Regions and itineraries
116 questions, answered plainly.
Should I choose the Wild Atlantic Way, Ireland's Ancient East, Dublin or Northern Ireland first?
For a first trip, most people should start with one of two.
How long do I need to drive the Wild Atlantic Way properly?
The full route is about 2,500 kilometres, and it deserves more time than most people give it.
What are the best bases on the Wild Atlantic Way for a seven day trip?
Follow the shape of our 7 day itinerary.
Which counties give the best first taste of the southwest?
Cork and Kerry, and the split matters more than the order.
Dublin or Galway: which city should be my main base?
Pick Dublin for a first short trip and Galway for a trip built around the west.
Cork or Killarney: which is the better base for the southwest?
Killarney is the better touring base, Cork the better city base, and the honest answer depends on the days you have.
What can I see in County Cork if I only have two days?
Keep the two days east and central, and leave West Cork for a longer trip.
What can I see in County Kerry without trying to do everything in one day?
Give each of the three big pieces its own day, all from Killarney.
How should I split time between Galway city, Connemara and the Aran Islands?
For four nights, a split that works is two in Galway city, one in Clifden and one on Inishmore.
What is the best way to combine Belfast, the Causeway Coast and Derry?
Run it as a loop in that order and give it four nights.
Is the Causeway Coast a day trip from Belfast or worth an overnight stay?
It works as a day trip and works better as an overnight.
What are the main places to stop between Dublin and Belfast?
The direct motorway run is about an hour and forty five minutes in our road dataset, and the stops worth breaking it for sit just off that line.
Which part of Ireland is best for castles in a short trip?
The east and the Boyne to Kilkenny corridor, because the castles sit close together and the driving stays short.
Which part of Ireland is best for passage tombs and very old monuments?
Start in the Boyne Valley, then add one of the western cemeteries if the days allow.
Where should I go in Ireland for churches, abbeys and pilgrimage places?
Build the route around four anchors and let the smaller sites fall between them.
Which Irish region is best for a golf trip based around links courses?
The southwest, on the Shannon to Kerry line, gives the densest run of serious links with the shortest transfers.
Where are the best lake districts for a quieter Ireland trip?
Three districts do this best, and they feel quite different.
Which Irish cities are worth more than a single day?
Four earn it clearly.
What is the best itinerary for a movie locations trip in Ireland?
Work west to north in about six days, and let the films set the order.
Where can I plan a fishing trip around the Corrib, Erne, Shannon or Killarney lakes?
Choose the water by the fishing you want.
Which mountain areas suit a first hiking trip to Ireland?
Start where the paths are clear, the towns are close and a short day still feels like a mountain day.
What makes a good photography route in Ireland if light matters more than mileage?
Short hops, west facing coasts and nights in the place you want at dawn.
How do I build a food focused route from Kinsale to Galway?
Eat your way north in short stages and book the dinners before the beds.
Which towns are best for traditional music sessions on a short trip?
Pick towns where sessions run on ordinary weeknights, not only at festivals.
How can I see Ireland's main landmarks without spending every day in the car?
Use two bases and day trips, and accept that some famous sights will wait for another trip.
What is a good five day southwest itinerary that includes Cork and Kerry?
Follow the shape of our Southwest in 5 Days itinerary, which opens in the planner ready to adjust.
What is a good route for a family road trip with shorter driving days?
Build it at the Family pace in the planner, which caps the day at about three hours at the wheel, and in practice keep most legs under two.
What is the Great Links golf itinerary, and who is it for?
It is our seven day golf itinerary, flown into Shannon and paced like a holiday rather than a test of endurance.
Which itinerary should I choose if I have already done Dublin and the Ring of Kerry?
Go north and northwest, the half of the island most second trips miss.
How do I use a themed trip type in the planner, and can I mix themes?
Yes, mixing themes is the normal way to use it.
What are the best things to do in County Antrim?
Start at the Giant's Causeway and go early, before the day buses: the basalt columns are the real thing, not a poster.
How many days do I need in County Antrim?
Three days is the honest answer.
What is the best base town in County Antrim?
It splits by trip.
What are the best things to do in County Armagh?
Armagh city carries the county: stand between the two St Patrick's cathedrals facing each other across the hill, walk the Georgian streets, and give the Observatory and Planetarium an hour.
How many days do I need in County Armagh?
One full day covers Armagh city and Navan Fort properly, and that is most of what people come for.
