Here I sit, a full year after my trip to Ireland in June of 2025. I’ll blame it all on a year of chaos, largely created by the wannabe dictator and his pals running things in the United States. The good ol’ US of A has always had lots of issues (and been embarrassing to some degree, if we’re honest), but this is a whole new level. I digress.
Before I head out on my 2026 trips, I decided I ought to sit down and write about my impressions of Ireland. I post this blog mostly for myself: to remember where I’ve been and how I felt while I was there.
Ireland. In short, would I travel to Ireland again? Absolutely. Is it as lush and green as I expected? Absolutely. Did the Irish people live up to their reputation as the world’s warmest and most welcoming people? Absolutely.
Like many living in the United States, I have some Irish ancestry. Due to a little bit of luck and a lot of genealogy prowess on my grandmother’s and mother’s part, I have the luxury of knowing quite a bit about some of my Irish ancestors. In addition to the beauty of Ireland, the ancestral roots are a main draw for many Americans in considering a trip to Ireland. I suppose that was true for me as well and for my two friends that accompanied me to Ireland. There is something rooting and connecting about stepping on the land where your family walked six generations ago.
I had a most horrific time getting to Ireland, which isn’t all that surprising for summer travel. With a connection in London Heathrow (an airport I vow to avoid like the plague every time I cross the pond) and summer weather at Chicago O’Hare (another airport I vow to avoid every time I cross the pond), our travel day was going to be hectic. Summer thunderstorms delayed us in Chicago by several hours and I knew when we took off, that there was no way we’d make our connection in London, even if the Heathrow staff insisted we could make it if we “hurried.” We landed in London, having indeed missed our cheap connecting flight to Dublin, found we couldn’t get another flight from London to Dublin that day, and long story short, barely made a flight from London to Amsterdam where we could pick up a connection to Dublin. There was some confusion with our carry-on luggage, which was taken to be checked at Heathrow security. When we landed with a very short layover at Amsterdam’s Schipol airport, we were exasperated to find that our luggage had been checked with a final destination of Amsterdam. While snarling curse words and making calls to a friend waiting on us in Dublin, we made a hurried run to baggage claim, through customs, and back through check in and security. We ran to the gate and just made it onto our flight.
We arrived at out hotel and slept. We stayed in the Dublin Docklands area, a bit further away from the bars and nightlife of Temple Bar, which turned out to suit me just fine. Dublin, for a large city, is surprisingly walkable. We had just two days in Dublin before we made our way to some other destinations and we spent it wandering the city center, gazing out on the River Liffey, and visiting the big sights.
Saint Patrick’s Cathedral, Ireland’s National Cathedral, is a gothic stunner. Although I don’t consider myself a very religious person, I can always find time to wander an historic church. Maybe it’s the stories, maybe it’s my ancestors calling me to church. With gorgeous stained glass, interesting monuments, and the Door of Reconciliation, the cathedral is worth a stop.
We also took some time to wander the campus of Trinity College. Trinity is Ireland’s first university, was created by royal charter in 1592 and is of course, home to the famous, Book of Kells, which we did not see. If you plan to see the famous 9th Century manuscript, make sure to book your ticket early, especially if you are visiting in the summer.
My favorite stop in Dublin was Malahide Castle and there’s a personal reason for that. In 1185, King Henry II, gifted the lands of Malahide to Richard Talbot and I can trace my ancestry back to Richard Talbot on my mother’s side. Not all of my Irish ancestors were so well-to-do, but Malahide Castle is set on stunning grounds. My friends were kind enough to indulge me in this little side trip and while there were not any inside tours available the day we went, we were able to have a lovely fish n chips lunch (the first of many in Ireland – what can I say…they are delicious!) and wander the gardens and grounds. Tickets for the gardens were easy to come by and didn’t cost much, but you’ll need to plan better if you plan to have the inside tour of the castle. Malahide was about a 20 minute taxi ride from our hotel in the Docklands.
We ate some tremendous food in Dublin including dinner at The Winding Stair, a charming restaurant and bookstore. It’s a very small restaurant, so make a reservation. We also made a late snack stop at The Rolling Donut. We bought a dozen and the donuts made their way with us on our Irish roadtrip.
I swear every town in Ireland has a castle. You’ll see them everywhere, in various states off the side of the road. I’ve read that there are some 3,000 castles in a country roughly the size of West Virginia.
