Ireland in a Week

May 2019

We got off of a trans Atlantic cruise in Dublin, and drove around Ireland for 7 nights/8 days in May 2019. I tried to plan so that moving from one town to the next would be around 2-3 hours. We did manage to go around the whole island during 8 days without rushing too much. We did not go into the big urban centers except for Belfast. We used Airbnb for all 7 nights, and the total came out to be about $500. We spent $10-20 per meal per person & we ate quite well.

Day 1:    photos from Kilkenny  & Kinsale

Cab from Dublin port to the rental car office around 9 AM. I had found a great deal on a rental car using skyscanner.com, $54 for 8 days for a small manual car. However, the young lady at the agency was quite successful in convincing Pat to upgrade to a car that had more room and power. Then there was some kind of local fee that had to be added. We ended up paying $220 for the package. (In the end, we did decide that the more power part was good for driving up some stiff hills, but the bigger size did not help with the driving on narrow roads.)

The road to Kilkenny(population: 26,500) was a regular freeway and easy to drive, and it took under 90 minutes to get there. We found a free parking outside of the old town center, and the 10 minute walk was pleasant. Walked around. Did not go into the Kilkenny Castle(8 euros), a major attraction, because we were tired of castles. Spoiled? Yes.

I had picked a lunch spot, but it was too early and most restaurants were closed. We decided to drive down to Waterford(population: 53,000), just a 30-40 minutes drive, and have lunch there. Turned out, it was a “bank holiday,” and the city was very quiet. Luckily, we were able to find a decent lunch. Walked around the city. Bigger but not as charming.

Our Airbnb house had a check in time of 5 PM, thus, we drove down to a little coastal town of Kinsale(population: 5,300), looked around, and went to a not-so-special small town of Carrigaline(population: 15,000) to check into our home for the night. (The road Google Map directed us to take to Kinsale was quite narrow once we were off the major highway!)

Day 2: photos from Killarney,

Just a little over an hour drive to Killarney(population: 14,500) on major highways. A beautiful town. Tourist Information Office was very helpful. The parking lot next to this office was cheap(1 euro/hour). We left the car there and walked around, had a wonderful lunch at a reasonable price at Hannigans Bar at the International Hotel. Took a walk in the National Park: gorgious!

Drove about 30 minutes to Killorglin(population: 2,190) to our home for the next 2 nights. Dinner at a local pub.

Day 3: photos from Ring of Kerry  & Killorglin

Ring of Kerry: should we skip it? Heard horror stories about too many cars/people jamming up the one road around this iconic scenic route. Our host said, “NO! You HAVE TO do it. It’s not going to be that bad now.” So we listened to him, and we were glad. From Killorglin, headed west, went around, and came out at Kenmare(population: 2,180.) Took around 2-3 hours with many stops for pictures. Kenmare was a cute town. Lunch at Rose Garden Cafe. Walked around Killorglin downtown. Dinner at a wonderful cafe, Bianconi Inn.

Day 4: photos from Dingle Peninsula & Liscannor

Dingle Peninsula. First did Slea Head Drive, lunch in Dingle(population: 2,050), then drove over Conor Pass. Roads were narrow. Spectacular views. More driving through narrow rural roads to get to our next home near Liscannor(population: under 200). Dinner at a local hotel pub for free Irish music. More music after dinner in Doolin. 

Day 5: photos from Cliffs of Moher & Bundoran

Visited Cliffs of Moher. Drove around the Burren. Lunch at a gourmet restaurant in a little town of Gort.  Easy drive to Bundoran(population: 1,960), a surf capital of Ireland. A nice dinner at Maddens Bridge Bar in downtown.

Day 6: photos from this drive to Limavady

Narrow roads to Slieve League: cliffs higher than Moher. Not as many people & equally impressive. Lunch in Ardara(population: 730.) Drove north to Horn Head, then drove into Northern Ireland. Stayed at an Airbnb house north of Limavady(population: 12,000) Had dinner at a sea side restaurant, the Point Bar.

Day 7: photos from the northern coast & Belfast

Drove around the northern coast of Ireland stopping in Dunluce Castle, Giant’s Causeway, Dark Hedge,and arriving in Belfast(population: 280,000). Had lunch at one of the glorious pubs of United Kingdom, the Crown Bar. Joined the Free Walking Tour at 2PM at City Hall. Dinner at an Italian restaurant near our home for the night.

Day 8: photos from the last day

Started the day at the Botanical Gardens, drove to the Parliament building, lunch at Schooner’s Restaurant in a wonderful quaint little town of Carlingford(population: 1,050), which is back in Ireland. From here to Dublin Airport was only about an hour drive.