SharonL

Hi! My husband and I will be traveling to Ireland this summer (for the first time). We will be flying into Shannon and out of Dublin for a total of 9 nights. After reading the many posts, I have come up with this tentative itinerary. I would love any comments or suggestions. Thanks so much. Oh by the way, we will be renting a car in Shannon and dropping it off at the start of our stay in Dublin.

Doolin, 2 nights - Hotel Doolin?
Dingle, 2 nights - Castlewood House?
Kenmare, 2 nights - Brook Lane Hotel?
Kilkenny, 1 night - Lyrath Estate Hotel?
Dublin, 2 nights - O'Callaghan Davenport Hotel?

dancoyle1

It's a long drive from Kenmare to Kilkenny. The Hotel Doolin is great, as is the Davenport, but the Lyrath is part ultra modern and part olde world. Enjoy!

colduphere

Everytime I go to Ireland, I am surprised how long it takes to go from A to B. You would think I would learn.

If you like driving, and each other, go for it. Otherwise (and I hate to say it having just been there three years ago and really liking it), I would drop Doolin.

SharonL

Thanks for your comments.

jent103

I would actually disagree somewhat; assuming you're coming from North America (just because a lot of people using Shannon are), Doolin would be a much easier drive when jet lagged than Dingle would be. Doolin is 1-1.5 hours or so from the airport on pretty easy roads, if memory serves correctly. Dingle would be 3-4 at least, I think, and through Tralee. I do think, though, that you could probably drop one night from Doolin and put that somewhere else.

SharonL

Yes, we are coming from North America. We chose Doolin because of the Aran Islands and the Cliffs of Moher. If we could do them both (even if we are jet-lagged), we would have no issue dropping a day. I would love to add a day in the Cork area (maybe Sheraton on Fota Island), but I was trying to stay away from too many one-nighters.

If I stayed an extra night in Kenmare (for a total of 3), could I do a day trip to the Cork/Kinsale area? If so, how many hours would it take to get to either area?

Thanks again for all your help!

jent103

Staying away from one-nighters is good! I had forgotten about the Arans, as we didn't visit them. Staying in Doolin two nights probably would be better, then. You can easily see the Cliffs on your arrival day and then go to the Arans the next day.

skibumette

It's theoretically possible to see the Aran Islands in just an afternoon -- departing Rossaveal, west of Galway, on the noon or 1:00 pm ferry and returning on the 5:00 pm ferry. Then you could see the Cliffs the next morning when setting out for Dingle. But that makes no allowances for less than optimal weather conditions or unexpectedly tough jet lag -- two nights in Doolin would give you a lot more flexibility. (Be aware that the ferries out of Doolin are more weather and tide-dependent than those out of Rossaveal; they go only once a day to Inis Mor or three times daily to Inis Oirr.)

SharonL

Assuming I don't change our original itinerary, is it feasible (or wise) to leave Kenmare and make a stop in the Cork area (maybe Cobh) before arriving in Kilkenny?