Northern Ireland

I drove from Westport to Sligo because I’m a big Yeats fan and wanted to see that area and Ben Bulben. I drove from Sligo to Londonderry and stopped at the Ulster American Folk Park on the way (worth it to me). Londonderry was a fascinating city; the wall was interesting, and the Guildhall Museum had excellent exhibits. The large murals dealing with the Troubles were quite moving to see. The river walk and Peace Bridge were beautiful. Being old enough to remember reading about the violence there, it was inspiring to see the progress and stand on the Peace Bridge. I’m glad I visited.

I spent one night in Portrush in order to be close to Giants Causeway. I would choose two nights in Londonderry versus Portrush; it was a pleasant coastal town, but the Londonderry history appealed more to me.

I visited the Giant’s Causeway and Rope Bridge, but skipped Bushmills (distilleries don’t interest me that much), and drove to Newgrange to spend the night. Trim is a bit further, but it’s not a bad drive from the Causeway area to Newgrange/Trim. The Causeway is crowded, but I enjoyed the sights there. Trim was an enjoyable place to stay, very scenic with a pleasant river walk and good restaurants. It’s close to Newgrange, which is well worth the visit.

To sum up, I spent one night in Londonderry, 1 in Portrush, 1 in Newgrange, and 1 in Trim. I’m 58, and I’m glad I made the drive to see those places. The first part of my itinerary from Dublin to Galway to Westport was similar to yours. I would have enjoyed more time everywhere I went, but I’m glad I spent a few days in Northern Ireland.

fcraymond76,
Thank you for the information! Am I correct that Westport to Londonderry is approx. 148 miles and takes 4 hours? 5 hours if you add the 25% to the drive time that everyone talks about.

Just to be clear, you drove from Westport to Londonderry (stopping off in Sligo and at the Ulster American Folk Park) and spent the night in Derry. Then I am assuming the next day you did your sightseeing in Derry and then drove to Portrush to spend the night?

You then visited the Giant Causeway & the Rope Bridge and drove all the way down to Newgrange??? I believe the drive from Portrush to Trim was going to be 3.5 hours or more if I add the 25% onto the time, but since we plan on visiting Newgrange (duh??) we should consider staying there for the night and then get into Trim the next afternoon. We are staying in Trim to be relatively close to the Dublin Airport. I believe it is an hour's drive to Dublin from Trim and our plane leaves at 3PM.

Do you have an opinion on the "adding" of the 25% to the estimated drive times on the map....at least for this route? I was already second guessing spending the night in Portrush after doing the Causeway, Bridge, etc. Not knowing how long it would take to do these sites I was concerned about trying to make it to Trim before dark which will be around 7 PM in October.

Based on your information I may do some rearranging of days!

The sights in Northern Ireland were some of our favorite of our loop tour. Dunluce castle and the Causeway especially. The Causeway was a must see. Didn't care to see the distillery. The rope bridge was fun but if you are tight on time could be skipped. We just spent an evening and one night in Derry. Saw the murals and walked on the walls. It was interesting but I didn't feel bad about the short visit. Beltany stone circle and Glenveah National Park were great.
We enjoyed Trim castle and Newgrange was a must do for me.

BTW I differ in opinion with others on this forum regarding the enchantment with Dingle. As a base for driving the wonderful Slea Head Loop it is worth one night and a half day maximum and the loop drive can be done well in another half day. It was a cute town but no more so than many others IMHO.
I only mention this in case you are feeling like you want more time in another area.
Regarding the 25% additional drive time. This applies to secondary highways and rural roads. Not necessary on the "freeway".

Carolyn,

Thank you for the information. We were planning on seeing what sights we could in Derry (Depending on what time we arrive) before settling in for the night and then spending 4 or 5 hours there the next day before heading off to Portrush. I am now thinking about "winging it" with B&B reservations for this part of the trip. I am sure we will spend the one night in Derry and if we get to Portrush early enough we might be able to take in the distillery (my husband wants to stop) before spending one night there. And then Hopefully we can get out early to the Causeway and just continue down the coast as far as we feel like going that day. If we could make it somewhere outside of Belfast that would be great. A much shorter drive to Bu na Boinne or Trim/ depending on how crowded Newgrange is, etc. perhaps we could tour it in the afternoon. So much to think about :)

Also, thank you for your candid opinion of Dingle. You are perhaps the second person who was not as excited as everyone else seems to be. I was also questioning 3 nights in Killarney but if we sightsee along the way from Kinsale to Killarney that may only leave us 2 full days there.

