That depends on what you want to do. Dublin is a very large city with lots of hustle and bustle while Galway is more of a small college town. I recently returned from Ireland and did a Dublin-Galway-Dingle-Dublin loop. My personal preference was for Galway. There are many things to see around Galway and it is an easy daytrip to the Cliffs of Moher or to Connemara which I loved. It is also close to the Aran Islands but the ferries might not be running at the end of October. There are also lots of cute seaside towns all along the west coast near Galway.

Hi there,

I live in Dublin and used to work in Galway so I can easily recommend both cities. I would suggest you split your time between the two. Galway is just under 3 hours drive from dublin or you can get the train straight into the city centre in Galway.

Once you are in Galway I'd get a hire car as you'll need it to get to Cliften, Westport or just to go for a drive through connemara. Arann Islands are worth a visit. The ferries run all the time (there are a few hundred people living on the Island)

Another option is to get the plane over to Arann. It's only 7 mins but on a clear day it's amazing! You'll be able to see the old ship wreck from Father Ted.

Hope this is of some use to you. If you need restaurant suggestion, just ask. Also I found the Lonely Planet "Encounter series" very good for other cities I went too. It's spot on most of the time.

Enjoy

I agree that splitting your time between the two cities would be a good idea, but I would be inclined to spend just 2 days in Dublin and the rest in Galway.

Using Galway as a base, it is possible to fit in quite a lot, e.g. Connemara, Aran Islands Cliffs of Moher and Burren.

Normally I would suggest that you spend the time in Dublin first and then chill out in Galway, but you might want to keep in mind that the Dublin City Marathon will take place on Monday 27 October so Dublin will be very busy.

I would suggest that you book your accommodation early as the weekend you arrive is a bank holiday weekend here in Ireland.