We will be in Ireland for 13 days with 2 boys (5 & 7). It's our 2nd trip to Ireland (went to Dublin, Kilkenny and Waterford before). Flying in/out from Shannon.
We already booked our first 6 nights at Adare. Itinerary: Day 1: take it very easy, let kids sleep a long nap and acclimate after the long trip, go to the supermarket and get snacks/water/breakfast for the week. Day 2: Rock of Cashel (boys love castles) and surrounding. Day 3: Aran Islands. Day 4: Bruttany Castle (Rick S does not recommend it, but I keep hearing it's a good place for kids). We already booked an Irish night dinner that night. Day 5: Cliffs of Moher/Burren/Doolin. Day 6: Don't Know! Galway seems too far after driving so much for a week and not too interesting for kids...thinking of resting in Adare and explore town/parks for kids.
Day 7: leave Adare early and go to Kilkenny National Park, Mukross House & farms, Gap, lake. Planning to sleep in Killorglin??? Haven't booked B&B for day 7 & 8. Advise please? Originally thought of Kenmare (wanted to go to Dingle 1st, but hotels are packed that weekend and can't miss Dingle, so decided to go to Ring of Kerry 1st, and in doing so Kenmare will be out of the way in our way to Dingle, which follows the Ring of K).
Day 8: Ring of Kerry (sleep where??). Irish friends will join us from here to end of trip. Day 9: go to Dingle, sleep there for 2 nights (booked B&B already).Day 10: Dingle. Day 11: Go to Waterford and stay with our Irish friends in their house... have been there before, thinking of staying in Castlemartyr resort for 1 night in the way to Waterford , and only 1 night with our friends in Waterford... Can't decide...don't like 1 night stays with kids, but Castlemartyr looks so nice and relaxing
Day 11: Waterford (hang out with friends)
Day 12: go late to Shannon to sleep near airport (suggestion for hotel?) and leave at noon next day to the US. Thanks!
Posted by
Bloomington, IL, USA
9369 posts
Bunratty is a good area to stay on your last night before flying out. It's only six miles from the airport, there is shopping nearby, and a couple of choices of places to eat. And there are lots of B&Bs on the Bunratty Road. There is also a hotel there (the name escapes me, since we always stay in B&Bs).
And whether RS recommends it or not Bunratty IS a great place to take kids. The castle will be right up your boys' alley, and there is a folk park with animals there, too.
Your Days 7 & 8 are a little confusing. Can you explain a bit more clearly? You might have trouble seeing the Killarney National Park and surrounds as well as Muckross House and farms, etc. all in one day. Kenmare is a great little town with a stone circle.
Posted by
Michigan, USA
162 posts
On day 2 include a visit to Cahir and the wonderful castle there. Your boys will love climbing around there more than the Rock of Cashel.
Can you drop one night from your Adare reservations and add it to spend day 6, 7 and 8 in Kenmare? Kenmare is very cute and an easy access to Kilarney and ROK and also the Beara Peninsula. Try Abbey court B&B and see if their 2 bedroom apt above their garage is free. Lovely place to stay. You could visit the Kisanne Sheep farm between Kilarney and Kemare near Molls Gap. If you go during lamb season your boys could feed the lambs their bottles.
Posted by
Atlanta
1358 posts
Don't know which Aran Island you're planning on going to, but we took our kids to Inisheer last summer. There's a great playground there with a zipline.
Posted by
OP
Miramar, FL, US
11 posts
Thanks for your comments!
Nancy: We will definitely do Bunratty castle. On Day 7 we will leave Adare early to explore the Killarney area (Natl Park, Mukross House, Gap…not all, whatever we get to do). On Day 8 we will do the Ring of Kerry, and the next day we will go to Dingle. We still have no accommodations for Day 7 & 8…we were thinking of staying in Killorglin…would rather do Kenmare (per Rick S. suggestion), but want to avoid doing 1 night stays, and staying there for 2 nights would put us away from Dingle, where we are going on day 9. Do you think Killorglin is a good place to stay for those 2 nights?
Janet: Thanks for your suggestion of Cahir Castle…we just added it to our day 2...would we have time to do both Cahir and Cashel in 1 day? We already paid for 7 nights at Adare, so we can’t drop 1 night there. Thanks for the advise for Kisanne Sheep Farm…my kids would love that...
Maureen: We are planning on going to Inishmore for a day…thought about going to Inisheer as there is a 1 day ferry tour that goes there and includes Cliffs of Moher…but I keep reading that Inishmore is more interesting.
Thanks! I really appreciate all comments and suggestions!
Posted by
Bloomington, IL, USA
9369 posts
Yes, you can do Cashel and Cahir in the same day. Cashel is beautiful but won't be all that interesting for the kids. Cahir has lots of nooks and crannies to explore. I'd allow about an hour or so for Cashel, and maybe a bit more for Cahir.
Posted by
Atlanta
1358 posts
Bunratty is fun for kids. Don't miss the candy shop in the village there. The playground there is a bit disappointing, though. It looks cool from the outside, it's made to look like a fortress, but inside there's just a maze and a couple of slides.
Posted by
Dublin, Ireland
8 posts
I would recommend driving a bit further to Waterville, Caherdaniel or Portmagee. It will only add about a half hour to your journey, but will offer you the opportunity to see some of the most spectacular scenery on the Ring of Kerry. There is loads to see and do in this area - Skellig Michael (UNESCO World Heritage Site) stone forts (Cahersiveen), Skellig Chocolate Factory, great beaches etc. Great seafood restaurants in this area also.