Gardendiva, that is interesting about the Rope Bridge being closed. Do you know if that is a permanent closure? I was on their website and there was no mention of the rope bridge closing.

I would like to do a walking tour of the Troubles Murals. Do you know anything about the Black Cab tours?

ms_go, just want you to know that I booked the Causeway Hotel! It looks awesome, and I love the location and convenience of being able to walk down to the Giants Causeway in the early morning and/or early evening.

I do not remember if he said that it was permanent. He kept referring to Covid regulations. To be honest, I had no interest in walking on it so I might not have been listening too hard.

In Belfast there are the Black Cab tours. The cost was $90 for a one hour tour. In the reviews many said that it was a fast tour and there was not much time to take photos. I was by myself and they do not book single tours so the cost was a bit much for me. Viator had a few tours but again, they would not book a tour for one. There was a self guided tour that I passed on because I was not sure of where I would be walking/safety. Now I wish that I had used that option.

Karen, I highly recommend the Black Can tour, it was one of the highlights of our Belfast trip, though I don’t remember how much I paid. Our cab driver had lived through the Troubles and had a fund of stories and anecdotes to narrate. Though it’s called a cab tour, you actually walk around too and we saw a lot of the murals from up close.

Karen the rope bridge can close due to weather conditions which is why you need to check beforehand. I do know you have to prebook -not sure what happens if its closed and you've got tickets.
When we were there the bridge didn't open until April every year but that's certainly changed .

re hire cars-we have had no trouble getting automatics in Dublin city and we always returned them at the airport.

Northie, did you go on the rope bridge? I don't remember.

Carrick-a-Rede Ropebridge was not closed when I was there this May 2025. We were told that the local government that administers the rope bridge has decided not to accept groups from May 2022 due to capacity issues.
You can see visitors on the bridge in this picture.

Cherthor, thank you. did you go on it? I am still not sure if I am brave enough to walk across it.

KarenWoo I wished I had the chance to walk over the bridge, but we were with the bus tour group that were not allowed to drop passengers with a big group. We were at Portaneevy Viewpoint for the breathtaking views of Carrick-a-Rede Ropebridge. The picture were taken by me at the viewpoint.

KarenWoo no I didnt go on the bridge because it wasn't open for the season then. At that time 1998 it was closed for winter and opened every year in April. It does close at times when the condtions warrant .
PS i wouldnt have on it anyway . We have a swing bridge near us and I hate it

Karen,
So glad you are going to Ireland and started this great thread so I can use the discussion for our tentative trip to Ireland, also late May.

I'm planning on many of the same areas but no NI and not spending time in Dublin this trip. My husband's max is 10 days, no more than one church and one castle or historic home per trip.

I think we are all married to the same man.

Hi Karen,
Just saw your post so this may be a bit late, but I am also in my 70s, and just returned from my 8th trip to Ireland in September. I stayed in more city centre hotels than I normally do as I wanted the convenience for walking, but also required parking as I was driving.

Recommend My Irish Cousin for car rental. They include all insurance, which you should have in Ireland and NI for a worry-free trip and no hassles should anything go wrong. And there’s no problem with age of driver or taking the car across the border.

One guarantee in Ireland is that getting anywhere will take you longer than anticipated, either because of traffic, farm vehicles, road work, or because you are tempted to explore along the way. Many of the major routes have been improved and are faster and safer than before, but can also be as boring as any other motorway, and you’ll miss a lot if you don’t explore.

Responding in order of your posted itinerary:

Dublin
Definitely pick up your car in the city before departing,
Dublin is very expensive now,
For convenience, recommend Grafton Hotel and it’s newer sister hotel, The Chancery; The Marlin
Taste Restaurant across street from Grafton Hotel great for breakfast
Definitely book for Book of Kells & Trinity Library (The Long Room) and Kilmainham; take a taxi to Kilmainham. The Luas is great, but the
station for Kilmainham is about a 10-15 walk away.
Add the GPO and its museum to your list.
Burdick’s Fish & Chips - best in the world; near Christ Church
The Bank Restaurant - beautiful building; go early as it gets crowded
Neary’s Pub, near St Stephen’s Green Shopping Centre, has more of an adult crowd

Belfast
Titanic Belfast - an absolute must; recommend springing for the White Star pass, which starts with a 45 minute tour outside of the museum.
City Hall
If you’ve never seen the murals, you should; a walking tour is better than a Black Cab tour, but research to find the tour that’s most suitable for you. True knowledge of The Troubles by your guide is key.
Stormont
Europa Hotel - the most bombed hotel in Europe (by the IRA during The Troubles). Stay there is you can; if not, visit. The Opera House is close by, the Crown Saloon is across the street.

Stay on N Antrim Coast:
Bushmills Inn - easy access Giants Causeway etc; great food; wonderful service; stayed there 1997 and now in 2025; wonderful that some things don’t change.
Giants Causeway is incredibly crowded. I couldn’t believe the number of tourists, and also the poor behavior of some of them. Go either very early or later in the day for best experience; sad that some things do change.
Dunluce Castle is one of the most beautiful settings in the country.
Rope Bridge: if it’s not open you’re really not missing anything.
Mussenden Temple and Downhill Demesne - a lovely walk on the coast.

