Cork/Kerry or Clare/Galway/Connemara

For driving times google aa ireland routeplanner. For motorways and major road travelling the numbers will be within 10-20% of what you can expect. On rural roads the vagueries of weather, tractors, and country drivers makes things more inclined to be more innacurate.

I think (against my instinct because I love Clare/Galway) is going to be Kerry, particularly for the walking and Ring of Kerry and Dingle Penninsula. I would suggest flying into Kerry airport with Ryanair but that does mean leaving from either Luton or Stansted (which can be a pain) and seriously staying within their luggage conditions. Killarney is a good option for Kerry if looking for a base as it can give you access to the ring and the penninsula as well as the very beautiful national park. Alternatively, Dingle is a charming little town and is worth considering.

I did a similar trip around the region at the end of September/early October in 2008 (listening to the Irish financial system collapse on the radio in the car). Two things I would say is that it chucked it down in torrential amounts at times ('Welcome to the west coast, grab a brolley') and you are at the very arse end of the tourist season so keep in mind that many BnBs will begin to shut up for the winter and some tourist attractions will be changing over to winter opening hours (which might mean closed on Mondays and early closing).

I would say that if you decide on the West, you should definitely include Conamara and at least a drive through southern County Mayo, by Lough Mask and/or Lough Corrib. There is an international airport at Charlestown in County Mayo with flights to Luton, Gatwick and Stansted and another outside Galway with flights from Luton and Southend.

There is some good walking in Conamara and it has a beautiful coastline. It is also a great area for cycling - if the weather is kind to you. If you want hiking in mountainous areas, Kerry is probably a better choice, although there are some very good hikes in the Twelve Bens in Conamara as well. You might want to order this excellent book and have a look through it before reaching a final decision.

On the whole, I would be inclined to say that it depends a lot on what you like in terms of scenery. Windswept rocky shores, half-barren mountainsides and surprising lakes - go to Conamara. Lush, hilly green landscapes and steep peninsulas jutting out into the Atlantic - you will find these in Cork and Kerry.

As for historical sites, there are several old ruined monasteries in County Clare, there is of course the prehistoric fort of Dún Aonghusa on Árainn, and Conamara is the strongest remaining heartland of Gaelic language and culture in Ireland - though there are also Irish-speaking areas in west Cork and Kerry. In West Cork, Gougane Barra or Guagán Barra is a very scenic early monastic site, even if there is not much left to see there. If you go to the south and the weather permits it, you should not miss a trip to Sceilg Mhichíl off the coast of the Iveragh peninsula.

With regard to #2's point about ruined monastaries, a particularly notable one for me (and surprisingly accessible) is Claregalway friary in Co. Galway. Well apart from the traffic snarl that is the N17 at Claregalway it is very accessible.

Thank you so much for your responses. A few additional questions: I was surprised to see the airports you mentioned. Based on the reading I had done, I thought I'd have to fly into Shannon or Cork; however, that information may be geared toward people who are arriving from the US (I'm American, but I'll be traveling from London). Do these other airports have frequent flights? Can you rent a car there? What are the luggage requirements on Ryanair (I've never flown it)?

Thank you for the rec on the Irish walks book. I'll definitely check it out.

You mentioned Killarney as I place to stay; I read that it is very touristy, almost like an Irish theme park. Is this accurate? Based on that description, I wouldn't want to stay there.

How touristy is Kerry? Will it be less crowded than normal at the end of September?

Again, thanks so much for taking the time to answer.

Killarney is probably the most tourist-dense place in Ireland apart from Temple Bar in Dublin and perhaps Dingle, but it is still quite a pleasant place in a beautiful natural setting. If you look around you can find bars that cater basically to locals as well as tourist places. I've stayed there twice, for work, and liked it. But certainly there are other places where you could stay with less tourists around you - in fact there is no need to stay in towns such as Dingle unless you want either very cheap or very expensive accommodation. If you are happy with B&Bs you can stay in smaller villages like Ballyferriter west of Dingle or, in Conamara, in villages like Roundstone or Carna or Kilkieran, or indeed right out in the countryside, and really that would be my recommendation. If you are going west, Cong is also a very pleasant place to stay.

Of course, if you stay in more touristic places like Dingle or Doolin, you will be more likely to find evening entertainment such as live music in pubs, though this can also happen in more unlikely places - I've certainly come across it in Ballyferriter and in Kruger's out in Dunquin saw some old men being coaxed into song as well.

The airports don't have frequent flights to UK airports, they are in some cases several times a week rather than several times a day but it might work for you, and if you fly to one of those airports I imagine you'll be out and on your way very quickly. have a look at the pages I linked to which are their timetable pages, and you can check prices on www.aerann.com for Galway airport and www.aerlingus.com or www.ryanair.com for Knock. The airline websites will also state luggage allowances - all these airlines charge extra for checked-in luggage and can be quite strict about cabin baggage size, cabin baggage weight limits curretnly 7kg on Aer Árann, 10kg on Ryanair and Aer Lingus.

Edited by: fear_rua

That's very helpful; thanks for the further information.

If anyone wants to weigh in with their advice, I welcome it!

Interested in Connemara ?
Youtube the following words : AT YOUR SERVICE PART 1
followed by part 2 and then part 3
fly to Galway with AERARANN.COM /
you can fly from Luton or Southend airports
good luck.

We thought the Dingle area was great. We were there to walk the Dingle Way, which we did, staying in B&Bs and small hotels. Beautiful coastal walking and through small villages and farms too. This was in May, and it was not overcrowded at all. We made reservations but we really would not have needed to at that time. The town of Dingle was fun, with good food and bars. Dunquin is quite remote but lovely setting. Ballydavid was nice too.

My sister and husband came over from London, flying into the Kerry airport on Ryanair. I think there is one flight a day each way. Kerry airport is near Tralee, where we spent the first night and then set off on the walk the next day.

Sometimes a place is "touristy" because it's nice. September might be quiet like May was.

Anyway, it's a beautiful place, On the other hand, on this trip we didn't go anywhere else. Next time to Galway area.

Kerry airport is in Farranfore ( see Google maps ) thats
halfway between Tralee and Killarney.
Killarney is a lovely town with a good mixture of accomadation
think of it as only a base, it's close to the Dingle peninsula
and the ring of kerry.
using Google- IMAGES type in County Kerry
and only then will you realize why Kerry is so popular.
go figure.