A Day Trip to Dingle Peninsula, Kerry Co., Ireland

Dunquin Harbour - Dingle Peninsula

Dingle Peninsula: Ring of Kerry is a well-known destination in Ireland among tourists. However, if you are looking for dramatic views, the Dingle Peninsula is a perfect choice. With beautiful views, scenic drives and amazing cliff walks, Dingle is known for its rugged beauty. During summer months, tourists flock to Dingle. There are loads of activities like surfing, boat tours, and whale watching. 

Inch Beach

Inch Beach is a famous summer destination and is one of Ireland's blue flag beaches. But if you love the beautiful scenery and would like to have the entire place to yourself, fall is a better choice. Nothing beats a long walk on a quiet beach. Minard castle ruins are a short drive from Inch beach. The ruins are on private property and are not accessible. But there is a nice beach with smooth round rocks next to the castle.

The next stop is the Dingle town. This is the only town in the Dingle peninsula. Dingle is a cute Irish town with restaurants and bars. Dingle aquarium is a nice stop for kids. Though the aquarium is not big, it has a good variety of fish in the display. The famous Murphy's ice cream shop is a short walk from the aquarium. Dingle sailing club is right across the aquarium. Boat tours to Blasket Islands start from this yacht club during summer months.

Dingle Oceanworld Aquarium

Slea Head Drive starts from Dingle town. It is most definitely one of the best scenic drives in Ireland. The views are breathtaking and with several lookout points.

Cross at Slea Head

Coumeenoole beach is just a short drive from the cross. Park the car and walk down the stone stairs to reach the beautiful beach. Coumeenoole beach is a gorgeous little beach with pristine views and strong waves. I find that the water in Ireland to be cold even in the summertime. But, you can see a lot of people enjoying the views and playing in water even in colder months.

Coumeenoole Beach

Dunmore Head is the most westerly point in Europe. Hike up to the cliff opposite the beach to reach Dunmore Head. The hike is steep and runs through pastures. It will take around half an hour to reach the top of the cliff. The views from the top are unparallel and well worth the effort.

Picnic Bench in The Middle of Rugged Beauty

Basket Island Ferries run from Dunquin Harbour every day during summer months. They offer day tours and ferry services to Blasket Islands. For an average tourist, Ireland is hard to reach and not convenient. Hence it's beauty is well preserved. If you want to be one with nature, and if you seek solitude and peace, Wild Atlantic Way in Ireland is your answer.

Dunquin Harbour

Clogher Head

A Day Trip to Ring of Kerry, Kerry Co., Ireland

Ring of Kerry: The Ring of Kerry is a well-known tourist destination in Ireland. The Ring generally starts and ends at Killarney. Cork is the nearest airport to Killarney. Private tours and tour buses run throughout the year from all major cities. Even though renting a car in Ireland is painful, driving is the best way to see the Ring of Kerry. The tour buses start at Killarney and go around the ring in the counter-clockwise direction. If you are planning on driving, go around the ring in a clockwise direction so that you can avoid spending time behind a tour bus. A quick tour around the Ring is about 200km and would take about a day. But you can easily spend a day in Killarney, a day driving the ring and a day visiting Skellig Michael in summer months.

Torc Waterfalls

Killarney: You can reach Killarney the day before and have a good night's sleep at one of the many hotels. On the day of the trip, pack a good amount of snacks for the road. Killarney National Park and the surrounding areas alone would take a day to visit. Ross Castle is a 15th-century castle on the banks of Killarney lake. A quick tour of the castle and boat tour of Lough Leane is a good addition to the itinerary. Muckross House is a 19th-century mansion with gardens and working farms. A short visit to Muckross House is time well spent. Kerry Mountains are a short distance from Killarney National Park. There are a lot of walking and hiking trails around the mountains. Cronin's Yard is a good place to park the car and hike the beautiful Kerry Mountains. The gap of Dunloe and wishing bridge are magical places to visit.

Ladies View

Ladies View & Molls Gap: If short on time, a shortstop at Torc waterfalls, Ladies View and Molls Gap would suffice. For a day trip around the ring, the best route is to take N71 from Killarney to Kenmare, drive on N70 around the ring till Killorglin and follow N72 from Killorglin to Killarney.

