We are planning an Ireland/ Scotland trip for this July - nothing like last minute, right? Mostly self-guided is the plan.
It seems like every tour goes to Ring of Kerry and/or Dingle. Is it worth it to fight the crowds and lines of buses to do these loops? We want more laid back, looking at maybe Kinsale, Westport, or Sligo as options.
Posted by
Colorado Springs
3128 posts
The buses and the crowds are typically only issues between about 9:00 AM when they start to roll and 4:30 PM when everyone has pretty much settled in for the afternoon.
If you can manage to get out early you'll have the ROK and Slea Head Drive all to yourselves. If an early morning isn't your thing you can plan your drives for later in the afternoon ... remembering that sunset that time of year is after 10:00 PM so you'll have plenty of daylight to work with.
Kinsale wouldn't be a particularly good alternative if you want to avoid crowds - the little town fills up in a hurry with day trippers resulting in a lot of traffic congestion when trying to get out and about by car.
Posted by
Bellingham, WA
931 posts
Westport offers no break from crowds, either, in my experience.
County Sligo is a good choice, as there is a lot to see and far fewer crowds. You'd probably want to have a car to get around, but you can get to Sligo Town by train from Dublin. Another option worth looking at is flying from Glasgow to Donegal and renting a car there to drive down the coast. Ireland West (Knock) isn't far, either, and will have more direct flights from Scotland.
Enjoy your trip!