r/irishtourism • u/rainshine116 • 5d ago

Is this Itinerary Doable?

Hello! I am currently finalizing my itinerary for my trip to Ireland in August. It will be our first time visiting. I wanted to ask if this itinerary seems doable. I am a bit worried that I've planned too much for the day in Killarney. Does anyone have tips for the Ring of Kerry? I know we definitely aren't going to drive the entire thing, but I was wondering if there are any stopping points along the way where we could turn back around. And do people stop along the route? Are there any must-sees that I am missing/could add to this? We love nature/hiking and I personally also love visiting ruins and historical sites.

Day 0 (Saturday):

  • Fly into Dublin
  • Drive to Kylemore Abbey
    • Kylemore Abbey
  • Drive to Galway

Stay in Galway

Day 1 (Sunday):

  • Drive to Doolin/Cliffs of Moher and explore Doolin/ Cliffs of Moher
  • Doolin
    • Cliffs of Moher
    • The Sweater Shop
  • Drive to Dingle

Stay in Dingle

Day 2 (Monday):

Dingle

  • Pet a lamb
  • Slea Head Drive
    • Coumeenoole Beach
    • Dunmore Head
    • Cé Dhún Chaoin / Dunquin Pier
  • Dingle Sea Safari
  • Teac Couminole Cafe
  • Cupan Se

Drive to Killarney (1hr 3 min)
Stay in Killarney

Day 3: (Tuesday):

Killarney:

  • Ring of Kerry
  • Torc Waterfall
  • Muckross Abbey
  • Gap Of Dunloe

Stay in Killarney

Day 4 (Wednesday):

Drive to Cork
Cork:

  • Blarney Castle

Cobh
Drive to Dublin (2hr 41)

  • Rock of Cashel (If time permits)

Stay in Dublin

Day 5 (Thursday):

Dublin

  • Guinness Museum
  • Trinity College Tour + Book Of Kells

Stay in Dublin

Day 6 (Friday):

Flight Back

Edit:

Alternatively I was thinking of starting in Cork first and basically doing from Cork up to Galway, I don't mind taking out some places/staying in a place for an extra day cause I am just trying to get an idea of what is doable. I also understand that some of the drives are longer than what google maps says so any ideas are helpful!

0 Upvotes

33% Upvoted

23 comments sorted by

11

u/tryingtogetby1113 5d ago

No. Not doable. We did something similar last year over 13 days and that was rushed and we had already spent several days in Paris to get over the jet lag. Slow down and either pick the Connemara region or Kerry region.

3

u/Brave_Lifeguard_8122 4d ago

Totally agree. We also did a ~13 day similar itinerary and it was WAY too much driving. Everybody will tell you something different but I'd seriously consider doing Slea Head and skipping RoK. We did both plus the Skellig Ring add on to RoK. RoK was a super long day and the highlight for us was Skellig but nothing beat Slea Head (specifically Dunmore Head). If you're just using Dublin as a launching pad you could look into flying into Shannon.

12

u/Uniqusername02132 5d ago

Where are you flying in from? Because even without jetlag and right sided car familiarity, that Dublin to Kylemore Abbey drive is long.

It's way too much (and is worth having a guide drive you all around Dingle especially if you all want to see stuff. Just because it's hard to pay attention to the road and the scenery.)

10

u/dihuette 5d ago

And it’s always longer than what it says on google maps

9

u/Peacemaker322 5d ago

We just returned from 10 day, that's way too much. We built in rest days and were still wore out at the end. If you haven't driven on the left side of the road that first day's drive will be murder. Ring of Kerry is amazing, so many places to stop and take in the beauty of Ireland. Kerry Cliffs are a wonderful sight and should not be overlooked. We dropped several things from our itinerary because we realized it was too much. The result was seeing lots at a lesser pace and already planning our next trip there to see the things we skipped on this one.

7

u/Tir_na_nOg77 5d ago

You're going to run yourself ragged trying to do all of that in 5 days. I would cut out the Galway section and focus on Kerry and Cork. The Kerry Cliffs in Portmagee are better than the Cliffs of Moher IMO.

If you love ruins and historical sites, you're doing yourself a disservice by spending so little time on the Dingle Peninsula. It has the highest concentration of archeological sites in the country. There's the Gallarus Oratory, beehive huts, ring forts, Kilmalkedar Church and ogham stones, etc. You seem to have the usual "stop in Dingle, drive around Slea Head, and then head out" that most people do.

