This was my first time in Ireland so I visited both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. I used Dublin as my home base and predominantly used public transit to get around, although I rented a car once to get to Giant’s Causeway in Northern Ireland.
The main drawbacks I’ve heard about Ireland are the poor public transit relative to other European countries, poor nature offerings relative to other countries, that the weather is usually gray and dreary, and obviously the cost of living.
While Dublin and Belfast could have much better rail connections within the city proper, the bus connections were quite expansive in my opinion. Since I used Dublin as my home base, the intercity rail offerings met more than my needs and I had pleasant train rides on modern and clean intercity trains. The sun was out for me the entire trip, and that really made my hikes in Howth and Giant’s causeway even better. While visiting somewhere for a week isn’t living there, I was still impressed with the beauty of the island of Ireland. Some of the things people say to degrade the place may be a little overblown, it’s certainly a place that nature lovers, transit users, and city lovers alike can enjoy.
I can list where my pictures were taken in the comments if anyone is interested.