What should I include in my travel itinerary for Ireland?

This is one of the options under consideration.

You could fit me in your suitcase. :)

Driving in Ireland is…..scary. Some of the roads are very narrow and have a lot of round a bouts. We drove for five days and it was interesting. Take out the extra insurance on the rental. It will be worth it!

Must see the Cliffs of Moher. Dublin is becoming just another big city but still has some good times in the Temple Bar area.

Pick one of the driving tours and have a blast. All of the old Castles were amazing.

Just pay attention while driving.

My brother, cousin and I went on a 7 day trip last May. We booked through Sceptre Tours. Our flights, 6 nights in B&Bs and our car was included in the price, just over $1000 per person. We planned our own route around the country, booked our own B&Bs ahead of time and had an amazing time. We were able to drop things out and add them in as we went along, depending on how tired we were or what we saw along the way that looked interesting.

I ended up doing all of the driving because I was the only one who knew how to drive a standard. At first it’s tricky, but once you realize that when turning left at an intersection, there is a sidewalk on the other side of the waiting car and that you should have turned BEFORE that car, you’ll be fine. Also the speed limit just about everywhere is 100 km/h. 60 mph on a 1.5 lane country road with stone walls on either side is terrifying.

Pick up a copy of Frommer’s Road Atlas Ireland . All we did was print out the google map section with each B&B on it and used the Atlas for the rest of the navigation. Lonely Planet’s Dublin Encounter has a pocket map of Dublin in that was very helpful too. A few weeks before we left, I spent a couple of hours sitting on the floor at Border’s in the travel section and bought a few books, but the Atlas was priceless.

Also, I went to AAA(don’t have to be a member) and got an International Driving permit for $25. I didn’t need it, but you never know when there might be an accident or you get pulled over. Your US driver’s license should be enough though.

Here was our itinerary:

Depart JFK Monday

Arrive Dublin Tuesday very early:
Drive to: Knock (Our Lady of Knock to get holy water for grandma…famous religious pilgrimage stop) > Castlebar/Ballentubber Abbey (family from area) > Galway.
Spent night in Galway
This day was a lot of driving. We would have loved to spend more time in Galway. We had also planned to stop in Westport but were too exhausted so continued on to Galway from Castlebar.

Wednesday:
Drive to: Cliffs of Moher, a must see.
Spent night just outside of Shannon.
We chose to stay in a farmhouse B&B to get a taste of the country side. Not much nearby to do at night. Went into Ennis for dinner.

Thursday:
Drive to: Killarney, Ring of Kerry (a lot of driving)
Spent night in Killarney
Loved this day and night. It was so gorgeous on the drive around the Ring. Spent night in B&B called the Mystical Rose. Highly recommended, would go back in a heartbeat.

Friday:
Drive to: Cork. Lots to do in Cork, Blarney Castle (on the way to Cork from Killarney), pubs, history etc…
Spent night in Cork
Toured the Jameson Distillery in Midelton after our stop at Blarney castle.

Saturday 5/29:
Drive to Dublin (few hours trip): Temple Bar (area in the city, but also a very crowded touristy bar), Trinity College, St. George’s Green etc…
Spent night in Dublin
Stayed just outside the city in Howth, close to a DART station with quick access to the city

Sunday:
Dublin. Kilmainham Gaol and the Guinness Storehouse.
Spent night in Dublin

Monday:
Fly home

Recommendations:
Drink plenty of Guinness.
Eat lunch in pubs.
Talk to the locals, everyone is extremely friendly.
Keep a flexible schedule and go at your own pace.
The B&B owners will have plenty of suggestions if needed.
The full Irish breakfast that they will offer you is kind of… different. You can opt for something else but try it at least once. :)

So much fun and such a beautiful and welcoming country and people. Let me know if you have any questions while planning. Oh, I’m excited for you!

remember summers can be chilly there. I’ve been 3 times. The first two were tours and the 3rd visit we stayed in two places – Cork and Kilkenny. That trip we took trains and buses and it was very do-able. Cork is a great city, Kilkenny looks just like it came out of medieval times – I love Kilkenny and it has a great castle. Another great place is Donegal – on the west coast. The tour bus took us up the west coast and it was incredible.

What @missingbite said about the roads is very true especially if you are used to driving in the USA. They are narrow and twisting especially in the more scenic areas and you will find roundabouts terrifying if you aren’t used to them.

But don’t let me put you off. Ireland is lovely, especially the entire west coast from Kerry to Donegal. A very sad, beautiful country with great music and talk.