Molls Gap

Ring of Kerry Map

Kenmare & Sneem: Kenmare and Sneem are two cute Irish villages along the ring and are good stops for a quick bite. There are several B&B, golf courses along the way. Keep an eye out for lookout points and beautiful beaches. During summer months, Glenbeg caravan park is very popular with the campers.

Glenbeg Caravan and Camping Park

Scarriff Island Viewpoint

Skellig Ring: Skellig Ring is a link to the Ring of Kerry. At Kenneigh, take a left on to R567 and head towards Ballinskelligs. Ballinskelligs is a small village with beautiful secluded beaches. A short ride from Ballinskelligs takes you to a small village of Keel. With a beautiful beach of St. Finian's Bay and Skelligs Chocolate factory at a walkable distance, Keel is a fantastic choice to spend a few hours.

Ballinskelligs

St.Finian's Bay

Kerry Cliffs: They might not be as popular as Cliffs of Moher but they are still beautiful to visit. 

Kerry Cliffs

Portmagee & Valentia Island: Skellig Ring ends at Pormagee. During summer months, several tour operators run regular tours from Portmagee to Skellig Michael. Valentia Island has rich geological resources and is reachable by the bridge only from Portmagee. A slate quarry, lighthouse, and beautiful views attract visitors to this island.

From Portmagee, follow R565 towards N70-North. If time permits, visit the Bog village museum on your way to Killorglin. At Killorglin, take N72 towards Killarney.

2 Days in Dublin With Kids (Not Guinness), Dublin Co., Ireland

When one thinks of visiting Dublin, the obvious choice would be to tour Guinness, a bunch of distilleries and pub crawl at the Temple Bar. But if you are traveling with kids, these choices might not be very appealing to all audiences. Dublin has a variety of family-friendly places to visit.

River Liffey: River Liffey flows through Dublin and is the best place to spend an afternoon. There are multiple bike rental places accessible to tourists. Several tours have starting points near River Liffey.  The Famine sculptures and a guided tour of Jeanie Johnston Tall Ship gives an insight into the hardships faced by people during the Irish famine. A cast-iron pedestrian bridge across river Liffey also knows as Ha'penny Bridge, is the oldest bridge in Dublin. It is an easy walk across the bridge to reach the other side of the city. However, Beckett bridge is much cooler in appearance. 

Butler's Chocolate Factory: Click here for the full post. Butler's Chocolate Factory tour was a huge hit with kids. Try to pre-book a tour on a weekday. Chocolate production is down during weekends and hence there won't be much to see on a weekend. Decorating a chocolate elephant was a sweet ending to the tour.

Dublin Zoo: Another kid's favorite. The area is huge and the grounds are well maintained. The habitat is designed specifically to suit the animals. Wild lights display during Christmas is amazing to see.

Merrion Square: Another fun place to visit. Stephan's green is good but Merrion square is awesome. As my kids say, Merrion Square is funky fun. The odd sculptures, swings and play areas are super fun for kids. 

Natural History Museum: Natural History Museum is right across the road from Merrion Square and the entry is free. A mid-size museum with animal and bird exhibits. Groud floor exhibits are predominantly local to Ireland. While the 2nd-floor exhibits are taxidermy exotic wild animals. A very good place for kids to visit.

Trinity College & Book of Kells: Book of Kells is right in the middle of Trinity College. Some find Book of Kells expensive. But strolling through the college grounds is a good way to spend a few hours. 

Howth Village and Cliff Walk: Click here for the detailed post. Howth Village is about an hour from Dublin. A cute village with beautiful views of the Irish Sea.

Toy Soldier Factory, Macroom, Co. Cork, Ireland

Toy Soldier Factory is an hour away from Cork city center. It had been established in Ireland since 1976 and this is Europe's only toy soldier factory. This is a very good find in the West Cork area. It is one of the best ways for families to spend a rainy afternoon away from gadgets. This can be a nice family fun activity where kids and adults get to cast their own metal toys and paint them too. The factory is in an informal setting. The visitor center is also a gift center with a variety of toy soldiers beautifully painted and meticulously arranged. One can walk in and browse the store to one's heart content. They sell chess sets which were adorable but very expensive for me. 

