Ireland in July
 

My husband and I will be spending 9 days in July and were looking for recommendations as this will be our first time in Ireland. I've also heard that renting a car is the best way to see the sights but we weren't sure about driving on the other side of the road. Any recommendations would be appreciated!

Dear blue67, we need a little more info on your trip such as flying into and out of, are there any must see or do things on your list. Nine days gives you a fair amount of time but you can't see the whole island. Yes a rental car and driving yourself is the best way to see the sights. Driving on the left is not difficult for most people. With a little more info there are many on this forum, including me who will be glad to pipe in.

We're planning to fly into Dublin on July 25 and fly out of Shannon on August 3. Here's what we're thinking:

- Dublin - July 25-26 (2 nights)
- Cork - July 27 (1 night)
- Dingle/Kenmare/Ring of Kerry - July 28-July 30 (3 nights)
- Galway - July 31-August 2 (3 nights).
- Shannon - August 3 fly out

As we don't want to feel too rushed, let me know if our itinerary gives us enough time to really enjoy the must-see sights. Let me know what places and sights you would recommend! Thanks.

Personally, I'd skip Cork. It's a big city - some enjoy it, but I think the smaller towns are better. If you want to spend the night in the south, Kinsale is MUCH prettier. Or Cobh. I think that's one part of the trip where you'll feel rushed. It's quite a drive from Dublin to Cork (Kinsale) and then you only have one night there before leaving the next morning for western Ireland - also a fairly long drive. You might want to cut a night from Galway and add it to the south. Suggest you check out my trip report from last year - we did something somewhat similar. Search on Karen and Penny's adventure and it should come right up. Maybe you'll find it helpful.

You have a very reasonable itinerary! Its good to see someone going to Ireland who doesnt want to rush around.
Driving IS the best way to see Ireland and after a few hours it wont be a big deal.
You seem to have more of a city base in your plans (Galway,Dublin,Cork) I prefered the small towns personally and would consider a stay maybe a night or two in Doolin or Clifden as a smaller alternative to Galway. (not to take anything away from Galway!!)
Dont be afraid to get off the beaten path in Ireland the wrong turns often turn out to be the best ones! Have a great trip and keep us updated on your planning progress!

Thanks for the advice. I would much rather stay in smaller towns versus the big cities so I'll definitely take a look at the towns that were recommended. Please let me know if you would recommend any b&bs or hotels in any of the towns.

Althom1122 - I did check your trip report last year and it sounded like you had a wonderful time! About your car rental, did you pick up your car in one location and dropped off at another? If so, was it really expensive? It sounds like renting a car is the way to go but I'm trying to keep costs down.

Just returned a few weeks ago from our amazing trip and we found it worked out best to fly from Dublin on Aer Araan (40 Euros one way) into Kerry Airport. We rented with Avis, traveled thru the Killarney area, spent several days on the Dingle Peninsula, and then onto Bunratty and Shannon -- where we returned the car at the airport. We booked the car thru the Aer Araan website after making our flight reservations, with no extra charge for picking it up in Kerry and dropping it off at the Shannon airport. It gave us more time to spend traveling the west coast, instead of driving from Dublin, and the Avis rate was better than any others I could come up with. Hope that option is helpful to you!

I would second the idea of flying to Kerry - great idea. It is a long drive from Dublin and at EUR40 each flying is cheaper than going by train! You will arrive in Kerry fresh and ready to go instead of exhausted after a long drive. The website address is www.aerarann.com

We will be in Dingle the same time as you! While there (3 nights), we plan on taking the Slea Head Drive, an archeology (sp?) tour with Scruid(sp)and a concert in one the churches. (Read about all these in Rick Steves Guide). Last trip we stayed at Heatons. It was wonderful, but rates have gone up quite a bit since then. This trip we will be at Milestone.

I was in Galway my last trip to Ireland. This time, except for Dublin, we are sticking to smaller areas in the southwest.

We will be staying in Cashel (near Cork)1 night on our way to Dublin from Kinsale. The reason for this stop is to spend time at the Rock of Cashel. Next morning we will head up to Dublin via Glendalouch

And, in Dublin, activities include a tour to Newgrange, the typical Dublin activities (jail, book of kells, pub crawl, etc)

We fly into Shannon and out of Dublin. We will return the car once we reach Dublin.

Dear blue67, - I'm Irish. I agree about avoiding the big cities, you're better to try and visit Glendalough (Co Wicklow, - near Dublin),Kinsale (in Co. Cork), Connemara ( Co Galway), some of the small towns on the river Shannon are nice too.Killarney of course is lovely but expect some tacky tourism "begorra" stuff.
And rural West Cork (Beara Peninsula) is magical IF ITS NOT RAINING!
You wont fit all that in a week though. The traffic can be mad and watch out when driving on narrow rural roads, - keep well in on the left side and take it easy. Hope you have a nice time!

Jackie - did you think Galway is worth a visit? I was thinking about being in that area so that we can visit the Aran Islands and the Cliffs of Moher. Are there any smaller towns in that area that are recommended instead?

blue67

Yes, I do think Cliffs of Mohr and the Aran Islands is very much worth the time. We drove there from Dingle and spent the night in Doolin on our way to Clifden. (We spent WAY too much time in the car and I would not do that again.) We did not spend the night in Galway, only a few hours so I can't give a fair assessment. I just know that after being in small towns, I was not enamored with the city.