| Day | Start point | End point | Distance | Drive time | Speed | Leave start point | Time at stop 1 | Time at stop 2 | Time at stop 3 | Arrive end point | Explore end point | Comments/stops | Lodging | Map |
| 1 | Dublin airport | Dublin | 45 kms | 1.75 hrs | 26 kph | 12:00 PM | 1.5 hrs | 1 hr | 1.5 hrs | 5:45 PM | Fly in. Rideshare via Malahide, Howth, Natl Botanic Gardens. Stop at Gravedigger’s Pub after Botanic Gardens (quiet, favorite of Anthony Bourdain). | map | ||
| 2 | Dublin | Dublin | Walk around central Dublin, see historic sites. Non-touristy pubs: The Capstan Bar, The Cobblestone (no food), The Long Hall, Idlewild, The Beer Market (90% of beers on tap can only be found there), McNeill’s, The Boar’s Head (good food) | map | ||||||||||
| 3 | Dublin | Glendalough | 73 kms | 2.5 hrs | 29 kph | 10:00 AM | 1 hr | 0.5 hrs | 1.5 hrs | 3:30 PM | 4.5 hrs | Rent car; via Powerscourt House & Waterfall, Wicklow Mtns NP. Hike at least to Tonelagee NE Top (2.6-mi round trip, full summit is 4.2-mi). Eat at The Conservatory? | map | |
| 4 | Glendalough | Cork | 244 kms | 3.75 hrs | 65 kph | 10:00 AM | 2 hrs | 3:45 PM | 6.25 hrs | via Rock of Cashel. In Cork, English Market & St. Fin Barre’s Cathedral. Drink at Callanan’s Bar. | map | |||
| 5 | Cork | Killarney | 126 kms | 3.5 hrs | 36 kph | 12:00 PM | 2 hrs | 5:30 PM | 3 hrs | In Cork before leaving: UCC & English Market. Via Killarney NP. Dinner at Bricin Restaurant & Boxty House, or Quinlan’s Fresh Fish Shop. | map | |||
| 6 | Killarney | Killorglin | 179 kms | 4 hrs | 45 kph | 10:30 AM | 2 hrs | 4:30 PM | 3.5 hrs | via Ring of Kerry & Skellig Ring – various short stops en route. Dinner at Kingdom 1795 or Quinlan’s Fish. | map | |||
| 7 | Killorglin | Adare | 224 kms | 4.25 hrs | 53 kph | 10:00 AM | 2 hrs | 1 hr | 5:15 PM | 2.25 hrs | via Dingle Peninsula – various stops including Dingle. Dinner at Carriage House at Adare Manor? | map | ||
| 8 | Adare | Gort | 174 kms | 3.5 hrs | 50 kph | 9:30 AM | 1.5 hrs | 0.5 hrs | 3 hrs | 6:00 PM | 1.5 hrs | via Bunratty Castle, Cliffs of Moher, Doolin Cave, Dolmen, Burren NP. Dinner at Cassidy’s Pub & Restaurant? | Naomh Colman B&B | map |
| 9 | Gort | Ardara | 323 kms | 5.25 hrs | 62 kph | 9:30 AM | 1 hr | 1.25 hrs | 0.5 hrs | 5:30 PM | 4.5 hrs | via Glencar Lough, Slieve League, Glen of the Swans. Eat at Nancy’s or Mickalene’s. | map | |
| 10 | Ardara | Gweedore | 110 kms | 2.75 hrs | 40 kph | 12:00 PM | 0.5 hrs | 0.75 hrs | 4:00 PM | 4 hrs | Gweedore is the heart of the Gaeltacht. Eat at Leo’s Tavern, Sharkey’s Bar, or Auntie Anne’s Cafe. | Teach Tassie? Glen Heights B&B? | map | |
| 11 | Gweedore | Bushmills | 152 kms | 3 hrs | 51 kph | 10:00 AM | 2 hrs | 1.5 hrs | 1.5 hrs | 6:30 PM | 0.5 hrs | Bushmills is in Northern Ireland (the UK). Via Glenveagh NP, Dunluce Castle, Giant’s Causeway. | The Bush-mills Inn Hotel? | map |
| 12 | Bushmills | Carlingford | 208 kms | 3.5 hrs | 59 kph | 9:00 AM | 1 hr | 3.75 hrs | 0.25 hrs | 5:30 PM | 3.5 hrs | via Glenariff Forest Park, Belfast, Flagstaff viewpoint. In Belfast: park on west side, see Peace Wall & murals, Clonard Monastery, Cultúrlann McAdam Ó Fiaich, eat/drink at Crown Liquor Saloon | map | |
| 13 | Carling-ford | Kells | 100 kms | 2 hrs | 50 kph | 11:00 AM | 2 hrs | 3:00 PM | 6 hrs | via Newgrange burial site. In Carlingford: King John’s Castle, Carlingford Priory, Folklore Park. Dinner at Amore or Gin Ban. | map | |||
| 14 | Kells | Dublin | 74 kms | 1.25 hrs | 59 kph | 11:00 AM | 1.5 hrs | 1:45 PM | via Hill of Tara. Return rental car. In PM in Dublin: EPIC the Irish Emigration Museum, Guinness Storehouse, Teeling Whiskey Distillery. In evening: Dublin Literary Pub Crawl. | map 1 map 2 | ||||
| 15 | Dublin | home | Fly out. | |||||||||||
| total | total | 2031 kms | 41 hrs | |||||||||||
| average | average | 156 kms | 3.15 hrs | 50 kph | 10:30 AM | 4:38 PM | 3.61 hrs |
Total accommodations cost: $1680
Total food cost: $420
Total rental car cost: $360
Total gas/petrol cost: $508
Total cost minus plane tickets & entry fees: ~$3000
You could easily shorten this trip to 13 nights by eliminating the night in Kells and driving from Carlingford to Dublin in one day and merely stopping at Newgrange, Kells, and the Hill of Tara along the way. This would still be quite a doable day, but would sacrifice time to sightsee in Carlingford in the morning as well as in Dublin in the afternoon.
Alternatively, you may wish to spend an extra night in Dublin at the beginning of the trip, and then simply drive from Kells (or Carlingford) directly to the Dublin airport on the last day. This would keep the number of nights the same but save having to drive back into Dublin city center on the last day. However, my itinerary assumes that you rent the car in central Dublin and it’s more expensive to return it elsewhere, e.g. the airport.
Rob the Traveler 