Perfect Toy Chess Set 

The back story from Irish Examiner is that a newlywed couple named Lars and Gunilla Edman traveled thousands of miles from Sweden to a sleepy town in west Cork with their two die making machines and started toy soldier factory in 1976. Casting toy soldiers was a Swedish hobby for young boys aged 7-12 years old. But, today it has visitors, young and old, from all over the world and helps visitors make cherished memories.

Witch Fairy Face-Off

At the start of our visit, the receptionist at the visitor center demonstrated the casting process and kids got to choose their figures to cast from the display board. She was very patient and helped kids through the casting process. It took around 90 seconds for the casting to set. Once the casting is set, she applied primer to the cast and we were ready to paint. I was very happy with the final product and we will be using them during Halloween and Christmas going forward.

The Battle of Waterloo

The second part of our visit was the display of the Battle of Waterloo. A nominal fee of 3€ per adult is paid to visit the display. One of the rooms inside the toy soldier factory has a huge foam table on which the battle of Waterloo is displayed. A 15 min documentary gives an insight into the Battle of Waterloo. On Sunday 18 June 1815, the battle was fought between Anglo- Duch army and Prussian army against French forces. The French army was under the leadership of Napoleon. The defeat of the battle marked the end of Napoleon-era. This battle played an important role in European history and led Europe towards a peaceful path. The documentary was brief yet clear enough to understand the context and importance of this battle in European history.

A 500-Man Battalion Squares Formed By British Army

 

Anglo-Duch & Prussian Army vs French Army 

Cobh - A Beautiful Seaport Town, Co. Cork, Ireland

Cobh (pronounced as Cove), a colorful Irish port town on the south coast of Ireland and is only half an hour away from Cork city center. Briefly from 1849 - 1920, Cobh was called Queenstown to commemorate Queen Victoria's visit to Ireland. After independence from England, its name is changed to Cobh (Cove in Irish). This town played a very important role as an emigration hub in Ireland's history.

Cobh Heritage Center - The Irish Emigration Story: Heritage Center has many emigration stories to tell.  Between 1850 - 1950 over 2.5 million Irish emigrated from Cobh port to Australia, USA, Argentina, Brazil in search of better lives. Under British rule, many convicts were transported as forced labor to the West Indies and many other colonies in sailboats. Cobh Heritage Center depicts the dire conditions under which Irish traveled and hardships endured by them to reach faraway places in search of a better life. The sinking of Titanic and Lusitania was the major wreckage Cobh had seen. Cobh was the Titanic's last port of call where 123 passengers boarded the ship. A section of exhibits is dedicated to Titanic and the passengers that boarded Titanic in Cobh.

"Forgotten Irish" @ The Heritage Center

Servia Model

Annie Moore Monument:

Annie Moore With Her Two Brothers

The Statue of Annie Moore and her two brothers is at the cruise ship dock on the quay. Annie Moore and her two brothers sailed on SSNevada from Cobh to New York on Dec 20th, 1891. They reached New York on Jan 1st, 1892 and Annie Moore was the first immigrant to be processed on the newly opened immigration center in Ellis Island, USA. 

St. Coleman's Cathedral:

Alter - St. Coleman Cathedral, Cobh

St. Coleman's Cathedral stands tall overlooking Cobh's town center. It is hard to miss this beautifully detailed gothic structure. Walking uphill from the town center to the cathedral is a bit challenging. The Gothic exterior and interior architecture of the cathedral are beautiful. Entry is free and there are few free tours of the cathedral as well. Starting in 1868, this cathedral took 47 years to be built. Choirs from around the world perform their Recitals at this cathedral. The cathedral's organ has 2468 pipes is under renovation at present. The light filtered through the beautiful stain glass windows around the cathedral is a feast for the eyes.

Organ @ The St. Coleman's Cathedral

West View/ Stack of Deck:

Stack of Deck

A short walk from St. Coleman's Cathedral in West View, a beautiful row of century-old houses. The houses are stacked upon an impossibly steep hill. Apparently, each house is supported by the lower house and hence the name Stack of Deck.

