Ireland: walking the Kerry Way, Dingle and Beara

1. Day 1: Arrive in Killarney

   Shannon Airport to Kerry Airport and Killarney, then the Lough Leane shore to Ross Castle

   • Drive about 2.5 h
   • Welcome dinner
   • Stay in Killarney
   Day 1 details

   Your See Sight Tours guide meets the group at Shannon Airport (SNN) at about 12:30 pm, after the morning flights from North America. We drive south through County Limerick by Adare and Abbeyfeale into Kerry, about two and a quarter hours, collecting anyone flying into Kerry Airport (KIR) at Farranfore on the way; if you come by train from Dublin, we meet you at the hotel in Killarney town. After check-in, the first walk is a gentle one to stretch the legs after the flight: from the edge of town into Killarney National Park and along the shore of Lough Leane to Ross Castle, a 15th-century tower house we see from the outside, about 5 km there and back on level paths. It is a chance to try your boots and learn names. In the evening we sit down together for a welcome dinner and a briefing on the week: how the walks are paced, the shorter variants, what goes in the day pack and how the luggage moves.

   Included

   • Group transfer from Shannon Airport (SNN), with pickups at Kerry Airport (KIR) and Killarney station
   • Walk with your guide along Lough Leane to Ross Castle (outside)
   • Welcome dinner and walking briefing

   Easier option: Skip the walk and rest at the hotel before dinner.

   Free time: Free between check-in and the late-afternoon walk

   Activity: About 1.5 hours on level park paths.

2. Day 2: Torc Waterfall and the Old Kenmare Road

   Killarney to Torc Waterfall, the Old Kenmare Road on the Kerry Way to the Kenmare side, and back by Moll's Gap

   • Drive about 1 h
   • Breakfast and lunch
   • Stay in Killarney
   Day 2 details

   Our first full day on the Kerry Way, the waymarked trail of about 200 km around the Iveragh Peninsula. The van drops us at Torc Waterfall, a short climb through oak and holly woods, and from the top we join the Old Kenmare Road, an old track between the two towns long since replaced by the road below. It climbs gently up the Owengarriff valley between Torc and Mangerton mountains, then runs for hours through open bog and moorland with hardly a building in sight, crossing streams on stepping stones and boardwalks. This is the stretch where red deer are most often seen. We eat a packed lunch on the trail, then drop through woodland to the Kenmare side, about 15 km and 5 to 6 hours in all, where the van waits. The drive back crosses Moll's Gap and passes Ladies View over the Upper Lake. The shorter walk climbs above the waterfall to the open valley and returns, with time at Muckross House. The evening is free in Killarney.

   Included

   • Guided walk on the Kerry Way: Torc Waterfall and the Old Kenmare Road to the Kenmare side, with a local walking guide
   • Packed lunch on the trail
   • Drive back by Moll's Gap and Ladies View
   • Muckross House guided tour for those on the shorter walk

   Easier option: Walk above Torc Waterfall into the Owengarriff valley and back, about 6 km and 2 hours, then a guided tour of Muckross House and a walk in its gardens.

   More active option: Add the climb of Torc Mountain (535 m) from the Old Kenmare Road on its stone path and boardwalk, about 1.5 hours more, for the view over all three lakes.

   Free time: Evening free in Killarney

   Activity: About 15 km (confirmed at booking, with the pickup point on the Kenmare side), 5 to 6 hours, with a climb of about 250 m near the start; wet and boggy in places, with stepping stones.

   

3. Day 3: The Gap of Dunloe and the lakes by boat

   Killarney to Kate Kearney's Cottage, on foot through the Gap of Dunloe to Lord Brandon's Cottage, then by boat to Ross Castle

   • Drive about 30 min
   • Breakfast and lunch
   • Stay in Killarney
   Day 3 details

   The Gap of Dunloe is a narrow glacial pass between the MacGillycuddy's Reeks, Ireland's highest mountains, and Purple Mountain. We start early, at about 9:15 am from Kate Kearney's Cottage, before the jaunting cars and day walkers build up. The road through the Gap is restricted to local access, so walkers share it with the jaunting cars as it climbs past a string of small lakes and the old Wishing Bridge to the head of the Gap at about 240 m, with the Reeks rising on the right. From the top the view opens over the Black Valley, one of the most remote corners of Kerry, and we walk down into it and on to Lord Brandon's Cottage by the Upper Lake, about 11 km and 4 hours with a packed lunch on the way. In the early afternoon, in a booked slot, we board an open boat for the trip back through the Upper Lake, the narrow Long Range, under the Old Weir Bridge and across Lough Leane to Ross Castle, about an hour and a half. The evening is free.

