Horses and or jaunting car available without booking, however, it's 7 miles or 2.5 hour walk, you might not need them or it might be possible depending on numbers to could pay for say two spaces on a jaunting car and use them alternatively for the first half of the trip,the second half is all downhill.

Might be better to put your name in for a boat seat before travelling however as they can only take 12 in each boat. The trip can also be done in reverse ie get the boat up from Ross Castle. Last year I think it was about €15 per person for the boat and around the same for a jaunting car seat.

Try to following number if you want to book a boat seat - you can pay on the day and would only need to ring the evening before +353 87 2694646, ask for Ducks or any of the O'Donoghues and say Gary sent you.

Your kids will probably like the Muckross Tradition Farms portion of the Muckross House and Garden tour. They can be done separately, or combined.

Recently refurbished Ross Castle is one of the FINEST castles in Ireland and well worth the time.

South of town on the road to Kenmare is Ladies View. You'll want to stop in the car park and peruse the Tourist Shop, but the REAL Ladies View is a bit further south. There's a wide, dirt pull-off on the right (heading South)marked with only a small sign, You can't see much from the car, but if you climb up over the low rise (only ten or twenty feet from the parking area, the views are TREMENDOUS.

Lots of people on this board prefer Kenmare but I'm a Killarney kinda guy.

Bob

Actually, the Gap of Dunloe trip is a popular tourist trip and can be booked through Deros Tours (http://www.derostours.com/) What Deros does is get you from a few central locations in Killarney (Old Weir Inn, Tourist office etc) to Kate Kearney's. You pay for the boat trip and the bus ride and you can now add on the cost of the jauting car ride or bargain with the drivers when you get there. There are sections of the ride that you still get out and walk because it's too much strain on the horse. The coast also covers the bus trip back to the starting point from Ross Castle.

As far as Dingle vs. Killarney, trust me, you can find dozens of great B&Bs in Dingle and I easily prefer Dingle to Killarney and would also pick Kenmare (on the other side of Molls Gap) over Killarney. Both Kenmare and Dingle have excellent options for dining and places to stay and there are plenty of entertainment options in Dingle.

Killarney has a reputation for selling out to tourism over 100 years ago and many love it and many hate it. What I will say is that you are more likely to find entertainment geared entirely to tourism in Killarney than you would in Dingle. Some of the best trad in Ireland can be found at the Small Bridge in Dingle and there are a number of other pubs too that put on great music.

I always stay at "The Shores" on the north side of the Dingle Peninsula, easily my favorite B&B in Ireland. Yes it involves a trip over Conor Pass, but I've done it lots of times. Where ever you stay, I wouldn't ever suggest that there just isn't enough to do in Dingle so only stay there 1 night. I could stay there for a week.

Now go blow out the pilot light on your water heater.

Bill

Having a tour company like Deros take care of all the details would be nice.

I'll probably do the Gap of Dunloe stay over in Killarney then (not sure what order) Ladies View, Ross Castle and anything else that I could do that day and still get to Dingle by midafternoon.

I haven't figured out if I'm a Killarney girl yet, but I guess I'll find out in 6 weeks!

Killarney will make my drive from Kilkenny a little easier since I plan to stop at Cashel and Cahir on the way. I won't worry about the town choices I've made since it's getting close and no matter what town I end up in, I'm sure I'll have a great time.
Even the bad experiences when I'm travelling end up being the things to look back and laugh at.

My agenda for Dingle pretty much is a little horseback riding, then food and pubs, and maybe a hot shower?! I'm really hoping for a little down time while we're there, since vacations can be exhausting!

We were able to get a jaunting car at Kate Kearney's last June with no problem. In fact, it was totally uncrowded and there were lots of drivers standing around. We simply did a ride in and out, and it cost 40 euro total for 3 of us in the jauntion car. We never had to get out of the cart to walk. And the 3 of us are, well, not small people. It was a bit of a strain on the horse I think. Our driver would occasionally jump in the cart, and sometimes walk beside us.

I think doing the whole trip would be great.

And I agree that Ross Castle is a really nice castle to tour, I think your kids would really enjoy it.

oh, and also, let me put in a plug for the Scuirid tour in Dingle. If you have time for it, its very worthwhile. The guide knows a LOT about the history and archaeology of the peninsula. Its an excellent half-day tour.