# thinking of exchanging into Italy or Ireland ... but not sure



## krmlaw (Nov 24, 2010)

I have NO idea which resorts/areas to look for. 

Last time we were in Ireland we moved around every few days, from dublin west then south, east, then north back to dublin. 

Now thinking of maybe 2 weeks in Ireland, one week one place, another somewhere else. 

ALL ideas welcomed ... 

Italy - again, no idea. any and all help needed.


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## Conan (Nov 24, 2010)

We did Tuscany/Umbria Italy a few years ago, staying a week at La Casella and a week at Il Poggio. 

Not being the type to relax, we drove out every morning -- the area is loaded with picturesque towns, churches, museums and vineyards (it's also maybe an hour or two to Siena and Florence but we'd been there previously). 

Both timeshares are well located except that access to La Casella is via about 3 km of rutted dirt road, but we managed.


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## pwrshift (Nov 24, 2010)

Can't help you with timeshares in Italy but it's such a beautiful country with great people I could retire there.  See the movie 'my house in umbra' as a warm up. However there's so much to see, so I suggest you skip timeshares on your first trip and see the best historic cities anywhere ... Rome, Florence, Venice.  Rick steves has a tour of those 3 cities over 10 days including 3 nights in each city with about 24 other English people for added fun.  The next trip, a timeshare in Umbria would be wonderful.  Oh yes, don't forget Amalfi coast.

Brian


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## Timeshare Von (Nov 24, 2010)

krmlaw said:


> I have NO idea which resorts/areas to look for.
> 
> Last time we were in Ireland we moved around every few days, from dublin west then south, east, then north back to dublin.
> 
> ...



I'm no help on Italy, but will say your 2 wks in Ireland in 2 different places is something we're considering . . . but with the high TP values to get there, it may be cheaper for us to rent cottages for 3-5 day blocks around the countryside.

You may want to check in at TripAdvisor and their Ireland forum as there are some really good DE's (Destination Experts) willing to help plan the perfect holiday!

Von

p.s.  When are you planning to go?  We're looking at late April/early May 2012.


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## Carolinian (Nov 25, 2010)

For Ireland, you may also want to check www.daelive.com  They get not only timeshares there, but also vacation cottages, some set by themselves and others in vacation cottage developments.  My brother traded into one of the latter on the Ring of Kerry and loved it.  We traded last Spring for a 2BR unit at Seasons at Knocktopher Abbey, a timeshare in a charming building that started out as a medieval abbey (It has the oldest working chimney in Ireland, dating from the 12th century) and at the dissolution of the monasteries was converted into an aristocratic residence, which it remained until about 1980 when it was converted to timeshares.  It is only a mile or so off the motorway between Dublin and Waterford so it is very easy to get around by car.  It is also about 15 or 20 minutes from the quaint and historic town of Kilkenny, with its own castle. We drove about 5 minutes to the next town and took the train into Dublin, which we found easier than worrying about driving and parking in the city, especially since parking at the train station was free.  The train took about an hour.  I see a fair amount of Knocktopher availibility at DAE, and they had 5 or 6 weeks the last time I looked but none of them were high season at the moment.  

Italy and Ireland are both tough timeshare trades.  RCI would probably be a better bet for Italy, although DAE had a couple of April/May weeks there recently.  If you have never been to Italy, I would concur with the suggestion for a first trip to do a few days in each of the major tourist cities, Rome, Florence, and Venice rather than a timeshare.  I would use the train to travel between them.


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