My parents, brother, and I are going on a trip through Ireland and Scotland in June. We will have roughly 2 weeks. We know for sure we want to start with 2-3 nights in Dublin and then spend 4-5 in the countryside before moving on to Scotland. I'm looking for recommendations for a good base once we leave Dublin. My parents would really like to visit the small towns/countryside.

I'm also looking for recs a nice base in Scotland to explore. This is a trip we've been talking about for years so I want to make sure I plan it well. I know I will never get them over to Europe again. It will be rushed but they really want to visit both Ireland and Scotland.

I found 2 full days in Dublin sufficient. Then, I would head to Killarney. The Lake Hotel is very nice. The rooms are all on the same side to look over the lake and adjoining national park.

Then, I'd do the Beara Peninsula,Ring of Kerry, and the Dingle Peninsula. Plenty of small towns to stop and explore. There is an ice cream shop at a dairy located about 3 miles north of Port McGee, best ice cream I've ever had. There is also a great pizza place in Cahersiveen if you are in town for dinner. It's in an old church.

Get insurance for the vehicle.

I would agree two days in Dublin is plenty. You'll then want to hit the west side and visit Galway. Cliffs of Moher, Cork, Limerick, and Kilkenny. Belfast in No Ireland also worth checking out of time permits. Ireland is not very big so can cover lota of ground pretty easily.

I don't know if you were thinking about taking a ferry between Ireland and Scotland, but that may not be feasible with a rental car, given insurance limitations (insurers hate Ireland, and don't much like you crossing borders, either). But, if you find a way to do it, there is a ferry from Belfast that would put you out in the lowlands. The best scenery in Scotland is in the Highlands; you can't go wrong with the Isle of Skye. Most tourists also want to hit Edinburgh.

We leave next Thursday for Ireland, staying the weekend in Dublin and going to nd/navy, then Galway, Killarney and cork over the next week. Also doing it with brother and near retirement parents. Will report back. Potentially a little fast on the non Dublin parts for us, but it's what we can do.

I would second the recommendation to spend no more than two days in Dublin. One day may even be sufficient. I did nine days a few years back and did the following:

Day 1: Dublin
Day 2: Kilkenny / Waterford
Day 3: Rock of Cashel / Kinsale / Killarney
Day 4: Killarney
Day 5: Dingle Peninsula
Day 6: Cliffs of Moher / Burren / Galway
Day 7: Beleek and Derry / Londonderry
Day 8: Dunluce Castle / Carrick-a-Rede
Day 9: Belfast

If I had four to five days outside of Dublin I would echo the suggestion of Killarney / Ring of Kerry / Dingle Peninsula, but I would plan some stops on the way (Rock of Cashel, Kilkenney, etc.). I rented a car, but hired a driver for the Dingle Peninsula so I could enjoy the views too. Driving isn't bad, but the small roads make it harder for the drive to take in all of the scenery.

For Scotland I combined it with Northern England and did the following in Scotland.

Day 1: Edinburgh
Day 2: St. Andrews to Inverness through Cairngorms National Park
Day 3: Isle of Skye
Day 4: Isle of Skye
Day 5: Loch Lomond and the Trossachs

For my next trip to Scotland I'd spend several days in Cairngorms. It was beautiful wilderness in parts. Isle of Skye was nice, but honestly less than I expected with how famous it is. Depending on how many days you have I'd likely do Edinburgh and Isle of Skye plus plan some stops on the way.


You could easily spend much more time in both Ireland and Scotland so don't expect to see it all and expect to go back.

We are also heading to Dublin for the Navy/ND football game. Then spending a week touring SW Ireland. Will post up a trip report when we get back.

StinkyPinky said:

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I would agree two days in Dublin is plenty.

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Agree.

We just did this trip in July. Agree with the consensus on 2 days in Dublin. We then went to Galway for a couple of nights, then an overnight in Clifden at Abbeyglen Castle (https://www.abbeyglen.ie/), From there we dropped down for a couple nights in Killarney (stayed at The Dunloe, highly recommend but pricey), then a night in Kilkenny before we headed to England.

Lots of driving but it was a great trip. For Ring of Kerry, we took the bus even though we had a car. I would recommend this unless you like adventure driving with lorries, busses and caravans on tiny roads.

Enjoy the trip!

I drove the opposite way on the Ring of Kerry and turned around after about 30 minutes. Way too many large busses in the middle of the road.

I went last summer on a trip with ag students and parents. We were in Ireland for a total of 8 nights. We spent 3 nights in Kilkenny, and we all (adults and high schoolers) really liked that town. We did two days of farm visits out of Kilkenny with a fantastic company called Farm Tours Ireland. If your parents really want to see countryside, consider a day of private tours with them! https://www.farmtoursireland.com/

Between Dublin and Kilkenny, we stopped at the Irish National Stud, and it was really neat. We visited Galway, and I really wish we had more time there. One of my favorite things was visiting a national park north of Galway and an oyster farm on the Atlantic coast. I'd like to go back and spend more time driving, hiking, and visiting multiple places along the Wild Atlantic Way. We did go to Cliffs of Moher. I'm glad we went, but it's not somewhere I yearn to go back to. It was very crowded with tourists and were there on a somewhat rainy day.

2 days in Dublin is enough. I had two favorite things in Dublin: 1) simply sitting in a pub eating Irish food and listening to Irish music 2) Seeing the bog bodies at the national museum. They were fascinating (and it's free!).

The Glendalough is absolutely incredible

I liked the smaller northern towns in Scotland. Inverness, Stonehaven, etc.

Having just gotten back, pending your parents age, I'd consider Dublin then Killarney. It was our favorite town and lots of day trips/ring of Kerry to explore.

We did Galway/Killarney/cork/Dublin and it was a lot in the time we had. Especially if you're going to then go to Scotland ( my parents are 65ish and slower which def effects it too)

I appreciate all of the responses! I think I'm m going to push for basing in Killarney and doing day trips form there in Ireland. We are still debating Scotland. The only think I want for sure is a couple of nights in Edinburgh.

TXCityAggie said:

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I appreciate all of the responses! I think I'm m going to push for basing in Killarney and doing day trips form there in Ireland. We are still debating Scotland. The only think I want for sure is a couple of nights in Edinburgh.

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Look at taking the Shannon Ferry if staying in Killarney and day tripping up to the Cliffs of Moher. Sames time and tons of driving.

Just got back. After Dublin, we took the train to Galway and based four nights there. Booked day tours with a local tour company and took the ferry over to Inishmore one day. Had a private driver pick us up in Galway and take us to Killarney. Spent four nights in Killarney touring that area with the private driver. The driver dropped us off in Waterford at the end of the fifth day. Spent a day in Waterford then took the train back to Dublin. Enjoyed Killarney area the most. Would minimize your time in Dublin and spend as much time in Killarney as possible. The Kerry Cliffs are just as impressive as Cliffs of Moher. The tour buses can not get there so it is much less crowded. The cliffs are are not quite as high as Moher and not sheer. Great view of the Skelligs. Highly recommend the private driver. Email me at my user name at Gmail if you have any questions.