Western Ireland Itinerary
How long was your stay?
8 days
How did you travel?
As a couple
Tell us why you traveled to this destination.
We’d always dreamed of a road trip to western Ireland and were able to make it as we were heading back to our home in Budapest after a summer visit with our families in the United States.
What was your itinerary?
Day 1: Arrived in Ireland and went to Bruff
Day 2:Went to Dingle via Adare, Conor Pass and Fungie the dolphin
Day 3- Travelled to Ballinskelligs, Dunquin Pier.
Day 4: Explored Waterville, Ballinskelligs Beach
Day 5: Traveled Kinsale
Day 6: Went to Wexford (Duncannon)
Day 7: Explored Hook Peninsula, Town of Kilkenny
Day 8: Went to Dublin airport.
Day 1: We arrived in Ireland and drove to the tiny village of Bruff. We were exhausted from our traveling ordeal (see below!) so we walked in the countryside and relaxed in the village pub.
Day 2: We drove to Dingle via Adare and Conor Pass. Adare is often voted the “tidiest village” in Ireland (which is an actual award Ireland gives out to villages!) and is worth a stop for some tea. We then took a scenic drive through the incredible Conor Pass before arriving in Dingle. In Dingle, we took a boat tour to see Fungie the dolphin (who sadly is no longer with us) and stopped at a pub for some grub.
Day 3: On our third day, we drove from Dingle to Ballinskelligs, via the Dingle Peninsula and the Ring of Kerry. It was a very long driving day, but probably one of the most scenic days of my entire life. Unfortunately, the weather was cold and very rainy, but that just added to the atmosphere! On the Dingle Peninsula, we saw the Dunquin Pier, which I had always wanted to visit. Cold but gorgeous!
Day 4: We took a quick drive from Ballinskelligs to Waterville via the Skellig Ring Road (we mostly needed an ATM, but the drive was pretty too!). That day we walked to Ballinskelligs Beach to see Ballinskelligs Castle from the shore. We were hoping to visit Skellig Michael, the famous island, but the weather wasn’t good enough, unfortunately. We still got to see it from the shore, though!
Day 5: From Ballinskelligs, we drove to Kinsale, via Killarney and Killarney National Park. I’d been to Killarney before, otherwise, we would have stopped for longer. It’s a truly fun town! Kinsale, a harbor town, is also fun to explore, but quite touristy.
Day 6: From Kinsale, we drove to Wexford (Duncannon), as we wanted to explore the Hook Peninsula the following day. It was a long drive and the weather was mostly ice sleet, so we spent a lot of time in the local pub!
Day 7: We finally had a day of sun! We used it to explore the Hook Peninsula and toured the Hook Lighthouse. Highly recommend a tour and stop for tea at their little café! The views are amazing, especially on a clear day. From there, we drove to the town of Kilkenny, to be closer to Dublin airport. We LOVED Kilkenny and had a great time pub hopping and listening to live music.
Day 8: We had to say farewell to Ireland and head back home to Budapest.
Would you recommend this trip to a friend?
Yes
What was the highlight of your trip?
Seeing the Dunquin Pier, driving the Ring of Kerry, the Hook Peninsula, and music in Kilkenny.
If you were to take this trip again, is there anything you would add or do differently?
We did have some issues getting there (airline strike), so sadly we lost a day of our trip. We were also rerouted to Dublin instead of Shannon airport, which added some time to our drive. Also, as much as I loved our trip, I would stay in just one or two places, or just one very central place, rather than moving each night.
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