We stopped in the town of Kilkenny to see the well known Kilkenny Castle. The Marshals and the Butlers, the inhabitants of Kilkenny Castle, certainly had it all over the Talbots. This castle is much grander than Malahide Castle, and you can, of course, tour it. Kilkenny itself, was a charming and walkable town set right on the River Nore. After touring the castle, we had lunch at one of the many restaurants lining the street and shopped a little bit at a vendor fair.
Our next stop was one of my favorites. If you know my penchant for visiting ruins at all, it won’t surprise you that I fell in love with The Rock of Cashel. The medieval buildings that make up The Rock of Cashel, sit high and exposed atop a limestone bluff. This was the original seat of the Kings of Munster and the place where St. Patrick himself was said to appear to convert Aenghus to Christianity. In 1101 Cashel was granted to the church. It’s a fascinating place, ruins set against Ireland’s lush green landscape with a spectacular view into the villages below. I could have spent hours here, walking and photographing what was left of these buildings.
After exploring castles and ruins, we headed to the stunning Garyvoe Hotel, our stop for the next couple of nights. Garryvoe is located in County Cork, overlooking Ballycotton Bay. From my room, I could hear and smell the water of the Celtic Sea. I could also see a small flock of sheep out my window. Being by the water is always so calming, and even though it was a bit chilly, be able to wander barefoot along the beach after dinner was such a treat.
Our exploration of County Cork included the town of Cobh, where I honestly wish we’d allotted more time. It was quite a charming town that leant itself to wandering walks and snacks in cafes. We did make a stop at The Titanic Experience Cobh. Cobh was the ship’s last port of call before it sank.
Being the tourists that we are, we headed to Blarney Castle. Blarney is another stellar example of an Irish castle. It was built by chieftan MacCarthy in 1446 over much older foundations. The grounds and gardens are beautiful, but the castle is most well known for the Blarney Stone.
The Blarney Stone is said to bequeath the gift of eloquence (or the gift of gab) to anyone that kisses it. Did I kiss the Blarney Stone? Yes. Do I feel the need to do that again? No. You’ll stand in line for quite some time to get your turn at the Blarney Stone. While waiting, you get to looking around the castle and realize just how dank and dark these edifices built hundreds of years ago really were. Once you make your way to the top of the castle, you get your turn to lie flat on your back and tip yourself nearly upside down to put your lips on a big piece of rock. It’s quite a bit further down than you anticipate and I found myself trying not to think about how many sets of lips had smacked the exact spot on the stone where my lips were now placed. I figured, hey, we’re here and when will I ever get the chance to do this again? I am a talkative person to begin with, it remains to be seen if my gift of gab will improve.
On your way out of Blarney Castle, you can make a shopping stop at the Blarney Woolen Mills. In addition to your run of the mill souvenirs, you can buy some lovely Irish knitted sweaters here. And we did.
Making our way out of County Cork and into County Killarney, we stopped to see The Muckross House. Muckross House was built for Henry Arthur Herbert and his wife, the water-colourist Mary Balfour Herbert and it sits just off the shores of Muckross Lake. The house had gorgeous grounds and a cafe for a bite to eat, but if I had to do it again. I’d skip Muckross House and honestly, the town of Killarney. We wandered about a bit, had lunch and drank a pint of Guinness, but it just wasn’t my favorite Irish spot that we visited.
We did make the drive around The Ring of Kerry. This is a breathtaking drive which really allows you to see the beauty of Ireland. It was a bit rainy and foggy, as it can be, the day we made the trek but the fog added a mystique to the landscapes that made it feel even more quintessentially Irish. There are lots of lovely lakes and vistas here. Lots of green hillsides and sheer cliff drop offs.
We made an unexpected stop at the Kerry Bog Village which turned out to be fascinating. This 19th Century village, provides a rich history of Irish life. You can also visit the Kerry Bog Ponies. These small horses almost reached extinction but the breed was rebuilt in the 1990s. This historic stop also has a few resident Irish Wolfhounds.
We stayed for this leg of our trip in the most adorable little village called Sneem. We had been pretty lucky with the weather until the rain hit us in Sneem. I didn’t mind it though. With a raincoat and my waterproof Sorel sneakers, it was sort of refreshing to walk about in a cool rain. Sneem was incredibly walkable and darling. Dinner at a pub and a nice, relaxing stroll was the order of the day.
We made our way to Galway via the Cliffs of Moher to end our whirlwind tour of Ireland. The Cliffs of Moher will be incredibly busy and incredibly windy. It’s most definitely still worth the stop. The sheer dropping cliff faces right on the water are nature’s beauty at its best. We spent quite some time walking the path, enjoying the view, and taking photos with our hair blowing in our faces. Several green fields full of sheep oppose the cliffs.
