, sailed from Ireland in 1850 just after the famine and settled in Ohio. The family later moved to Indiana right next to the state Obama represented in the senate. He nows joins an elite group of American Presidents who had Irish heritage. Now we will have to make sure that he visits us as they did. He will be more than welcome. He has created a great deal of goodwill outside the USA since he arrived on the scene and still is very popular on this side of the world. Of course he has a big job on his hands holding on to his high poll ratings in the USA just as all leaders have in their own countries at this point in time due to the recession. Our own Taoiseach (Premier here in Ireland) has slipped to a disastrous low in the ratings and Gordon Brown in Britain is not much better off. It would be very interesting to see just how quickly a replacement in any of our countries would slide down the popularity scale.
I refuse to get involved in politics so lets move on to something else.
Somebody has been forecasting a heat wave for Ireland in the near future. I did not read about this myself but i hope they have got it right as it would be a God-send. We have had our fair share of rain recently and it will be a long Winter if we do not get a break soon. Being a private driver and guide is so much more pleasant when the weather is nice but i am always amazed at how well my travelling companions accept whatever is their lot. They still love Ireland even in the rain. Strong winds and gales do make the west coast of Ireland even more attractive in many ways and the air is always so refreshing. You just need to make sure to bring the proper all-weather clothing and stay wrapped up. A walk in the rain can be lovely and it certainly will give you a good appetite. keep an eye on the forecast and if you need me just give me a call. I would love to see you.