Customer Rating: 
Summary: Northern Ireland?
Comment: This book does not have a single ride in Northern Ireland. I wound up buying an out-of-print copy of The Lonely Planet Guide to Cycling Ireland to plan my trip. Since I couldn't use it I do not have any criticism on the rest of the content. Safe riding!
Customer Rating:
Summary: Best Used in Conjuction with Other Resources
Comment: I bought this book before my first bike trip in Ireland, as a couple of the itineraries were similar to ones the group I was touring with would be taking. Plus, I planned on (and eventually did) further bike trips in Ireland.
As itineraries go, these aren't bad. The directions aren't always perfect, but neither were the ones we were given by the tour company. As another reviewer mentioned, you should alway purchase good maps! Even then, you can still make a wrong turn and get lost. In that case, don't hesitate to stop and ask for directions on the best way to get back to your intended route!!
The author himself says that you need another guide or resource for places to stay (i.e., Bed & Breakfasts). There are also better guides for the sites along the routes, once you know the route you're taking. And if you're really interested in reading up on Irish History before you go, get a different book--almost every other guide book I've ever read did a better job of doing a brief overview.
Still in all, this is a good resource for starting to plan your trip; just remember not to depend on it alone!
Customer Rating:
Summary: Three Bike Trips to Ireland
Comment: My friend from Canada wanted to tour Ireland based on a picture he saw on a co-worker's desk. His co-worker had toured Ireland and had nothing but good things to say. He asked me and of course, I said YES! Even though I biked recreationally, I had no idea what I was in for. I bought this book and we used it for all 3 trips (1998, 1999, 2000). In all 3 years, we cycling the last two weeks of September. I feel like writing my own cycling book as we've learned a lot in the three tours to date. Anyway, back to the review. Reason for end of September, The kids are back in school, the tourist trade is widing down, the B&B's are still open & there's less cars on the road! I would do this for any country.I find a lot of the bike book reviews complain about map detail in the books, not finding their way according to the book or not according. You should buy a bike book as a reference only and a good Michelin-like map. Keep an open mind with the book, use a good map & yeah, if you get lost, it's another adventure awaiting you.
I liked the author's write up on the history of Ireland, always good to know a little about the country you're touring. We looked at the book's routes and then transposed them to the Michelin map for actual riding. I had a handlebar bag with an enclosed topside map bag so you can read your route without stopping. The Ireland by Bike book was always at hand. In 3 years, it's a little weathered but will always stay in my collection of books.
The authors mileage was accurate, the tips along the way, the scenery spots that are off the beaten path. An example would be to stop at the signpost 2 miles out of a town, find the lane, walk up the lane 1/2 mile and your see this round fort. We saw things we would never have if it weren't for this book. Excellent examples of things like this thruout. Music pubs, B&Bs, just an excellent book.
I thought all the .... By Bike books would have a common standard but is not the case. Beware before you buy, they are not all like Ireland By Bike as far as detail.
If you want to ride 30 - 50 miles a day, stop to see the sights and enjoy the country, the people, the Guiness, this is the book for Ireland.
Does not cover Northern Ireland. The author never rode into.
Now we're looking for another country to tour now that we've done all of ireland.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Helpful as a tourist, not as a cyclist
Comment: As a tourist, this book was helpful, but as a cyclist it was not. The maps were very difficult to follow and didn't include street information--they were basically a map of Ireland with a line going from city to city, sometimes including road names but not always. Ireland is roughly the size of New England so at a street level, the map was fairly useless. For example, the tour from Dublin to Wicklow (the first tour in the book) began with from the center of town, "follow the signs to Dun Logherie. Once in Dun Logherie..." Now you would think that Dublin was packed full of signs pointing the way, but it isn't; in fact it is very easy to get lost (which is how I spent most of my time on the first day).
4/5ths of the chapter on this first bike tour was about things to do in Dublin and Wicklow and not how to find your way around. This wouldn't be so bad if finding my way around was easy but it's not (Ireland is notorious for this) and the reason I bought this book was so that I *could* find my way around. Instead, I had to buy street maps, regional maps and spent a fair amount of time packing and unpacking things.
In some places the book was misleading. It mentioned that you cannot take bicycles on the Motorways but it didn't mention that most of the National Roads have pedestrian-free bike lanes. It mentioned that you can't take a bike on the DART (Dublin Area Rapid Transit), but it didn't mention that you can take a bike on Irish Rail.
Well it may have mentioned these things, but I didn't see them because after spending the first day lost, I abandoned this book and just used the maps.
Again, the book was full of useful information about what to do when you get to these places, but it was light on the things that mattered most to me as a cyclist. And frankly, if you're looking for a book on what to do in Ireland, you'll do better with a Frommer's guide or somthing more substantial.
Customer Rating:
Summary: The best book on touring Ireland by bike
Comment: I bought a number of books before a recent bicycle trip to Ireland to help me plan routes and I found that this book was the most useful. It is very well laid out and enjoyable to read. If I did the trip again, this is the book I would rely on. I recommend it highly.
