I owe my mom a memorable trip to Ireland, because she gave up her chance when I needed her to watch my little ones while I was away on business. She has been dreaming about the beauty of the Irish countryside. I have always thought I'd visit Ireland via roadtrips, but after my experience in England driving, I am uncomfortable about driving the narrow roads and likelihood of car damages (my credit card benefit won't even cover Ireland). So I'd like to get feedback from fellow Fodorians who have experience traveling around Ireland, particularly those who have done it with children. The traveling group will include an active senior (my mom) and 3 elementary school age kids.

1) What is the best way to see different parts of Ireland, especially outside the big cities? I don't like bus tour groups, but would consider cruise, train and small day trip group. Any recommendations/feedback on these options?

2) Are there places that have reasonable easy roads to drive, if I wanted to make day trips outside the city? Okay the hope lingers on... concern about the limits of where a train can take me.

3) What key places, towns and cities do you recommend for a family to visit and all enjoy?

Thanks for your input! I am experienced traveling in Europe, but have not traveled abroad with my 3 kids. I'm trying to learn how to take things down a few notches, until they can learn to keep up with my adventurous ways!

You might start with some stories for your kids.. about the early kings/queens. pirates..Google childrens books about Ireland..It would be too much to include "The Troubles" IMO.Unless your kids are super good in smallish cars and very UN-distracting I would avoid driving..left hand and manual UGH!! It isn't that difficult to drive but remembering my kids and distracions..no way. Mom would miss alot if she had to ride herd all the time..Fatigue and boredom will be a huge factor.Castles and churches only go so far and the Famine sites are pretty hard to take for an adult. However you know your kinds. Try to find hotels/motels/b&b with pools as an end of a long day treat..It worked for us in France. Not easy but can be done. Good luck and happy trails..There is a seal rescue kind of place on the

A seal rescue place on the south coast and the beaches have interesting tidal pools. Bring along small magnifying glasses for the kids. If there are any connections to the famine and immigration in your family then the Famine Sites could be good. I didn't mean to discount them in the other post..But they are hard to take. Rural life still exists and sheep abound as do dairies/cheese farms..The butter trail was a help in identifying older day marketing.. there's lots but as I said you know your kids..

OK -sounds like we may not convince you to drive. But doing this trip by public transport won't be all that 'special'/easy/memorable. And being that most group tours are not that great for young children (or any children for that matter) . . . I urge you to consider hiring a driver/guide(s). Either one person for the whole trip or different driver-guides in various parts of the country.

How long will you be in country?

Having a personal guide means you can go where you want, when you want, for as long as you want, and stop wherever the fancy strikes you.

In general, the road network of the Republic has improved dramatically during the last decade.
All major towns (and many scenic smaller towns along the road) are accessible from Dublin by modern 4-lane motorways.

If you look at a map, you find the N(ational) roads connecting those cities and towns that don't have motorways in between.

Most of those (esp. the lower the number) are perfectly normal wide 2-lane highways and can be driven without any special care about hoodcaps and broken mirrors.

If you focus your long-distance travel on those roads and only use the (usually but not always) narrower R(egional) and L(ocal) roads for shorter distances or day trips from a base nearby you will limit your driving stress to a minimum.

The three biggest cities Dublin, Cork and Limerick can be a PITA to drive in esp. during rush hours so you may want to avoid that.

If you don't have insurance via your credit card, you will find very reasonable rates for stick-shift rental cars via sites like autoeurope.com with zero deductible. The rates for automatic are usually less reasonable.

I agree somewhat with Cowboy. If you fly into Shannon and go south you will be on major roads most of your trip south. The N-20, N-21 and the N-71 all good roads and will take you into the S/W of Ireland through the mountains and along the coast. Get a GPS and stay out of the cities. All of the peninsulas offer great scenery. It would be a shame not to have a slow drive around the Dingle peninsula with the scenery and the prehistoric sites. The small villages on the west coast of Ireland are not to be missed. Have fun

West Ireland is on my list. Slea Head Drive's 1 way lane might be doable for me to drive. It's the narrow 2 lane - 2 way traffic that I gives me the high blood pressure. On the other hand, I just found out about Rabbie's, a small group tours company that takes no more than 16 people. It appears that you take care of your own accommodations, which is a plus for me. The prices look reasonable, based on my past experiences paying for car rental, insurance and gas. I have yet to read the reviews, so I'm hoping they are good.

lehcar: Rabbies is better known for their Scottish tours - but they are a VERY good company w/ terrific tours.

Petrol ( gas) is indeed a fearsome price here. But distances are small so it evens out.... Saying all is accessible on big roads is a little misleading as the charm of Ireland is on the narrow winding roads that hug the land. If you take it slowly and think LEFT all the time, no real worries and people are well used to using the passing places that are provided at frequent intervals. There are now several smaller tour firms. Vagabond ...Paddywaggon; and another newer one called Wolfhound.