I’ve quoted your questions with my answers below each.

Am I correct that Westport to Londonderry is approx. 148 miles and takes 4 hours? 5 hours if you add the 25% to the drive time that everyone talks about.

Google Maps shows the distance as 146 miles and 3 ½ hours (add 45 – 60 minutes to that for about 4 ½ hours). I travelled a roundabout way, so I’m not sure of the actual driving time.

Just to be clear, you drove from Westport to Londonderry (stopping off in Sligo and at the Ulster American Folk Park) and spent the night in Derry.
Then I am assuming the next day you did your sightseeing in Derry and then drove to Portrush to spend the night?

Yes. I spent a few days in Sligo, so I only drove from there to Derry which gave me time to visit the Folk Park and arrive in Derry in time to sightsee some that evening and then spent the morning and early afternoon sightseeing in Derry before driving to Portrush where I could get an early start for the Causeway and Rope Bridge.

You then visited the Giant Causeway & the Rope Bridge and drove all the way down to Newgrange???

Yes, I spent the night in Newgrange so I could be at the Newgrange Visitor Center early the next morning. Trim is not too far away (45 minutes maybe), so it’s a good choice as well.

I believe the drive from Portrush to Trim was going to be 3.5 hours or more if I add the 25% onto the time, but since we plan on visiting Newgrange (duh??) we should consider staying there for the night and then get into Trim the next afternoon. We are staying in Trim to be relatively close to the Dublin Airport. I believe it is an hour's drive to Dublin from Trim and our plane leaves at 3PM.

Trim is a convenient drive to the Dublin Airport; probably an hour at most.

Do you have an opinion on the "adding" of the 25% to the estimated drive times on the map....at least for this route?

The 25% rule is a good one. It usually takes longer to reach destinations than the estimated driving times.

I was already second guessing spending the night in Portrush after doing the Causeway, Bridge, etc. Not knowing how long it would take to do these sites I was concerned about trying to make it to Trim before dark which will be around 7 PM in October.

There were some traffic delays on route to Newgrange, including some in the Belfast area, but I arrived just before 7:30.

fcraymond76,

Thank you for the clarification! I thought you drove from Westport to Derry, stopping in Sligo and the Folk Park, all in one day! I was not sure if I believed that was doable in one day unless you had help driving and you like really long days!

I have been playing around with a AA route planner, ViaMichelin Planner and GeoHive. They all seem to vary slightly in the mileage (I am sure the sites default to a spot in Westport and Derry for example) and also in time. Sometimes there is as much as a 30 min difference in time on the various sites but once again I think some of the sites are in real time so traffic is factor...just as it is anywhere.

I am starting to make B&Bs reservations now so I can be a bit more specific in my route planning as I make these reservations. If I may ask one more question ????

There appears to be two routes from Portrush to Trim. One follows the coast and is a bit longer, the other one seems more direct and basically on the highway. Do you recall which route you took? I am guessing the coastal one since you did mention traffic around Belfast.

Thank you so much for your help!

Kse you are putting together a well thought out itinerary. If you are really questioning 3 nights in Killarney you could spend one in Kenmare.
I don't know if you are driving the ROK and I also know that folks on this forum eschew one night stays. However we enjoyed both the ROK and Slea Head Loop. The ancient sites on ROK were great. We visited 2 ring forts and an abandoned castle in addition to the sights on the RS guide book self drive. But we like scrambling about ruins.
Ireland is amazing and you really can't go wrong. You're going to see great stuff no matter where you go.

I did take the more coastal route, and I left directly from the Rope Bridge rather than returning to Portrush.

I like giants causeway
Do some double check ing on some of the tourist attractions.... we missed the folk park because it closed Oct 1. The year we were there. Several things went to shortened hours in October