What is the best base town in County Armagh?
Armagh city itself, and there is no close second.
What are the best things to do in County Carlow?
Carlow is a slow county and rewards being treated as one.
How many days do I need in County Carlow?
One day covers the dolmen, Carlow town and a short Barrow walk, and many people pass through Carlow exactly that way between Dublin and Kilkenny.
What is the best base town in County Carlow?
Carlow town is the only base of any size: the castle, the cathedral, the pubs and the train to Dublin are all there, and the whole county is a short drive in any direction.
What are the best things to do in County Cavan?
Take the boat or a kayak out to Cloughoughter Castle, a ruined tower standing in Lough Oughter: the county in one picture.
How many days do I need in County Cavan?
Two days.
What is the best base town in County Cavan?
Cavan town is the practical base: the county town, the museum, and the roads out to both the lakes and the north-west sights.
What are the best things to do in County Clare?
The Cliffs of Moher, first or last in the day to have them quieter, and the Burren as its own day rather than an afterthought: Poulnabrone dolmen, the limestone pavements and, in…
How many days do I need in County Clare?
Three days, and the common mistake is trying it in two.
What is the best base town in County Clare?
Ennis, if you are moving around: it is the county town, central for the Burren, Bunratty and the Shannon side, with the county's best choice of places to eat and its traditional…
What are the best things to do in County Cork?
Give the city its own day: the English Market in the morning, when the stalls are full, then Shandon's bells and the steep streets above the Lee.
How many days do I need in County Cork?
Four days is the floor, and Cork punishes people who allow less: it is Ireland's largest county, and the drive from the city to Mizen Head alone is two hours each way.
What is the best base town in County Cork?
Cork City for a first visit: the market, the restaurants and the harbour towns are all within reach, and evenings are the liveliest in the county.
What are the best things to do in County Derry?
Walk the city walls first, the whole circuit: they are complete 17th-century walls, and from them the city's shape, its two hillsides and its story explain themselves.
How many days do I need in County Derry?
Two days.
What is the best base town in County Derry?
The city of Derry, without a real argument.
What are the best things to do in County Donegal?
Slieve League first: sea cliffs higher than Moher's and far quieter, in the south-west.
How many days do I need in County Donegal?
Four days at the very least, and five or six is nearer the truth.
What is the best base town in County Donegal?
Two bases, and Donegal is the one county where we insist on it: a single base means hours of backtracking on slow roads every day.
What are the best things to do in County Down?
Start with the Mournes: walk from Newcastle up toward Slieve Donard, Northern Ireland's highest peak, or keep it lower with the reservoir valleys and the Mourne Wall country.
How many days do I need in County Down?
Four days if you can, three if you must.
What is the best base town in County Down?
Newcastle, if the Mournes are the point: you wake under Slieve Donard, the main walks start from the town, and evenings look after themselves.
What are the best things to do in County Dublin?
Do the old centre on foot first: Trinity College and the Book of Kells, then Dublin Castle and Christ Church, all inside a short walk of each other.
How many days do I need in County Dublin?
Three days is the honest minimum, and the city will tell you the same.
What is the best base town in County Dublin?
Stay in the city: Dublin is the one county where the base question answers itself.
What are the best things to do in County Fermanagh?
Get on the water first: hire a boat on Lough Erne, even for a day, because Fermanagh only makes full sense from its lakes.
How many days do I need in County Fermanagh?
Three days.
What is the best base town in County Fermanagh?
Enniskillen, without a serious contest.
What are the best things to do in County Galway?
Start in the city: the Latin Quarter lanes around Shop Street and Quay Street, buskers outside the shops, then out along the prom at Salthill to the bay.
How many days do I need in County Galway?
Four days is the comfortable answer: one for the city, one for Connemara's Clifden and Kylemore side, one for the Aran Islands, and one spare for the weather, because Galway plans…
What is the best base town in County Galway?
Galway City, for almost everyone: the music, the food and the buses and trains are there, and Connemara and the island ferries run west from it.
What is there to do in Adare in one day?
Walk the Main Street first while it is quiet: the thatched cottages built under the Dunraven estate are the postcard, and they read better before traffic builds on the N21.
Is Adare worth an overnight stay or just a stop?
Stay, if the trip allows it.
What is there to do in Antrim in one day?
Start at Antrim Castle Gardens: the long canal, the parterres and Clotworthy House fill a morning better than the town's size promises.
