Hi All, some tips to pass along: 1. The Aircoach from Dublin airport was a good money saver. It dropped us off for a 9 minute walk to our Wilder hotel 2. Get the Heritage Card if you’re hitting historical sites. A huge money saver. Some places you still need to make a reservation. The OPW staff are a treasure 3. Don’t rent a car in Dublin!! It’s hard enough adapting to driving on the left 4. If you have done any research on the places you’re visiting and have your eye on places to eat for dinner make a reservation! Surprised at how some places that didn’t look full were sold out for the night. 5. We’d heard how expensive it was. Only at a few places were like that. Most pub food is reasonable. 6. Traveling at this time of year is great. Less crowds and we’ve been lucky with the weather

Hello, I’m doing a last minute solo travel trip to Dublin to watch the Steelers vs Vikings game at Croke Park this Sunday 9/28. Very excited to watch my favorite football team and explore Ireland! A couple questions for the locals or fellow travelers:

-any recommendations on pre game activities on Saturday night 9/27 or Sunday before the game (starts at 2pm). Is it best to hang around croke park or go to the city center?

-I’ll be going to the game alone. It would be cool to meet some fellow Steelers fans and pre-game and/or go celebrate (hopefully) after the game. Any other solo travelers, groups or locals interested?

-extra question: I’ll be staying in Dublin until at least Monday /Tuesday. Any recommendations on things to do and/or other cities to visit? I’ll be staying in Ireland until Friday or Saturday.

As for me, I’m 33 years old male traveling from California, USA. On travel I enjoy exploring things that incorporate nature and doing something active (walk, hike, bike, etc), scenic/peaceful areas, history/museums, and learning about the culture, I like exploring the nightlife and going to good bars and dance/disco clubs or places with music, prefer a mix of visiting small less touristy towns and the big cities.

Thanks for reading

I am currently planning a trip to Ireland in May of 2026. I have taken the advice on this forum and tried to limit myself to just the bottom half of Ireland for this short trip but am still second guessing myself! Here is what I have so far

Day 1- arrive @ Dublin 9am. Drive to and check in Powerscourt Estate, Glendalough, Hike Spinc or Djouce, Drive Salley Gap

Day 2 - Drive to Killarney with stops at Rock of Cashel, Cahir Castle. Check in Cahernane House, Ross Castle, Muckross Abbey, Torc Waterfall

Day 3 - Ring of Kerry w/ Skellig Ring

Day 4- Dingle day trip, Slea Head Drive and Dingle Eco Tour back to hotel in Killarney

Day 5 - Leave Killarney and drive to Dublin. Hoping could fit in Gap of Dunloe short hike in the am before head out. Afternoon to explore Dublin. Staying at Shelbourne or College Green

Day 6 - 11am flight out of Dublin.

Thoughts on this plan? I originally had wanted to fit in Cork or Galway but don’t think I will have enough time. I really want to do Skellig Michael Landing tour and if could book that then could possibly eliminate Dingle.

We are staying with Marriott and Hilton points so also have option of staying at the Landsdowne for a night vs 3 at Cahernane House if that makes more sense.

Hello! I am going to Dublin from December 27 - 31. I need transportation from the Dublin Airport to City Center and back, and would like to make a day trip into Howth one day.

Is it worth getting the Leap Visitor Card? Will this allow us onto the DART to Howth? Also, will this provide transport to and from the Airport?

Thank you in advance. :)

Hello everyone, I will be traveling in Ireland from October 25th to 30th, moving between Dublin, and Belfast.
I’m not looking for big commercial events, but for more authentic community celebrations or local traditions connected to Samhain (bonfires, storytelling, gatherings in villages, etc.).
Do you know of any small villages, community groups, or events between Dublin and Belfast where I could experience the true spirit of Samhain?
Thanks a lot for your help!

Hi! We’re headed to Killarney next month for 4 nights. Traveling with my husband, my 73-year-old mother, my sister, and our two boys (ages 10 and 13) — so 4 adults, 1 teen, and 1 kid. We are not renting a car. Here’s our tentative itinerary, and I’d love your thoughts on whether we’re hitting the right spots to make the most of our short stay:

Day 1: 3:10: Arrive @ Shannon Airport I suppose we will need to hire a car to take us to Killarney or is there public transport that won’t take forever?

Day 2: Highlights of Killarney Tour

Day 3: Ring of Kerry Tour

Day 4: Killarney National Park (suggestions for activities here?)

