Our recommendations for a Dublin City tour and a Southern Ireland road trip.
Link to a stills image and video montage of our Dublin and Southern Ireland road trip
To view the video select:- https://youtu.be/PwAoD_tCTY0
A trip around Dublin
There is lots to see and do, with its Dublin Bay boat trip from Dun Laoghaire to Howth; Guinness Storehouse and Jameson Whiskey Distillery tours; shopping opportunities; theatre and cultural events; and the easy laid back attitude of the people of Dublin, adding to a sense of well being and the general up-beat nature of the Irish.
For an action packed three day, minimum, visit while in Dublin, take in the Guinness Storehouse, Kilmainham Goal, Glasnevin Cemetery tour, Trinity College and the Book of Kells. Visit anyone of the, free to enter, national museums (all open 7 days p/w). Do the Jameson or Telling Whiskey Distillery tour. Take in an Irish traditional music and dance extravaganza. They are great fun and are available in Johnny Fox’s, Taylors Three Rock or the Merry Ploughboy. They include a dinner and are a great night out, specifically directed at tourists to the City.
A road trip around Southern Ireland
Geographically speaking, Ireland is small and distances between locations are fairly short, but driving times in Ireland are often longer than you would think. The most beautiful parts of Ireland are often remote and take the longest to reach. So in order to experience the country properly, do not expect to see all of Ireland in seven days. There are a number of ways to get around Ireland, but really, the best way to see Ireland in seven days is by car, as you’ll have the flexibility to stop off along the roadside at whatever takes your fancy.
Ireland is a small island to the west of the UK. At its widest it is only 275km, so theoretically you could drive west from Dublin to Galway in two hours. Except you wouldn’t. You’d take the long way round and spend a week (or two!) exploring southern Ireland.
The roads are well sign posted, and they drive on the left (if you’re from New Zealand, Australia or Britain, you’ll feel like you’re at home) and cute, colourful villages make for great pit stops and photo opportunities at every turn. (But you will find random roundabouts in the middle of highways!)
The best way to see Ireland is to self-drive along the narrow roads of villages and country lanes and the occasional motorway between cities.
Is driving in Ireland difficult? As Irish people, We would be inclined to say no. In general, main roads and motorways are in good condition and well marked. It’s when you find yourself on narrow countryside or coastal roads where you might find things a bit trickier. In these instances, expect that you may have to pull in to let oncoming traffic pass, or that you may have to reverse a little back down the road. When visiting Ireland from another country, the main thing for most people to overcome when touring Ireland by car is that we drive on the left side of the road – if you’re comfortable with that concept, then you will be absolutely fine.
In our seven days in Ireland itinerary, we started off in the capital city of Dublin. From here, we made our way firstly south to Kilkenny Castle, working in a clockwise direction through a looped route that would bring us through the southern parts of Ireland and over west into Connemara, before finishing up once again in Dublin.
We absolutely loved this Ireland road trip itinerary, taking just long enough to stop at a pub (or two) for lunch, to photograph the beautiful countryside, to pull over and dash into a little shop or a castle that took our fancy.
Briefly, our seven day Irish road trip is as follows:
Day 1-3: Dublin
Day 4: Kilkenny Castle & the Rock of Cashel (12th Century Castle)
Day 5: Blarney Castle & Gardens (13th Century Castle)
Day 6: Killarney National Park and the Ring of Kerry
Day 7: Bunratty Castle and folk park (15th Century Castle)
Day 8: Connemara National Park via Galway to Renvyle onto Cong and Ashford Castle (13th Century Castle)
Day 9: Cong back to Dublin
We have four previous Irish travel blogs that you might like to view for greater depth on these locations:-
JustRetired50Plus blog on Ashford Castle in County Mayo:-
JustRetired50Plus blog on A city break in Dublin:-
JustRetired50Plus blog on A guided tour of the Dublin & Wicklow mountains:-
JustRetired50Plus blog on Greenway cycling in Co Waterford:-
On this trip we spent three days visiting Dublin and seven days on the Southern Ireland road trip. The climate during our ten days was typically Irish weather, a bit of everything, wind, rain, cold, sleet, bright, warm and sunny. So a visitor has to come prepared for all weathers when visiting Ireland at any time of the year.
