Traveling in Ireland without car

If you stay in Doolin, the cost would be very low to take a taxi to the Cliffs and back, and ditto for dining at one of the local pubs.

For a ride from Shannon or Doolin, to spend the day seeing the Dingle area, my GUESS it is might be around E400 (give or take nowadays.....I really do not know current pricing) for a full day; much less for short regular taxi runs. So, with four of you, that really would not be that terribly expensive to enjoy seeing the lovely scenery at your own pace.

Tony McGann with Doolin Taxi is someone we, and then subsequently friends of our, hired. He was a very good driver, acted as a bit of a tour guide, had a very large, comfortable vehicle and gave us a very full days of touring. He also provided transport for us from the Shannon area to our first overnight in Kinsale detouring so we could see Adare and the Rock of Cashel, then the next morning he took us thru the Dingle area (beautiful), Kenmare, etc. for a full day, to over two-night overnight, then two days later picked us up and took us to Doolin, then the final day he took us thru the Connemera region on to our overnight in Cong. Then a cousin picked us up two days later for the rest of our journey.
Everyone in the Doolin area knows Tony!

Here is Tony's contact info. If you do not hear from him right away, it could be because he might still be on his Florida vacation. When Tony was younger, he used to run the famous McGann's Pub in Doolin. I am not sure which phone number is correct for him (if either), but the email is correct.

Tony McGann
(00353)(0)65-7074790
(00353)(0)87-2422950
tonyscabdoolin@eircom.net

Hi Linda,

I can't answer all of your questions, but here's what I know:

My sister and I visited Ireland last year without a car. It's a bit daunting, but can be done. As the previous poster said, private car would be around E400/day, but split between the four of you, it might be worth it for the convenience and personalized service. We did that for part of our trip, and it worked well. Actually, we did it for two days, which gave us a bit of a multi-day discount. I think it was E600 for the two days. Picked up in Kilkenny, to Rock of Cashel, Cahir, Cobh, Kinsale, Killarney National Park (Day 1), and then KNP to Dingle via the Kerry Peninsula and part of the Dingle Peninsula (Day 2).

We also took the bus, from Dingle to Ennis (past Shannon). It's definitely a long ride, and we changed busses twice (in Tralee and in Limerick). It took up most of our day, but on the plus side, (1) it was very inexpensive, (2) we saw things we wouldn't have otherwise, such as the center of Limerick, and (3) we chatted with (and eavesdropped on) local people, who gave us an interesting glimpse into everyday life in Ireland. To be honest, it was one of my favorite days of our whole trip. The joy was in the journey. But you have to be outgoing enough to engage in conversation. That might be harder to do with 4 of you, who have each other to talk to.

Maybe talk it over with the members of your group. Either bus or private driver (or a combination of both) will make for an interesting and worthwhile experience.

Doolin is not far from Shannon, so you should be able to get a taxi for maybe E40? And most lodging in Doolin is quite close to the docks. You could probably walk if you don't have too much luggage. Otherwise, you could easily call for a taxi for the short ride.

Have fun!

Thanks to you for the very good information. We have a lot to discuss! We will definitely be visiting with the locals as much as possible. That is always the favorite part of our trips also. We like hearing about neighborhood places to eat/drink. And we try to stay in small family run places.

For getting around Doolin and getting to the Cliffs, in addition to walking, there is a local shuttlebus in the summer that makes about a half dozen stops all around Doolin, the Cliffs visitor center, and the Hags Head end (or beginning) of the cliff walk. Bus Eireann also makes several stops in Doolin. The cliff walk is beautiful, about 14 km long, with the crowds limited to the area immediately around the visitor center. You can easily walk from either end to the visitor center, which is around midway, and take a bus back to town, .

Thanks for the information. Our concern isn't getting around Doolin and The Cliffs. Our real concern is flying into Shannon or Dublin and then getting to Dingle and then on to Doolin without taking up too much time
Thanks in advance for suggestions.