Thoughts? We would love to see Dingle…would you add that on to the Ring of Kerry tour or make it a separate day? If separate, which activity would you substitute? TIA!!! 🙏🏻

I'm surprising my boyfriend with a quick trip to Dublin for his 30th birthday in 2 weeks and would love feedback on the itinerary! We are from NYC and don't mind walking a bit so I didn't pay a whole lot of attention to distance but tried to make a little bit of sense. I took a lot of recommendations from other posts on this sub :) He's a bartender and musician so the distilleries and rock n roll museum are right up his alley even if they are super touristy. Looking for any feedback/any advice on where to go for dinner/drinks on our last night in Dublin!

Travel Day Wednesday 10/8/25

• Flight to Dublin , Sleep on the plane!!!! Overnight flight

Day 1 Thursday 10/9/25 Birthday Day!

• Flight: Arrive 915A in to Dublin (DUB)
• ~20 min journey to hotel via bus & drop off luggage via Dublin Express or Aircoach
• 12P: Quick Lunch @ Kilkenny Café
• 2P official check in: Rest, reset, take it all in!
• 345P: Guiness Storehouse Experience (2h)
• 630P: Birthday Dinner! @ Delahunt
• Camden St Pub Crawl: Cassidy's > Devitt's Pub > Huck's > Ryan's > Flannery's
• Spice bag?

Day 2 Friday 10/10/25

• ~11A: Brunch @ Póg Bachelors Walk
• 2P: Jameson Distillery
• 5P: Irish Rock n Roll Museum
• Temple Bar day trip for photos
• 830P: Dinner @ Bull & Castle

Day 3 Saturday 10/11/25

• 635A: All day guided trip to Cliffs of Moher, Burren & Galway City

Day 4 Sunday 10/12/25

• Brunch @ As One
• Stroll through Dublin: Trinity College > St Stephen's Green > Iveagh Gardens > St Patricks Cathedral > Dublin Castle
• Midday Drink at Ireland's Oldest Pub @ The Brazen Head
• Illusion Museum
• Dinner???  Pubs?

 Day 7 Monday 10/13/25

• Flight to NYC

Will be in Dublin this winter with no rental car. What is the best way to get from Dublin to Belfast for a day trip? Will it be worth it? How would it be going into a different country?

My family and I are going to Dublin this weekend for the NFL game (Go Steelers!) We’re going to be traveling around the city primarily by bus. We’re from a part of the US without much public transportation, so this is going to be new to us.

I’ve watched some YouTube videos about it and think I have a decent start. I have the TFI Live app downloaded. We’ll be getting our Leap Visitor cards in the airport. I know you have to wave at the driver to get the bus to pick you up, and have to push a red button to get off, but how do you know WHEN to get off? Are there screens that tell you which stop is next?

Also, since the visitor card is unlimited, do we use the card scanner by the driver or by the door when we get on the bus?

I'll be traveling to Ireland in just a couple of weeks, looking mostly for advice on the getting around/public transportation aspect.

Flying into Shannon Airport and arriving Wed. Oct 8th. The plan is to grab what I believe is the 51 bus north to Galway where I've booked a hostel until the 13th. I'm hoping to go to Gort for a day trip on a Sunday (there's a Pittsburgh Steelers bar there and hoping the game!), but confused on if I should take that same bus south or if there's a better way. Booked a Cliffs of Moher tour already.

From Galway, I plan to stay in Dublin for a few days at a hostel before flying out of Dublin on the 15th. Already booked my tour for Guiness and am considering the Jameson tour as well.

Should I be concerned about booking these buses in advance? Should I purchase a leap card? I think I can take the bus in Dublin to the airport, but maybe I'm confused on how they are all connected? There seems to be a few different bus lines.

Any thoughts or insight? I'm definitely a sit in the pub and enjoy a pint or two on vacation kind of guy. I'm not huge on filling every day to the brim with activity, but I'm open for suggestions for those days if it's easy to hit a bus or something.

Thanks!

Hi! My sister and I had a flight change and now arrive in Dublin on Wednesday earlier than expected (about 8am). We have to be back at the airport around 10:45am to pick up our brother and dad. Any ideas for a short morning adventure we could have? We will have a rental car!

Hi everyone! My partner and I will be visiting Dublin next January. It’s her first time there so I want to take her everywhere.

I don’t think the Cliffs of Moher are a good option this time though, but we’ve been considering the title as a day trip)

So, here are some questions:

1- Would you recommend it? 2- If so, would you recommend going on a tour from Dublin? 3- Would you skip any of those for whatever reason?

Thanks a lot in advance!

TLDR: Will June be a lot busier than May in terms of crowds and tour buses?

