Kathy, 

Welcome to my forum. I'm glad you found your way here and hope you will feel at home. 

Am I understanding correctly that you are picking up your rental car on arrival and then driving into Dublin? If so, you may want to re-think that part of your plan. A car is a detriment in the city, driving is very difficult with many one-way streets and confusing navigation that even natives have a hard time keeping up with, and parking is a big problem and very expensive to boot. You would be much better off renting the car on departure from Dublin. 

Since there are four of you a taxi to your hotel would be most cost-efficient and quick. Dublin is pretty compact and can easily be seen by public transport. I would recommend the HoHo bus for a good tour and because you can get on and off as you please at the various sightseeing venues. The pass is good for 24 hours. 

Question: Is night 4 written in stone? Any chance of changing the reservation? The reason I ask is because going to Adare first and then Doolin is backtracking. 

Kilkenny is a city that has lots of walking. Perhaps not ideal for your daughter? Kilkenny Castle has stairs as do most castles and historic homes you might visit. The churches and cathedral would be doable as would the Kilkenny workshops across from the castle. 

The Rock of Cashel is very steep. They do allow people to drive up the hill and drop off visitors with disabilities at the door. Once there I think your daughter will be fine seeing the site as the top of the hill is pretty flat. There might be uneven ground so a family member's arm to lean on might come in handy. They do an excellent tour of the rock and I recommend you wait for it. You can also wander around on your own before or after the tour. But learning the background and having the history and details pointed out by the guide is a good experience. 

Templenoe is only a few miles from my favorite small town in Ireland - Kenmare. You are in for a treat staying there. Kenmare is charming and compact with lots of good places to eat and a good supermarket (Super Valu near the school). Since you are self-catering you will need to pick up supplies there. Note that there is a smaller Super Valu in town but they don't have as much in it. 

Day trips from Kenmare:

• Kenmare, Druid's Circle, Seafari boat cruise 
• Ring of Kerry, Derrynane House, Skellig Center (Valentia Island) & boat ride around the islands, Staigue Fort (too rough for daughter but a quick stop for the others), many little beaches along the way. 
• Beara Peninsula, Josie's Restaurant, Healy Pass
• Bantry House & Gardens (mostly on ground floor), Tunnel Drive (Glengariff to Bantry)
• Gougane Barra - gorgeous woodland park with tiny chapel on an island - perfect for picnics
• Killarney: Muckross House, Gardens & Traditional Farms (bus between farms), jaunting car ride through Killarney National Park, Muckross Abbey, Ross Castle (stairs)
• Dingle Peninsula, Slea Head Drive, Inch Beach

As you see there is much to see and do in the area so you will have to choose from the list here. Maybe you will get to return again and spend a whole week in Kenmare. 

Michele

Kathy, 

Thanks for your kind words about my forum. We love Ireland and sharing is very high on our list. There are many dedicated "Ireland addicts" who hang out here and call the forum home. I'm sure some of them will chime in after the weekend (which tends to be slow here). 

Glad to hear you will not have the car in Dublin. You will do fine without it. 

Would you believe that I have never seen a puffin in Ireland? My husband saw and photographed one at the Fogher Cliffs on Valentia Island (Ring of Kerry). You could well see some down there or if you take the boat ride around the Skellig islands. 

Here is a plan for you: Drive from Dublin toward Galway and spend two nights in Doolin. On the way see Belvedere House & Gardens (south of Mullingar) and Clonmacnoise Monastic Site. The drive & sightseeing will take most of the day. Next day you can do cliffs, drive through Burren and other Clare activities. On your way south to Kenmare you would have the option of either going through Adare or taking the ferry across the Shannon. 

I agree about shopping in foreign places. It is so much fun seeing what they have that is different. I regret not buying a jar of goose fat in Kenmare. Not that I would have used it, but it would have been a good conversation starter for my kitchen! When I asked friends in Kenmare what in the world you would do with goose fat they said roast potatoes in it or rub it on arthritic joints! But they are farmers, so perhaps that is an old farm remedy. 

Michele

-- Edited by Michele Erdvig on Sunday 27th of June 2010 05:02:12 PM

Kathy,

Actually the french fries in goose fat sounds pretty good - if you are not counting calories or cholesterol.

I am not suggesting you go into Galway. You would just take the road toward it. That is the M4 & N6 as opposed to taking the M7 & N7 toward Limerick. You can branch off at Craughwell and head into Clare. That will totally avoid Galway City.

I would not recommend going to Cashel from Kenmare as day trip. Since it seems to be on your short list you might consider going from Doolin to Cashel and then down to Kenmare. It will be a long driving day if you do it because you are going out of your way. But you are headed south anyway and it might make more sense than the day trip plan.

Michele

Here's another idea.  What if we drove from Dublin via Galway to Doolin that third night, stayed there a night and then headed out towards Adare/Bunratty the second night?  We could stay in the Adare area or in Lough Gur, where I have read about the ancient relics.  Or is it advisable to stay 2 nights in Doolina and just do this by driving from there?  I guess part of my problem is that I have no concept of driving times.

I had forgotten to mention that my husband and son want to see how Irish moonshine is made.  I read about the place that makes mead and potcheen in Bunratty.  Of course, they will go to Guiness in Dublin, but is there any other liquor-making place you can think of that we should try to get them to? 

Thank you!

Kathy

Kathy,

Drive time from Dublin to Doolin will probably be about 4 to 4 1/2 hours or a little more. Because you are doing sightseeing along the way each stop will take time. You might spend an hour or two at Belvedere House and Clonmacnoise. You will stop for lunch. So that day of driving will really take you perhaps 9 or 10 hours. 

That is why I recommended two nights in Doolin. When you reach Doolin you will be ready to check in, get some dinner, maybe visit a pub and call it a night. You will not have time to see anything in the area. On the next day you can see the different Clare attractions.

It is very tempting on a trip of any length in Ireland to want to see everything. Even if you had a month it is probably impossible. You need to approach your trip knowing you will not see everything. Don't agonize over it. Instead determine to enjoy thoroughly the things that you have time to see. 

If you really feel that you want to move on after one night in Doolin perhaps an overnight in Bunratty would make sense. You can spend time seeing the Cliffs of Moher and any other attractions in the area and then see Bunratty Castle & Folk Park. You could even do the castle banquet that night. You cannot actually see poitin being made in Bunratty but they do sell it there. I would not recommend going out of your way for Lough Gur. There is a small museum there and in the area is a stone circle. You will see a stone circle in Kenmare.

Molly Gallivan's in Bonane (not too far from Kenmare) has a poitin still on the farm. I don't know if they have demonstrations of it. You might drop them an email to find out. There is also the Old Jameson Distillery in Dublin. 

Driving distance calculator: (get mileage and divide by 35 to get approximate times).

Michele