14 days with long stays in ROI

That is a busy time so booking in advance to get a nice well reviewed place. There will be availability but possibly not in your optimal spot.

Portmagee is a wonderful central location for tons of stuff on the ROK and Skelkig Ring. It is small and intimate. However it is on the end of the peninsula so is best if that's the area you want to explore. It's perfect for out of the way, wild Ireland with tons to do but makes access to Dingle - Slea Head, Dunquin, the Blaskets, Ballyferriter etc. for example more difficult.

Castlemaine iitsrlf Is not as scenic.....beautiful but not the Skellig area......but it is perfect easy access to both Dingle and ROK/Skellig.....and the Killarney sights outside of town.....Killarney National Park, Molls Gap, Ladies View and Ross Castle. Depends on what you prefer. Both are good options. If you want to be settled in a small peaceful area.....Portmagee, The Glen, Ballinskelkig or Waterville area is fantastic. If you want a great spot to explore from that has its charm just not quite as much as the above then Castlemaine is great....and you can see stuff in all directions. Either place will fill 5 days easily with their surrounds.

As for driving, it is challenging but you do get used to it.....it's nowhere near as bad as some make out and it opens up so many options for exploration and discovery that buses don't offer. It REALLY helps to have a good engaged copilot (backseat driver) giving directions and reminding you "LEFT !!!!" :) Really though it depends on your comfort.....if you do be patient it takes a day or two to acclimate. Very doable though.

We rent out of Shannon with Easirent, they are just outside the airport and will pick you up. Dan Dooley was good to. Get Super CDW insurance and DEFINITELY ad tire and windshield coverage. It is quite possible almost likely you might scrape a tire or rim......and that gets VERY pricey without coverage. It is so worth the peace of mind.

Good idea to skip Cork itself......Kinsale nearby is very pretty, a bit touristy for me but an excellent option. But we prefer picking a small town anywhere along the Beara coast. So pretty.....easy access to all sorts of countryside and history and very welcoming.

Have been in a number of cars, main thing is having an automatic and we found some SUVs actually have the same wheelbase as smaller cars. Just ask the rental company. They know what to direct you towards.

Boy are you doing it right. You'll love it and exploring those areas is SO magical and fun. Soak it in and linger in spots....the history, all the lives that have passed those spots and the melancholy beauty will be right there for you. Have fun !!!!!

We are in Ireland now and our itinerary is 3 nights in Clonakilty, West Cork; 4 nights on Kenmare as base for ROK, Beara, possibly Dingle; 3 nights in Salthill, just outside of Galway, then the last two nights in Bunratty to be near Shannon, with a day to visit Clare.

I wouldn’t want to do what we are doing without a car, but for us, part of the fun of the visit is being able to pull over and visit anything that seems interesting to us. We rented with Dan Dooley for this trip and got an excellent rate without insurance since our CC covers us well. Our car was right outside the airport, no need for the shuttle we have sometimes had to take.

Unless you have an interest in the Skelligs, I don’t think Portmagee makes the most sensible base, but I am sure others may disagree. :)

If you really want to go off-the-beaten-path I'd suggest picking up a copy of "Backroads Ireland" by DK publishing. It contains lots of ideas for excursions away from the usual tourist hordes and will give you a better idea of where to base yourselves to be centrally located for easy day trips. Can usually find used copies for just a few dollars on Amazon.
Rather than staying anywhere near Dingle or Killarney you might consider the Beara peninsula just south of the ROK. The little town of Kenmare would make a good base for exploring the prettiest parts of the Ring, and would be handy for day trips out along Beara too...which is one of the best kept secrets in Ireland in our opinion.
We've always thought that Connemara is the prettiest area in Ireland. Staying in the vicinity of Clifden would get you away from the crowds yet still provide a good base for exploring the area. Better yet, stay out along the Sky Road to the west of Clifden - it's absolutely beautiful. And rather than taking the ferry over to the Aran islands, go against the flow and take the ferry over to Inishbofin for a day - another one of Ireland's best kept secrets.
We've generally found that by getting an early start (am talking crack of dawn here) we can always beat the crowds at any of the popular attractions - Glendalough, the Ring of Kerry, Slea Head Drive, the Gap of Dunloe, etc. It's a whole different experience at any of these places when you have them all to yourselves.
We've had good luck booking self catering accommodation with both of these websites: https://www.shamrockcottages.co.uk/ and http://www.kerry-coastal-cottages.com/Properties/Menu.html. Since your dates will coincide with the onset of the tourist crush you'd be well advised to book early.

AlliM .....are you sure your CC covers Ireland most don't. If it does awesome but we had friends who had CC overseas coverage and just assumed Ireland was included.....but it was one of about 4-5 excluded countries.

Do disagree with you the Portmagee....Balkinskellig.....Waterville area us FAR far more thsn just Skellig Michael.....and it is a great area for avoiding the tourist crush and experiencing small town Ireland. Salthill and Kenmare are fantastic spots but not "avoiding tourist places completely" as the poster indicated they want. The drawback to Portmagee is its location on the far end of the peninsula which limits access to Dingle or Beara to an extent.......and that the town is small if you want a ton to do in town. But within half an hour it's one of the richest areas in Ireland.

And rather than taking the ferry over to the Aran islands, go against the flow and take the ferry over to Inishbofin for a day - another one of Ireland's best kept secrets.

Absolutely agree Robert! Inishbofin was a highlight of our trip to Ireland!

Ewe, yes, we are very sure our MC covers us in Ireland. We have one of the very few cards that will still do this. And every time we go to Ireland, MC provides us with a verification letter that we hand over to the rental company. (We did have to pay a €25 fee to the car company for using the CC insurance.)

If you really want to escape the more heavily-touristed areas, head to County Donegal. It's the most remote, least visited region in Ireland, as well as the most wide open and pristine. You're also close to water along the southern and western coasts. There is no train servie in Donegal, so you'll either have to drive to take the bus.

Thanks everyone for all of your suggestions. I have been exploring alot about Robert's suggestion regarding the Beara Peninsual and it looks wonderful. Is it worth finding a base here? We arrive at Shannon at about 11. Booked the Car. It seems the drive to Glendariff (which is the begining of the Peninsula) can take 2:45 to 3 hrs. Anyone like to suggest a good route. First day driving so easy road would be preferable. And would 4 days be too much or not enough to stay in this area. I would now like to explore going from here along the coast (eastwards) along the N71. Again what would be another rich natural beauty place to stay for 5 days going in this direction to explore (away from the crowd and tourists) . Thanks again

Actually, Kenmare would be a good base for exploring both Beara and the southern part of the ROK. Would suggest taking the N 20/ N 72 out of Limerick to get there so as to avoid the traffic snarl in the vicinity of Killarney.
On our last trip we spent a week near the village of Ardgroom on the peninsula itself - it was a great base for daily meanders around the countryside. Once you get comfortable with left hand traffic and narrow roads I'd suggest a drive up over the Healy Pass (R 574). On a sunny day it's one of the prettiest off-the-beaten-path drives in Ireland.
Near Ardgroom we stayed in a pretty cottage with a view of the bay. Can provide the link if you're interested. Likewise some gentle day hikes to places where it's guaranteed you'll not see any other tourists ... or other human beings for that matter.

Thanks Robert. That sounds doable. Am quite familiar with left hand driving in India. Yes if you could share those links for a cottage that would be great as well.