Is my itinerary too concentrated in one area (and other things)

Greetings from Ireland! You have a great trip ahead. Best of luck with it.

A few quick bits of advice on your itinerary.

1. 3 nights in Dingle is always a great idea but there might a be chance you'd find it a wee bit too long in a 9 day itinerary. In saying that I love Dingle so much that I moved here fro my beloved Donegal and bought a guesthouse, so I know you'd love it for a 3 night stay, but my professional opinion is it may be in the best interest of your itinerary to spend 2 nights and travel on.
2. If you are overnighting in the Aran Islands you will need to watch your timings, you could go up the west cost and get the ferry from Doolin and then go from the Aran Islands on the ferry back to Rosseaveal (1 hour from Galway) this would be way too much if you're not overnighting though. Consider going to Galway for 2 nights (check out Petra House B&B if you do, among the best customer-service Ive experienced anywhere in Ireland) and go the the Aran Islands from here.
3. Kylemore is beautiful but to go from Galway to there and then down to Ennis is a very serious driving mission that is more suite to the Navy Seals than a relaxed holiday-drive.
4. Ennis is a nice little town, but theres not a whole lot happening there compared to Dingle or Galway. If its getting late, Id just stay at the hotel at Shannon Airport and drop the car off, look at all your holiday pics and rest! :) Best wishes on it all. Delighted you have both chosen Ireland for your vacation....

le meas/with respect
Stephen McPhilemy
Dingle, Donegal and Derry.
Rick Steves Ireland TourGuide

ps don't miss Kylemore Abbey, you're so right to be charmed by it, absolutely delightful. Be sure to check out the walled garden....

Far be it from me to debate with Google maps (hopefully Stephen will correct me if I'm wrong) but to get to Rock of Cashel from Shannon airport in an hour might be a bit optimistic.

The Bunratty Castle and Folk Park sits about ten minutes or so outside Shannon Airport and might be a less daunting day one objective....it's also one of the top visitor attractions in the area. The Bunratty Castle hotel is just across the street from the Bunratty castle just in case you crash and burn in the afternoon. Evening entertainment options include "Irish Night at the Corn Barn" / The "Medievel Banquet".....both within the grounds of Bunratty Castle and Folk Park as well as Durty Nelley's Pub located just outside the Castle grounds.
If you decide to shorten your stay in Dingle .....Killarney was the most fun town of our trip. The drive from Shannon down to Killarney has some drop dead gorgeous/this is the essence of Ireland type of scenery.......the Gap of Dunloe was majestic.....the Killarney National Park....the Torc Waterfall....Ring of Kerry....Muckross House.....all magnificent. Celtic Steps show was great fun and the evening street scene in Killarney was..... tranquil.....street musicians including bagpipes.....good pub food....just hanging out in old Killarney town was one of the most pleasant times of our trip. Scotts Hotel is right in the middle of it all and is modern and affordable lodging.

Definitely optimistic about driving from Shannon to the Rock of Cashel. My suggestions are these: Grab the rental and head to the Burren. Why? Simply because it will get you out into the air, its unlike anything you've seen and it will prove you are "not in Kansas anymore." From there into Doolin. 2 nights in Doolin. Next morning ferry the to Aran Islands. Following day early start leave Doolin and head to the Cliffs of Mohr. Have lunch and drive to Dingle via Tralee. In Dingle have tea, coffee at the Wren's Nest Cafe, stroll the main street , walk along the harbor, stop in Commodum Art and Design. Next day drive Slea Head (if during Spring and Summer months) get on the road before the tour busses. Go early. Stop at Coumeenoole Beach and if the weather is clear climb the path to the top of the hill for a stellar view of the Blasket Islands. Drive a bit further up then walk some of the Dingle Way. Picnic. Dinner at Out of The Blue Seafood that night. From Dingle enroute to Killarney I suggest seeing the Gap of Dunloe, hike it or take a trap ride. I think the teen would find the trap ride fun. Muckross House in Killarney National Park a definite. I'd also consider visiting Skellig Michael. http://www.worldheritageireland.ie/skellig-michael/visitor-information/ Would definitely be something completely different for the teen to see.

BTW virtually everywhere you go in Ireland you'll find intriguing and beautiful. The West Coast is especially beautiful. Lastly, put the Rock of Cashel at the end of your trip, spend the last night in Croom. Up early, back to Shannon, drop off the car and bid farewell to Eire.

mullgirl, are you flying from the U.S.? If so, especially if from the West Coast, do you know how jet lag may affect you? As charley points out, getting to Cashel day one could be a big ask. Have you driven on the left side of the road before?

What about staying near Shannon the first night, grabbing a rental car the next morning and heading towards Dingle via the Cliffs of Moher and Connor Pass, basing there and doing a day trip to Killarney National Park and Muckross House? You could also take your second night near the Cliffs in Doolin (or Ennis) after exploring The Burren that day. Most agree that Dingle is a better spot to hang out than is Killarney, three nights is not too much, imo. We had a fine day doing Killarney National Park etc as a day trip, returning to Dingle in the evening. You do need to figure extra time over and above typical Google Maps drive times, it's a little tough to "make good time" there.

Thanks for responding all. I'm looking through your suggestions. Yes, flying west coast--so the lag is going to be brutal. I've flown internationally many times though and know the best thing to do is just keep moving... I'm hoping to keep the teen moving as long as I can before whining and/or belligerence sets in ;)

We get in at 7 in the morning in Shannon. And I'm hesitant to just stay near Shannon for that whole day and night. I'd rather "get somewhere" we can see some things away from an industrial town. I was anticipating that the drive would be about double what google maps said--so two hours. I figure we clear the airport and get a rental car and go somewhere for a good breakfast and coffee and are still at Rock of Cashel by noon. No? I've never driven on the left, but I figured heading inland might be easier (less stops/traffic). You don't think so? I'm thinking hard about the bunratty suggestion though. Of course it's uber touristy (but I'm a tourist), but I was a bit surprised that Rick Steves dismissed it entirely out of hand and wondered if the experience simply wasn't worth it. I'll have to take another look. And the more I look at it, the more I'm committed to getting up to Kylemore Abbey. I had actually considered trying to travel northward there first, but it seems longer drive and maybe bigger/more trafficked roads. I wonder if we could do it that first day if I just planned for us to stop frequently in whatever villages we pass. The trick is I need to commit one way or the other so we can get hotels/B&B booked because most of the RS recs are filling up that I've looked into.

I think your day 3 looks - off. Stephen above may back me on this, but I'd suggest Ring of Kerry/Skellig Loop with an overnight along there, and them dingle for 2 nights, instead of three. The Dingle peninsula is actually smaller than the Iveragh peninsula (the Ring of Kerry) so i'd say you're rushing Ring of Kerry/Skellig, big time!

Regarding Google maps: don't trust it! Or any digital map. This is why: The maps calculate the trip time based on posted speed limits. The speed limits are posted VERY much higher than you will likely drive! Last night I went to a house concert 13 miles away - it took us 35 minutes to get there, iphone said 19 minutes. The speed limit was 80 kmh in parts, my driver who is very familiar with the rod drove about 6-65kmh.

Speaking of maps - when i look at TripAdvisor for something in Dingle, it's map tells me it's 8 miles away. I live at the end of the peninsula for the Ring of Kerry - its about a 60 mike drive to Dingle! So much for maps!

Susan
American living in Waterville, the only seafront village on the Ring of Kerry