Dingle to Galway via the Conor Pass

We left Dingle at 9:15, drove Conor Pass, stopped at Bunratty
Castle and FolkPark for a cool of hours, made our way to the Cliffs for a little over an hour and made it in to Galway around 7:15 It was a long day but doable

Thank you for your reply Sharon. It does sound like a long day though :) Do you recall if you took the ferry or made the drive via Limerick?

We made the drive via Limerick

I did that much in a day, plus a second trip around Slea Head Drive, the only exception being that I spent the night in Ballyvaughan instead of continuing on to Galway. It was my longest driving day but not unreasonably so, in spite of running into some bank-holiday-weekend crowds and traffic.

If you're interested, here are blog entries for that part of my trip:
http://bit.ly/2o6PkAY - Conor Pass to Doolin
http://bit.ly/2n67jWh - The Burren

Melissa,

At first I was going to say "you did how much in one day??" But then I realized that you probably traveled during the season when the sun sets late! I did go and read your blog and I found it informative and entertaining. However, you have my heart racing over the thought of driving now (or perhaps I should say again). Thanks for your input!

Hi there,

We just did this two days ago! Left Dingle around 9:30, drove over Connor Pass (it was very cloudy, but even with that the views were outstanding!). It's not a huge pass (we are used to passes in WA state) but the roads are very narrow. There are a few pullouts where cars can get around each other.

We went the Tarbert ferry route on recommendation from our B&B. It leaves hourly on the half-hour. It doesn't save time but it does save time behind the wheel, which is nice for the driver. We then went on to the Cliffs of Moher, through some very lovely little towns. Then drove through the Burren on our way to the M-6.

Stopping in Galway would be great. We however continued on to Trim (north of Dublin) since our flight was the next day. That made for a really long day. I think if we'd had an extra day stopping in Galway would have made the day very do-able. It's a long day, but a good one! You see a lot of the unique parts of Ireland's west coast in one day.

Hilary,

Thank you for the information. While it is still fresh in your mind do you recall about what time you left the Burrens? Our initial plan was to depart Dingle around 9AM, drive the Conor Pass, take the ferry and then drive the coastal route up to the Cliffs. We were planning on 2 hours at the Cliffs (some of that time may involve parking, etc.) and then maybe another hour to drive to the Burrens, spend some time there (maybe an hour??) and then on to Galway. Otherwise, we may just spend the night in Doolin after visiting the Cliffs and then drive the Burren and arrive in Galway early enough to "poke around" the town :) We will be in the area late September and I believe the sun sets at 7PM. Would like to be at our B&B by 5 or 6 at the latest.

Oh, I guess the big question would be....leaving Dingle at 9:30 did you catch the 10:30 ferry?

Thank you !

Hi kse,

I don't think you would make the 10:30 ferry leaving Dingle at 9:30 via Connor Pass. I checked with my husband on the details and he thinks it took us nearly 1.75 hours to the ferry. But we got passed a lot on the road by the more "adventurous" Irish drivers! We took the 11:30 ferry, and waited in line about 15 minutes before boarding.

As for visiting the Burren, it's worth the drive from the Cliffs of Moher to Galway to see the unique features of the area, but it will take you far more than an hour to drive through it. We intentionally took some of the back roads (with help from Google maps, who seem to think that since you're in Ireland you'll want to take farm roads. I do, so it works!) but I think taking even the most direct route will take more than an hour. You may want to take a break around Kinvara and visit the Dunguaire Castle there. Had I known we would have planned to stop there but alas had to drive by. Hazel Mountain Chocolate Factory is also worth seeing if you're in that area of the Burren. They sell amazing bean-to-bar chocolate, you can tour their factory, and they also have a nice little cafe.

I do like your idea of staying in Doolin and having the next day to Galway be more relaxed. If we'd had the time we'd have done something like that. Rushing through Ireland is never ideal. Taking the time to enjoy your surroundings and not arrive late is much better!

Hope you have a wonderful trip!