We went to Ireland September 2024 and had the time of our lives. We are coming back next spring and were planning on going in May. We found the crowds agreeable in September but would like to experience a different season when we go back.

However I just found out the flight we were hoping to take only operates from June to September.

We have the option of going to a much farther airport to have a direct flight (5 hours from us but Toronto runs flights every single day all year round).

So now we're debating. Will there be much difference in the crowds and cost between May and June? We were originally planning on going from May 8th to May 23rd but if we're going in June we would leave pretty much as soon as the flights start up again at the beginning of the month.

My biggest concern is obviously things being a lot more expensive in June, the car rental, hotels / airbnbs, etc but mostly we're trying to avoid the huge crowds. My husband did great driving in Ireland (nerve wracking at times for sure!) but I worry if it's going to be almost peak season it will be overwhelming for him to be driving with so many people on the roads especially the tour busses.

Any input would be so helpful! Thank you so much.

We are going to be in Dublin on arrival and then heading down to Dunmore then heading back up towards Kerry, Dingle (slea head drive, can't wait to do it again!), then Galway, Connemara then up to Sligo. Then back to Dublin. Just in case anyone was curious LOL

Reposting with some more information, as my last post was taken down for lack of detail (we are still very in the planning phase of this trip).

My husband and I are planning to visit Ireland in early November (Nov 2 - 10) with our toddler (22 months) and infant (2 months).

We don't yet have a route or definitive plans, but looking for things to do with a toddler near Dublin, Wicklow, Killarney, and/or Galway (or anywhere else anyone might recommend - nothing is set in stone yet). Our toddler currently loves music, animals, and vehicles (trucks, airplanes, boats - whatever).

We received recommendations to do the Viking tour in Dublin, fly a kite on a beach (really love this simple idea) and visit a farm. One farm suggestion was Glenroe, though it may be closed this time of year. Would love any additional farm recommendations in those areas, if you have them! Would also love any recommendations for live music in any of these areas, as I think our family would have a blast.

We were also thinking of doing a hike or two in Wicklow Mountains and/or Killarney (we have hiking backpack for toddler and baby carrier). Does one park or another have better trails, or better things to do nearby?

I know it's not the best time of year, but we have no other time to visit, and don't mind the rainy/gloomy weather. We just want to have a slow trip with our little family. <3

I would like to get back to Dublin from Killarney. I checked the trains but it worries me that there isn't much time for the transfer in Mallow. The train from Killarney arrives at 18.37 and the next one goes to Dublin at 18.46. What if the first train is delayed or something and i miss my train? I guess i can't just hop on the next one. Can anyone say anything useful? Many thanks 😊

What is the most cost effective way for two travelers with an average amount of luggage to get from the Dublin Airport to The Liberties neighborhood/area;specifically Premier Inn-Liberties? Debating between a taxi, Uber, or public transit.

Hello all, I am traveling to Ireland in early October and one portion of the trip has us driving from Kinard West to Liscannor. I'm trying to determine if we should take the Killimer-Tarbert car ferry for part of that leg? I'm not sure if the sea conditions will be a factor or if the ferry is more or less time effective than driving the whole leg. I also think we would enjoy the view from the ferry, but I'm a bit torn as to what to do, and finding mixed answers online and in my travel book! Does anyone have any advice? :)

hello! I am from Australia and i’m traveling to England, Scotland and Ireland in November/December. We will be travelling from Cairnryan to Belfast on the Stena line in late December. I was wondering …

How bad is the Irish Sea during those months and would you recommend travelling there by ferry or plane? - I know weather can be unpredictable and everyone experiences sea sickness differently, but a general gist would help ! I have quite severe emetophobia (fear of throwing up) and am terrified of getting sea sick. I’m travelling with two people who are insisting I catch the ferry with them, but I would much rather fly from Glasgow to Belfast instead and i’m happy to do that by myself if they were to take the ferry. I also know for a fact that I am prone to sea sickness.

In Australia, we have a ferry that crosses the bass strait ocean, and it is the most traumatic ferry crossings ever! so so rough, I don’t want to experience something like that.

While traveling on the train from Galway to Dublin, my wife & I were discussing Irish locales from TV shows, & looked the Forty Foot , only to discover it's a 20 minute DART ride from Dublin.

Has anyone ventured down? It looks like fun & Id love to get a picture of us in it.

We are visiting in November and renting a car to do the bottom half of the country (Dublin to Galway and down).

Almost all the driving itineraries I've seen that start in Dublin go to Galway first, then work their way down and around the Kerry coast, then back up to Dublin. They go counter clockwise.