Derry
Shipquay Hotel or Bishops Gate Hotel, in city, as you seem to want to do a lot of walking around Derry.
Parking nearby the Shipquay and across street from Bishops Gate.
Access areas of city you want to see from the City Walls.
Add the Guild Hall to your list, and the Derry Girls mural (you'll see it from the City Walls). You'll also pass the Apprentice Boys Hall on your Walls walk.
Yes, Peace Bridge and Peace Flame

It's about a 4-4 1/2 hour drive down to Galway

Galway
There’s a new fast ferry to the Aran Islands from Galway.
You can do the round trip to Clifden from Galway and return via the Sky Road.
Some pubs, such as Taafes, Tig Cioli, have early trad sessions: otherwise music starts 9:30-10:00pm. The Crane is the best.

Doolin
Trad at O’Connor’s, McGann’s, McDermotts; hope there aren't tour busses there when you are.
Definitely go to the Aran Islands & Cliffs of Moher. You can walk the cliffs from Doolin on the path. You get a great view on the return trip from Aran Islands, with sun reflecting off them (if there's sun).

Dingle
Heaton’s guesthouse - water views, walking distance into town (set just on edge).
Michelin Star restaurant - think its Land to Sea
Circumnavigating Dingle Peninsula much easier than Ring of Kerry.
Enter Dingle Town via the Connor Pass; exit via Coomenoule Beach, where movie Ryan’s Daughter was filmed; can drive onto beach

Kenmare
Do the Ring in sections by going to the interior and taking one of the mountain passes to the Ring road; have done the Ring twice and this is the best way; also you get to be among the McGillicuddy Reeks and go through some awesome passes, such as Black Valley.
Ballinskellig Ring - off Ring of Kerry; usually less crowded, but you have to do part of the Ring to get there,
Also consider the Beara Peninsula, very accessible from Kenmare and far less crowded.
I have also stayed in Killarney but in Agadoe Heights, which has views of the Killarney Lakes and is out of and above the city centre

Dublin Airport Hotel 1 night
Stay in the airport area. I always stay at the Crowne Plaza Dublin Airport before my return flight. Drop off rental at airport return, take
rental car shuttle to Terminal 1 and pick up hotel's shuttle back to hotel and to airport for morning departure. Easy.

If I can be of further help please feel free to private message me. Hope you fall in love with Ireland!

Tnronan, thank you so much for all of your detailed sightseeing advice. I usually rent cars from Auto Europe but I will look into My Irish Cousin for the car rental.

I have reserved a hotel (forgot which one) at the Dublin Airport for the night before we fly home.

Hi Karen! Hope you all are doing well. Coming here late. We did 5 weeks in Ireland and N Ireland in Sept/October 2025. Unfortunately we had a ton of rain, i was told it unsual for that time of year, but it is what it is. I havent read through all the responses here, but I see Pax House recommended and we loved it there. Kenmare is a cute little town. We stayed in Killarney and it was fine too. We absolutely
loved Derry and Belfast as they were both fascinating..
Definitely don’t miss Kilkee Cliffs, we preferred them to Cliffs of Mother. Much less touristed and more rugged.
I am happy to answer any other questions you may have that haven’t been answered in this thread.

Yestravel, it’s so nice to hear from you! Hope you are all doing well, too. Sorry to hear you had a lot of rain while in Ireland and NI. Were you able to get some walks in? What did you do on the rainy days? I heard somewhere that Ireland and NI were very rainy this past fall because of storms in the Atlantic, that started out as hurricanes in the US. So far we have had perfect weather during all of our travels. I hope my good luck continues.

We are staying at the Pax House. The owner sent me several very helpful emails with recommendations, etc. We decided to stay in Kenmare because I found wonderful accommodations at Rockcrest B&B.

Can you recommend some restaurants in Derry and Belfast?
Thanks!

We managed despite the rainy weather. We did some walks probably far less than if we had better weather. I am probably not a good person to recommend restaurants as we didn’t really like the food. Great dairy products, scones and ice cream is fab. If anything pops into my mind, I’ll get back to you.

oh my gosh Karen, I don't believe you are going to Ireland in May 2026 - so are we! We arrive dublin on the 4th, and leave on the 15th. We will spend most of the time in Dublin, but have booked four nights at Sheen Falls Lodge in Kenmare. Any chance we are going to overlap - it would be so much fun to meet up.

Hi lauramsgarden,
Wow! What a wonderful coincidence! We would love to meet up for dinner if our dates overlap. We arrive in Dublin on May 8 for 3 nights. So we leave Dublin on May 11 and drive to Kenmare. We have reservations at Rockcrest House for 3 nights. We leave Kenmare on May 14 and drive to Dingle. What are your dates?

I think we can, I think we can. We are in Dublin until the 10th, but unfortunately (or wonderfully) we made reservations at Patrick Guibard on the 9th. Would you be up for dinner on the 8th?

or....we are also heading towards Kenmare on the 10th and will be at Sheens Falls Lodge all four nights. We could definitely do something together there. We were going to eat at the lodge the first night - in town on the 11th (no restaurant chosen yet) and then at the fancy plavce at the lodge (The Falls) on the 12th - we could probably add you to the reservation. haven't decided about our first night.

our plan is to explore Berea and Dereen garden on the 11th, and go to Killarney Park on the 13th.

let me know what you think. I think this would be so much fun

lauramsgarden, I will send you a pm.