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Post Info TOPIC: Kenmare to Kinsale


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Kenmare to Kinsale


Hi there, Just a quick question (one amongst many).  This is our fist time to Ireland.  Is it realistic to drive from Kenmare to Kinsale with a stop at Drombeg Stone Circles and not have it eat up most of the day.  We will only have this one day to visit Kinsale and my husband is really looking forward to seeing the forth there. So I am trying to make sure I am doing my time management effectively.

Thanks!



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Welcome to Michele's Forum!  biggrin  biggrin 

Feel free to ask away.

As to your first question, much depends upon the route taken and what other interests you have.

A full-on tour along (and detouring off) the N71 won't leave a lot of time for Kinsale, but you could probably 'sneak in' a single detour down to Drombeg along the way.

The route would look like this:  https://goo.gl/maps/NJXDg6rG7Jq 

Actual drive time (excluding stops) would be close to 3 1/2 hours. 

 



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Thanks Bob!

I really should have headed the title of this as time management. Folks discuss how long everything takes to get to and we don not want to experience Ireland as a green blur but at the same time not seeing amazing historical/natural sites. We are renting a car and driving a loop around the lower part of Ireland. Drombeg circle looks like a site we will detour for. Thank you for the advice/info.

If you dont mind i go off topic from the subject title. Is it realistic to visit Bru Na Boinne and and Glendalough the same day, visiting one in the morning and the other in the afternoon.

Laura 



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Pretty much as above. I recon 8 hours minimum with some sight seeing Killarney to Cork with a couple of route options
3, Cork to Killarney (Via Coast & Healy) goo.gl/maps/Hy5BBtLdXit
(Via Woods and Water) goo.gl/maps/Siagcqk96UH2

On the basis that Glendalough and Wicklow is a fair day out from Dublin and Newgrange with the Boyne Valley another fair day in the totally opposite direction then unless you fancy a 14 hour day they are better as a couple of options rather than just one. Depends on the whole itinerary though

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"Is it realistic to visit Bru Na Boinne and and Glendalough the same day, visiting one in the morning and the other in the afternoon. "

Yes (with some caveats) but -- Once again, much depends on expectations and further intent.

Where are you starting the day?

How much of Bru Na Boinne:  Newgrange, Knowth, Tara, Hill of Slane?  

http://www.worldheritageireland.ie/bru-na-boinne/

As to Glendalough: Are you spending the night in the vicinity, or needing to travel onward? 

Is your interest just for the Monastic Site, or do you plan to tour the other area attractions:  The Upper Lake, Vale of Avoca, Meeting of the Waters, Sally Gap and the Wicklow Gap?

http://visitwicklow.ie/attractions/glendalough-monastic-city/

http://visitwicklow.ie/attractions

What is the duration and planned itinerary for the trip?  Where does this fit in, WITHIN that plan?  For example where do you plan to go AFTER and (as already asked) Where are you starting from / will have already been?

What time of year?

All the following would be subject to change based upon your answers to the above questions:

Most direct routing:  https://goo.gl/maps/LivkdTmRR1y

Most scenic / inclusive:  https://goo.gl/maps/WvtzCdozKnn

Mid-range (quickest, but semi-scenic):https://goo.gl/maps/7vLnxcXN5b92



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I would have that last one as the most Scenic.. Rather look out along the Military Rd than the N11?

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Thanks for the tips guys.  

We are visiting next month for our 30th wedding anniversary.  Fly into Shannon staying in Kenmare for two days. One day to visit Killarnery National Park and the other to travel part of the Beara Peninsula as far south as Healy Pass.  Day three drive from Kenmare to Kinsale with a side trip to see Drombeg Stone Circle. See Charles Fort. Staying that night in Kinsale.

Day four, five and six we are staying in Dun Laughaire. Was planning to visit Dublin (the main purpose is to go to Guinness.  My husband is a home brewer and were ever we go we try to see a brewery-in Bamberg Germany we visited multitudes of them in one day...good times, while in Prague we went to Pilsner Urquell, so this is important to him.) 

We had planned to only see Bru na Boinne and Glendalough with side tips are time allows but those two place are the main must see/do. In Dublin other than the brewery we are going to Kilmainham Gaol Museum and St Patricks Cathedral.  Oh and i should say we have no intentions of driving into Dublin but take mass transit. 

Day seven is at Doolin.  On the way visit Burren National Park. The next day visit the Cliffs of Moher and Bunratty Castle. Day eight fly home. 

 

Again thank you for the advice and insight.  I really appreciate it!

Laura

 



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I would use Ennis as the base for County Clare not keen on Doolin and prefer a choice of more than 2 pubs which are further apart than I can walk without a stick.

