Start in Cork, Ireland's second city and self-proclaimed "real capital." Visit the English Market (a Victorian covered market where Queen Elizabeth II shopped in 2011) for artisan cheeses, smoked fish, and spiced beef — a Cork specialty. The city is compact and walkable, with excellent pubs and restaurants along the River Lee.
Drive west to Bantry Bay and onto the Beara Peninsula, the quietest of Kerry's three peninsulas. The Healy Pass road (R574) climbs through wild mountain scenery, with sheep wandering across the single-track road and views stretching to both coasts. Stop in the village of Eyeries, a row of houses painted in every color of the rainbow against a backdrop of grey sea and green hills. Take the cable car to Dursey Island, Ireland's only cable car, which swings across a churning strait with nothing but ocean between you and America.
Stay: Sheen Falls Lodge (luxury) or Brooklane Hotel (mid-range) in Kenmare.
Drive the Ring of Kerry (N70), Ireland's most famous scenic drive, counterclockwise to avoid tour buses (they travel clockwise by convention). The road winds through Caherdaniel, where you can visit Derrynane House (Daniel O'Connell's ancestral home) and swim at Derrynane Beach — often voted Ireland's best. Continue through Waterville, where Charlie Chaplin used to holiday (his statue stands on the seafront), to Portmagee.
From Portmagee, weather permitting, take a boat to Skellig Michael — a 6th-century monastic settlement on a rock pyramid 12 km offshore in the Atlantic. The 618 stone steps to the beehive huts on the summit are vertiginous, and the sense of isolation is profound. This UNESCO site doubled as Luke Skywalker's refuge in the Star Wars sequels, but the real thing is far more impressive than any film. Book months in advance — only 180 visitors per day are permitted.
Eat: The Moorings in Portmagee for seafood chowder and brown bread before or after the Skellig trip. Jack's Coastguard Restaurant in Cromane for modern Irish cooking.
Stay: Butler Arms Hotel in Waterville or Portmagee Heights B&B.
Cross the mountains to the Dingle Peninsula via the Conor Pass (R560), the highest mountain pass in Ireland. The views from the top on a clear day extend across Dingle Bay to the Iveragh Peninsula. Descend to Dingle town, a fishing port with more pubs per capita than almost anywhere in Ireland and a thriving traditional music scene. Hear live trad music in O'Flaherty's or Dick Mack's (a pub that's also a shoe shop).
Drive the Slea Head loop (R559) for some of Ireland's most dramatic coastal scenery — beehive huts, the Blasket Island viewpoint, and Coumeenoole Beach where the movie Ryan's Daughter was filmed. Continue north through Tralee, cross the Shannon by ferry from Tarbert to Killimer, and drive to the Cliffs of Moher — 214 meters of vertical cliff face with the Atlantic thundering below. Walk south along the cliff path (away from the visitor center) for quieter views and nesting seabirds.
Stay: Hotel & Spa Doolin (near the Cliffs) or Sea View House in Doolin.
Explore the Burren, a lunar landscape of bare limestone pavement where Arctic and Mediterranean wildflowers grow side by side in the crevices — a botanical anomaly found nowhere else. Visit the Poulnabrone Dolmen, a 5,000-year-old portal tomb on the karst, and the Aillwee Cave. The Burren Perfumery distills fragrances from local wildflowers and has a pleasant café.
Drive north through Galway — Ireland's most vibrant small city, with buskers on Shop Street, oyster bars in the Latin Quarter, and the Claddagh district where the famous ring originated. Continue west into Connemara, a wilderness of bog, mountain, and lake where Irish is still the daily language. Drive the Sky Road loop from Clifden for views of the island-studded coast, visit Kylemore Abbey (a neo-Gothic castle now run by Benedictine nuns), and walk on the white-sand beach at Dog's Bay.
Eat: Kai Restaurant in Galway for locally sourced seasonal cooking, or McDonagh's for fish and chips (cod from Galway Bay).
Stay: Ballynahinch Castle Hotel (Connemara) or Abbeyglen Castle Hotel (Clifden).
Drive through Westport, a Georgian town at the head of Clew Bay consistently voted Ireland's best town to live in. If you're feeling energetic, climb Croagh Patrick (764m), Ireland's holy mountain, for views over the 365 islands of Clew Bay. The pilgrimage up the rocky path takes about 3 hours return.
Continue north to Achill Island, connected to the mainland by a bridge. The Atlantic Drive loop is spectacular — abandoned Famine-era villages, sea cliffs, and beaches that could be Caribbean if you ignore the temperature. Keem Bay, at the western tip, is a perfect horseshoe of golden sand between two headlands.
Drive on to County Sligo, "Yeats Country," where the poet drew inspiration from Ben Bulben's distinctive flat-topped profile, Lough Gill, and the mystical Knocknarea cairn. Visit Drumcliffe churchyard where Yeats is buried beneath Ben Bulben, his epitaph reading: "Cast a cold eye on life, on death. Horseman, pass by."
Stay: The Glasshouse Hotel in Sligo or Coopershill House (Georgian country house).
County Donegal is Ireland's best-kept secret — the least touristed county on the Wild Atlantic Way, with some of its most spectacular scenery. Drive to Slieve League, where sea cliffs nearly three times the height of the Cliffs of Moher (601 meters) plunge into the Atlantic. The narrow "One Man's Pass" along the cliff ridge is not for the faint-hearted.
Continue around the coast through Ardara (a center for hand-woven Donegal tweed), Dungloe, and the Bloody Foreland, where the granite headlands glow red at sunset. Drive the remote Horn Head loop near Dunfanaghy for 200-meter cliffs and seabird colonies, then cross to Fanad Head, where a whitewashed lighthouse stands on a rocky peninsula — the most photographed lighthouse in Ireland.
End in Malin Head, the northernmost point of the Irish mainland, where wild Atlantic waves crash against ancient rock formations. From here you can return south to Belfast or Dublin, or continue exploring the Inishowen Peninsula, where forts, beaches, and standing stones line nearly every road.
Driving tip: Irish roads range from excellent motorways to single-track boreens (country lanes) where you'll need to reverse into passing places. Drive on the left. Speed limits are in km/h in the Republic. Rural petrol stations may close early — fill up when you can. Rain is inevitable — bring layers and a waterproof jacket.
For multi-country trips, pick up and return the car in the same country to avoid expensive one-way drop-off fees (often €200-500).
| Item | Estimated Cost |
|---|---|
| Rental car (14 days, compact) | €450-700 |
| Fuel (petrol, 2,500 km) | €280-380 |
| Tolls (M50, Shannon ferry) | €30-45 |
| Accommodation (13 nights mid-range) | €1,100-1,800 |
| Food (meals for 2 people) | €700-1,100 |
| Activities (Skellig boat, Cliffs entry, abbey) | €120-200 |
| Parking fees | €20-40 |
Country-by-country driving requirements, packing list, and emergency contacts — all in one PDF.
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Country-by-country driving requirements, packing list, and emergency contacts — all in one PDF.
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