Ireland

[Vacation4us]

We are leaving for a 3.5 week trip to Ireland in less than 2 weeks. We have a “ family” event in Enniscrone in October. The event is a clan gathering for relatives of the Irish name ODubdah or O’Dowd. 2 of my siblings and an uncle will also be in attendance for the event.

DH and I will arrive on 9/18 in Dublin pick up a car and be off on our adventure to explore Ireland. We will spend the first 2 days in Trim and then reverse route essentially following the Ireland coast around until we reach Enniscrone. Last 3 days will be in Dublin with the sibs.

We are staying anywhere from 1 night to 5 nights in the following towns:
Trim 2 nights
Kilkenny 1 night
Waterford 2 nights
Kinsale 3 nights
Kenmare 1 night
Dingle 4 nights
Galway 3 nights
Enniscrone 5 nights
Dublin 3 nights

We normally don’t move around this much during a trip but wanted to see as much as we could.

We rented a car and will have it for all of the trip except the last 3 days in Dublin. DH is a rockstar driver so no concerns there, he drove in Thailand with no issues. DH drove professionally and has mad skills in a car.

With the following itinerary does anyone have any can’t miss recommendations? All nights are booked at B&B’s except we are at the Granville Hotel in Waterford.

 

[Vacation4us]

PS DH and I had a retirement dream to live in Ireland for a year post retirement and see all of Europe. Covid quashed that dream.

 

[COcheesehead]

Drive the coasts, Dingle Way, Wild Atlantic way. That’s where the beauty is. Take good rain gear. It rained or at least misted on us every day. Some towns are better than others. We got bored quick in some of the more tourist towns, but enjoyed our hikes along the coast the most. Eat the lamb and fish.

 

[braumeister]

Drive the coasts, Dingle Way, Wild Atlantic way. That’s where the beauty is. Take good rain gear. It rained or at least misted on us every day. Some towns are better than others. We got bored quick in some of the more tourist towns, but enjoyed our hikes along the coast the most. Eat the lamb and fish.

Good advice. I loved all the seafood on the west coast. We liked Kilkenny more than expected, so that would be a good stop. Donegal and most of Northern Ireland were also much more enjoyable than we expected, so it's a shame you won't be up in that area. In Dublin, don't pass up a day trip in the Valley of the Boyne to see Newgrange and so much more.

I'm sure you can handle the right hand drive, but be aware that the roads are probably narrower than you expect.

 

[Souschef]

For you information, I have attached the story of our trip in Ireland. It was on a tour, which was interesting to see the bus navigate the narrow roads with hedgerows on both sides.

 

[bmcgonig]

If you’re renting a car at the airport you could use your credit card as insurance. However make sure you bring a letter from your credit card stating that the insurance is valid in Ireland. Some ask some don’t. Sixt always asks. Hertz will charge you a daily €7 just to use it. Take lots of pics of the car before you drive off.

Weather might be rainy and a little chilly so as Voltaire said :”The most important choice you make every day is to be in a good mood”. Irish weather can precipitate a bad attitude so watch for that [emoji16]

My favorite places are Galway city. Donegal, Killarney, Dingle etc. Cliffs of Moher. Dublin is one of the least attractive capitals in Europe in my humble opinion. Three days is fine. Ireland is all about the west coast I think. Hopefully you’ll get sunny days to enjoy the views.

 

[Bamaman]

Rental car optional PMI insurance is required in Ireland (and Italy) by government mandate. I suggest you get a quote on the front end (with the reservation) on the cost. You don't want or need to get ripped off by the car rental company on the coverage.

Credit card insurance coverage is not accepted in Ireland, and most if not all credit card Terms and Conditions specifically exclude Ireland & Italy from coverage. (Northern Ireland is not included.)

Ireland is a very difficult country to drive in with so many ditches and rock walls so close. It's also easy to get rental cars scratched with hedges and things overhanging the road. Just be careful.

 

[bmcgonig]

Rental car optional insurance is required in Ireland (and Italy) by government mandate. I suggest you get a quote on the front end (with the reservation) on the cost. You don't want or need to get ripped off by the car rental company on the coverage.

Credit card insurance coverage is not accepted in Ireland, and most credit card Terms and Conditions specifically exclude Ireland & Italy from coverage.

Ireland is a very difficult country to drive in with so many ditches and rock walls so close. It's also easy to get rental cars scratched with hedges and things overhanging the road. Just be careful.

Hey Bamaman. No longer accurate. Chase for instance provides credit card insurance in Ireland and has been since at least 2016. That’s why it’s useful to get that letter from them.

 

[Ronstar]

Ireland is a very difficult country to drive in with so many ditches and rock walls so close. It's also easy to get rental cars scratched with hedges and things overhanging the road. Just be careful.

+1. And being careful probably won't be enough to avoid scratching the car. I'd say that it is inevitable.

As far as attractions, Guiness brewery tour and Trinity College library in Dublin. Cliffs of Moher, Ring of Kerry, castles.

 

[COcheesehead]

We had a driver in Ireland and I left the country thinking Irish driver’s may be the best in the world. The main highways are easy, but the side roads, which are most of the roads, are incredibly narrow, with overgrown bushes and rock walls. I don’t think there is a road where a straight section is more than an eighth of a mile. Constantly weaving, sheep on the road, cars coming at you on the wrong (ok right for them) side of the road. Our driver was on the edge of the ditch numerous times as oncoming cars passed.
No thank you. I’ll leave the driving to someone else.

 

[scfr]

Have a great time! Please share tips after your return! We have a "bucket list" trip to Ireland penciled in for 2024.