Guinness Storehouse is an Interactive Museum and Not a traditional Brewery tour just be aware so you are not disappointed.

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If looking for an 'Authentic' Brewery tour, you might consider: http://www.smithwicksexperience.com/  in Kilkenny.

Alternately, there are a number of micro-breweries scattered about that might be of interest:   https://theculturetrip.com/europe/ireland/articles/the-10-irish-craft-breweries-every-beer-lover-should-try/

They even have their own organization: http://www.beoir.org/ 



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Bob, you just may be a bad influence on us. :)
I looked at the place in Kilkenny. That could be a really good option to stop there and add Glendalough on our way up to Dublin. (Tony had indicated Guinness is not a traditional brewery tour so this place could be nice option and then we would not back track to come back down to Glendalough). I love the two passes. Is one pass more enjoyable to another Sally gap vs Wicklow gap. I will add one of these onto the trip. Two years ago my husband and I drove the Dragon in the Smokey Mountains 11 miles with 318 curves in a Mini Cooper. Again good times.

Oh and thank you Tony on the suggestion of Ennis but I think Doolin will be ok. We don't really bar hop anymore and we have committed to the B&B there. Oh and thank you for letting us know about Guinness.

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The Guinness Tour is mostly a walk through of Guinness Memorabilia -- Old casks, adverts through the ages -- that sort of thing.  I haven't toured Smithwicks, but I viewed it from the top of nearby St. Canice's Round Tower:  http://www.stcanicescathedral.ie/ 

It's one of only THREE 'climbable' Towers of the 65 (ish) remaining Irish Round Towers -- and a personal obsession of mine.

Looking at your over-all Trip Plan, I see a few spots of concern.  The Good News is that it's still Mostly 'Workable', but had I had the chance to make suggestions earlier, I would have advocated to a different routing -- cry  cry  

Day 1&2:  "Fly into Shannon staying in Kenmare for two days. One day to visit Killarney National Park and the other to travel part of the Beara Peninsula as far south as Healy Pass."

That's a long day's drive coming off an over-night flight.  It's do-able, if you take your time and rest/stretch frequently, but it WILL be a challenge to see too much. You also list activities for TWO days, but you will really only have ONE -- as the first (Arrival Day) will likely be consumed by just getting there -- although, if you're up for it, you could 'Sample' some of the National Park along the N71 between Killarney and Kenmare.  Jet lag affects everyone differently.  You can decide what to do, once you reach Killarney.  If tired out, follow the N22 away from town to the R569(Marked: 'Dungarvan') .  It's an easier road, though less scenic.  You can always check in, catch a nap -- and THEN explore the N71, driving North.

https://goo.gl/maps/zdBcQ8q1R8x   Stops along the way:  Adare Village, Killarney, Ross Castle, Muckross House, Torc Falls, Ladies View and Moll's Gap.

Traveling in July, you'll have PLENTY of daylight, so a full day exploring Beara and Healey Pass is quite possible.   http://www.bearatourism.com/visitorinfo.html

You could try something like this:  https://goo.gl/maps/ScZxBgVYeYA2   Note that this bypasses Glengarriff and the Caha Pass, but you can 'catch' them, along the way to Kinsale -- Again, LOTS of daylight!  biggrin  biggrin

" Day three drive from Kenmare to Kinsale with a side trip to see Drombeg Stone Circle. See Charles Fort. Staying that night in Kinsale."

As previously discussed, this is QUITE possible -- particularly if Beara is already off the table.  See the map I posted previously. 

"Day four, five and six we are staying in Dun Laughaire. Was planning to visit Dublin (the main purpose is to go to Guinness. "

There's a lot more to Dublin other than Guinness -- but there's also a lot more of Ireland beyond Dublin -- so you might want to rethink three days here -- or not? 

Dun Laoahaire wouldn't be MY choice for a Dublin area base, in any case -- but it's YOUR Holiday, so something obviously attracted you to the area --- Still, I'm NOT sure how you will incorporate Bru Na Boinne into that 'whole', "Not driving in Dublin" wish.  With the Urban Sprawl, whilst NOT 'City Center', the area is STILL pretty much city, in MY opinion.

