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Week in Ireland before going to London

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Hello,
I would love to hear feedback on some ideas we have for Ireland. My husband and I have traveled a good amount in England & Wales. I've been to Dublin & Cork/Blarney for a day each from a cruise. I wasn't crazy about Dublin and we will be in London later in the trip so really want to get outside the city. Husband never been to Ireland at all.
We enjoy exploring small towns - getting out of touristy areas, boutique shops, pubs/tearooms, searching for seaglass on coastlines, botanical gardens, thrift/antique stores. We enjoy live music, churches, some history. More interested in nature vs ruins. Husband gets seasick easily so no boats. We have owned Border Collies so would enjoy seeing them work.
We are going to have about a week before a long weekend in London. So at end of week we need to fly to London. I assumed from Dublin but could be from Shannon I guess.
We are going in mid June, arriving DUB and renting a car (comfortable driving, done it a lot in England)
Drive straight to Killarney/Kenmare/Dingle area. After reading I think we would enjoy doing the Dingle Peninsula vs Ring of Kerry if we have to chose. Not sure which town we should base ourselves for 3 nights?
Then drive up towards Galway, take in Cliffs of Moher, Doolin, Galway for 3 nights.
Maybe stay in Limerick or Dublin for a night before flight to London depending on which airport/flight makes most sense/least $$?

Thanks for any feedback or suggestions! I always get great advice on these forums!

Posted by
3524 posts

Day one - you need to decide how many nights you’ll sleep in Ireland. Furthermore, renting a car on arrival day is not a good idea after a night of no sleep. Instead, take a direct Citylink bus from the Dublin airport to Galway: https://www.dublinairport.com/to-from-the-airport/by-bus/all-ireland-bus-routes. Sleep in Galway your first night there.
Day two - rent a car and drive to the Cliffs of Moher. You’ll pass Doolin that’s a 15-minute drive from the cliffs. Sleep in Doolin for a good pub scene experience.
Day three - drive from Doolin to Dingle stopping at http://westkerrysheepdogdemonstrations.ie/ along the way. Dingle is another quaint town with boutique shopping and offers a great pub scene. Just walk around until you hear music. Sleep in Dingle for two to three nights.
Day four - on your full day in Dingle drive the Slea Head loop. Good stops are Coumeenoole Beach, Beehive Hut (Tóchar Hut Maothaithe), Dingle Sheepdog Demonstrations: https://dinglesheepdogs.com/ and Dunbeg Fort. Sleep in Dingle.
Note: If you’re driving the Dingle Peninsula, you may want to skip going to Killarney and Kenmare which are launching pads for the Ring of Kerry and fly from Kerry to London. I’ve seen both the Dingle Peninsula and the Ring of Kerry and prefer the peninsula over the ring. The Dingle Peninsula Slea Head loop drive takes half as long and the scenery is more rugged with its narrow roads offering in your face views of the Atlantic coast. The Ring of Kerry is a long drive showing the same scenery over-and-over again that got boring. You’ll be glad when the drive has ended.
Day five – drive from Dingle to the Kissane Sheep Farm: https://www.kissanesheepfarm.com/ then to Kenmare and sleep in Kenmare. Sleep in Kenmare for two nights.
Day six – drive to Killarney for the day.
Day seven – fly from Kerry to London.

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