Itinerary Help - 8 days in Ireland, 4/26-5/4

Friday, 4/26: From Dublin airport take the 4p AirCoach from terminal one arriving in Galway at 7:15p.
Saturday, 4/27: Arrange a tour now from Galway to Inishmore. I’ve done this and did not see the Cliffs of Moher from the ferry. I believe you can only see the cliffs from Doolin which is further away from Inishmore. The ferry from Doolin to Inishmore is smaller with more cancellations than from Rossaveal port that’s near Galway.
Sunday, 4/28: Pick up rental car then drive to the cliffs (1h 45m). From the Cliffs Moher drive to Killimer Ferry Terminal (1h 15m). Ferries run every hour on the hour taking 20m. The drive from Tarbert ferry to Dingle takes 2h.
Monday, 4/29: Allow 4h for the Slea Head Drive. Explore Dingle town afterwards.
Tuesday, 4/30: Drive from Dingle to Kinsale and sleep there.
Wednesday, 5/1: Is your husband flying to Germany this day? If so, what time? The drive from Kinsale to the Rock of Cashel takes 1h 30m. The drive from the rock to Dublin airport takes 2h 30m.
Friday, 5/3: Before leaving home arrange a half day tour to Brú na Bóinne.

Should we spend another night in Dingle and skip Kinsale?

You only need two nights in Dingle.

That is a pretty aggressive itinerary and you are packing in a lot.

Definitely get the bus to Galway - don’t try driving after a ten hour flight. Also would you really be up to the banquet at Dunguaire Castle that night? By then you might well be asleep on your feet.

Forget Kinsale and build in an extra night either in Dingle or Galway. I would suggest Galway as that would allow you to see something of Connemara which has some of the best scenery in Ireland. If the Inishmore Ferry runs on a Sunday I would suggest you do Connemara on the Saturday and then plan on Inishmore for the Sunday.

Galway to Dingle - this will take about five hours to drive depending on how long you have to wait for a ferry and if you have just missed one. If you have seen the cliffs from the boat then I’d almost be inclined to give then a miss from the Visitor Cerntre. The top is always busy with hordes of people. Instead, think of driving south of the Visitor Centre to Hags Head - check out this webite. Checking recent Trip Advisor reviews it sounds as if there is a private car park in a field nearer Hag’s Head. Being realistic you aren’t going to have a lot of time to do much else that day.

Slea Head Drive - there is lots to see and again this can easily take a whole day, if you want it to.

I'll echo the advice not to drive on arrival day. The Aircoach is an easy alternative to Galway. You can enjoy the scenery and/or get some sleep, plus postpone your car rental till 4/28.

And I'll echo the advice to skip Kinsale in your limited timeframe. It's a charming town but IMHO not worth all the driving. Give that time to Dublin, or spend another night in Galway and drive north into Connemara that day. You can visit the Rock of Cashel on your way between Dingle and Dublin. Dublin has enough for all the time you have, but a good carless day trip would be a Mary Gibbons tour to Newgrange (aka Bru Na Boyne).

I'll add my vote to the don't rent a car after a 10hour trans-Atlantic flight and try to drive on the wrong side of the road. I'll also add that you are unlikely to stay awake sufficiently to enjoy the Dunguaire Castle dinner. We were taken out to Johnnie Fox's Dublin dinner show the night we arrived for a business trip. I barely kept my forehead out of my food and fell asleep in the car on the way back. Didn't say goodnight to our host. Bad manners me. Other car-less day trips from Dublin include tours to Kilkenny, Glendalough and Powerscourt.

Thank you so much, all, for your helpful and speedy responses! Much appreciated! :-)

the same route at the same time（4/27-5/4）
Day 1- Land in Dublin at 07:00 AM and take the bus to Galway / stay in Galway
Day 2- One day tour around Aran Island or driving tour around Connemara / stay in Galway
Day 3- Pick up the rental car, drive to Dingle via Burren, Cliffs of Moore walk , Killimer Ferry Terminal, Tarbert / stay Dingle
Day 4 - Slea Head Drive / stay Dingle
Day 5- Adare, drive to Kilkenny / stay Kilkenny
Day 6- Glendalough, drive to Dublin and drop the rental car /stay Dublin
Day 7- One day tour around Dublin / stay Dublin
Day 8- Leave at 12:00 PM

We are a couple, i hesitate about the self-driving of Connemara may be more worthwhile than 1-day tour of Aran Island.

Hi! Another question:

"From Dublin airport take the 4p AirCoach from terminal one arriving in Galway at 7:15p."
Is it necessary or recommended to try to reserve spots on this? Or can we count on having seats on the bus if we just show up?
Thanks again!

It looks like there are other lines besides Aircoach that operate out of Dublin airport. I suggest waiting until you arrive. There may be a bus departing sooner than 4p: https://www.dublinairport.com/to-from-the-airport/by-bus/all-ireland-bus-routes.

Great info; thank you!

Kinsale is a pain in the neck to get to, but I am glad I went and even more glad I went further down to the Old Head. Even though I didn't play golf at the Old Head course, the scenery was incredible and well worth the drive. And I love the little village of Kinsale, overrun with tourists as it is. I got there by driving down from Limerick, which is where we stayed. Also took in Cork and Cobh on the way back.

Thank you!