Hilary, Thank you so much for the "timing" information. Having an idea on how long something takes is very helpful. I am now leaning towards stopping over night in Doolin so we don't have to rush through anything.
I also saw (on another post) where you drove through the Wicklow Mountains.....so I have another timing question. We plan on picking our car up at the Dublin Airport and we hope to be on the road by 10 AM. We planned on driving to Powerscourt Gardens (takes maybe an hour), spending no more than 2 hours there and then driving to Glendalough (takes maybe an hour) and spending no more than 2 hours there. We are then going to drive to Kilkenny and spend the night. First off did you take this route and stop at these places? If so are my driving times and times spent at each location accurate? How long was the drive from Glendalough to Killkenny? I have seen anywhere from an hour and a half to 2.5 hours? I think the route we looked at took us through a town called Hollywood. Thanks again for your (and your husband's) help.

Your plan is very similar to what we did. We picked up our car at the airport and drove to the exit for the Wicklow Mountains. We stopped for lunch at a place called Timbertrove (it's a garden center with a cafe). We decided not to visit Powerscourt but instead headed over the mountains to Glendalough. It was a sunny Sunday, and we encountered a lot of cyclists on the road. At one point we stopped at a lovely waterfall overlooking a farm with sheep in the field - a beautiful Irish scene. Because it was Mother's Day in Ireland I think a lot of people were at Glendalough for their day out. The roads were very crowded and the parking lot was full. We were able to find a spot in a private lot just up the hill. We saw people walking there from a parking lot quite a ways back - don't panic and park far away as it's quite a long walk. Better to get close and see what's available. Possibly a weekday won't be as crowded.

We spent about 1.5 hours at Glendalough and that was plenty. We didn't visit the visitor center but went straight to the site and walked around. It's very beautiful and peaceful. It's also a good place for a picnic on a nice day, and there were lots of families taking advantage of the sunny weather. We didn't take the longer walk that RS talks about in the guidebook.

From Glendalough it's about a 1.75 hour drive to Kilkenny if you drive without stopping. Half of that is small roads and the other half is motorway. However, it was our goal to see the backroads of the area since my husband's family came from Co. Carlow and Co. Wicklow. We routed through Tinahely and Shillelagh, both lovely little towns. We came upon a church ruin near Kerristown (outside Tullow) and stopped to explore. So we were definitely taking our time. Once we got to the motorway, it was about 30 minutes to Kilkenny. As a result of our wanderings, we didn't arrive in Kilkenny until about 6:30 p.m.

Overall, I think your plan and timing is accurate. It's lovely to take your time in these areas that are so beautiful, but good to plan so that you're not arriving late and tired. We had time to find dinner in Kilkenny and then make it a relatively early night, so it was a good day.

Oh, one more thing! We also stopped in Avoca and had tea. The Avoca Weavers have a facility there that you can tour if you're interested in Irish weaving. You'll see Avoca stores in various town in Ireland and a large one in Dublin off Grafton St. Their weaving is beautiful and has an interesting history. So that's another place to stop for tea and a meal if the timing is right for you.

Hilary,
Thank you again for the information. I have to chuckle a bit...most people try to avoid the back roads and you and your husband go out of your way to drive them. That at least gives me hope that people do live through driving the back roads. I believe in the RS book he says that Powerscourt and Glendalough are crowded most weekends so we will try to avoid the weekends. We were going to purchase an Ordanance Map once in Ireland but I may have to pick up something stateside in order to locate the towns that people speak of during their trips! Thank you again!

kse,

We found driving the back roads to be really fun and interesting. It did make our driving times slower but the benefit is a look at everyday Ireland with all the beauty of the farms, sheep, views, ruins, daffodils along the road, and hidden places. I chatted with a shopkeeper in Kilkenny and she recommended a little town called Inistioge in south County Carlow. We would never have checked out this little gem on our own, but my was it beautiful. Apparently the film "Circle of Friends" was filmed there. Peaceful and lovely on a spring morning.

The Irish drivers are madmen (and presumably madwomen). They drive SO fast. My husband is not a hesitant driver by any means, but we were frequently passed on the road. Despite this, in two weeks on the road I didn't see a single accident. There's not much room for error, so I'm guessing they pay very good attention. You will be fine! Hope you have a wonderful time!