our first trip to ireland by car

If you want to take that much time you can but I would consolidate a bit. Now that I am looking at it, not sure of where you are staying over night, I may have misinterpreted. How long is your trip?

Dublin 2-3 nights
Kilkenny - 1 night
Kinsale - 2 nights (seeing the blarney stone on the way)
Dingle - 2 or 3 nights
Galway 3 nights

Belfast is a long way up, is there something you want see there? If you going to Belfast city, the train might work from Dublin (don't get the car until you leave Dublin). I might leave this to a later trip.

Thanks Mary! We have a couple of weeks to play with give or take. Would you skip Belfast? Anything special you would recommend in some of these places we want to visit and is the routing ok?

The thing I love about Ireland are the people. Be sure to take time to go into a pub sit at the bar and chat with people. That is what I loved about Dingle, the locals were sitting with you. Sometimes a pub with only a few people can be just as fun as a packed pub.

I might be a bit biased but I have found all of ireland is beautiful. If you have time to wander, stop in a small town that isn’t hitting everyone’s radar. We were in Kinsale last year and it was overrun with tourists, great food and beautiful town. We were in Dunmore East for a wedding a few days before that, mostly locals and Irish on vacation. I still do the tourist stuff, just will divert an afternoon to somewhere a local has suggested or I have stumbled into. Another area I like is Belmullet, Mayo.

I am not saying don’t go to Belfast, just if you were limited on time, it is a days journey up from Galway. Also would not rent or take the car into Dublin. Not sure about Belfast. Rent it when you are leaving.

Double any driving times you pull up. Roads are much better but it takes time to get from one place to another. It isn’t like driving here. Also, depending on the time of year, it will get dark at 4 or 11pm. This will effect how long you can drive.

Have fun!

Would recommend some other spots and question some driving times. Near doubling of driving times is correct....So a day you have listed Galway to Dublin to Belfast is going to be an insanely rough car day....Not to mention driving in Dublin or Belfast is not recommended at all.

Second the advice of slowing the pace and enjoying smaller Ireland. Killarney for example is a very touristy clogged city.......traffic, McDonald's and spots designed to grab your wallet predominate. Instead consider Kenmare....plenty big enough with restaurants and pubs but more of a small town feel.....or actual small towns like Sneem, Waterville or Portmagee which are all close to amazing scenery and historic sights on the Ring of Kerry and Skellig Ring.

Agree with Rick Steves....skip the Blarney Stone. It's a lot of time for something that to be kind most Irish folks roll their eyes at. There is so much else to see that involves real history and beauty. Frankly would also skip Cork city altogether and enjoy parts of the county and the beautiful Kinsale area in more depth.

In Wicklow the Goal is an interesting brief stop....though the displays are pretty odd with the mannequins but the drive through the Mountains and stopping at Glendalough is insanely beautiful....and worth every effort to do.

Dingle, Slea Head and the Blaskets are great. The Gallus Oratory and the wonderful town of Balkyferriter are worth stops too

Overall would STRONGLY urge to reconsider things in light of real driving times. Ireland is best seen by having the time to linger, explore an area and interact........not in driving their fun but challenging roads.
Trying to see all the "sights", especially the main tourist traps or even more legitimate main sights is seriously counter productive. Less is FAR more in Ireland. Avoid one night stays like the plague......use a few strategic spots as bases for exploration, save time, exponentially increase your enjoyment and leave time for interacting with the people of Ireland...the people and the little moments make a trip far more than being inside a car and trying to hit everything. You'll have plenty of time to see a ton of wonderful, magical spots. Dublin, Wicklow/Glendalough, Kinsale, the ROK, Dingle, a day trip to the Arans are all worth the effort....Just don't push too hard. Scaling back the pace scales up the enjoyment many fold.

Hope you have a great trip !!!!! Ireland is fantastic.

Thank you so much for all the positive feedback. We dislike driving so this is a real plus for us. We have the time so we will make use of the info you have provided! I'll be back if I have any further questions!!! So happy for this Forum!

I plot the places I want to visit on a map and when they are all plotted, that should give you a good indication of which route to take. Try to avoid backtracking. I’ll then mileage the distance between places, how long I want to drive each day, and take into consideration the type roads (country or interstate) between the places. That gives me an idea of which towns to stay at. There is no “best” route.