Hi, Our family of four is traveling to Ireland with friends - a family of three - so there will be seven of us. We'll be in Dublin several days then are planning to do a road trip probably stopping over in Kilkenny, Dingle, and Sligo. We wanted to rent a van so we could share driving and be together but several people have told us a van will be too difficult and even dangerous to maneuver on many of the roads. Two of our drivers are very experienced driving larger vans and even buses but we are wondering if we should consider renting two small cars instead. Would love some input. Thank you!
Posted by
Lynnwood, Washington
8876 posts
I would rent two smaller cars. Here is my reasoning. The roads are narrow and a smaller car works best. Besides that, two cars allows for the group to split up if there are differing interests among the party. For example, One groups really wants to go to place A and another group has their heart set on place B. Both groups can have their first choices!
Posted by
914 posts
But are they experienced driving on the "wrong" side of the very narrow roads in a large van/bus? I would agree that two small cars gives you more flexibility and everyone can rotate and mix it up. But, I've only been on the roads in Ireland in a Rick Steves' bus with a professional driver, and of course we certainly were on the same narrow roads everyone else was on, so a van is possible.
Posted by
Seattle, WA, USA ☔️
6790 posts
You do not want a car (of any size) in Dublin - not because the roads are tiny, it's just an expensive headache in a big city.
On the major motorways, vans won't be a problem.
Once you get out into the far southwest (eg Dingle) you will be on roads that at first appear to be a single lane - then you'll see a tour bus or a truck or a tractor coming at you in the opposite direction, and you'll realize that 1) yes, this is a two-way highway, and 2) your van takes up more than the space in one lane.
Driving on these impossibly narrow two-way roads is stressful, even for someone with lots of driving experience. Having driven them in a tiny economy car, I'd never want to be in a big car on those roads, as a passenger or a driver (and I've driven all over the world on some pretty crazy roads). I'd vote for two (actually, probably three...?) small cars. With seven people and luggage, you're going to need a few of them.
Or skip the far west and it's impossibly narrow roads.
Posted by
1583 posts
I think parking the van will be the most difficult part of a larger vehicle. Especially in Dingle. Even if your accommodations have parking the lot will be tight. We had a tough time with a very small car parking in Dingle.
Posted by
Mid-Atlantic area
7146 posts
You’d be fine on most roads, but there are a number of single track/lane 2-way roads.
On our trip years ago I was driving on one such road to see an old circle fort when a tour bus came over the hill. It was a tight squeeze but I made it. We had a compact or intermediate sized car on that trip.