best travel month in Ireland

May is beautiful in Ireland. I have also traveled in April and February, and have only had one or two truly cold days. It can rain anytime of year, so you have to be prepared for that all the time. If the price difference was great, there is no way I would wait to go in June - not to mention the start of the regular tourist season potentially making June more crowded.

Don't plan a trip to Ireland with any sort of weather expectations. June may give you slightly better odds at good weather, but not enough to offset any money savings

I spent two weeks in Ireland in May. When we landed, it was cold with sleet later in the day. Before the two weeks were up, we got hot and we're from Texas. You never know about the weather in Ireland.

As others have said, it can be cold any time of year in Ireland. I spent two weeks in late May, early June and it was wet, windy, cold, sunny (but not hot), and sometimes all in one day. What do you consider "miserably cold"? Average temps were 50-65. I was on a RS tour, and everyone from Texas and Georgia thought they were freezing to death (it was just another spring day for a Pacific Northwesterner). If you're looking for summer weather, a more southern country might be a better idea.

We went in May. That would be my first choice. The weather was great, only a few rainshowers and nothing that interrupted our plans. Ireland has a maritime weather pattern. That means it's going to be cool, with a chance of rain, year round. The weather warms up some in the summer but rarely gets hot, and there's always a chance of rain. In the winter, it's wetter but not frozen. The biggest reason to avoid Ireland in winter, IMO, is the short daylight hours. May has plenty of daylight for touring.

I went to Ireland in June of 2008 and it was fairly warm and comfortable, but when I returned in June of 2011 I was freezing my butt off the entire time. There were hardly any tourists at all in June of 2008, but the crowds were insufferable in June of 2011. It's hard to predict anything.

Another thing to consider is hours of daylight. Having made the trip in the fall when days were a lot shorter, and in the summer when days are quite long, I'd opt for summer every time.

No predicting what you'll get with weather. I've had to bundle up (especially along the coastline) in July and August on certain days, and have seen it get pretty warm in May or June. I totally agree with Ruth about hours of daylight. You'll get far more hours in mid June than you will in mid May. That could make a difference if you want to do a lot of driving to check out the scenery.

We were in Ireland June 16-23, 2011. Traveled Dublin-Doolin-Portmagee-Cork-Belfast-Dublin (the last 3 all in one day -woke-up in Cork, drove up to Belfast to see the murals, had dinner, and then drove back to Dublin - not very relaxing, but it worked just fine as a last minute crazy idea). It rained a short time everyday, but usually only when we were in the car :-) and it was sunny at least part of every day. The daytime temps were low 50s to low 60s, night time temps low 40s to low 50s. But I second what everyone else has said - there's no predicting the weather in Ireland, so that shouldn't be a major planning factor. A very big plus for June - long days (sunsets at 10:30pm, light until 11pm). We arrived at the Cliffs of Moher at 6:30pm on a beautiful June evening and practically had them to ourselves - all the tour buses and most other tourists were long gone. The visitor center is open until 8pm, so we had plenty of time. We had the same experience on the Ring of Kerry - we left Killorglin about 5pm on a Friday eve on our way around the ring and drove as far as Portmagee (a bit short of half way). We saw almost no one but locals (you can tell by how fast they drive on those skinny roads) and not one tour bus. We stopped at several overlooks and had then to ourselves. The next morning we left Portmagee for Killarney about 9:30 - again, had the Ring pretty much to ourselves - stopped and took pictures, etc. no crowds anywhere. Saw one tour bus the whole morning. Arrived in Killarney for lunch about 1:00pm. Found a gaelic radio station (no English spoken, only trad music) and it was great atmosphere for our peaceful, uncrowded drive around the Ring. After our experience, my #1 recommendation for planning a trip to Ireland - think summer solstice!!