Ireland 8 Days

Here's what our host recommends, and here are his descriptions of places he likes. His and other guidebooks can help you plan this trip. People on this forum can be very helpful, especially with specific questions, but you'll never find a "consensus" here on a blank-slate itinerary.

That said, I'd suggest a few days in and near Dublin and then one area that particularly interests you -- south coast, west coast, or Northern Ireland. Are you interested in scenery, historic sights, music, great food, beers/whiskeys, something else? Rather than drive from Dublin you could take a train or bus to your second base and rent the car there. My own best idea would be Dublin and then Galway as a base for Connemarra, the Aran Islands, Cliffs of Moher, and Burren. But what works for me might not work for you. And others will doubtless have other good suggestions.

It would help to get some sort of idea what sort of things classify as must sees for you. These can be very personal. What might classify as a must see to me, could be the complete opposite for you!

If you are wanting a typical tourist tick list of sites then go to a site like Rick Steves.

Are you planning on moving every night (hard work) or are you wanting to base yourselves in an area for 2-3 days to see things in a bit more depth?

Just a thought, but 8 nights usually translates to 7 days of actual touring - not 9 as you've stated since the days either side of those 8 nights are usually travel days and are taken up with the logistics of getting to and from the airport.
That said, you have a few options depending on your particular interests: head to Galway immediately upon arrival at Dublin airport via the express as previously mentioned, settle in there for a few nights, taking advantage of day tours to explore Connemarra and maybe the Aran Islands. No car required.
Another option would be to stay in Dublin for the duration, exploring the city and booking day trips and tours north to Newgrange and the Boyne Valley or south to Glendalough and the Wicklow mountains. There's also the option of independent day trips by train to Belfast and/or Kilkenny - point being that there's plenty to keep you busy in Dublin for a week without the necessity of renting a car.
Another possibility would be to continue your journey upon arrival at Dublin airport and jump on one of the direct RyanAir flights to the Kerry airport near Killarney and base yourselves there for a few days to see some of the southwest ... Killarney NP, Dingle, the Ring of Kerry, etc. There will still be numerous day tour providers operating at the end of October. Could then return to Dublin via another RyanAir flight or via train if that's preferred.
Be prepared for wet weather and short days ... with the upside being that you'll be dealing with fewer crowds that time of year.

Ireland's Samhain is the basis for our Halloween. Might be a great day to visit Newgrange (or other ancient site), but you probably need to book that well ahead. Days are short that time of year, so you'll have plenty of time for the pub. In such a short visit, I would stick to Dublin with 1 or 2 day trips. No car needed. There's plenty to see, and you won't have the summer crowds. Definitely do an evening walking tour in Dublin. The literary pub crawls are popular, but there are all kinds. We found one on AirBnB. Have a great time.

Thanks to all for your input as it is helpful. I realize it can be difficult to make suggestions without details.

I guess we are leaning towards seeing sights over experiences mostly. Love learning about history of a country and its culture. However would like to do a whiskey tasting, pub crawl as well, which sounds like we can accomplish while in Dublin.

We have 8 full days and thinking of staying in Galway when we arrive for a couple of nights & then Dublin for most of trip since it does appear there is plenty to see & do there. May be best just to book day trips from Dublin and not have to move around at all. Not sure yet what we can do in terms of day trips from Dublin. Any suggestions? It is a short trip so need to be careful not to cram too much.

The shorter days & weather was the tradeoff to have smaller crowds. Post Covid the crowds in Europe have been a bit much for our taste.

paddywagontours.com gets recommended a lot on this site. you can search something like "Dublin day trips" on this site for further recommendations. Belfast, Giant's Causeway, Newgrange as previously mentioned, all make good day trips from Dublin.

Definitley Newgrange . Tours by Mary Gibbons get consistently good reviews on here.

Do a day tour to Glendalough and Powerscourt Gardens - lots of companies do these

Do a day trip to Kilkenny - can book a tour, or do it yourself on the train....

Thank you for the tour company referrals as this is very helpful. I did book a private day tour with Dingle Slea Head Tours which I found on the RS site. Will definitely look into Paddywagon Tours and Newgrange Tours by Mary Gibbons as well.

Again truly appreciate the suggestions from all.

Visiting Cliffs of Moher & Burren from Galway on our own, any tips? Will also be visiting Blarney castle & Kinsale on our way from Dingle to Dublin by car. Any tips or suggestions?

beancowtr it might be helpful to update the post with your planned days and itinerary since it sounds like you have landed on something different than your original post, and it isn't clear where you are going first (Galway? Kinsale? Dingle?) If you're doing all of those in 8 days plus day trips I'm afraid you'll see nothing but the roadway.

From Galway take the coastal route (R477) from Ballyvaughan, Murroogh, Fanore, Doolin to Cliffs of Moher. Come back along the inland route (N67) through Listdoonvara to Ballyvaughan.

Will also be visiting Blarney castle & Kinsale on our way from Dingle to Dublin by car. Any tips or suggestions?

I assume you are NOT planning to do this in a day as it involves 8+ hours driving without any stops.... Have an overnight in or around Kinsale.