The Ring Of Kerry Ireland

The Ring of Kerry Ireland

The Ring of Kerry is one of Ireland best routes, its sooo scenic, full of history and so of the best beautiful mountains ranges in the Emerald Isle, three loads of lakes and lots of sheep, exactly loads of sheep!! This tourist trail is world-famous, many people love to come back to Ireland and travel this route again and again and enjoy its beauty!

There are loads of things to see and do on the Ring of Kerry route, there’s golf, fishing, boat tours, some cool old churches to check out, old beehive huts, and the list goes on and on!

I have put together some cool stuff in these articles that I like, I have been on the Ring of Kerry route many times, and people just love the area and route. It’s a must if you are visiting southern Ireland, you have to see it!

Tips for the Ring of Kerry Route

1 – Drive on the left-hand side, take your time and relax if you are driving yourself.

2 – Use a map or an App like Google maps to guide you along the way.

3 – Appoint a person in the vehicle incharge of directions.

4 – Make a plan the night before, this can be done on your smartphone or plan your trip on AA route planner.

5 – Beware of tractors, farm machinery, sheep and cows, buses and coaches on the route.

6 – Beware of the national speed limits.

7 – Make sure your vehicle has a spare wheel and tools need to change a tyre.

8 – Check tyre pressure, water and oil levels in car before you leave in the morning time.

Travel Tip

Leave early in the morning around 7.30 am if you are just spending one day on the route, make the most of it!

Directions and the Route

I have included a map to help you out, you can see the route in the map so follow it closely!!!! The route covers 120 miles, and you could do it in like 3.5 hours none stop but you want to stop off a good few times and check out all the attractions and sites along the way, you will need to set aside a full day.

The wonderful route is bests served by spending a full day driving around this route and checking out all the cool stuff along the route!

Depending on your plans you could easily spend a few days along the route, staying in the different towns and villages and soaking up the culture of Kerry!

The route travels around Ireland’s Iveragh Peninsula along the N72 and N70 road. Killarney is a good spot to base yourself if you want to travel the route in a one day or so.

Killarney!

Killarney is one of Ireland’s most colourful and coolest towns. It’s full of really nice scenic areas outside the town. Killarney has some great Irish pubs, restaurants and shopping outlets. The best way to drive the Ring of Kerry is to starts from Killarney and this amazing route finishes in Killarney too! Its pure magic! You drive out of Killarney towards Killorglin on the N72 road to start the road trip!

See my post on Best Things to do in Killarney here!

Kate Kearney’s Cottage and The Gap of Dunloe!

Kate Kearney’s cottage is located in the Gap of Dunloe. Loads of people take jaunting car tour into the Gap to check out the scenery. This is a great first stop on the Ring of Kerry!

Kate Kearney’s cottage is around for 150 years, Kate Kearney used to make Poitin, an Irish alcohol spirit that was very strong, it had to be mixed with 7 times its equal amount to temper it. The Gap of Dunloe is a beautiful scenic area, it’s s must-see on the Ring of Kerry route!

See the Puck Goat statue in Killorglin!

The town of Killorglin is full of colour, charm and its home to one of Irelands oldest fair, The Puck Fair takes place in Killorglin every year in early August.

The large bronze statue of the Puck goat is located just before you arrive in Killorglin on the left-hand side.

The Puck Fair is a trading fair, its full of lively characters and traders dealing animals. The Puck Goat is raised up into a cage for the 3 days of the fair and then the goat is realised back into the wild.

Kerry Bog Village, Glenbeigh!

The Kerry Bog Village is a cool place to stop off and check out all the old buildings in the village, you can go inside the thatched cottages and see the way people used to live in Ireland back in the day.

There are Irish wolfhounds to see, the bog ponies, you will get the sweet smell of Irish turf (peat) burning in the fires in the cottages.

If you wanna try an Irish whiskey, the gift shop on-site and pub offers hot Irish whiskey to visitors. The bar serves food, and there’s a cool little gift shop to pick up a few nice Irish gifts for friends and family.

Check out the Daniel O Connell Memorial Church in Cahersiveen!

Next stop on the route is Cahersiveen, this beautiful little town of Cahersiveen is a perfect stop to get a coffee or a snack and check out a really nice church.

The Daniel O Connell Church in Cahersiveen is the only church in Ireland dedicated to a layperson, Daniel O Connell was known as the great liberator, he was an Irish lawyer who fought for Catholic rights in difficult times.

