Ireland in 5 days

there is not much traffic once you leave town, is that your question about "safe"? I hope that others who have driven in Ireland more recently will answer, also.

regarding the fuel economy of your vehicle, perhaps you can do some research on the rental car website.....

Hi,
Have you looked into flying into Shannon and out of Dublin? Or the reverse? I bet for the extra cost of the flight, if any, you would save an extra frustrating day of driving, car rental, parking, and gas.

wayne iNWI

It's very hard to read your schedule, but I think you're saying you're going to do the Dingle Peninsula from Dublin via Kerry as a day trip returning to Kerry. If that's correct, I don't think it's too realistic. Also, given how limited your time is, I would choose one – either Dingle or Kerry. I prefer Kerry, although many will disagree with me; but Kerry is also closer to Dublin, which might be another reason for you to choose it. Suggest you review guidebooks on Both areas.

I also think you may be over estimating the ease or speed of driving in rural Ireland. I'm not sure what speed you think you'll make, but I doubt I did more than 35 miles an hour, averaged over a 2-week trip. I'd suggest using one of the online driving-time calculators like Michelin, and then adding at least 25% to their estimate – more if the weather is bad, it is dark, or the traffic is bad. Finally, I think you mentioned the word "highway" at one point. In much of the country, think more in terms of narrow winding roads, one lane in each direction (occasionally less), with no shoulder, and sometimes animals wondering on them. I drive winding, narrow, cliff-top roads all the time (i.e., California's Big Sur coast) and I found some of the roads in Ireland to be very intimidating.

thank you all for your inputs. so to make life simpler, from dublin which locations or activities do you suggest given that we have 3 days left post our sightseeing of Dublin. we will be stationed at dublin.

this way we can make use our time for effectively. thx

Make the 2 hour drive or take a bus or train to Belfast for the day. Leave early and get to Belfast by 10am at the latest. Tour the Crumlin Road Gaol http://www.crumlinroadgaol.com or the Titanic Museum. Enjoy a Black Taxi Tour, grab a bite, then head back to Dublin. Full day, but think about it, you'll have visited another country. Add a visit to Newgrange as a day trip from Dublin. Same with a drive to Glendalough.

hi. but for Belfast don't you need some sort of different documentation cause we are carrying only a UK visa. heard you need a separate visa for visiting northern Ireland.

I would suggest picking one other area for your remaining time. Take a look at guide books to see what most interest you. Some possibilities would be – Killarney with its national Park and the Ring of Kerry; the Dingle peninsula, with a nice beach area, wonderful scenic drives, and ancient ruins; south to Powerscourt gardens, the ancient Glendalough monastic site, and the Wicklow mountains; north to the Newgrange passage tombs. and coastal towns; east to Galway and surrounding sites; and there are other options also.

All of these are in the Republic of Ireland, so you wouldn't have a visa problem. And I think you could do any of them as a single location. The ones closer to the east coast will obviously give you more time at the sites, with less driving time to get there. So probably the best thing you could do now is spend time with books or the internet to decide what most interest you and what's the driving time.

And by the way, Belfast is part of the UK. You mention carrying UK documentation, so you may have no problem with Belfast.

www.viamichelin.com will calculate estimated fuel costs, as well as driving times, based on the size and type of car you say you're driving.

Thank you all for your valuable insights.

is there any particular car hire agency which is trust worthy with no hidden costs that I can utilize either from

• airport
• city center