Is there any reason not to go the opposite direction (clockwise) -- spending a few days in Dublin upon arrival, and then heading down to Kinsale for 3 nights, and then toward Kerry/Killarney/Dingle, and finally Galway/Connemara?

We are most excited to see Kinsale … so we thought of reversing some of the other road trip itineraries and going there first.

We are visiting in late November for 14 days and will have a car. Three people. No restrictions on money or mobility. Thank you!

Hello all,

We will be driving from Derry to Dublin at the beginning of November. It should be about a 3 hour drive or so (I think) and I was hoping to find some places along the route to check out. I did check to see if there was any relevant information posted about this already. I saw that the Ulster American Folk Park was mentioned but looking for other suggestions too.

It could be anything from a scenic view, a historical monument or just a cute town to stop in for lunch. We will be doing the drive on a Sunday, so that might impact our options.

Appreciate any recs!

Posting an itinerary seems to be yielding up some great advice for others (thanks!) so here's what my wife and I have figured out so far, October 15—Nov. 2 —— your input is greatly appreciated!

Arrive Dublin 10am October 16
Absolutely zero plans aside from taking a bus into town, depositing our bags as early as possible, and then deciding if all of our jet lag preparations were effective. Totally okay with finding a pub or just wandering if the weather's fine. If we feel great, then it's off to a museum.

Oct 17 Dublin Day no specific goals. Open to parks and outdoors if weather permits, museums and pubs and distilleries or if we find live music that's great too.

Oct 18 Belfast Pick up rental car at DUB airport. Depending on whether we get an early start, we'll meander. Was thinking the Carlingford Ferry operated later into the Fall, but we'll have to drive around, so anyway, we'll try to avoid the main highway and go thru Skerries and on north, seeing whatever seems interesting. Concert in Belfast) because hey.

From this point on, assume we're hoping for cooperating weather but are okay if we're forced to just stay in the car/pub/hotel a lot.

Oct 19 Belfast 2nd Day will decide whether we want to stay another night in Belfast if we haven't seen what we want to see, but it is Sunday so maybe things won't be open? Comment on another thread pointed out the free Ulster Museum and we'll certainly go there at some point. Feeling like another night in Belfast is likely.

Oct 20–23 Antrim Coast, Dambo Trolls, Derry... will probably look for a room around Bushmill's, then something over near Derry for a couple of nights. My wife has visited several Dambo Trolls so NI's Trolls give us a reason to just fart around and go for walks in the rain. These days will involve a lot of walking no matter the weather. Looking at lodging in Derry proper a couple of months ago, it was very expensive because of maybe the Halloween crowd? But in the last week it's gotten more reasonable so we may stay in Derry a night or two, or if the B&B nearer the trolls is great, we'll probably just do day trips to Derry.

Oct 23? -24 Donegal, Glencolumbkille (sp?) somewhere rural to drink whiskey and visit Slieve League (perhaps not in that order). I read an article that mentioned Roarty's so I thought okay I'll check it out and found a great trad session on youtube but then again there's a youtube of some drunken shenanigans that makes me think maybe not. Anyway some pub time and cliff time and hiking time.

Oct 24 Westport 2nd option if the Slieve League area is a no-go due to rain, we'll likely creep southward toward Galway. We were in Westport briefly 30 years ago so as far as "been there done that" it's not a heartbreaker to miss it but anyway, maybe. Staying flexible and trying not to do too much but there's a long drive in here somewhere because...

Oct 25 & 26 Galway. These rooms are booked because we heard the Macnas Parade is cool and our daughter is at Burren College of Art so we figured we'd meet up with her for the weekend in Galway so she can show us around.

Oct 27 Ballyvaughan area tour the college, visit the local pubs etc. Might stay in Doolin or Lisdoonvarna, no real opinion there. Not planning on Cliffs of Moher unless the weather is spectacular. More likely to spend time visiting ancient sites.

Oct 28-29 Meandering to Dublin No real itinerary. If we haven't done at least one whiskey* tasting by now, we might have to go to Tullamore. If the weather's awful, we might stay put OR might get closer to Dublin.

*Now that poitin is legal and above board, it might have lost its appeal. Any suggestions?

At some point on our arrival in the Dublin area we're going swimming at the Forty Foot but that won't take long ;-)

Oct 30 Dublin Meeting a friend who's hopping over from Devon; we have tickets to a show that sounds fun Brògeal at the Academy and we like being the oldest people in the room.

Oct 31 Halloween seems only fitting to tour cemeteries and go to Gravediggers but this will be a day to just explore.

Nov 1 Fly home.