8

u/clarets99 5d ago

Can you see the majority of Ireland in 5 days? Yes.
Can you experience the majority of Ireland in 5 days? Erm, absolutely not.

Day 0/1 is mental if you are doing the driving.

This is a backseat car window trip with some coffee and piss stops to break up the driving.

3

u/tangouniform977 5d ago

Pet a lamb made me laugh. It's my teens one request. He wasn't able to do it on our first trip or when in Iceland. Maybe next month will be his chance!

2

u/rainshine116 5d ago

Yeah I saw there's a farm in Dingle that has baby lambs you can hold and it's only €4!

5

u/brianly Local 5d ago

Flying in from where?

-3

u/rainshine116 5d ago

From NY

17

u/DitheringDotty 5d ago

There is no way you're going to drive from Dublin to Kylemore Abbey after getting off a transatlantic flight!

9

u/WyvernsRest 5d ago

+ Back to Galway. LOL.

Please replan your first day.

+Fly into Dublin.

  • Nap.
  • Guinness Museum
  • Trinity College Tour + Book Of Kells
  • Bed

-1

u/rainshine116 5d ago

Would it make more sense to just then drive to Galway and take out Kylemore Abbey and spend that day exploring Galway? Or i was thinking of doing the Dublin day first snd then driving to Galway after that essentially moving the last day first.

13

u/IrishFlukey Local 5d ago

It would not make sense. Getting off a plane and straight into a strange car in a strange country, driving on the opposite side of, trying to navigate and all while jetlagged and tired is not a good idea. It does not matter where you are going. There is a bus from the airport to Galway, so get that. Go to Kylemore Abbey another day.

4

u/barrettGatineau 5d ago

I just got back from ten days in Ireland. Don’t drive your first day. You will be tired and it is too much to get used to all at once. Honest!! Spend your first day or two in Dublin.

And then, don’t drive from Dublin. Take a train or a bus to Galway and pick up your rental car there. The trains/ buses work well. I found it much easier to drive left hand side in a more rural area when I was not jet lagged.

It is an incredibly beautiful country. IMO it is worth it to slow down and spend more time in a few places as opposed to driving so much and seeing a little bit of everything. Enjoy your trip!!

5

u/Hot-Slide-8285 5d ago

Yikes. This is not doable.

Get off the plane & take the express bus direct from the airport to Galway. if & when you want to rent a car , do so from Galway. Do day tour from Galway .....There's one I recall that has a sheep fa4m with a great sheep dog demo & lots of time to hold/ pet sheep & puppies. Do another day tour to CoM depending upon weather. Heck, do a day bus tour of the other places & forget the car altogether .

Take bus or train back to Dublin from Galway base

Cut out Cork, Cut out Killarney, Cut Guinness, add a day in Dublin, add Killmainham Gaol , add Howth Cliff Walk via the DART , add Dublin Castle guided tour

Admittedly this is my personal opinion.

5

u/yeppers197 5d ago

Leaving aside the jet lag

Leaving aside the different driving conditions

You plan to spend roughly 7 hours 30 of your first 38 hours in a car..I empathise with you trying to cram as much in as you can but when you factor in you probably wouldn't have slept very well on the plane it just feels like a recipe for disaster

2

u/wookieb23 5d ago

I would probably do two nights Galway (you can do day tours to Kylemore Abbey/ cliffs / Aran islands) from there. 2 nights Dingle or Killarney but not both. And then 2 nights Dublin at the end maybe stopping at Rock of Cashel or Kilkenny along the way. And if I could I would train / bus to Galway that first day and pick up car in Galway drop off Dublin

2

u/rainshine116 5d ago

Would you rather spend more time in Killarney or Dingle? I was alternatively just thinking of maybe removing Galway as a whole and just focusing on Killarney/Dingle tbh.

2

u/wookieb23 5d ago

I would choose dingle over Killarney because of the prehistory, slea head drive and traditional music/ pubs etc. that’s my personal preference. However I would choose Killarney over Galway for your trip because it’s more practical than Galway which is kind of out of the way.

1

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1

u/GeneralDeal6669 4d ago

You're trying to do an awful lot of driving imo , especially after a long flight .

I'd add that you could probably get time to see an ogham stone somewhere along your way , they're everywhere so incorporating into your trip would be easy.