Best time to visit Ireland?

Ireland rarely gets really hot, but it's probably at its most comfortable in July and August. I went to Northern Ireland in late May of 2008 and it was in the 40's and low 50s and very chilly, even more so with the rain and winds. When I went the south and west of Ireland this past mid-June the temps were in the 50's and low 60's, but the weather was very unpredictable. Some days it was very cold, rainy, and miserable, and other days it was pleasantly warm and comfortable. It's difficult to predict Irish weather, but I'd say that it's still very chilly and wet in the spring. On the other hand, the tourist crowds are smaller in the spring.

Two of my four trips were in April. On both I had a day or two of "soft" weather (misty). The rest of both trips were sunny, though in the mountains the temps were cooler and windy. Maybe one day of outright cold. I took a waterproof raincoat, and that plus a sweatshirt, was plenty warm on the cooler days. I would choose April over any other time of year. To the previous poster's point, though, this has been an unseasonably cold year throughout Europe, so even in June it was cool.

The one thing you can be assured of about Irish weather is that it will not be hot. I was in Donegal a few years ago and the locals asked me how I liked the heat. The temp was about 75, when I told them that our temp does not get that low at night I am not sure they believed me. A temp. pf 25 celsius will be hot.

From somebody who lives here Allison it's very difficult to predict the Irish weather. This year for example April was absolutely gorgeous, with virtually totally dry weather and relatively high temperatures (for us), but the Summer has been disappointing, while last summer was lovely. I would suggest early summer (May/June), these months can often be very pleasant. You won't really have to worry though about excessive temperatures, we consider 60s and 70s to be very pleasant (warm) weather. Hope you have a fantastic time here.