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Trip List by Ptuey

Ireland by car

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7 Nov 2006  “2 girlfriends reconnecting on the harrowing roads.”
4.0 of 5 stars based on 17 votes

Want an adventure? Try driving over 2000 kilometers on the wrong side of the road over 6 days! But, as we say, that's what comprehensive coverage is for!

It wasn't as hard to rent an automatic car as I would have imagined. Seriously though, get comprehensive insurance because the roads are tight and not very good in some of the smaller towns. By the end, every corner of the car was scratched and there was slight hubcap damage.

I have to say there's nothing like bonding over perplexing road signs and roundabouts. The length of this road trip was a bit exhausting, but we had fun. I would suggest being realistic about daily driving distances, especially as some of the smaller roads drive very slowly. We were exhausted by the end of the Dingle Penninsula drive.

I highly reccommend staying at B&B's as they were all very clean, inexpensive compared to hotels, and the owners were all helpful with advice about what to see and where to eat. Did I mention the yummy gigantic breakfasts that were always included as well?

  • 1. Dublin
    Dublin

    I guess you have to land somewhere... probably my least favorite place in Ireland. I'm probably biased because I was here 10 years ago and it was such a quaint and friendly place. Now, the Temple Bar area has been completely gutted and the charming local bars have all been replaced by big chains, tourist traps, and frou-frou restaurants.
    Trinity College is still beautiful, though.

    On the way to Galway, we detoured to Clonmacnoise, which was a neat monastic ruin.

  • 2. Galway
    Galway

    There are more pubs here than people! Loved Murty Rabbitt's the most (great neighborhood bar). Galway was a nice jumping point for the western part of Ireland.

  • 3. Inishmore
    Inishmore, Aran Islands

    The most touristy of the Aran Islands, but I still enjoyed it.

  • 4. Ennis
    Ennis

    This is quintessential Ireland. Adorable, historic, beautiful. This is the one place we deviated and stayed at a hotel called the "Old Ground Hotel." It was pricey but worth it. It's got a lot of history, personality, and it was comfy too.
    Save some time to walk around this pretty little town.

  • 5. Dingle Peninsula
    Dingle Peninsula

    The primary language here is gaelic. How neat is that?
    There are a lot of historic sites on the drive around the penninsula as well. I can't believe how old some of those places were. We used Rick Steves driving tour for this portion of the drive. It is well done and points out a lot of things we would have driven by and missed.

  • 6. Tralee
    Tralee

    A sweet little town

  • 7. Cork
    Cork

    Crowded, but cool. I think we prefer the smaller towns and looking at historic sites.

  • 8. Cashel
    Cashel

    Wow! What a castle! We spent hours here and I took about a hundred pictures.

  • 9. Trim Castle
    Trim Castle, County Meath

    This place was so beautiful! It's where Braveheart was filmed.
    Ate at this awesome new restaurant called Franzini O'Briens.
    Stayed at the Trim Castle Hotel which is swanky and modern, but luckily right across the street from the gorgeous castle. There's a deck, I think on the 3rd floor, where you go out and have a great view of the castle from above.

Explore locations featured in this Trip List: Dublin, Galway, Inishmore, Ennis, Dingle Peninsula, Tralee, Cork, Cashel, County Meath