Is Antrim worth an overnight stay or just a stop?
For most visitors, no: Antrim is a stop or a half day rather than a base, and the town itself is honest about that.
What is there to do in Ardmore in one day?
Climb the hill first: St Declan's monastic site, with its tall round tower, the cathedral ruins and the carved Ogham stones kept inside them, is the reason Ardmore matters, and…
Is Ardmore worth an overnight stay or just a stop?
Stay, if you are touring the Waterford coast slowly.
What is there to do in Armagh in one day?
Stand on the Hill of St Patrick first: the Church of Ireland cathedral, on the site of Patrick's principal church, with Brian Boru's traditional grave in its grounds.
Is Armagh worth an overnight stay or just a stop?
Stay.
What is there to do in Athlone in one day?
Work the west bank, where the old town is.
Is Athlone worth an overnight stay or just a stop?
Stay, if your route crosses the Shannon, because Athlone is built for the overnight: it sits near the centre of the island, its castle and old town stand compactly on the west…
What is there to do in Ballina in one day?
Start at the Ridge Pool: anglers fishing the Moy below St Muredach's Cathedral are Ballina's defining sight, and early morning is the time to watch them.
Is Ballina worth an overnight stay or just a stop?
Stay, especially in fishing season or festival week.
What is there to do in Bangor in one day?
Begin at Bangor Abbey, the parish church on the site of the abbey Saint Comgall founded in the sixth century: this was one of the great monastic schools of early Ireland, and the…
Is Bangor worth an overnight stay or just a stop?
For most visitors, Bangor works best as a day trip or an evening out from Belfast: the trains are frequent and the ride is short, the city holds the wider choice of beds and…
What is there to do in Bantry in one day?
Start in Wolfe Tone Square by the harbour, where the town's week turns, and watch the Whiddy Island ferry come and go.
Is Bantry worth an overnight stay or just a stop?
Stay.
What is the best day trip from Adare?
Limerick City, and it is barely a trip at all: about 20 minutes up the N21.
What is the best day trip from Antrim?
Belfast, about 25 minutes south by the M2, or about the same by train from Antrim station into Lanyon Place.
What is the best day trip from Ardmore?
Dungarvan, about 20 minutes east along the coast, and a fuller town than visitors expect.
What is the best day trip from Armagh?
Belfast, 59 kilometres and about 50 minutes by road, and the obvious answer because it is the right one.
What is the best day trip from Athlone?
Clonmacnoise, about 30 minutes south, and one of the great early Christian sites of Ireland.
What is the best day trip from Ballina?
North, up the coast road to the Céide Fields, about 30 minutes away beyond Ballycastle.
What is the best day trip from Bangor?
Belfast, about 20 minutes by road in clear traffic and 25 on a city morning, or 33 minutes by train into Lanyon Place.
What is the best day trip from Bantry?
Glengarriff, about 20 minutes north on the N71, and then out on the water.
What are the best things to do in County Kildare?
Kildare is horse country first, and the Irish National Stud at Tully is the place to start: foals in the paddocks in spring, the Irish Racehorse Experience, and two gardens, the…
How many days do I need in County Kildare?
Two full days cover the county well.
What is the best base town in County Kildare?
Kildare town, for most visitors.
What is there to do in Kildare Town in one day?
Start at St Brigid's Cathedral, on the hill where Brigid founded her monastery in about 480 AD, and climb the round tower if it is open: the view takes in the whole town and the Curragh beyond.
Is Kildare Town worth an overnight stay or just a stop?
An overnight, if you can.
What is the best day trip from Kildare Town?
The Curragh first, five minutes away: walk the open plain in the morning, watch the gallops, and call at the Curragh Military Museum for the camp's long story.
What are the best walks in County Kildare for a first visit?
The canal towpaths are Kildare's walking gift: flat, waymarked and full of locks, barges and herons.
Where are the best lake and river spots in County Kildare?
Kildare is a canals and rivers county rather than a lakes one.
What is there to do in Kildare Town when it rains?
The Irish National Stud works in most weathers: the guided tour walks outdoors, but the Horse Museum, with Arkle's skeleton as its centrepiece, and the Irish Racehorse Experience…
What are the best castles and heritage sites in County Kildare?
Maynooth Castle is the heavyweight: a Fitzgerald stronghold from the 1200s at the gates of the university, free to visit in season, its keep and gatehouse much of what siege guns…
What is the best one day trip in County Kildare if I am based somewhere else?