   Included

   • Guided walk through the Gap of Dunloe to Lord Brandon's Cottage, with a local walking guide
   • Packed lunch
   • Boat through the Upper Lake, the Long Range and Lough Leane to Ross Castle

   Optional experiences

   • Jaunting car (pony and trap) through the Gap from Kate Kearney's Cottage to the head of the Gap (extra, price shown at booking)

   Easier option: Ride a jaunting car to the head of the Gap and walk only the downhill half to Lord Brandon's Cottage, about 5 km and 1.5 hours, before the boat.

   More active option: With the walking guide, climb from the head of the Gap onto the shoulder above it for the view along the Reeks, about an hour more, in good weather.

   Free time: Evening free in Killarney

   Activity: About 11 km, 4 hours, on a narrow tarmac lane and tracks, with a steady climb of about 200 m to the head of the Gap. The boat is open: bring a warm layer.

4. Day 4: Inch Beach and the Dingle Way to Dingle

   Killarney to Inch Beach and Annascaul, the Dingle Way by Minard Castle to Lispole, then Dingle

   • Drive about 1.5 h
   • Breakfast and lunch
   • Stay in Dingle
   Day 4 details

   We pack up and leave Killarney at about 9 am, the luggage riding in the van while we walk. The first stop is Inch Beach, a sand spit about 5 km long running out into Dingle Bay, for up to an hour on the sand with the Iveragh mountains across the water; the guide shortens it if the walk needs the time. In Annascaul, the village where the Antarctic explorer Tom Crean was born and later kept the South Pole Inn, we sit down to lunch. Then we pick up the Dingle Way, the waymarked trail around the peninsula, heading south to the coast at Minard Castle, a ruined tower house above a storm beach of huge rounded boulders, and west on quiet lanes and field paths to Lispole, about 13 km and 4 hours from Annascaul. The van takes us the last 10 km into Dingle, a 15-minute drive, so a late finish costs little. Dingle town is in the Gaeltacht, where Irish is spoken day to day, and its harbour, colourful streets and music pubs are ours for the next three nights. The evening is free.

   Included

   • Inch Beach
   • Sit-down lunch in Annascaul
   • Guided walk on the Dingle Way from Annascaul by Minard Castle to Lispole, with a local walking guide

   Easier option: Walk from Annascaul to Minard Castle, about 6 km and 2 hours, and ride the van on to Dingle.

   More active option: Walk the length of Inch Beach and back before lunch, about 10 km more on sand.

   Free time: Evening free in Dingle

   Activity: About 1 hour on the beach and 13 km, 4 hours, on lanes, field paths and a boulder beach, with short climbs.

5. Day 5: The Saints' Road to Mount Brandon

   Dingle to Gallarus Oratory and Kilmalkedar, the Saints' Road to Ballybrack, and the Pilgrims' Path up Mount Brandon

   • Drive about 45 min
   • Breakfast, lunch and dinner
   • Stay in Dingle
   Day 5 details

   Mount Brandon, 952 m, is the highest Irish mountain outside the MacGillycuddy's Reeks and has been climbed by pilgrims for centuries in honour of St Brendan. We pick the clearest of days 5 and 6 for it. A short drive takes us to Gallarus Oratory, a dry-stone church shaped like an upturned boat, and on to Kilmalkedar, a 12th-century Romanesque church with an ogham stone in its graveyard. From here we walk Cosán na Naomh, the Saints' Road, on old lanes and green paths up to Ballybrack at the foot of the mountain, then climb the lower part of the Pilgrims' Path, marked by white posts and stations of the cross, onto the open western slope, with the whole of the peninsula and the Blaskets below. We eat a packed lunch on the hill and turn back at about 500 m: about 5 km on the Saints' Road and 5 km up and back on the Pilgrims' Path, about 10 km and 5 hours in all, with the van at Ballybrack. Tonight we have dinner together with live traditional music in Dingle.

