Please sign in to post.
Holiday Sale! Save 20% Storewide!

Itinerary Advice and Car Rental from Doolin

Posted by on

I’m planning a May/June trip to London & Ireland and so far this forum has been a helpful resource with my planning. I have some quick questions about my Ireland itinerary:

CURRENT PLAN:

• Dublin – 2 nights (allowing for 1 ½ days to explore Dublin)

• Galway via bus – 1 night (allowing an afternoon to wander/explore)

• Aran Island Inishmore via Rossaveal (hoping to do overnight in Inishmore, still TBD)

• Return Inishmore ferry to Doolin, Cliffs of Moher

• Rent a car at this point and spend the rest of trip (3-4 nights) in Dingle to relax and explore without an agenda. We feel that we need a car for this leg of our journey to take in Slea Head and to offer the flexibility we’re seeking on this portion of travel. We’ll depart Dingle to Shannon for our return flight, ending our trip.

QUESTIONS:

• Where can I rent a car from Doolin? Shannon appears to be my closest option via a 2ish hour bus ride.

• I’m considering hiring a private guide at Doolin (per the recommendation of another traveler on the forum) to provide a custom tour of Cliffs of Moher and then transport us to Shannon if that’s our best option for picking up a rental car (my estimate is that this would be a half day)

• With the above plan, is Inishmore to Doolin, taking in the Cliffs, renting a car and then driving to Dingle a do-able plan? It seems possible but aggressive. Doolin seems like a lovely spot for one night, but I don’t want it to be at the expense of time in Dingle.

• If I had to pick either an overnight in Insihmore or an overnight in Doolin (to break up the aggressive travel day), any advice on which would the better option?

I welcome feedback, both to my specific questions and any larger related advice, especially if I’m overlooking anything obvious! Thanks in advance!!

-Jennifer

Posted by
317 posts

Hi Jennifer,

Greetings from Ireland.

I like 98% of your plan. :)

But I honestly think that Doolin would only work if you took a private guide and he/she drove you up to the Cliffs and then down to Shannon. It would be too much in my opinion to go from Inis Mor to Doolin and the cliffs and then onto to Dingle. In fact it would be potentially dangerous as you'd be driving all hours and you'd be tired.

I would go back to Galway from Inis Mor and hire the car there, then drive down the coast and visit the Cliffs and then onto Dingle.

Doolin is a good overnight, though I feel one night is enough there. But an overnight on Inis Mor would be fantastic, its a very cool spot at night when all the hordes have gone home!

Let me know if you have any specific questions

le meas/with respect
Stephen McPhilemy
Rick Steves Guide.
Dingle & Derry

Posted by
8 posts

Stephen - Thank you! This is very helpful. You've confirmed my suspicion that car rental is only available in larger cities, and also that the aggressive day of Aran Island, Cliffs, Shannon for car rental and drive to Dingle is simply too much for one day, not only for fun but also for safety.

I had not considered returning to Galway and renting a car from there. Good idea, but I'm still leaning towards hiring a 1/2 day private guide from Doolin for Cliffs of Moher to Shannon. Doolin at least appears to get me closer to my final destination of Dingle, but the actual drive times may be comparable.

Your suggestion of backtracking to Gallway for car rental opened up a new idea of skipping the Cliffs of Moher and heading to Loop Head instead (overnight) then on to Dingle the next day.

And I appreciate your insight on Doolin vs. Inis Mor. I'll pick Aran Island. My Loop Head curve ball idea would likely mean one less night in Dingle (or skipping the overnight in Inis Mor), but it sounds as if Loop Head is just as lovely yet less crowded/touristy than Moher.

Again, thanks so much!!

This topic has been automatically closed due to a period of inactivity.