LoganAir canceled Inverness to Dublin flights in 2024, looking for options

Remember, it's still over six months out so schedules might change as per timings or even for new flights. Train times are also not guaranteed this far out.

This is a tough one as Dingle does not have many public tranport options to there.

Here's what I found for May 24:

Scotrail (Train) from Inverness direct to Aberdeen Airport (just over two hours with no changes.) The schedule for May is not out yet but they do have early morning trains that will get you to Aberdeen Airport (Dyce) with a two hour window.

Loganair flight from Aberdeen to Dublin (9:45 AM to 11:25 AM)

Ryanair flight from Dublin to Kerry (1:15 pm-2:10 PM) (This is a short window but your only choice). If you miss this, it's a combo train/bus to Dingle from Dublin.)

Bus to Dingle (2.5 hours) from Kerry Airport

Kerry is actually a closer airport to Dingle than Shannon or Cork.

I have taken many Loganair flights and have another scheduled next month. They are usually reliable but more than likely they were losing monty on the INV-DUB route. Inverness is a very small airport.

Personally, I would wait and not buy tickets now. Too many variables this far out.

If I was taking that ABZ to DUB flight there is no way I would take that early train- I would relocate to a hotel at ABZ the previous night.

One train gets you to Dyce in time- at 0456, arriving at 0705- the next one arrives an hour later. If the 0456 was cancelled on the day or ran late then you are snookered.

But also, very importantly, Dyce station is no longer the station for Aberdeen Airport. It was, back in the day, but it is on the opposite side of the airfield, a long way round by road (not at all walkable) and the erstwhile bus shuttle stopped a number of years back. No taxis there. Been there, tried that.

Now the bus shuttle (#727) runs from Aberdeen (Union Square) Bus Station- which is attached to Aberdeen Railway Station. So you stay on the train to Aberdeen then catch the shuttle at 0730 (if on time)- arrives at the airport at 0813. Runs every 15 minutes, At that time of the morning the bus will struggle to keep time due to traffic and passenger loads.

While ABZ is a small airport, and I strongly suspect 1 1/2 hours is ample time to get through on a CTA (effectively domestic) flight, it leaves zero room for error.

I've been there this summer, so this is up to date information. The last shuttle runs at 2335, and the first at 0300 so going the previous night is easy.

The other thing I would consider is taking an evening train to Edinburgh on 23 May, then the Ryanair direct flight to Shannon on 24 May at 1345, arrive 1500. Then bus via Limerick- checked the bus timetables, it works

Or an early flight to DUB on 24 May, then train from Dublin Heuston to Tralee, then bus.

Remember, it's still a 5+ hour bus ride from Shannon Airport to Dingle. So if you follow the flight into Shannon, you'll arrive in Dingle very late into the evening.

I would still wait. The train and bus schedules are not out for May in either the UK or Ireland so you really don't know for sure what your connections will be.

And don't forget that if you are traveling on a US passport, you will have to go through immigration and customs in Ireland. It is not a domestic flight for non-British or non-Irish subjects. (I have done this numerous times.) However, from Ireland to the UK it's like a domestic flight.

Are you heading back home after Dublin? Are you traveling from the Dublin airport direct or do you have a connection in Europe? This is important as you might want to rearrange your schedule in Ireland.

The train and bus schedules are not out for May in either the UK or Ireland

For Scotland the train schedules ARE issued until 1 June- they are on the Scotrail Journey Planner with PDF's to follow in the next few weeks on the Scotrail website.
For INV-ABZ some very minor retimings by one or two minutes, but that's all.

The same is true for Irish Rail- on the journey planner- PDF's coming.

The bus schedules in Ireland were reissued on 10 September 2023 'until further notice [ie- no fixed periodicity or fixed date next to change]- the September changes were minor, and generally bus schedules in Ireland are being continually enhanced.

Let's look at this another way....

Schedules change. The more you rely on multiple legs of a journey, the more possibility of delays and disasters.

How much of your trip to Scotland and Ireland is written in stone? In other words, what parts are non-refundable, non-changeable?

How did you plan to get around the Dingle Peninsula without a car? Tour? Guide?

Here's an idea.....what if you changed your schedule. Fly to Dublin on May 24 and spend the weekend. On Monday, take a Rabbies tour to Dingle and points in between. It would take care of your transportation needs. The tour returns Wednesday evening. (29th). You would then get another day in Dublin.

Rabbies is a highly rated tour company on the forum and I have traveled with them. You get to choose your hotels if you wish.

Let's be realistic.....travel between Inverness and Dingle in one day is not easy. And then you have the problem of getting around the Dingle area.

Now, one thing to keep an eye on. May 24 is the Friday of a Bank Holiday weekend in Scotland. (Equivalent to our Memorial Day Weekend.) So, flights might be busy. It's not a holiday in Ireland.

Thank you for your replies. Yes Frank, we are flying home to the US from Dublin on May 31. That is the one thing that would be too expensive to change. We will rethink our Ireland plans. I looked and the Rabbie's Dingle tour from Dublin, it just leaves on Mondays. My husband is not fond of tours. We have successfully planned 4 other European trips with on our own, with out a tour. Ireland and Scotland are more challenging to plan. It looks like many on this forum and Scotland have really liked the Rabbie's tours. We might just need to split our time in Dublin.

Do you do FB? I'd follow this FB page for a few weeks while you decide what to book. Admittedly it is for Loganair delays to Orkney and Shetland but there are often folks who post about other routes. There are also some complainers who will gripe about everything, lol.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/1952704408270771

I did 3 Loganair flights in August (none the Inverness->Dublin route) and they were all on time but reading that page also made me realize if I do another trip to the Islands I'll want to allow myself some flex time.

I'd probably change locations and book the RyanAir flight - but be sure you know their rules for carry on, etc.

Rabbies really is different. It's a maximum of 16 people. The tours I've been on give plenty of free time. It will also alleviate the issue of transportation to many of these destinations that are difficult without a rental car.

I prefer to travel alone or take at most a one da y tour. But I've taken multi day tours in the past when public transport was difficult.