11 night Ireland Itinerary

I don't see any of #2, genealogical interest. You don't say where in Ireland your ancestors are from.

Your itinerary looks doable to me. My only suggestion is to consider staying in Killarney, not Kenmare. I suspect you chose Kenmare because it's less of a tourist trap then Killarney. But if you stayed in Killarney you won't be covering the same ground 2 or 3 times when you visit Killarney NP, drive the Ring of Kerry and then drive to Dingle. Alternatively, stay on the north side of the RoK. Maybe Killorglin.

Wow! I am impressed. You plan to detail like I do and I have traveled to 5 continents and over 40 countries. First of all Ireland has beautiful scenery. The farther west you go the better it is. I would suggest that you absolutely do not want to miss the Cliffs of Moher. Like your iteniary, I prefer driving. It affords A LOT of flexibility. I also do vacation rentals as opposed to hotels. You would be impressed, and appreciate, that a vacation rental host can help you with your iteniary in a particular area. After all ...they live there! And considering your entourage, it would seem to be the idea family setting. As in real bedrooms vs hotel rooms. Kitchen vs restaurants. Family rooms vs hotel lobbies. It is probably cheaper as well. Can't give you much help on Scotland. My wife did the castle and I did a bucket list item of golfing at Saint Andrews, We did drive up to Loc Ness from Edin-borough Got the t-shirt but not worth the drive up there. The highway is two lane and you take your life in your hands driving it.

I love Ireland but keep in minds that many of the roads are narrow (as in sort of 2 lanes although no line painted in the middle because not fully 2 lanes wide). Also many roads are lined with stonewalls covered by bushes and trees so no shoulder. Most local roads are 1 lane roads with 2 way traffic. Don’t assume you can travel at the speed you are used to at home.

Thank you so much for all your responses! Really appreciate your insights!!

G3rryCee: I don't know as much about where our ancestors are from in Ireland as I know about where they are from in Scotland, but I think some of them are from Dublin. My mom and I will probably do more research into the Irish geneaology before the trip.
Trotter: I appreciate the advice to consider Killarney instead of Kenmare! I was wondering if that might actually be easier than staying in Kenmare. It seems Rick prefers Kenmare to Killarney, which is part of the reason I was thinking of staying in Kenmare. What do folks here on the forum think about Killarney (vs Kenmare?)
rmill.ace: I agree that vacation rentals are often the way to go for a bigger family group, rather than hotels. I've been pricing out hotels (with 2 separate rooms) and airbnbs that can fit our group, and yes, you are right, it's often cheaper. Plus it's so nice to have a washer so we can pack really light and wash clothes during the trip.
Coleen: thanks for the advice about driving in Ireland!

I think the itinerary above is probably what I will go with (but with Killarney instead of Kenmare), but I've been known to change my mind many, many times. :) Do you all think what I have above is a good itinerary for a first trip to Ireland to see some of the most beautiful scenery, or do you think there are other places that are more beautiful? I'm also intrigued by Achill Island and Donegal area, but it seems like for a first trip, most people recommend the southwest. Thoughts? Thank you all!

Killarney is not particularly quaint and charming. And traffic can be hard to navigate around. I misread your itinerary and thought you were spending 2 nights on the RoK. So if I understand correctly now, you plan to do the park and then spend the night on the RoK and then the next day finish the RoK on the way to Dingle. If that is indeed the case, Kenmare might be more pleasant.

I spend at least 12 months planning trips, then another nine months booking them and creating maps for my dash GPS. My 2026 trip is up to spreadsheet #45, each visibly different than the previous. If I renamed the plan for every little change, I'd be closer to #450. #1 and #45 have little in common. Now that I've booked all my lodging and flights, the evolution has slowed way down. My plans are more complicated than some because I emphasize Irish trad sessions, which requires regular Facebook checks, etc. to see when things change. Reversing the order of the whole trip happens at least a few times during the process. This years Ireland trip succeeded on 16 of the 19 nights
with 14 unique stops.

Reading these forums are a prime input to the incremental plans as I change towns, add stops, or change restaurants/pubs. Before the concrete sets, I read every post.

I suggest you do your genealogy research now and plan your trip accordingly.
Also, you are not required to follow Rick Steves' suggest itinerary. If you want to go to Achill Island and Donegal, go to Achill Island and Donegal. If your son is willing to sleep on the couch, I can recommend a great apartment in Killybegs, from where you can see the Slieve League from both land and sea.
Speaking of your son, I bet he'd be really impressed by the Giant's Causeway and the Dun Luce castle ruin. My 12yoa son sure was!

Trotter: thanks for your additional comments about Kenmare and Killarney! Maybe I'll just decide based on accommodation choices in those areas.
Fellow Oregonian from the mountains of southern OR: I laughed when I read your description of how you plan trips, because I can totally relate! I'm glad I'm not the only one who changes my mind a million times and plans things out to the most finite detail. For me, the time investment in planning is worth it (and also so fun), and I'm sure your trips are absolutely magical when you finally go on them.
G3rryCee: Thanks for sharing that your son loved Giant's Causeway and Dun Luce Castle. And yes, I'd love to have your apartment recommendation in Killybegs. (My son is fine sleeping on a couch.) I know I'm not required to follow Rick's suggested itinerary. I never have followed his itineraries in the past. They are usually too fast paced for me. For this trip, it will be a bit faster paced than I would like, because we are dividing our time between Ireland and Scotland, so I will probably use parts of Rick's itinerary (but not all.) To your point of "if you want to go to Achill Island and Donegal, go to Achill Island and Donegal"....I don't actually know where I want to go for this first trip with the limited time we have. Achill Island and Donegal look amazing, but so do Dingle, Doolin, Killarney N.P, etc, so I am looking for advice from people like you who have been to multiple places in Ireland and might be able to recommend one area over the other for a first trip and with the priorities of my family mentioned above. I think your advice to do more genealogy research and plan around that is good, but if genealogy weren't a factor in the planning, which area would you recommend prioritizing?
Thanks so much!!

Here's the AirBnB. I think they have 1 or 2 other apartments. Don't be deterred by it being above a seafood restaurant. It wasn't loud or fishy. They also have a chippie in the alley across the street. Best fish and chips of the trip.
https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/41787724?source_impression_id=p3_1756481976_P3CnvQSqNEKsDWw1
Here is a list of Irish music festivals with 2025 dates. Many of these will be annual events, held on similar dates next year. Not all are in Ireland. I couldn't find the list I had of those. Of course, many places have music in the pubs all the time.
https://www.irishmusicmagazine.com/links/tours-festivals/
Rick's itinerary planning advice is to make a list of all the things you want to see and do, estimate how long each one takes, consider transportation time to and between, then cut the items that don't fit. You can't do everything in 11 days.
Keep in mind the other airports (Shannon, Dublin, Belfast, Knock and Derry should all have direct flights from Edinburgh), and the trains, which are inexpensive when booked in advance. I think the longest ride is 3 hours. Great way to get back to Dublin, as you arrive in the city center, rather than having to either drive in or drop at airport and get everyone into town.
Re: Killarney vs Kenmare, remember that you will have a car, so you can stay anywhere within a short drive of your preferred activities. Set the map area wide and see what you find that meets your criteria.

Thanks so much for all the very helpful advice, G3rrycee!! That apartment looks fantastic. Also, really appreciate the link to Irish music festivals!