This was our 8 day Ireland itinerary round trip from Dublin! We spent some extra time in Galway and Dublin because we met up with friends, so if you want to add some extra time to other places that interest you, I would recommend because we did a lot of driving in a short amount of time!
So many films have been created in Ireland, from Star Wars to Harry Potter!
Rental Car : We flew into Dublin airport, rented a car from Europcar, and hit the road! Please keep in mind that if you want to use your own insurance for the vehicle rental, you need a letter from the insurance company stating that you are covered. We were told the letter had to be dated within 6 months of arrival, and it had to specifically indicate we were insured for Ireland. (We had an old letter from Israel that did not work and had to call for our company to send a new letter).
Even if you have this letter, you will be charged 5,000 Euros (7,500 CAD) as a "damage deposit". This was slightly inconvenient, because it maxed out one of our credit cards, but luckily we had a couple between the two of us. If your limit isn't this high on your credit card, you will have to pay the daily insurance through the rental car company which drastically increases the price of the vehicle.
Day One : Dublin to Kilkenny through the Wicklow Mountains
We wanted to see some countryside right away, so we drove to Kilkenny through the Wicklow Mountains. If you have time, this park is beautiful and we would have loved to of spent more time exploring. We made a pit stop at Lough Tay (also known as Guinness Lake), then continued on through the Sally Gap to Kilkenny.
(Lough Tay)
We stayed at the Hiberian Hotel, which was the perfect location. Walking distance to everything we needed. https://www.kilkennyhibernianhotel.com/
Day Two: Kilkenny, Kissing the Blarney Stone and Killarney
We did the Smithwick's Brewery tour, explored the town a bit, then hit the road again.
We stopped at the Jameson's Distillery, kissed the Blarney Stone, then ended in Killarney.
(Blarney Castle Gardens)
Day Three : Ring of Kerry
This is a beautiful peninsula drive, I highlighted some of our favourites stops on the map. It is a big driving day, but many people do the ring in as a day trip from Killarney. It was a little extra long because we went over to Dingle.
(Cliffs of Kerry)
We stayed at Benner’s which I highly recommend if you’re looking for an adorable bed and breakfast with lots of great reading nooks. https://www.dinglebenners.com
Day Four: Dingle Peninsula then to Galway
Dingle was my favourite place we visited in Ireland. If I could do it over again, I would have spent 2 nights in Dingle. This way, you have time to drive the peninsula, then come back and enjoy this quaint beautiful town.
(Coumeenoole Beach)
(Devil’s Horn)
Day Five: Cliffs of Moher
We did the cliffs as a day trip from Galway, although you could easily hit it on the way up to Galway from Dingle. We had originally planned to do the hike from Doolin to Hag’s Head, but the weather was terrible. Instead, we drove to the visitor’s centre where the highest points of the cliffs are, and hiked a short ways in both directions.
We also did the Doolin cave where the largest free hanging stalactite in Europe can be found. https://doolincave.ie/
Day Six: Galway CityOur free day in Galway was spent exploring the streets and amazing pubs!
Day Seven/Eight : Dublin
(Jameson's Distillery)
Guinness Storehouse - pour your own pint
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