 

[48Fire]

Consider a day trip from Galway to Inishbofin. Nice ferry ride over, then rent a bike to explore the island. Hit one of the local pubs, and if you are really lucky, they might have some local Irish music or story telling. We were. But the "season" ends around the end of September, so might by limited entertainment and pubs. One of our best days ever.

 

[Bigdawg]

The Titanic museum in Belfast is nice. Also like the giant's causeway.

 

[DrRoy]

Looks great!

 

[tmitchell]

If you come across Hederman smoked salmon, eat it! Also don't miss out on the soda bread

https://www.frankhederman.com/collections/all

 

[lajolla]

When H and I did our driving trip through the west coast of Ireland one of the things I really loved was a good pub lunch everyday. They had the most delicious fish soups and stews served with fresh brown bread.

 

[braumeister]

When H and I did our driving trip through the west coast of Ireland one of the things I really loved was a good pub lunch everyday. They had the most delicious fish soups and stews served with fresh brown bread.

The food can definitely be sensational.
Two of the best meals I've ever had in my life were in western Ireland towns.

Do a little searching and you can find a lot of recommendations about Ireland travel in various threads here.

 

[Zona]

+1. And being careful probably won't be enough to avoid scratching the car. I'd say that it is inevitable.

This is our experience too. In the early 2000’s we rented one of the few available automatic transmission cars the company had. It had long scratches all down the left side of the car. The clerk told us it was the car they typically gave out to American tourists, why bother repairing the damage?[emoji23]

To the OP, our two most memorable locations were Galway and the Dingle peninsula - your itinerary looks like you will have a great time and see a lot!

 

[Vacation4us]

Good advice. I loved all the seafood on the west coast. We liked Kilkenny more than expected, so that would be a good stop. Donegal and most of Northern Ireland were also much more enjoyable than we expected, so it's a shame you won't be up in that area. In Dublin, don't pass up a day trip in the Valley of the Boyne to see Newgrange and so much more.

I'm sure you can handle the right hand drive, but be aware that the roads are probably narrower than you expect.

Trim is our first stop, is in the Boyne Valley and Newgrange is on my must see list!

 

[Vacation4us]

We are renting the car from Sixt through Expedia and did pay for the insurance. Unfortunately It’s a manual transmission but DH can seriously drive anywhere. He’s retired CHP.

We are skipping Northern Ireland this trip. I am already afraid we are moving around too much so we just can’t fit it all in.

We enjoy sight seeing via car on our own. When we vacation and don’t have a car we always end up not enjoying the trip as much. We just drove round trip California to 3 separate Idaho cities in 10 days. It was a lot of driving for DH. Especially at $5-6 a gallon in a 2005 gas guzzling Titan. Lol

I know people have reservations regarding driving out of country, DH’s only no go is Mexico not due to road conditions.

We plan on stopping at multiple sights on our drive around. We are aware we are going during the start of low season. We expect cold and rainy.

Thx for all the Recommendations!

 

[2017ish]

we drove around and hiked around the Island for about a month earlier this year. The neolithic ruins were mindboggling, and a surprise for us. DW did about 20 blogs on the trip, which focused on the spots we wanted to remember in future decades (and tout to friends!) Here's the first one: https://www.lisajtravels.com/2022-colombia/2022/5/6/dublin-ireland Or, if you'd like, click on her trip archives and look for the Ireland posts from 2022.

We both enjoyed our time in local pubs along the west coast, as we sampled irish whiskey, Draft Guiness, and local music. We tried to find lodgings that were walking distance of the "best" (only?) local establishment when possible.

It took me a solid day to get used to shifting with my left hand. Luckily, the same foot controls the clutch pedal as in the USA, so it wasn't that hard to get used to it.

Have a GREAT trip.

 

[Vacation4us]

we drove around and hiked around the Island for about a month earlier this year. The neolithic ruins were mindboggling, and a surprise for us. DW did about 20 blogs on the trip, which focused on the spots we wanted to remember in future decades (and tout to friends!) Here's the first one: https://www.lisajtravels.com/2022-colombia/2022/5/6/dublin-ireland Or, if you'd like, click on her trip archives and look for the Ireland posts from 2022.

We both enjoyed our time in local pubs along the west coast, as we sampled irish whiskey, Draft Guiness, and local music. We tried to find lodgings that were walking distance of the "best" (only?) local establishment when possible.

It took me a solid day to get used to shifting with my left hand. Luckily, the same foot controls the clutch pedal as in the USA, so it wasn't that hard to get used to it.

Have a GREAT trip.

All I can say is WOW! Your wife is quite the photographer. I enjoyed her blog immensely. Thank you for posting the link.

 

[RetireBy90]

I'm sure you can handle the right hand drive, but be aware that the roads are probably narrower than you expect.

We lived in Germany 10 years and I drove our own car and a rental on trips to England and Scotland without any serious issues. However in Ireland the roads were narrower (and I a bit olders). Only brushed a mirror one time but it was more difficult for me than other country and I turned in rental early and relied on public transport. Also get to see more of regular people and culture on public transport.


Great country with great people. Enjoy the trip !

 

[Ronstar]

... Only brushed a mirror one time....

I think it's on the Ring of Kerry - a mirror height groove in the roadside vegetation created by car mirrors scraping the brush.

 

[2017ish]

I think it's on the Ring of Kerry - a mirror height groove in the roadside vegetation created by car mirrors scraping the brush.

We didn't notice that spot, but definitely can understand why it would be there! We had many laughs about "two lane" roads with a line down the middle--but only enough room for one car.