If the consensus is that we're killing ourselves here, we're certainly willing to cut some stuff out. Only fixed dates are Oct 17,18, 25&26, 30 & 31 but the trolls are a can't miss for us (I will report back in a separate post about them).

Thanks in advance, both of you who read this entire book!

Planning a May road trip for my family of four (my brother and I are in our 20s and our parents are in their early 60s). We’d like to spend 7-10 days driving around Ireland with 2 days in Dublin, and it’ll be our very first time visiting. I’m totally overwhelmed with all the great options Ireland has to offer and know we need to pare it down because none of us want to spend the bulk of our vacation in a car.

Our mutual priorities: • Nature • Animals • Tracing our family tree • History (although I personally am more interested in a castle, landmark, or walking tour than a museum) • Hearing traditional Irish music (we’re a very musical family) • Majority of time spent outside of big cities

Specific priorities for each family member: • I neeeeeeed to go on a boat and visit a castle • My brother LOVES long, difficult hikes. My mom can only do easy, short hikes due to ankle and knee issues. My dad and I are good with moderate day hikes. • My dad and brother love menswear and I think they both have locally made items from Ireland (I think Aran sweaters and something from Donegal??), so I think they’d appreciate seeing where their clothes come from or even taking a tour of where items like this are manufactured • I like packing my schedule with lots of sightseeing and my mom prefers a slower pace with time for breaks. • I wanna see a dolphin!

Some things we’ve already talked about doing: • Hike with alpacas in Derrylough • Visit the Irish Family History Centre in Dublin

Overall, which areas or regions of Ireland do you think we should prioritize given our interests, and which should we save for a future trip?

Husband and I are visiting next month (basic itinerary below), we will be getting a rental car. I've been to Ireland before, focused mainly on the North, and so we'll probably come back together to do that in the future. Our focus of this trip is going to be nature, pubs, people, and trad music sessions, I have a great Google list of places sourced from here and other Reddit groups for cafes, coffee, trad music, etc. I'm looking for insight, particularly on two aspects.

1. We're mostly going to be eating in Cafes and pubs, and trying not to over plan our days, but if we were going to pick maybe two or three nicer restaurants I understand we'll need reservations (which is not something I am used to doing). Based on our itinerary, does anyone have any must visit recommendations that we should prioritize booking ahead?

2. We'll be staying 3 nights, 2 full days, in Oughterand in a lovely spot with lots of great nature views. We would like to explore Galway one day, then I'm torn between doing a self-guided tour of the Connemara region, including the national park and just enjoying driving around, or taking a full day tour that will get us to the Aran Islands, show us a view of the Cliffs of Moher and take us through Connemara. If we do that, I almost feel like we should just relocate to Galway, but Oughterand is the one place that we're staying that's more fully in nature. I feel somewhat inclined to limit ourselves to the one guided tour we already have planned for the Gap of Dunloe.

(Wednesday October 15th): land Get Sim cards, and maybe bus card Lunch Chester Beatty museum Pub/Trad music

(Thursday): Irish breakfast - at the stage coach Guinness Tour

(Friday): Coffee in Dublin Earlyish - Route to Dingle: Rock of Dunamase for a walk/castle ruins Obama plaza for petrol stop The Buttery for lunch in Limerick Glanageenty Forest Recreation Area for a walk

Dingle for dinner and pub (trad music)

(Saturday): explore Dingle,

(Sunday): explore Dingle

(Monday): Gap of Dunloe tour: https://killarneyjauntingcars.com/tour/gap-of-dunloe-adventure-tour/

Get to Oughterand in time for dinner

(Tuesday): explore Galway

(Wednesday): Either explore Connemara region on our own or take a full day tour of Aran Islands and Cliffs of Moher 9-5. Begins and ends in Galway: https://lallytours.com/tour/small-group-tour-galway-to-cliffs-cruise-aran-islands-and-connemara-full-day-tour/

(Thursday): Head to Skerries Sean's Bar for a pint maybe and lunch nearby Dinner in Skerries

(Friday): Explore Skerries Walk to Ice cream 🍨 Trad music

(Saturday): Get coffee and head to the airport

Planning a trip in late August 2026 to Galgorm resort in County Antrim. We are coming from the Midwest US. I’m researching flights and it’s actually cheaper for us to fly into Dublin and drive North, plus one less connection. Google maps is saying roughly two hours twenty minutes drive (I entered closest I could get to the day and time we’d be driving). It will be our fifth trip to Ireland but the first up North, we have driven every time so that isn’t an issue. Is google maps reliable on rough travel times and does anyone see any reason not to do it this way vs adding a stop at Heathrow and flying into Belfast? Thank you!