1st time in Ireland - what to do with 2 free days? Help!
 

I will be in Dublin on business in June and will have 2 days to myself (a Fri and Sat). Would it be doable (and enjoyable) to drive to Galway, spend the night and return to Dublin the next day? Or are there other, just as scenic/enjoyable trips outside of Dublin that are closer. The downside is I have a 7am flight out on Sunday. Any help is greatly appreciated!

Would not go to Galway (although I really like it there) for two reasons: 1) It is kind of far to go for just the one night and 2) although much, much smaller than Dublin, it is still an urban area, and much of the best of Ireland is in rural areas.

What I would suggest is to go to the Wicklow Mountains for the two days and one night. It is amazing how close you can be to Dublin, but feel in another world. I would suggest visiting Glendalough and perhaps Powerscourt, and finding a nice B&B to spend Friday night in. You can also do a bit of hiking and drive through the Vale of Avoca.

another option would be to head into either Kilkenny or Cashel - you can see a lot of smaller places along the way, but still be only about 2 hrs +/- from Dublin ;)

I'd agree with Howard and Debbie. With two days, I'd stay on the east side of the country as there's plenty to see there. I like both of their suggestions and might combine them.

If you have a car already or can pick on up on Thursday night/early Friday, you might want to wind your way down the R115 (aka the Military Road) to Glendalough. Both the drive and the site are top of our list of favorites. With an early Friday start, you could easily head on to either Kilkenny or Cashel from there and make it to either town before dark, due to very late sunsets in June.

The next morning, explore whichever town you've chosen (my pick between them would be Cashel) and then head back to Dublin Saturday afternoon.

Thanks for the great ideas! I was thinking Western Ireland might be too far for just an overnighter and you have all helped to confirm that.

One other thing; any hotel or B&B recommendations for those areas?

Well, we went Dublin to Waterford (not recommending that choice) and day tripped to Kilkenny.

In Cashel we stay at Legends Guesthouse (www.legendsguesthouse.com) which has a huge view of the Rock of Cashel historic site at night. On their site, you can see the Rock itself in the background.

I loved Dualla house in Cashel.
Didn't much like Laurels in Kilkenny.
Click on my name to find my post with the full reviews of the places we stayed. :-)

I like Tudor Lodge in Laragh (www.tudorlodgeireland.com), which is in the Wicklow Mountains.