My brain hurts..Itinerary for June

I would for sure make my way to the West coast and add Dingle and Galway to your itinerary. There are some great stops along the way. We only spent one night in Kilkenny and managed to see everything that we wanted to in the area. You could do the Rock of Cashel while in the area or on your way out of Kilkenny.

Bonus question #1: On a nice clear day ( which we were lucky to get) the Cliffs are absolutely amazing and absolutely worth the drive. On a foggy day, you will not see a thing.

Bonus question #2: one thing you should not miss is slowing down and spending some time with the locals in the pub/talking to the merchants/ the B&B owners etc Ireland was beautiful and we did some very neat things during our 14 days there last summer but we all agreed ( my husband, myself and our two kids aged 11 and 8 at the time) that the Irish were the highlight of our trip!

In terms of other highlights for us:
- Kilmainham Gaol in Dublin
- Dunmore caves outside Kilkenny
- We loved the grounds at Blarney Castle
- Biking in Killarney National park
- driving the Ring of Kerry and stopping in all the little villages along the way
- sheep herding demonstration at Kissane farms around Killarney
- Dingle
-Cliffs of Moher
- Falconry School at Ashford Castle
- Kylemore Abbey

Bonus questions please.
Cliffs of Moher- similar to coastal drives on the US West Coast. We were there in good weather, but for us it wasn't that memorable. You live amidst spectacular geography so will not regret missing this. We would rate US coastal drives ahead of this, and the cliffs of Helgoland in Germany and the Suomenlinna Fortress in Helsinki as equally unforgettable. Cliffs of Moher, not so much.
We flew out of Shannon and spent our last two nights in Bunratty at the Castle Hotel. We really loved the Folk Park and castle next door. Kind of like a small Colonial Williamsburg. https://www.shannonheritage.com/BunrattyCastleAndFolkPark/
Disclaimer: We were there on a Monday with NO crowds and beautiful weather. We will never forget this experience. Bunratty is less than 10 miles from the Shannon airport so it was easy, fast and cheap for the hotel to arrange a cab to the airport.
Finally. We may well be the only people on this forum who found Dingle nothing more than a " tourist trap". You see the giant buses parked, the throngs of tourists walking along and then ask yourself " How authentic could all this pub culture really be?" I am sure that 10 years ago this might have been true, but I really don't believe that it is currently true. It seems very contrived, but is worth one night just to support the talented musicians. We stayed at the Castlewood House and it was exceptional.

Feel free to PM me if your have more questions. We were there April 2017 so it is still fresh in memory. :)

Re: your bonus question, I agree and disagree with TravelingMom. Seeing the the Cliffs of Moher was not a WOW moment for us either. Not that they aren't worth seeing you understand, and many people consider them to be one of the iconic sights in Ireland, but we found the Cliffs of Kerry to be equally spectacular and much less crowded. And honestly, the views are not dissimilar to what you find on the central Oregon coast. Dingle, on the other hand, was one of our favorite spots. The Slea Head drive, on a clear day, is beautiful and there are a number of interesting places to stop along the way (beehive huts, famine cottages, Gallarus Oratory, Blasket Center). However we were there in mid-September, after the peak part of the season, and did not experience the tour bus issues. As for something not to miss, I'd recommend New Grange/Knowth, archaeological sites older than the Pyramids. It would be an easy day trip from Dublin. We also really enjoyed our day on Inishmore (the largest of the Aran Islands), which can be done as a day trip from Galway.

We were in Dingle in July and did not have the tour bus issue at all either. I seem to remember Travelingmom being part of a tour when in Ireland... I think that to some extent that type of a trip versus a self driving vacation where you can go where you want , when you want, changes many things.

The Cliffs of Kerry were gorgeous as well. For me though the Cliffs of Moher are such a part of Ireland.... I know that there are some great scenery like that here in North America but I found them quite different from what I have seen here. To each their own though :)

Thanks all for the replies! I think based on the replies so far, the cliffs will be put on list as something to see if we have time when we are in the area. Just like when I am down in San Fran or Cupertino-If I have the time I will always run out and do at least some of drive along the coast to take in the absolute beauty!