Traveling in Ireland

You don’t have to stay in Dublin to do this. There are many guided day trips you can do from Dublin, but also from Galway, and Killarney and some other places. You don’t want to spend too much of your time on a train trying to get somewhere so I would suggest picking two or three places to base yourself in for a few nights each and make use of the guided day tours from each. You will see a lot more this way.

So, Anita, you are saying take a train to two or three places and then guided tours from there?

Just returned. Picked up rental car at airport after a stay in Dublin. Hertz through AutoEurope. Not sure if I checked any boxes about age in arranging the rental, but I turned 73 while there. No questions; no hassles; the lady at the Hertz desk inspected my US license, no issues. Driving was a hoot; adjusting to the left side driving didn't take long; on-coming vehicles on the narrow roads were always courteous in slowing down or, where necessary, backing up. (Only discovered near the end that the button for side-view mirror adjustment could also fold it flat for those close encounters.) Finally, when passing by the big buses on the Ring/Kerry, we discovered that keeping an eye on the bus driver is important...they often were giving us helpful hand signals to approach, pull-over, etc. We would heartily recommend driving for the flexibility, autonomy, and sheer fun of it. Bon voyage!

So, Anita, you are saying take a train to two or three places and then guided tours from there?

Absolutely, I'm Irish myself and that is how I do it. Pick out a couple of locations, say Galway, Cork, etc. and check out the local tours on offer from there.

Yes, it’s what I did because I was travelling alone, and on a tight budget. The three main places would be Dublin, Galway, and Killarney. Spend you first few days in Dublin, see the city, do a couple of guided day trips, may Newgrange and Glendalough. Take the train to Killarney where you can do day trips to Dingle Peninsula, Ring of Kerry, Gap of Dunloe and others. Then take the train to Galway where you can do trips to the Cliffs of Moher, Burren, Connemara and Aran Islands. I would break up the train trip from Killarney with a side trip to Kinsale (bus from Cork), or maybe a stop in Kilkenny. It will all depend on how much time you have, but if you have three weeks I would finish with a few days in Belfast where you could do a trip up to the Giants Causeway. I flew into Dublin and out of Belfast to avoid backtracking. Just google day tours from each of these cities and see what appeals to you.

Thank you!

One other question (I will have to buy a book): You've mentioned Cork, Galway, Kilkarney and day tours from there. Are these towns in themselves good bases with things to see or only of value if you take the tours?

I cannot answer for Cork as it was not recommended to me as a place to use as a base. I passed through it on my way to Kinsale and back and it appeared to be a working town. You will find people on here that will tell you to avoid Killarney as they find it too touristy, but I quite enjoyed it. I stayed not far from the train station and found the area a nice place to walk (accidentally found the cathedral). Yes, there are a lot of tourist shops, but there are also a lot of pubs with live music and other things going on. Just wandering in and out of the shops can be fun as you can interact with the locals. I also enjoyed Galway and heard some of the best live music of my trip there at the Crane pub. Again, I stayed not far from the train station and wandered the town and did a bit of shopping (I found the Galway area to have the best prices on some items I was looking for). Again, I accidentally found the cathedral as I was wandering along the river. So, although it might be nice to stay in smaller towns, if you aren't going to have a car then your best option is to stay in places that are convenient to public transit and day tours.