My husband and I will be visiting Ireland for the first time at the end of April this year. During our trip, we do have one long travel day planned, and I want to know if we are crazy trying to fit this schedule in one day. We are planning an early start leaving from Kilkenny and heading to Kinsale. On the way to Kinsale, we are thinking of detouring onto R668 , the "Vee" drive. Hopefully we'll be at Kinsale around 12:30 or so. Then from Kinsale, take the N71 along the coast up to Killarney, where we are staying that night. Is the Vee worth the detour? This day is the longest driving day of our trip, and we know it will take all day, with stops for lunch, etc. Any input / suggestions?
Posted by
317 posts
Greetings from Ireland.
The Vee drive is divine, but Id guess 95% of visitors to Ireland never see it. One reason to consider it.
I once drove it in my car with some American visitors and on my iPod I had Christy Moore sing the haunting old local rebel song, 'Galtee Mountain Boy' on repeat cycle for about 20 miles! Try it. (but be sure and learn the history of the song first)
The only down side is, you are really setting yourself up for a colossal drive and possible fatigue (and divorce! I once experienced the US version of this phenomenon on the road to Hana in Maui).
That being said, I generally find many Americans are well used to long colossal drives and it doesnt faze them one bit. So my advice would be go for it.
3 years ago I was a judge on the 'Best Place to holiday in Ireland' contest for the Irish Times Newspaper, we chose this hidden-gem of a region as one of our favourites.
Its a long day, but it'll be beautiful. And fair play to you for considering it!
Slainte/Good health
Stephen McPhilemy
Rick Steves Ireland tour-guide
Dingle and Derry
Posted by
OP
Boston, MA
2 posts
Stephen- thank you for your response! We will keep it in our itinerary then. We do know we're in for a long day of driving, but the scenery will be beautiful, I'm sure. We loved your suggestion about adding a bit of mood music- ha! We'll download it and give it a try.
Posted by
Bloomington, IL, USA
9363 posts
An Irish friend took us there on our first trip to Ireland years ago. Gorgeous views, and no other cars around! He pointed out glacial lakes that never get warm in the summer, and told us stories about wild drives around the hairpin turns in his youth. It was one of our favorite days. We only drove from Clonmel to Waterford that day, though.
Posted by
317 posts
Nancy, you just described a perfect off-the-beaten-path day in Ireland!