Ireland Itinerary - Dublin, Galway & ??
 

We're leaving April 20th for an 8 night trip to Ireland. Flying in/out Dublin due to the deal we got with Aer Lingus.

Here is the itinerary as it stands, but I welcome your comments & opinions.

4/21 - Dublin
4/22 - Kilkenney
4/23 - Kinsale (or Kenmare - thoughts?)
4/24 - Dingle
4/25 - TBD
4/26 & 4/27 - Galway (part of the package)
4/28 - Dublin

Considering our time in the southwest, are we missing something? Moving around too much? I've heard Killarney is really touristy, though we are tourists, should we go there?

Definitely want to use our time wisely so would definitely appreciate everyone's opinions.

With only 8 days on the ground (I assume that your travel days are 4/20 and 4/29) and required Dublin-->Dublin with Galway required, I would:
4/21 Dublin
4/22 Dublin (Day trip to Newgrange or Glendalough
4/23 Trim Castle, Clonmacnoise, stay near Galway

Oops! New keyboard. Here's the rest of the week:
4/24 Day trip to Aran Islands Sleep there or same place as 23rd
4/25 Explore Connemara stay near Galway
4/26 & 27 Spend time in Galway, explore north as far maybe as Westport Stay same
4/28 Drive back to Dublin, perhaps via Roscommon/Strokestown
4/29 Fly home. Don't forget to toast my 65th birthday!

This may or may not be what you had in mind at all but all those one-night stops gave me the collywobbles. Feel free to ignore!

Jaja's itinerary looks really good. There is so much to see and do in the Galway area. You can't see it all in 8 days, so explore that area and think, "I will be back!"

I would also suggest heading a bit south of Galway for one of your days. You could take in the Burren, the Cliffs of Moher, Dunguaire Castle in Kinvarra. You could also take in a banquet at Dunguaire. Dunguaire is quite a picturesque castle with lots of photographic possibilities. If you don't want to do the banquet, have supper at one of the restaurants along the pier at Kinvarra and watch the "sun go down on Galway Bay".

Again, lots to do and returning to the same place each night will be more relaxing than whizzing through all the one nighters. BUT it is your trip and maybe that is how you like to travel. Nothing wrong with that. Jaja and I just wanted to give you something else to consider.

Have a wonderful trip (and a trip report).

I think you are attempting to spread yourself too thinly and would consider 2 nights in Dublin with side trips, Killarney for 2 nights after a night in Kilkenny. Drive round Dingle and stay on the Clare coast possibly Doolin for the Cliffs of Moher and Burren before your penultimate night in Galway. Final night up by the Airport in Dublin. Even this would be a push

Hi -

Thanks for the feedback. We've both been to Dublin before, so we really don't want to stay there two nights, but rather head south/southwest.

Do you think we should stay in Killarney for 2 nights (4/23 & 4/24) and sightsee from there (Dingle, Kenmare?)? Then head north to County Clare (where? Doolin?)?

I was in Ireland in late May and early June and the weather was warm. In April the weather could be wet and cold. I'd stay in the southern part of the country. The southwest is great! We rented bikes and rode around the lake at Killarney National Park. We wet to the Torc Cascade waterfall. Muckross House abbey and gardens are close and the rhododendrons and azaleas are huge. The gardens are free. It was awesome.