Day 1:
Arrive in Shannon
Stay In Doolin
See The Burren (Tour Reccomendations?)
Go to the Pubs (Should I stay away from any, or are there ones that are better than others?)
Thinking about staying in Doolin Activity Lodge (has anyone stayed here?)

Day 2:
Cliffs of Moher
Go to Pubs

Day 3:
Stay in Dingle
Take Dingle Tours with Denis Ryan
Go to Pubs again
Thinking about staying at Greenmount House(Input?)

Day 4:
Stay in Killarney or Kenmare (reccomendations about which one to stay in)
Gap of Dunloe tour
Go to Pubs (Input?)

Day 5:
Stay in Kenmare (Reccomendations?)
Ring of Kerry tour

Day 6:
Stay in Cork
Jameson Tour
English Market
St. Anne's Church
St. Finn Barre's Cathedral
Go to An Bodhran
Thinking about staying at Garnish House (Input?

Day 7:
Stay in Cork
Go to Blarney
Tour Cork some more (would I be able to both in one day? Or should I dedicate a whole day to Blarney?)
Go to An Spailpin Fanac

Day 8:
Stay in Cork
Go to Cobh
maybe Titanic Trail?(anything else I should consider doing?)
Go to The Long Valley

Day 9:
Stay in Cork
Go to Kinsale
See Charles Fort and Desmond Castle
Any Pubs you reccomend?

Day 10:
Stay in Shannon
We are leaving the next day and would like to be close to the airport, any ideas?

Day 11: Leave

We will also be renting a car, is there anything that I should know about renting a car in Ireland? Should I get a cell phone? Do I need a GPS? Am I trying to do too much everyday? Not enough? Any input would be much appreciated
Thank You

We drove around for a week and a half without GPS, it was easy, you can always ask for directions, remember they speak English! IN fact we did not even have any fancy maps...and anytime we stopped we got to know the people--everyone is so friendly there!

The Burren is very easy to get around, great views. We went and did laundry at the Doolin activity center one trip. Nice place. You are at the end of town with Gus O'Conners but there are other great pubs at the opposite end of town. McGanns and McDermotts. On day two I would take a ferry to the Aran Islands or at least the ferry that takes you up to the cliffs with a sea side view. It was beautiful with all the puffins flying.
It doesn't take that long to do Blarney Castle and the woolen mills.
The English market in Cork is fab. I did the Titanic tour years ago. I loved Kinsale.

1. Day 2 is a bit light. Your visit to the Cliffs of Moher will take about an hour if you're staying in Doolin. Since one day in the Burren is not nearly enough, you can spend the rest of this day driving around the area to see some more of the sights--high crosses in Kilfenora, Dunguarie Castle in Kinvara, ring forts, wedge tombs, caves, etc. You don't need a guided tour of the Burren--a good guidebook will have all this info.

2. There's a LOT you need to know about renting a car. The following is a good resource: http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Travel-...ng.A.Car..html

3. We managed without a cellphone, but all of our lodgings were booked in advance and we didn't have to call around to find a place to sleep each night. If you want a cellphone, you can easily get pay-as-you-go phones in the shops.

4. You don't need a GPS. We've made 2 driving trips in Ireland and managed just fine with the Rough Guide map that we bought on Amazon. The map is good because it shows you where castles, ruins, abbeys, etc. are located and you might want to make a short detour to see them. (A GPS can't do that.)

5. We spent 2 nights in Abbey Court B&B in Kenmare and enjoyed it very much.

On day 4 I would stay in Kenmare to avoid having to move the next day. We have stayed at Virginia's Guesthouse right in town, The Lodge, and the Kenmare Bay Hotel. We prefer the B&Bs.

We have made 8 trips without cell phones or GPS. You can buy a prepaid phone in a Vodaphone store if you think you need one.

On your last night you could stay in Ennis or Bunratty. We like Bunratty because we can do any last minute shopping in Blarney Woolen Mill, have dinner and a pint or two and be near our B&B. Some people like Ennis more. We stayed there for our last night one time but didn't care much for the B&B we tried.

1. Congratulations on not trying to fit the entire country into a week!

2. I agree, The Burren is always worth more time. Aran Islands trip is also a great idea - go early or book ahead going from Doolin Pier, as the trips are dependent on weather and number of passengers.

