Practical advice for poor weather in southwest while sightseeing

Make sure that coat is fully waterproof and has an attached hood, as umbrellas are useless if the wind picks up. I'd also take rain pants, warm layering clothing, and plenty of socks. I live in the Pacific Northwest so my advice is suit up and get outside - the rain is an Irish blessing from the sky.

Are your coat and boots waterproof? If not, I'd get waterproof ones. Does your coat have a hood? Umbrellas are useless in the wind if the rain is sideways. Bring a ball cap to wear under the hood so the hood doesn't slide down over your eyes. Do you have rain pants? I've never needed them in Ireland but I'm from the PNW. Alternatively, wear quick dry pants. Avoid jeans and other mostly cotton clothes. They will make you colder when wet.

I see I overlapped with CL. We Pacific Northwesterners think alike.

Definitely bring rain pants as mentioned above. These are the ones I have:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08W1MV593?ref_=ppx_hzsearch_conn_dt_b_fed_asin_title_1&th=1&psc=1

I lucked out and didn’t need them for Ireland, but I needed to use them one day in England. They worked great! I also use an umbrella for when it’s really pouring.

My coat and boots are waterproof, but I hadn't thought about rain pants! Thanks for that suggestion and for the link, very helpful.

The Blaskett Center near Dunquin on Dingle Peninsula is brand new and very detailed. Reasonable alternative to actually getting over to Blaskett.

Of course, check the local pubs for afternoon trad sessions to stay out of the rain.

Of course the best suggestion if there isn't a session is to dress for the weather and carry on - stiff upper lip and all that :-)

We only visit Ireland in May and have had a total of one day of rain in 84 visit-days. Similar results not guaranteed.

Poor weather?

Visit Tralee Siamsa Tire and Kerry County Museum

Visit Skelligs Experience Center on Valentia Island

Visit Crag Cave near Village of Castleisland

Visit Muckross House and Gardens near Killarney

Visit Derrynane House near Caherdaniel

Visit RossCastle near Killarney and do a Watercoach Trip on Lough Leane from there

and much more to see and do along the Ring of Kerry in "Poor" weather

I think all of the advice on waterproof and rain pants is right on.

That said, I don’t know if it is quite as dire as you might think. I haven’t traced your story back to its origin; but, if you’ve not been to Ireland, the weather reports can be misleading. It rains practically everyday in Ireland. Oftentimes, the rain is so sporadic and light that you don’t even notice.

Three bits of wisdom:

If the Irish weatherman says it will be dry; that means it will only rain three times that day.

There is no such thing as bad weather; only inadequate clothing.

A little rain never hurt a beautiful flower.

I apologize if I missed the mark with this post. Safe travels.

We were in Ireland for a month 2 years ago in the fall when it was cold, wet and windy almost every day. We used our hooded rain jackets with a fleece jacket underneath, gloves, waterproof walking shoes but no rain pants just quick drying ones. We didn’t go to the National Park but we did have a nice tour of the Ring of Kerry that we booked from Dingle. It was so nice for all of us to be able to enjoy the history and incredible scenery while being driven around in a 12 passenger van by a local.

So far this year has been the wettest on record in Ireland and not much better in the UK.
We have been hit by storm after storm and while the weather is improving it is likely to remain pretty wet.
With all that water mud is also likely to be a problem for the foreseeable so you will need to be able to easily clean your boots, and maybe trousers bottoms.

Personally I always take replacement socks either me if I am likely to get really wet feet. Warm and dry feet can make all the difference.

We were lucky to have only two days of torrential rain (and a few days of periodic light rain) on our Ireland trip last May. We had waterproof shoes, pants, jackets plus baseball caps to wear under our hoods (thanks to advice on this forum!) and merino wool to wear under the rain jackets. We had a blast walking the cliff tops at Slea Head in the rain, with the bonus of no crowds! Stayed warm and dry and had an adventure, to boot!

However, beware of the rain/fog/low cloud combo. Although we stayed dry on our bus tour of the Ring of Kerry, we couldn’t see a thing.

In Killarney National Park you can enjoy Muckross House and Farms in wet weather. Plenty to see and do there. The hike to Torc Waterfall is short and could be done in the rain with appropriate clothing.