Can anyone help me with a road trip plan for Ireland?

[FlowersInTheAir]

I am visiting Dublin next year for a concert (from England) with my DS who will be 11. I am off work for the week so I am thinking I might do a week/5 days in Ireland and make the most of it. I have been to Dublin before but a long time ago and not with a kid.

I have a had a look online at different road trip ideas but thought I’d ask here for recommendations. I was basically just thinking we could hire a car and visit a couple of nice places, stay the night in a b&b, explore the area for a day then head to Dublin to finish off with the concert.

has anyone done this and has any recommendations? I’ve looked at the ferry and it’s £400ish plus my car is electric so not sure how that would work which is why I thought hiring a car.

thanks 🇮🇪

Ah stop.
Food here is fantastic and a lot better than anything we ever got in 'services' in UK or even supermarkets.
You ate in the wrong places lol.

Totally agree with @InAPickle12345

The bus that goes from Dublin Airport to Galway is great and I have never had any issues. You could stop in the Midlands en route. In a perfect world you would have a car for the west coast but look into alternatives too. Have the best time.

Kilkenny is perfectly nice and all but I really don't think it's the one other place Id pick to be honest. Especially for someone coming from the UK which had more than its share of these kind of older towns/small cities etc.. if she wants a more distinctive experience then I would pick a stretch of the Wild Atlantic way - pretty much all of which is gorgeous and has something to offer. If it were me in August, I would probably go for the very North of Mayo, Sligo or parts of Donegal as being a bit quieter than the further south stretches. Other options might be the Copper Coast (Waterford) or Wexford or maybe the likes of a Leitrim if she wanted a non coastal option but with a strong identity and culture.

Car hire is cheap but book things now. Last time I was in Ireland I hired a small car, was only €55 , sometimes you have to pay extra if you intend to go up to Belfast and there is a toll on the m50 you normally have to pay online the day after. There is another toll going west that has booths.

If it was me I'd pick a side, go west to Galway or Do Dublin down to wexford.
You can definitely do Galway city in one day easily, or instead keep driving down to Clonakilty(great food) and West Cork, Leap, is amazing. North west area , the burren, Sligo, Mullaghmore (big surf) and cliffs of Moher also amazing.
If you like outdoorsy stuff and walking I can also recommend Glendalough, Wicklow way, roundwood, Poulaphouca, theres so much all around that area and is pretty. I used to live nearby and would visit Blessington often, there's a big lake/reservoir there that has lots of activities and a small village called Ballymore Eustace which has a really good restaurant. If you drive down the coast on this side there's some great beaches on the way to Wexford. Magheramore beach-long cliff from what I remember but secluded, Brittas Bay,-quite touristy big dunes, Cahore-small and pretty, Courtown- touristy, Curracloe-windy, but really nice to have a car and just drive around.

Also accommodation gets booked up fast so I'd get booking asap! Air b n B is good if you hire a car too as you can find some interesting cottages/shepherds huts etc that are fun to stay in.

Wild Atlantic Way if you’re driving. West coast is everything! Galway- Clare- Kerry gorgeous coastal road by car in summer.

August is really expensive so book accommodation in advance. Public Electric chargers are not that common on the west coast and fast chargers even fewer so your idea of renting a petrol car is not the worst.

The food in Ireland is so good - fresh, local, and prepared with pride and expertise - especially if you head to the coast. I find it hard to believe anyone would think otherwise!

Actually, OP, John Torode (the ozzie masterchef guy) recently did a series where he travelled Ireland just eating all the amazing food in a bunch of interesting places. If you are at all into food yourself you should give that a watch for some inspiration...

Yes we definitely ate in the wrong places but there wasn't a huge amount of choice. I'm not suggesting food available in the UK is any better.

There are 9 trains a day each way between Galway and Dublin, and the return fare for an adult and child would be less than 70 euro - might work out better than driving, and you'd get to admire the landscape in a way you couldn't when driving the motorway. If you then wanted to drive in the west you could hire a car there - but again, the tourist buses would get you to interesting places that you could look at without having to concentrate on the road. Disadvantages of course are the lack of ability to choose to stop where you want, and having to manage luggage without a car as a mobile closet. Even so, it isn't a bad option for an introductory visit to give you a taste of the country.

Food is fine - if you're a fish eater you'll enjoy the chowder available most places. My only warning would be to drink bottled water in the limestone areas of the west, including the Aran islands and the Burren. But to go see the Atlantic, either from those places or somewhere else.

Galway gets busy in Race week in August, so bear that in mind when planning or booking.

I wish we'd found the right places...

I'd book somewhere for Coldplay now

You arent seeing ireland without seeing the west coast / coastal areas.
We booked Galway for 2 nights in Augustm omg so expensive. I ended up closing my eyes abd biting the bullet and booked 2 nights in a hotel with a pool. There are 4 of us BUT there are lots of B and Bs everywhere where you and your 11 yr old could stay reasonably iykwim

Galway has a promende at salthill so lots of guesthoises plus there is leisure land with a swimming pool with slides for your 11 yr old.
There musr be e sharging at some guesthouses. Go to connemara ( with a full charge !!) Go on google maps and search b and bs honestly booking.com would scare you at the costs in Ireland
Have. Fab time !

