Traveling to Dublin, we have 8 days. Is Scotland doable?

What is your full itinerary for Ireland?

No, it isn’t.

Does 7 days mean 6 nights? How much of Day 1 and Day 7 involve arrival/departure, check-in/check-out, and transportation to/from?

Dublin and Ireland/Northern Ireland can easily fill seven days, and unless you’re actually focused primarily on seeing (a scant some of) Scotland, it’s doable, but I personally wouldn’t consider doing the ferry trip. And if you took the ferry to Cairnryan, where do you go, and from where (and how), at the end of the 7 days?

No, it isn't worth it. You will see very, very little of Ireland and Scotland. What's the point? I don't mean to be rude, but is this so you can say you visited Scotland? Save Scotland for another trip when you can do it right.

You could spend the whole week in Dublin, which is a fascinating city with so much history, and also take day trips from Dublin. One awesome daytrip would be to Newgrange and Knowth. These are passage tombs, and they are amazing.

Or you could split your time between Dublin and Kenmare or Killarney and see some of the beautiful Irish countryside.

Or combine Dublin with Belfast and the Causeway Coast.

Are you flying in and out of Dublin?

Scotland with a great variety of equally scenic but different areas is worth 2 weeks for just a taste. See www.visitscotland.com so you can plan your next trip. Enjoy your time in Ireland to the fullest!

A week is enough to give you a nice taste of Ireland, Dublin and one or two other places at most. You could spend much longer in Ireland and not run out of things to see and do. Scotland is also wonderful, and worth a separate trip, or part of a longer one.

The “worth it” aspect is totally up to you. Depending on what you want to experience, 7 days is a relatively short period of time for this country.

Unless there’s something very specific you want to see and you don’t expect you’ll be able to return anytime soon, I’d say no. Ireland is a wonderful country on its own with so much to see!

You can fly to say Edinburgh and back in a day from Dublin or Belfast. If you want to do it then do it. I can’t see the point of taking the ferry.

Only if you are on a tick excercise.... Don't be fooled by distances which may not look much compared with the US. There is no comparison. What might be feasible in America just isn't in the UK and Ireland. Both countries have a wide range of different experiences and are packed with attractions in quite small areas.

Taking the ferry to Cairnryan is a no brainer as it is very much 'end of the road' as far as Scotland is concerned. (And this is being said by someone who knows and loves Dumfries and Galloway).

IF (and it is a very big if) you want to tick off Scotland then turn this into a two city break, spending time in Dublin and Edinburgh.

Even so you are very much shortchanging both. With 8 dyas you hardly have time to scratch the surface of what Ireland has to offer, let alone try and see something of Scotland

Thank you all for your thoughtful responses. Based on your comments, we have to come the conclusion that we should concentrate on Ireland this time and make Scotland our next trip. We have never been to Ireland or Scotland and, yes, while it does seem doable to try and 'tick' two boxes, we are wary of trying to jam too much into too little time. At this point, we are only able to spend 7-8 days on a vacation. Friends have suggested starting in Dublin and then exploring the west coast, but Belfast and Northern Ireland sound wonderful, too. We have time to plan a great itinerary! Thank you again!

I think you made the right decision. Over 3 trips to Ireland for a total of almost 7 weeks there are places I still haven't been to. As you plan be aware that you don't need a car in Dublin, there are many day trip options from Dublin and both Galway (on the west coast) and Belfast to the north are accessible by train.

You have made the right choice! Dublin and the West Coast is a great combination. So is Dublin and Belfast with a daytrip to see the Giants Causeway. Read some guidebooks to help you decide which combination is the most interesting for you on this trip. You can't go wrong either way. All of Ireland and Northern Ireland is beautiful and interesting.

For guidebooks, I used Rough Guides and Lonely Planet.