3. In the Burren, there are lots of things to see. Ailwee Caves, Poulnabrone Dolmen, The Burren Perfumery, Caherconnell Fort, Kilfenora, Lisdoonvarna (Great smokehouse for snackies!).

4. GPS not required, but it helps when you just want to explore and know you can make it home.

5. Kenmare is great - we stayed at O'Donnabhain's, right in the center of town. Gastropub and B&B, well run, huge rooms, very clean and delightful.

6. For Day 7, I'd switch out Bunratty for Ring of Beara, especially if you like stone circles and unspoiled forest/coast line. The big busses don't go there, because the roads are smaller, so it's much less touristed.

7. Cell phone unnecessary, IMHO, but if you go to www.irelandyes.com, Michele has lots of advice about both cell phones and car rental that is very helpful.

8. Staying near Bunratty is a good option for the night before the flight. If you get there early enough, the Bunratty Castle and Folk Park is a great afternoon.

Wow, thank you for all of the replies, I will take all of this information and use it.

Another question though, apparently there are three guys at work who have all been to Ireland, and said their favorite part was Dublin, and I shouldn't go without going there as well. My question being, do you think it would be a good idea to substitute some of the days in Cork for Dublin, and fly out of Dublin instead of driving back to Shannon?

We also arrived in Shannon, stayed in in Doolin, then to Dingle, then to Killarney, at the start of our trip to Ireland.

On day 1 we self toured the Burren. We stayed at the Aran View House Hotel and enjoyed it very much. Sea views, great food, a charming place to stay. We liked the O'Conners pub for great traditional music, I am sure the other 2 pubs in town would also be good.

Day 2 was the same as yours.

Day 3. Your drive to Dingle will include the Tarbert Ferry, and a drive over Connor Pass (not for the faint hearted).
I do not know if you will get to Dingle in time for the Denis Ryan Archeological & Scenic Tour. We went the next day.

Day 4. Drive to Killarney. Take the afternoon to the must see Muckross House. Take a jaunting car ride around the area of Muckross. Danny Mann pub for late night non stop music.

Day 5. Sleep an additional night in Killarney. Take the all- day tour(10AM to 5:30PM) to the "Gap"(jaunting car trot to Kate Kearney's Cottage-pony trap thru the gap-picnic lunch at the end of the gap-Boat ride thru the 3 lakes ending at Ross Castle- a fun day ends after a jaunting car ride back to town. Dinner. Return to the Danny Mann or try the Laurels pub for more music.

Day 6 Ring of Kerry or since Ring of Kerry is similar to Dingle Peninsula(another 100+ mile trip) skip it and return to your original itinerary.

Day 7-9. I can't comment since we did not go to Cork. We went on to the Southeast, the East, and the West before returning to Shannon.Yes, we kissed the Blarney stone with all the other tourists.We met Ladybird Johnson and her secret service agents at the Rock of Cashel

Your Day 10/our last day.
We stayed at the Gallows View B&B in Bunratty East about one mile from the Bunratty Castle complex.Spend a final evening at a fun-filled medieval banquet and authentic period entertainment (voices like nightingales) at the castle.

I do not recall any differences in renting a car in Ireland from any other European country. For the 4 of us we had a VW Diesel Wagon. We did not have to purchase any fuel after the initial fill up. Its a small country.

Although I did not have a GPS at the time of my trip to Ireland, I have since purchased one for my European vacations.I call her Lady Garmin. I find her valuable.

You do not need a cell phone.

What are the chances that you will return to Ireland? You could save Dublin for another trip. On the other hand, the drive from Cork isn't too bad if you give yourself half a day.

It looks like you were spending 4 nights in Cork, so you would have to give up two to make it worthwhile. I wouldn't change the original plan in order to spend just one day there. You definitely do not want your car in Dublin, though. Driving is tough and parking is worse. You could stay south or north of the city (think Dun Laoghaire or Malahide) and take the DART into the city. Both are lovely towns.

I'd leave Dublin for another trip. It is on the other side of the country, and you have plenty to fill your days. Dublin is a charming city - but it is still a city. Cork should fill your need for cities nicely

Ok, thank you all very much. I was thinking that if I don't go to Dublin, it would give me a reason to go back. So I think I will stick to this itinerary.