An Epic Ireland Road Trip

We arrived in Dublin midday after a long, overnight flight. We picked up our rental car and hit the road to our first destination: Kilkenny, Ireland. Kilkenny is a smaller city about two hours south of Dublin. It’s a great spot to stay for a couple days and explore, or it could also be a great pit stop on your way down to Cork. By the time we got to the city and checked into our hotel, we were hungry and decided to head out and find a spot for dinner. There are many great restaurants and pubs in Kilkenny to choose from. Whether you’re staying here for a few days or just stopping by on a road trip, definitely take time to stop in at a local pub and grab a pint. After dinner and a little sightseeing, we were pretty exhausted from traveling and decided to head back to the hotel and call it a night. We stayed at the Kilkenny Ormonde Hotel because of its great location right in town. The hotel is within walking distance to everything and was also very close to all of the various St. Patrick’s Day festivities that we came to be a part of.

On day 2, we woke up refreshed and ready to explore the city. Kilkenny is small enough to walk around in. Travelers can explore on their own with plenty of great hotels, restaurants, pubs and local sites to check out. The first spot we visited in town was St. Canice's Cathedral and its round tower. This cathedral was absolutely gorgeous both inside and out. If you’re able to, I highly recommend climbing the round tower - it’s worth it for the views! After our visit to the cathedral, we did some shopping around town. This is the perfect city to go on a walking tour being there are so many shops and galleries to check out. Don’t forget to stop by a pub or two! We loved the pub scene and enjoyed chatting with the local bartenders. Most of the pubs were very family friendly as well.

We stayed an extra day in Kilkenny to be a part of the city's St. Patrick's Day festivities. If you come to Ireland to be a part of this celebration, Kilkenny is a great spot since it's a smaller city and offers a more family-friendly celebration. They had a parade, street performers and tons of activities for children to get involved in. We watched the parade, enjoyed traditional Irish music at numerous pubs around the city and spent some time exploring the Kilkenny Castle. If you only have one day in Kilkenny, this castle should be on your must-see list. It's located right in town and offers both guided and self tours. We opted to explore the castle and grounds on our own. Bonus: if you are here for St. Patrick's Day, the castle comes to life with green lights and plenty of fun activities to be a part of.

On day four, we checked out of our hotel and hit the road early to begin driving to the next stop on our family road trip: Killarney, Ireland and Killarney National Park. It takes about three hours to drive here from Kilkenny, so we planned some sightseeing along the way. The drive itself was gorgeous, even on a rainy day in March. Everything in Ireland is so lush and green and the countryside was absolutely breathtaking.

Our first stop on our way to Killarney was the Rock of Cashel. This popular spot is about an hour outside of Kilkenny and a top spot for tourists. We parked our car in town and walked up the hill to check out this historic landmark. We didn’t spend a ton of time here - just enough to walk around, explore and capture some photos. Afterwards we went into town and grabbed breakfast before hitting the road again.

The second sight we stopped at on our way to Killarney was the Blarney Castle and Gardens, located just outside the city of Cork. This is a top-rated castle to visit in Ireland and a must-see if you are traveling through the southern part of the country. Definitely allow yourself at least a couple of hours to spend here - even more if you plan to wait in line to kiss the Blarney Stone. We skipped the line to kiss the stone due to the wait time being over an hour. Instead, we opted for exploring the grounds and gardens on our own. Our daughter had a blast running around and playing outside, and we captured some amazing pictures along the way. Afterwards, we continued our drive to Killarney and checked into our Airbnb for the night.

Day five was our only full day in the Killarney region, so we woke up early and got started on a drive around the Ring of Kerry. We definitely should have booked at least one more day in this region because there are so many amazing sights to see. The Ring of Kerry drive was beautiful, despite the very cloudy and rainy weather we experienced. The drive will likely take longer than you think, so make sure you plan for stops along the way (as well as slower driving due to weather and winding roads). If you have the time, you could easily spend a whole day on this drive - especially if the weather is nice. We enjoyed stopping at the beaches and lookout points along the way. If you are traveling with little ones, make sure to keep a close eye on them as there are many steep cliffs and dangerous lookouts around the ring.

We drove the full ring and ended up back in town for a late lunch. After a quick bite, we continued on our adventure and drove over to the Gap of Dunloe. This spot was probably my favorite sight on our entire trip to Ireland; definitely a must-see! The Gap of Dunloe is a narrow mountain pass that you can drive through. You can also hire a horse-drawn carriage (jaunting car) to take you through the Pass for a unique experience. The road was in good condition, but the terrain is very rough and the road is only one way traffic, with small shoulders occasionally available for letting cars pass by. The drive was a bit rough, especially with low visibility due to the weather, but it was definitely worth it for the views. The scenery is absolutely stunning and unlike anything I’ve ever seen before.

Once we made it out of the Gap of Dunloe, the day was winding down and we were ready to head back to our Airbnb for the night. We made a quick stop at Killarney Brewing and Distilling Co. for a craft cocktail to warm us up after a long day of driving and exploring in the rain.

Days 6-8 were spent in the Clifden region of Ireland, located towards the northwestern part of the country. I had hoped to make a stop at The Cliffs of Moher on our drive up here, but it was a bit out of the way and it was very foggy that day, so we opted against it. If you do have more time in this region, definitely make sure to stop at the Cliffs of Moher to check out the amazing views and capture some photos.

One of the highlights of our trip to Ireland was our stay at Abbeyglen Castle in Clifden. If you’re looking for a unique lodging experience during your Ireland adventure, I highly recommend booking a night or two at one of Ireland’s castle hotels. The property and grounds at Abbeyglen were gorgeous. The castle itself felt ancient, but the rooms had been updated with more modern amenities for comfort. This would be a great spot for couples or families - my daughter thought it was the coolest place!

Visiting castles was one of my favorite things to do on our Ireland road trip. While staying in the Clifden region, we spent a rainy afternoon exploring the grounds of Kylemore Abbey. This place is very impressive and definitely worth a stop if you spend anytime in this region.

Our last couple of days in Ireland were spent in Dublin before catching our flight back home. We had about a day and a half to explore this city, though you could easily spend numerous days here as there is so much to see and do! If you are traveling with children, I highly recommend a stop at the Dublin Zoo. We spent a couple of hours here. It was a beautiful zoo with some amazing animals. Dublin also has some great museums to check out. We chose to spend an afternoon at EPIC, the Irish Emigration Museum because my husband is Irish and we thought it would be a great opportunity for our daughter to learn about her heritage. After the museum, we made our way over to the Guinness Storehouse for a tour. Even if you aren't a beer drinker or a Guinness lover, I would highly recommend scheduling a tour of the Guinness Storehouse. It's a very fun experience and was a great way to end our time in Ireland.