Maybe we were worn out by this point, but I again preferred the quieter spots we’d stayed in over the hustle and bustle of Galway. Galway was busy, packed full or people with restaurants and bars lining the streets. To be fair to the city, we probably weren’t there long enough to properly explore. We had a nice walk around the streets and popped into the Eyre Shopping Mall to see the remains of Galway’s medieval city walls. To end our evening enjoyed some bomb pizza at Dough Bros. I highly recommend taking a couple of friends and trying out a few pies.
The next day we hopped a ferry and headed over to Inis Mor in the Aran Islands. The ferry ride was mostly smooth with pretty views. I enjoyed the my time here. Life seems a bit slower and the island is full of historic buildings, ruins, horses and stone walls. We made the hike to Dun Aonghasa, an ancient stone fort perched precariously atop another cliff. The hike was a bit deceptive in that we ended up exerting more energy to get up the hill than we thought we would have to, but the views at the top were worth it. We rewarded ourselves with a 99 flake after the hike. (99 flakes are soft serve vanilla ice cream with a chocolate flake inserted into the ice cream and they are delicious).
In the morning, we made our way back to Dublin for the afternoon and evening. This time, we made our way to Teeling Distillery for a tour and a whiskey tasting. Dublin is chock full of whiskey distilleries. I like a whiskey and it’s always fun to see the distilling process and sample the goods.
In the morning, we were set to make our way to the North of Ireland to visit Belfast. Most of you probably know that the North of Ireland belongs to the UK. You’ll change currencies here too, from the Euro in the Republic of Ireland to the Pound Sterling in the North of Ireland.
Belfast was always intriguing to me because of the the history and the conflict between two cultures and two religions. I have a greater interest now given what is happening in my home country. On the way from the Ireland into the North, there are no official border crossings, no passport control, nothing, really, to indicate that you are leaving one country and entering another. The dichotomy of being a separate country, part of the UK, whilst still remaining in Ireland was sort of surreal. I can only imagine the conflict and hurt feelings that the political division may have caused between families and friends. It also seemed to me, as an outsider, that the Irish people have mixed feelings about the North of Ireland remaining, separately with the UK, or somehow finding a way to bring it back into the larger Republic of Ireland.
Things in Belfast were calm and it’s a beautiful city with lots of gorgeous architecture and some amazing restaurants. We really liked Fratelli for a cozy Italian meal. You can still feel a hint of an undercurrent of unrest in Belfast. While out and about one day, we witnessed in one neighborhood, an Orangemen parade. To my understanding these parades and the Orangemen themselves, named for William of Orange, are rooted deeply in Protestant and unionist traditions. Across the street in a more traditionally Irish Catholic neighborhood, it was just another normal day.
After seeing a few of the lovely building and gardens in the city, including Queen’s College, we made our way to visit the Peace Walls that have been left standing in Belfast long after The Troubles ended. It’s a poignant reminder of what happened in the North of Ireland and honestly, a bit eerie still even though people have now painted the walls in colorful murals and graffiti.
Propaganda from both sides of the political spectrum line the walls in areas of Belfast. We didn’t get the opportunity, but if I return to Belfast I would definitely make time to take a tour with a former political prisoner to widen my understanding of the area and the political conflicts that have come to pass. Belfast seems to be making great strides to build united communities. One of the ways the city has attempted to do this is by finding things that all Belfast citizens can root for: an ice hockey team, the Belfast Giants. If only I’d visited in the winter, I would have attended a game.
We also took time to visit the Titanic Belfast museum. The Titanic was constructed in the shipyards of Belfast and the museum is incredible. So much thought was put into the construction and design. Since we visited the Titanic’s last port of call in Cobh, seeing the museum in Belfast seemed appropriate.
My last must do for my limited time in the North of Ireland, was to make my way to the Giant’s Causeway. A UNESCO world heritage site, the causeway is a natural phenomenon and it is picturesque. Hopping the rocks and enjoying the sea air was the perfect ending activity to my time in the North of Ireland. While I had a short visit, you could easily spend more time hiking the area.
The morning brought an early departure to the Belfast airport and a smooth trip home. I’d absolutely return to Ireland, but I think next time, I’d skip some of the tourist heavy sites to explore more of the smaller towns and villages in both Ireland and the North of Ireland. There are so many lovely and historic spots to explore.
Enjoy the photos? See the rest of my trip to Ireland in pictures on my Flickr site.
The Travels and Misadventures of Miss HeatherLynnP 