Cindy_Marie

I have recently returned from an amazing trip to Ireland, where we traveled from Dublin to Shannon, with many stops along the way, and I have to tell people about two great places in particular. One is the small village of Eyeries. Stop by and see John and Maree at the Inches House Bed and Breakfast. They are magnificent hosts and Maree is possibly the greatest cook ever. Everything about their place is fantastic. Plus, there is this great pub in town with huge windows overlooking the water - it's marvelous. The other city I recommend stopping in is Kenmare. It has several great pubs and excellent shops (not to mention a golf course, park, stone circle, and so much more. The place to stay in Kenmare is hands down - Virginia's Bed and Breakfast. Neil and Noreen are extremely gracious hosts and their chef is incredible. I also loved their towel warmers in the bathrooms - one of a kind. This was only my first trip to Ireland, but we stayed at many places, and these two definitely stick out in my memories - don't miss them!

djkbooks

Thanks for posting your recommendations.

isabel

Cindy - If you stopped in Eyeries you obviously were on the Beara Penninsula - what else was memorable (not worth missing) about the area. I'll be there next month and so am interested in which other little towns or areas you found good. About how long did it take you to drive the peninsula (assumming you drove the road that circle it)? We're staying in Kenmare also. Thanks for any other information about the area that you care to share.

Keenan

Isabel, The trip over the Healy Pass is quite beautiful and the difference between the Cork side from the Kerry side is extreme. I agree with Cindy about Eyeries. I had been wanting to visit this village since seeing a picture and found it to be very nice. There are views from around the peninsula and it definitely is worth a trip. There are several ancient sites as well as great hikes. I only was able to spend a day there last November, but will return in two months time to increase my appreciation for this area. If you don't like crowds, this is the peninsula for you as the buses can't do the circuit yet. Also, the pass between Glengarriff and Kenmare is very beautiful, but a word of warning as the road can get quite narrow with precipitous drops on one side. As far as Castletownbere, I was not so impressed by this town. It was a little run down and shabby, although the people were very nice. From Kenmare, I would plan on 2-4 hours for the trip, depending on your route

wojazz3

Isabel:

My guess is that, to tour the Beara Peninsula, schedule a full day. Between Kenmare are the Healy Pass road is the Inchaquin Waterfall which is a tiny road off to the left as you are headed west. This is well worth the trip. There are a couple of hiking trails in the area which are beautiful and not terrifically long. You have to pay a token to the person that own's the land, but the scenery is spectacular here.

I would certainly suggest more than 2-4 hours to tour the area.

Bill

Katy37

Cindy, I was so glad to read your write-up on Virginia's. I've been recommending the place from time to time on this site since our stay there a few months back. As for Inchaquin Park - that's a must!! Probably the most spectacular scenery we encountered during our entire trip. Did you have the Pancakes at Virginia's? They definitely had the 'wow' factor.

Katy

KarenE

We have returned from our wonderful Ireland trip yesterday. We had a cottage on the Dingle Peninsula but found that next time we would stay at the Beara peninsula. It's very remote and even more beautiful than Dingle. Kenmare is absolutely lovely. We stayed at the Sallyport House which was a great find! Unbeatable location, great hospitality, wonderful rooms. Would highly recommend it!