The church is dedicated to the famous liberator, its a really nice church, the sainted glass on the windows is just lovely, and the building is pretty amazing, It’s just another cool attraction on the Ring of Kerry!

Check out the Kerry Cliffs!

The Kerry Cliffs is an amazing area to visit, it’s full of natural beauty that makes Ireland’s landscapes so famous. The Kerry Cliffs are 1,000 feet high.

The Cliffs are wild, wicked and magical to look at, expect sone unreal raw rugged landscape that you will remember at the Kerry Cliffs. You will be able to see Skellig Michael island from the cliffs, tis another one you need to add to your bucket list!

Stop off for a peep in Waterville!

This little Irish town is located on the Iveragh Peninsula, it has a number of cool things to see. If you to play Golf Waterville has one of the nicest golf courses in the Emerald Isle, Hogs Head Golf course is in a wonderful location in Waterville, the golf course overlooks the Atlantic ocean, it’s pretty special.

The golf course includes accommodation and dining in the restaurant overlooking some really nice parts of Kerry! You can check out the Charlie Chaplin statue in Waterville, and the Mick O Dwyer statue, Mick O Dwyer was gifted GAA Footballer that won many medals and trophies.

These statues overlook the beautiful coastline in Waterville, Charlie Chaplin visited Waterville many times, he fell in love with the area, it’s easy to understand why!

Check out Sneem

Sneem is your next stop on the road-trip of a lifetime in the kingdom, Kerry is known as the Kingdom! Check out the cool stone structures called The Way The Fairies Went next to the church in Sneem.

These cool stone structures were designed by Kerry sculptor James Scanlon. You can see the Charles De Gaulle memorial, the former French president visited Sneem in 1969 after resigning as French president. Charles de Gaulle wife’s nanny came from Sneem, he stayed two weeks in Sneem.

Head over to Kenmare!

This part of the route is very scenic! Its shows the Ring of Kerry at its best, some of the beautiful wild Irish wildness! You will probably see some sheep on this route! The town of Kenmare is an enjoyable place to spend a day or two.

It’s full of colourful shop fronts. The town is home to many good pubs and restaurants. You can check out the Tom Crean Brewery that is owned by Aileen, Tom Crean’s granddaughter.

There’s a guided tour of the brewery, you can learn about the history of brewing in Ireland. The brewery makes 5 beers, they are really good! Kenmare is a cool town to just wander around and take in the beauty of this colourful Irish town.

Drive over to Molls Gap!

Molls Gap is a great place for some photos of the wild landscape that the Ring of Kerry is known for, you will some beautiful scenery at Molls Gap. Molls Gap is a viewpoint with some really nice views of the Mac Gillycuddysreeeks mountains.

Molls Gap is named after Moll Kissan who had a shebeen (a small pub) in the 1820s on the original road from Killarney to Kenmare.

Molls brew became very well known to t he tough lads that worked on the road. She sold them Poitin and Whiskey, while these lads worked on the road! Molls Gap is a great place to pull in and get a coffee in the shop located at Molls Gap!

See my post here on How to get to Molls Gap!

Stop at Ladies View for a Look!

Ladies view is a viewpoint located on the ring, it’s a beautiful area full of fabulous scenery. You can check out the place that Queen Victoria visited with her ladies in waiting way back in 1861, the area had such an impact on them, that the area was named after them. It’s another beautiful part of the Ring of Kerry.

Torc Waterfall

Torc waterfall is around seven kilometres from the town of Killarney. There is plenty of parking next to the famous waterfall. The waterfall is located around 200 metres from the parking area.

Torc waterfall is 20 metres high, it’s a wonderful sight to see! It’s a perfect spot for a selfie! Torc Waterfall is visited by large numbers of people every week, it’s one of the natural beauties on the Ring of Kerry!

Muckross House and Gardens

Muckross House is an old mansion style house set on a large parcel of lands. The house is nowadays turned into a major tourist attraction, You can take a tour of the house and lands.

There is a beautiful restaurant and gift shop to check out on the grounds.. The house is in excellent condition and located in a really scenic setting. There is a traditional farm experience with a tour to learn about Irish farming, the land and animals that makes Ireland one of the best countries for good food and produce in the whole world.

I hope you find this article useful,I welcome any questions and suggestions by email to info@allthings-ireland.com

Thanks

John Conway

All Things Ireland