Hi Adam,

9 days isn't a vast amount of time to see Ireland properly so the idea of concentrating on a section of the country is a good one! Hiring a car is also a good idea. Most of the country has motorways connecting the main cities and most roads are pretty decent, until you venture onto some coastal routes in Cork or County Kerry or Connemara even then you should have no problem.

I live in Dublin and love the city. It is on the coast and close to Dublin and Wicklow mountains and has lots of great walks and nice villages like Malahide Dalkey Glasthule Probably 2 days is good to see the city. You'll probably want to see Trinity College Christ Church Cathedral Guinness Storehouse the famine statues  Glendalough is about an hour's drive away and well worth the trip. A lot of visitors like the Dublin theatre and music scenes - there's usually a lot going on in August. 

I love Clare especially the drive through The Burren up to Galway Bay and into Connemara - it's perfect for 4-5 days. There are interesting places to stay in www.irelands-blue-book.ie or www.irishlandmark.com (the Landmark Trust)

West Cork and Kerry are also lovely to visit. Consider Schull Skibbereen Kinsale (Cork) or Dingle Waterville (Ireland) Kenmare (Kerry) If you decide to drive south to Cork and Kerry consider detouring for an hour or two to Kilkenny to visit Kilkenny Castle or to Cashel to see the Rock of Cashel (worth taking a tour to learn about the history)

Have a great trip. Let me know if you need more information.

When renting a car in Ireland there are a few things to know.  You must purchase their insurance, and you want to purchase the best CDW you can get ($100 deductible).  The roads are very bad and almost everybody destroys a tire, scratches a fender, or loses a mirror.  So don’t just go with the cheapest daily rate.  Make sure you factor the cost of insurance too.  I would be careful to not do too much.  I recommend Galway, Clifden, and Cong area.  I would not recommend going further North than Cong (roughly).  Save that for another trip when you have more time.  I like the SW corner around Killarney, Dingle, and Ring of Kerry.  If you have time, I would recommend Kinsale in SW corner.  I am not a big fan of Dublin.  I never spend much time there.  If you’ve never been, two days is enough and I doubt you’ll ever want to go back there again.  I have never been to Cork because I don’t like big cities and tourist traps, but next time I go, I am going to bite the bullet and do two nights there.  The area north of Dublin where the Newgrange Ruins are is worth seeing but I would not make it a priority.  I would not make the interior of the country a priority.

I don't think it too ambitious! It sounds like a primo plan. That s about how many days we spent on each thing you just mentioned. Driving is amazing as you get to see a ton of castles.

Alot depends on where you are flying in & out of. I've made 12 trips to Ireland from 1988 to 2017 ... last time was from Dublin up north along Wild Atlantic Ways coast to Shannon Airport airport in 12 days, and was the best ever. I definitely recommend renting a car for the whole time...gives you much better opportunities to see more and make the most of your time. If you are interested in more detailed info - I'd be happy to share my knowledge & experience....there is so much nature - you can't go wrong!

Adam...I would suggest heading south from Dublin(M11) - maybe cut off on 755 to Glendalough ruins of St.Kevin's but beautiful scenery. Back over to N11(M11) & get down to the coast. Personally - I've traveled thru Cork4/5 times - a HUGE city, horrid traffic & totally confusing & not worth the hours wasted. Below Cork is Kinsale..adorable town, great food(stayed there). From Kinsale, you can follow N71 - Mizen Head, Sheep's Head, Beara Peninsula(roads off of N71). om N71, you can pick up the Ring of Kerry(& on into Killarney) Stayed in Kilarney many times - a fun town with amazing scenery all around it ( a bit touristy to be sure). Drive up from Kilarney to Cliffs of Moher(taking the Tarbert (Ireland) ferry  my favorite across the Shannon into Clare. Coastline up to Lahinch & the Cliffs has some great secluded spots - many more than you can take time for. I've stayed in Quilty, Lahinch & Liscannor. Cliffs have become VERY commercialized but are still worth going (last yr, we went in evening - no crowds or fees & were able to totally enjoy my favorite place).  You might find Salthill or Spiddal(outside Galway)more to your liking(have stayed there both) & on the way to Connemara. Last year my son used Goggle Maps app(phone) & it was better than any other method we used in the past. Sit down with it on computer & you can work out where & how you want to stop.  Good luck & you can contact me for any additional info anytime.

Hi Adam.  On a recent trip we flew into Dublin and out of Shannon   Dublin is a great town.  We rented a car and drove west to Adare, Cliff of Moher - Parking, Dingle.  Dingle is a town I would recommend.   Driving over Conor Pass into Dingle is a true experience.  Once in Dingle, do a day trip and drive the Slea Head loop.  It will take most of the day.  Enjoy!