Stroll Through The Town Center:

Cobh's beautiful town center has a good collection of restaurants, pubs, ice cream shops, and gift stores. Several walking tours start from the city center. However, the best views of Cobh city center are from the sea. Sailing, kayaking, and boat tours are available from the pier. Sonia O' Sullivan's bronze statue and Lusitania memorial are two quick stops on our stroll. During the time of the first world war, Lusitania was transporting passengers between Liverpool and New York. On its voyage back from New York, on May 7th, 1915, the liner was 16km away from Old Head of Kinsale when it was struck by a torpedo from the German U boat. Within 18 min, the ship sank killing 1198 people. Only 761 people were rescued. Cobh (then Queenstown) had to deal with the aftermath of the disaster. 

Colorful Cobh Town Center

John F Kennedy Memorial Park

However, my favorite thing to do is grab an ice cream from Scoops and head over to John F Kennedy memorial park. Relax and watch the boats passing by as kids let loose in the park's play area.

Titanic Memorial Garden:

The Memorial is a short walk away from the town center. A small yet colorful garden with beautiful views of Cobh harbor. It is the best place to enjoy some quiet time in the town. As a last Europian port town, Cobh has witnessed many traumatic shipwrecks in the past. Titanic was one of the shipwrecks with major casualties. 123 people boarded the Titanic in Cobh port on its maiden voyage from Southampton to New York. Only 44 survived the Wreckage and reached New York.  This is a perfect place to pay homage to all the lives lost and reflect be thankful for the modern means of transport.  We skipped Titanic Cobh Experience on purpose as we are heading to Belfast and I am excited to visit Titanic Belfast.

Burren National Park, The Cliffs of Moher & Aran Islands, Co. Clare, Co. Galway, Ireland

Burren National Park: Burren comes from the Irish word 'Boíreann' meaning the rocky place and it appropriately suites the terrain. Burren National Park is 10 minutes away from Corofin village, County Clare but the terrain extends till Cliffs of Moher and to Aran Islands as well. This lunar-like landscape is out of this world. The National Park is 30 km to the East of Cliffs of Moher. But if you cannot make it this far, there are Burren mini-cliffs on the way to Doolin from Cliffs of Moher. 

Burren National Park

The National Park has several marked walking trails for the visitors to explore. The easiest of all with reasonably good views is the White Arrow Walking trail. Feel free to install the Burren app from the iTunes app store to help you through the trail. White Arrow Trail is a 1.5 km loop that passes through Ash/ Hazel woodland, on to limestone pavement, and ends in vast meadows with limestone mountains as a backdrop.

Burren Mountains - View From N67

If you are feeling a bit adventurous and have the stamina to hike these monstrous limestone mountains, there are many challenging trails like red /green /blue routes. Corofin is a very small and remote Irish village and Burren National park information center is in the village. There are no facilities in and around the national park as such. These humongous mountains can be viewed as you drive towards the cliffs or towards Galway on N67.

White Arrow Walking Trail  - Burren National Park

Burren Center which is different from Burren National Park is in Kilfenora and is often confused with Burren National Park. We drove towards Cliffs of Moher next and on the way dropped by at Vaughan's pub in Kilfenora which was an oasis. Tasty food and a glass of stout beer are all you could ask for after a strenuous hike in the National Park.

A Hearty Meal at Vaughns Pub, Kilfenora

The Cliffs of Moher - Cliff Walk

The Cliffs of Moher: The Cliffs of Moher is one of the popular destinations of Ireland. And there is a very good reason why it is so popular. Always plan a visit on a clear summer day. According to The Cliffs of Moher website, these cliffs were formed 319 million years ago and the highest point is 702 feet from the Atlantic Ocean. Feels like they have been around forever. One more reason not to miss these cliffs on your next visit to Ireland. Views were magnificent at sunset when the sunlight hits the cliffs. As you pass the visitor center, towards the right is O'Brien's Tower, and towards the left is the coastal cliff walk. Finish cliff walks first and then visit the tower later in the day. However, if you are planning to walk the 8km trail to Doolin, it starts from O'Brien's tower. 

