Public transportation in Ireland

The short answer is yes. Getting there by train/bus is fairly straightforward. Touring the Ring of Kerry is possible to do by public transport, but it's not easy. There are lots of tour options, from a private, custom tour to a big bus and everything in between. Same is true for touring the Dingle Peninsula.

I think it is best to say that, Yes, you can get to a town, but most of the sights are not in town. You might search for how to get to a locale, then search for local tours or drivers to do the sights.

Most likely, it will not be train, more likely bus, and not very frequent, so planning is key, and slower travel would be the strategy. Figure 3-4 nights someplace, not 1 to 2.

If you're able to fly into Shannon instead of Dublin, you'll save a lot of time getting to where you want to go.

Hi kennycat,
You can access by public bus. However, if you want to get out an explore at any point it may be more difficult. Take a look at the public bus schedules to see how often they run around these areas for the season you will want to explore. In my opinion, a better idea would be to join a group day tour of these areas or hiring your own guide. That way you can be assured of some stops along the way and will know your schedule. Enjoy your trip!

I was nervous about it to be sure, but my husband did fine. If you have people with you, I’d go for it. We found traffic very light. Okay he got on the wrong side once, but it was because there was absolutely no other cars on the road in a small town we had stopped in for lunch.

We’ve done Ireland both by RS tour and on our own. This is one place that if you’re nervous about driving on these roads I would suggest doing a tour.

Making the jump and driving your own car lets you see twice as much as using public transport. Steering from the righthand seat is a constant reminder that something is different. Having a passenger to help in complicated intersections, etc. also helps. Having a good voice navigator, either a human or electronic is important. Avoid big city driving until you've grown comfortable (public transit is pretty good in cities).

Our on first adventure in the British Isles, I had zero troubles until I got home. The night after getting home I drove a firetruck for most of the night on the wrong side of our country roads. Luckily, the flashing red lights alerted warned everyone and traffic was nonexistent.

Yes! We did this. We took public transportation to Dingle and then took a tour around the peninsula. It was a small van, an 8-seater I think and we had a wonderful driver/guide. For Ring of Kerry, we planned to take public transportation to Kenmare and then take a boat tour of Kenmare Bay rather than a driving tour but I'm sure you could find one.

You can get to Dingle by public transit, but it will take longer than you think. If you have limited time for your trip, you may not want to spend a lot of time waiting on public transit. There is always the possibility that a bus will be late, and you will miss a connection. My solution, after much research, was to stay in Killarney and take guided day trips from there. By doing this I avoided spending most of a day on public transit getting to Dingle then still having to find a way to see the sights I wanted to see. Then getting from Dingle to the next location I wanted to get to. Staying in Killarney really simplified everything. There are lots of options for day tours, and the Killarney area has lots to see, also.

If you don't feel you can drive safely, then don't drive. It's an understatement to say you won't enjoy driving the Ring of Kerry and you won't see the scenery, which is the point. The Ring of Kerry and Dingle are far from Dublin, but they are not remote. They are among the most-visited places in Ireland, and the infrastructure exists to visit them without a car. The easiest way to do so is to stay in Killarney, as suggested by another commenter. Killarney can be reached by bus directly from the airport or by train from the city center of Dublin.

I agree with Killarney. We took the bus from the airport to Killarney, very easy. Stayed at McSweeney Arms Hotel, very nice. Ate Indian food at Bombay Palace. Next day we took a Paddywagon tour of the Ring of Kerry, it left from the Killarney tourist office nearby. Nice tour. We did reserve the tour in advance.

We have the same issues .... We are two 75 year olds and not traveling by car. Not fond of multiple day tours long winded guides etc.... If experienced folks have more detailed info on small group Day Tours in various areas like Dingle, Galway, Westport or other areas greatly appreciated any detailed info .