Drive or take the train to Kildare town and spend the day within a two mile circle.
Where are the best photo spots in County Kildare, and when is the light right?
The top of Kildare's round tower on a clear morning, with the whole town and the Curragh laid out below.
What is the nearest beach, lake swim or outdoor pool to Kildare Town?
Honest answer: Kildare is inland Ireland, and the sea is a proper outing, not a quick dip.
Is the Irish National Stud worth visiting if I know nothing about horses?
Yes, and plenty of visitors arrive knowing nothing.
What are the Japanese Gardens at Kildare, and when are they at their best?
They are the surprise inside the Irish National Stud: a garden laid out between 1906 and 1910 by the Japanese gardener Tassa Eida and his son Minoru, for Lord Wavertree, the Stud's founder.
Can you climb the round tower at St Brigid's Cathedral?
In season, yes, and it is the finest view in the county.
What is the Curragh, and what can a visitor do there?
The Curragh is a great open plain of about 5,000 acres of unfenced common land, grassland since prehistory, and the centre of Irish horse racing.
What is Lullymore Heritage and Discovery Park, and who is it for?
Lullymore is a family day out built on the edge of the Bog of Allen, near Rathangan: 60 acres of parkland with a peatlands exhibition that explains the bog honestly, a boardwalk…
Can I see County Kildare as a day trip from Dublin?
Easily: it is one of the simplest day trips from the capital.
What is Castletown House, and how do I visit it?
Castletown, at Celbridge, is Ireland's largest and earliest Palladian house, built from 1722 for William Conolly, Speaker of the Irish House of Commons.
What is Donadea Forest Park, and what is its 9/11 memorial?
Donadea is 243 hectares of woodland in the north west of the county, run by Coillte on what was once the Aylmer family estate: there is a ruined castle, a walled garden, a church…
What are the high crosses at Moone and Castledermot?
The south of the county holds two of Ireland's finest early Christian sites.
What is Pollardstown Fen, and can you walk there?
Yes: a boardwalk of about 1.2 kilometres loops over the fen, free, with parking at the trailhead a few minutes from Newbridge.
What is Kildare Village, and is the outlet worth a stop?
Kildare Village is Ireland's designer outlet: more than 100 boutiques at the edge of Kildare town, selling previous season stock at savings of up to 60 per cent on the recommended…
What is the Bog of Allen, and where can I see bog heritage in County Kildare?
The Bog of Allen is the great raised bog of the Irish midlands, spread across Kildare, Offaly, Laois and Westmeath: thousands of years of sphagnum moss laid down as peat, cut for…
What is Maynooth worth a stop for?
Maynooth is a university town with a castle at its gate.
Useful pages: Where to go · Ready-made itineraries · The Wild Atlantic Way road trip · Dublin · County Cork · County Kerry · County Galway · Northern Ireland · Portrush · Visiting Irish castles · Plan your journey · Heritage · Golf in Ireland · Ireland's cities · Ireland in the movies · Best hiking trails in Ireland · The Southwest in 5 Days · The Great Links golf itinerary · Quieter places
Sources
- Failte Ireland: the Wild Atlantic Way route, failteireland.ie
- Aran Island Ferries and Galway Tourism: Aran Islands ferry ports and sailings from Rossaveal and Doolin
- Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann: traditional music branches and sessions, comhaltas.ie
- Golf Ireland and the individual clubs: Lahinch, Ballybunion, Tralee, Royal Portrush and Royal County Down
- Inland Fisheries Ireland: salmon and sea trout licensing, permits and Lough Corrib trout fishing, fishinginireland.info
- Irish Escapes county guides, destination pages, regions, itineraries and road dataset: shared/counties.json, shared/places.json, shared/regions.json, shared/itineraries.json and shared/roads.json
- Irish Escapes guides and articles: shared/guides.json and shared/articles.json, including Golf in Ireland, Ireland in the Movies and Visiting Irish Castles
- Irish Escapes planner trip types and themed trip data: client/src/data.ts (TRIP_TYPES)
- Mountaineering Ireland, Coillte and the National Parks and Wildlife Service: trail, forest and national park guidance
- OPW Heritage Ireland: Brú na Bóinne and state heritage sites, heritageireland.ie
- Waterways Ireland: Shannon and Erne navigation, waterwaysireland.org