We did a 2 week road trip a few years ago in August. Started in Cork and went up the Wild Atlantic Way, across the North Coast and finished in Belfast. Absolutely loved it, we got so lucky with the weather, it only rained the last 2 days in Belfast.

Highlights were Barleycove Beach, Hungry Hill, Croagh Patrick (incredible views from the top if you like hiking,) Achill Island, Carrowteige, Strandhill in Sligo, Caves of Kesh, Letterkenny for nightlife, Murder Hole Beach in Donegal, Mount Errigal, Giants Causeway, Causeway Coast. Would have liked to have seen Mourne Mountains too but our legs were in bits from doing so much hiking by the time we got there!

Ireland is full of fantastic independent restaurants with great food, not as chain and franchise based as UK although I guess some people prefer having familiar places to eat.

How about Northern Ireland too? Belfast, giants causeway ...

Yes! The Antrim coast road is fantastic. But then most of Ireland is.

Just did google maps there
Omg there is literally dozens of b and b in Galway - some boutiquey.
I also love spiddal on way to connemara.
You will have a lovely time where ever you go. We go to a council run swimming pool in our local town 9 euro for a family swim . Other more posher pools are more expensive.
Eating out is exp. We share a couple of starters and kids meals are cheaper as well. The breakfast will get you started tho. !

@theleafandnotthetree I completely agree with doing a trip to the West, especially the Wild Atlantic Way but I'm not sure they've got enough time to do it justice.

She could pick even a small stretch - maybe Sligo/North Mayo and do a huge amount in 4 or 5 days. In Sligo she could do climb Knocknarea, do a surfing lesson in Strandhill or go horseriding on the beach in North Sligo, do any number of fabulous beach, hill and forest walks, visit Carrowmore or Carrowkeel tombs or Kesh caves. Moving North to Donegal she could go to Slieve League cliffs, Bundoran etc. Moving west she could go for a sea weed bath in Enniscrone, could go to Ceide Fields and Downpatrick Head in North Mayo and stretch it out to Belmullet, Black Sod Bay etc. There are some truly spectacular beaches and cliff walks out there where you can literally have the place to yourself..

I'd go north as it's cheaper than the republic.
I'd maybe stop at carlingford for a night and take a boat trip, enjoy water sports. It's a quaint town.

Then a night in Belfast, see titanic centre, black taxi tour.

Then head north up the Antrim coast. See giants causeway, rope bridge, glenarm waterfalls. Maybe stay in ballycastle. If it's a nice day get a boat to rathlin island. Check out Ballintoy harbour (very cute). Then head on round the coast to port Stewart and port rush for beach and amusements. A night in Derry before heading back to Dublin. You could maybe even leave the car at Derry airport and fly back from there.

@theleafandnotthetree you certainly know your stuff! I think I'm projecting because I would find that programme hard work with very little relaxing. But I'm just an old gimmer 🤷‍♀️

Having visited Ireland lots of times by flying and hiring a car, last summer hire car prices were so astronomical that for the first time we went by ferry with our own car, which was much better value.

Ireland in tourist spots like Killarney and Kilkenny will be busy. As you have only five days I would probably explore Wicklow, Wexford and Waterford (lovely coasts). The Dart railway to these areas south of Dublin makes them far more accessible by public transport than the west coast. The Wild Atlantic Way is lovely but only parts of it will be accessible without a car - though likely day excursions from Killarney for Ring of Kerry, etc, or other large towns like Galway for parts of the coast. Worth doing research on day trips from larger centres.

Well I am lucky enough to live in that corner of the world so theres's that! Have done so for 20 years and even I am regularly in awe of its beauty and of the amount there is to do and see within a relatively small radius. I agree there might be a degree of driving but it itself is part of the experience as the scenery is so lovely and occasionally, spectacular.

Dingle and The Ring Of Kerry are beautiful.
The Connor Pass is extraordinary. Here
I went with DH before he was DH in 1992. We had been together about eight months. I don't drive, TCP has very sheer drops as you go up. DH kept gazing around, looking at and commenting on the view. I got VERY shirty and told him to look at the road and not at the view.
Ardmore Tower is interesting to look at. We stayed at Cliff House Hotel. It wasn't the uber expensive hotel that it is now. The views were breathtaking!!

Seconded. I'm in Cork which is lovely but Galway is more accessible from Dublin. It's a lovely spot and Conamara / Aran Islands pretty stunning.

@theleafandnotthetree you certainly are lucky! I will be checking in with you when I go on my big trip one day.

My favourite place in Ireland is Glendalough. There are plenty of hikes around the Dublin/Wicklow "mountains" so if you don't fancy driving too far it's worth staying around there.

However, if you don't mind a drive around then drive to west Cork and make your way all along the west coast. Most places have been mentioned already but the Ring of Kerry, Burren, Cliffs of Moher, Galway, Achill, and Cong are worth a look.