We stayed three nights at Clayton Hotel in Ballsbridge, one night at Blarney Woolen Mills Hotel, two nights at the Lake Hotel in Killarney, one night at Glenlo Abbey Hotel in Galway, one night in Renvyle Hotel in Connemara and then drove directly back to Dublin from Ashford Castle in Cong. The final night was spent in the Clayton Airport Hotel, prior to departure back to the USA.
A sense of a Dublin City and Southern Ireland Road Trip
The official currency of Ireland is the Euro.
If you get an opportunity during your travels in Ireland, visit one of the greenways, as they are unique experiences in beautiful varying settings.
Our general experience of the people from Southern Ireland was that they are very friendly and they all seem to have a particular liking for talking to strangers.
For such a small country, Ireland really does have a lot to offer in the sightseeing department. Major selling points include sublime seascapes, a strong literary heritage, romantic castle ruins, lively towns and cities, ancient heritage sites and let’s not forget – a patchwork of luscious, emerald landscape.
Not always the most obvious, but the culinary scene in Ireland is absolutely buzzing too. The fact that Ireland is an island lends itself to magnificent seafood and the quality of Ireland’s other food produce is second-to-none. Ireland is famous for its meat and dairy produce and there is a huge focus on local produce and sustainability amongst Irish establishments.
No matter its duration, any Ireland itinerary, especially for first-time visitors to Ireland, should incorporate a smattering of the above to cover off a range of Irish highlights. That way, you’ll scratch the surface across a broad range and uncover where you would like to focus your efforts on your return visit to Ireland – trust us, you will be back!
Plan to under, rather than over-reach on what you see during your Ten days in Ireland. Ireland really is so achingly beautiful that you’ll find yourself compelled to stop more often than you think.
Recommendations for a ten day road trip around Dublin & Southern Ireland
There is no language barrier, if you speak only English. Irish is only spoken when the government inspector is around and about. Government grants are available in small areas throughout Ireland, to encourage the Irish to speak only Irish.
As a general rule, drive on the left, pass on the right, and don’t be shy about stopping to view the many scenic photo opportunities along the way.
There are plenty of castles to see in Ireland. On this trip we visited five of the Top Ten Irish Castles.
On this trip we had to make a choice, due to time constraint, between doing the Ring of Kerry or doing the Ring of Beara or Sea Head Drive or the Dingle Peninsula. All of these feature their own Irish version of unbelievable beauty. We chose the ring of Kerry drive. There are many incredible stops along this 200K round trip drive. Chief amongst them is the Portmagee boat day trip to the Skellig islands. These islands were once home to a monastery of monks and are now a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Skellig Michael was the setting for some of the iconic scenes in the latest Star Wars movies.
Our must see recommendation for a trip around Dublin & Southern Ireland
(1) While in Dublin, take in the Guinness Hopstore, Kilmainham Goal, Glasnevin Cemetery tour, Trinity College and the Book of Kells. Visit anyone of the free to enter national museums (all open 7 days p/w). Do the Jameson or Telling Whiskey Distillery tour. Take in an Irish traditional music and dance extravaganza. They are great fun and are available in Johnny Fox’s, Taylors Three Rock or the Merry Ploughboy. They include a dinner and are a great night out, specifically directed at tourists to the City.
(2) Kilkenny Castle, Rock of Cashel, Blarney Castle, Bunratty Castle and Ashford Castle.
(3) Connemara National park drive is a pleasure to behold for any visitor.
(4) If you get a chance, cycle the Waterford Greenway along the Copper Coast (coppercoastgeopark.com) is one of the nicest stretches of coastline in Ireland.
With the American Dollar parity to the Euro during our trip in Nov 2022, there has rarely been a better time to visit Ireland.
“You should travel away from home, to really appreciate the value of what you have at your home, on your return.”
Road trip locations