Adding Kilkenny AND Glendalough to the drive from Kinsale might be a BIT much:  https://goo.gl/maps/PaX7kkdCSSz   The good news is that Glendalough is an EASY day trip from Dun Laoghaire.  A 'Super, Deluxe' Option:  https://goo.gl/maps/A9uo83P5s8J2  

This includes the Sally Gap, Wicklow Gap and the Old Military Road, but deletes Avoca -- because, as Tony said, the N11 isn't all THAT scenic . . . .  aww

"Day seven is at Doolin.  On the way visit Burren National Park. The next day visit the Cliffs of Moher and Bunratty Castle. Day eight fly home. "

Like Tony, I wouldn't choose Doolin for an over-night -- and, certainly NOT for a Final Night.  You'll NEED to be AT the Check-In Counter THREE hours Prior to your scheduled departure if you have a Direct flight home to the USA, due to US Customs & Immigration Pre-Clearance -- or TWO, if you connect outside the US (Like Amsterdam , Paris or London).  In any event, Doolin is 64 Kilometers from SNN over (Mostly) secondary roads.  Google Maps claims 1- 1/4 hours of drive time.  Adding in a bit of 'Fudge factor' -- and time to return the car, I would allow about two hours.  That would mean departing no later than 7 AM for an 11 AM (Non-Direct) flight -- and 6 AM, for a Direct Flight.

Of course, if you have a later flight, that's MUCH less of an issue.  biggrin



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Thank you again, this really helped to tweak the trip. Your insight has been invaluable!

Laura

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I hope everything works out.  Happy Anniversary!  We spent our 30th, 35th, 40th and our 45th (sort of -- that one was delayed by 6 months! biggrin ) in Ireland.  I also spent my 60th Birthday and the 'Official' day of my retirement there.  It's a GREAT place to celebrate special occasions!  aww  aww 

Please be sure to 'Drop Back In' and let us know how it all turns out -- We love to hear results  --  Both the Good, and the Bad!

It helps us to 'Tweak' our advice when we can access additional points of view.  biggrin   biggrin   biggrin



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Bob, Thanks for your input while I was away. Great info as always!

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Hi There,
Just wanted to pop back in, as Bob says, to let you know how things went. Trip was wonderful. I think the Irish people were the nicest folks I have encountered in all my travels. I see why folks go back time and time again.
Both Guinness and the Smithwicks were not true brewery tours but both enjoyable anyways. Glad we did both. Thank you for the Smithwicks suggestion.
You were correct on trying to do Killkenny National Park on the day of our arrival. We did it as a brief overview but did not have the attention span to spend a great deal of time at any one place or have the patience to battle the traffic. We were too fatigued.
Exploring Beara and doing the Healy Pass and the Caha Pass was amazing! We even got forced off the road (onto a road pull off) by a heard of sheep coming through the pass. It made our day and we laughed about it for a long time.
You were confused by our choice of Dun Laogharie. We stayed at the Royal Marine Hotel there for our anniversary. It was romantic and beautiful. We loved looking out at the water and talking a walk on the boardwalk area. I found this a great place to stay at outside of the city center. Some folks are city folks, some are not. We belong to the "are not" club. We spent one day in Dublin and that was enough. I think, for us Dun Laogharie was a great call. A really lovely community.
Agreed that Doolin is over rated. However the B&B we stayed at was very nice and convenient for the Cliffs of Moher.
We spent our final night actually in Bunratty, not in Doolin. Bunratty castle and park was actually a surprise. I see now why it is so highly rated.
Thank you again for helping me tweak our first trip to Ireland. It was a success!

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Welcome back! Glad to hear you enjoyed your anniversary in Dun Laoghaire. Do you recommend the places you stayed in Doolin and Bunratty? We would love it if you could share the B&Bs with us.

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Hi There,
In Doolin we stayed at Dolls Cottage, run by Shaun. He was really was super. Room was nice (no TV) and clean and Shaun sent us off with a wonderful breakfast.
(dollscottage.x10host.com/)
Bunratty I can not recommend because it was a horrible place. Stay clear of Bunratty View B&B. Absolutely horrible!
In Kinsale we stayed at San Antonio B&B, run by Jimmy. He does not have a web site but can be reached via email jimmiesan@yahoo.ie. Room was nice. A beautiful historic home filled with lovely antiques. Jimmy was wonderful and again had a wonderful breakfast. Parking was available just down the road that was open to the public. To find it, was a little tricky. The roads in Kinsale are tricky and our GPS was not overly helpful.
in Kenmare we stayed at the Brass Lantern B&B. (www.brasslanternkenmare.com/). Room was clean and really nice. The location was perfect! A grocery store was one block down the road and about three - four blocks from the town center close to where we had our most favorite meal at Mick and Jimmys. Perfect place for both the Ring of Beara, Ring of Kerry and the Killarney National park. Kenmare was another really nice community. I wish we had there stayed longer.
Laura

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Laura, Thanks for the recs. Sorry to hear one of your B&B experiences was not good. I have some excellent ones that I always recommend to my readers. Ahh...Kenmare. Don't get me started on the town. I love it and the people there are so nice.

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Visit Michele's Irish Shop for unique Irish gifts and beautiful photos of Ireland.

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