The Stack - Up Close From Ferry Ride

Visiting the cliffs is never complete without taking a ferry ride. Cliffs of Moher ferries leave from Doolin regularly. We booked Aran Island and Cliffs of Moher cruise combination from doolin2aranferries. If you are short on time, there are a one hour Cliffs of Moher cruise too. I enjoyed the cruise much more than the cliff walk. Read my full post on Cliffs of Moher here.

After the cliffs, the night stop was at Kinvara village and then to Aran Islands the next day.

Aran Islands:

The Aran name is well known and often associated with Aran woolen wear. Aran Islands is a cluster of 3 rocky islands Inishmore (Ínís Mór), Inishmaan (Ínís Meáín) and Inisheer (Ínís Oírr) to the west of Cliffs of Moher.  The largest and more popular of all is Inishmore. Irish is still spoken widely by the inhabitants of these islands. Ferries from Doolin and Galway take visitors to these islands regularly. During the summer months, these islands are full of visitors from all over the world. All three islands have B&Bs, gift shops, restaurants, and the Aran sweater market. But pack a lot of food as the restaurants are clustered in the main areas.

Dún Aonghasa - Cliff Edge, Inishmore

All these three islands are rocky and mostly barren except for the moss and grass. It takes around an hour of the ferry ride from Doolin to Inishmore. We visited Inishmore as it had many places to visit. Even though Island can be visited in a day, staying overnight would give enough time to explore the island properly. Once on the island, visitors have a choice to explore the island on foot / by bicycle / by horse-drawn carriage or by a tourist van. 

Stone Walls In The Island - Inishmore

As we walked out of the ferry, tour vas was available for hire. We visited in the summer months of July. With scorching heat and 2 kids, hiring a van was a no-brainer. The tour of the island cost around 10€ per person. Our tour guide, who also happened to be a native of that island, gave an in-depth tour of the island and we got to hear him talk in Irish as well. 

Stone Walls - Inishmore

Island dwelling, especially in the remote parts and with harsh weather is not an easy task. Even the basic goods are hard to come by and critical medical care becomes a luxury. Man of Aran was filmed on this island. It is a fictional documentary filmed in 1934 depicting the hardships of daily routines like fishing, farming on the Aran Islands. Our guide pointed out all the filming locations and advised us to watch the movie.

The Seven Churches - Inishmore

Inishmore is famous for its ancient stone forts and churches. Seven churches are one of the prominent sites and ancient ruins of churches. The churchyard has graves of several families that live on the island. Whichever island you choose to visit, they all have beautiful beaches to spend an afternoon in.

Kilmurvey Beach - Inishmore

The most impressive stone fort in Inishmore is Dún Aonghasa. Perched on the edge of a cliff, is an 1100 BC fort with stunning views and equally dangerous cliffs. This is the only fort with an on-site visitor center. 1km hike to the top of the hill is quite challenging. The path was rocky, slippery, and steep. The rocky cliffs are quite dramatic with a 100ft drop into the Atlantic.  

100 ft Plunge Into The Atlantic Ocean - Dún Aonghasa, Inishmore

Hike Up The Hill - Dún Aonghasa, Inishmore

There are no barriers and visitors can go to the very edge of the cliff. Strong winds make it even more dangerous. According to many tourists, the best way to see is lie flat on your tummy and get a good view. The views are to die for. I overheard a visitor joking about Irish sending their kids to the cliff and only the brightest return. 

Cliff Edge & Beautiful Views, Inishmore

Inisheer is the smallest of all three islands and popular after Inishmore. It is an outcrop of the Burren landscape with abundant flora and fauna. It is a heaven for bird lovers. With some of the best beaches, this island attracts an equally large number of tourists. The famous places of interest are O'Brien's castle, The Plassey shipwreck, Inish Oirr lighthouse, and beautiful beaches. Don't worry if you can't visit the island in a single visit. You can see Plassey Shipwreck, beaches, and the castle from the ferry. 

O' Brien Castle & Beach - Inisheer