   Included

   • Gallarus Oratory
   • Kilmalkedar church and its ogham stone
   • Guided walk on the Saints' Road and the lower Pilgrims' Path on Mount Brandon, with a local walking guide
   • Packed lunch
   • Dinner with live traditional music in Dingle

   Easier option: Walk the Saints' Road from Kilmalkedar to Ballybrack only, about 5 km and 2 hours, and ride the van back to Dingle.

   More active option: In clear weather, climb on with the walking guide to the summit of Mount Brandon (952 m) and its oratory ruin, about 2.5 hours more up and down; the guide decides on the day.

   Free time: Late afternoon free in Dingle before dinner

   Activity: About 10 km, 5 hours, with about 450 m of climbing on rough, often wet hillside paths. The summit option is steep and exposed and needs good boots and clear weather.

6. Day 6: The Dingle Way from Ventry to Dunquin

   Dingle to Ventry, the Dingle Way over the slopes of Mount Eagle to Dunquin, the Great Blasket Centre, and back by Slea Head

   • Drive about 45 min
   • Breakfast and lunch
   • Stay in Dingle
   Day 6 details

   This is the stage of the Dingle Way most walkers remember. The van takes us to Ventry Harbour, a wide sandy bay, and we walk west, so the sea and then the Blasket Islands are in front of us all day. The trail climbs off the coast road onto old green roads on the slopes of Mount Eagle, high above the Slea Head road, past field walls and abandoned farms, with Dingle Bay and the Iveragh mountains across the water. We stop for a packed lunch with the Great Blasket in view, then drop down into Dunquin, about 14 km and 5 hours. At the Great Blasket Centre we learn about the island community, abandoned in 1953, whose writers left a shelf of Irish-language books. The van brings us back to Dingle around Slea Head, with stops at Coumeenoole beach and the viewpoints, by about 5 pm. The evening is free: Dingle has music in its pubs most nights in season.

   Included

   • Guided walk on the Dingle Way from Ventry to Dunquin, with a local walking guide
   • Packed lunch
   • The Great Blasket Centre (in season)
   • The drive back by Slea Head and Coumeenoole beach

   Easier option: Ride the van to Slea Head and walk the last section of the Dingle Way into Dunquin and down to Dunquin pier, about 5 km and 2 hours.

   More active option: Continue on the Dingle Way from Dunquin to Clogher Head, about 4 km more on the cliff edge, and meet the van there.

   Free time: Evening free in Dingle

   Activity: About 14 km, 5 hours, on green roads and hill paths with a climb of about 300 m; exposed to wind, so bring a windproof layer.

   

7. Day 7: Kenmare, the Healy Pass and Bere Island

   Dingle to Killarney and Kenmare, over the Healy Pass to Castletownbere, then the ferry to Bere Island

   • Drive about 4 h
   • Breakfast, lunch and dinner
   • Stay in Castletownbere
   Day 7 details

   We leave Dingle at about 8:30 am with the luggage in the van and drive back east through Killarney and over the hills to Kenmare, a planned 18th-century town at the head of Kenmare Bay, for a 30-minute coffee break by its square. From here we cross into the Beara Peninsula and climb the Healy Pass, a road that zig-zags over the Caha Mountains on the border of Kerry and Cork, with Glanmore Lake on one side and Bantry Bay on the other. We reach Castletownbere, a working fishing port, at about 1:30 pm for lunch together: about 170 km and 4 hours at the wheel, the longest drive of the trip, held to the cap by keeping Kenmare short and broken by the pass. If the van is not suited to the pass, we take the coast road by Glengarriff, about the same time. A short afternoon ferry, times confirmed at booking, takes us across to Bere Island, home to a small community and to old forts and Martello towers built to guard the harbour, for an easy walk on the island's waymarked loops. Back in Castletownbere we have a farewell dinner.

   Included

   • Coffee stop in Kenmare
   • The Healy Pass over the Caha Mountains
   • Sit-down lunch in Castletownbere
   • Ferry to Bere Island and a guided walk on the island
   • Farewell dinner in Castletownbere

   Easier option: Stay by the harbour on Bere Island and walk the short level loop.

   More active option: Walk the longer island loop up to the high ground for views over Bantry Bay, about 3 hours.

   Activity: About 2 to 3 hours on quiet island roads and tracks.

   

8. Day 8: Allihies and on to Cork

   Castletownbere to Allihies, then by Glengarriff and Bantry to Cork Airport and Cork city

   • Drive about 3.5 h
   • Breakfast
   Day 8 details

   A last morning walk at the far end of the Beara Peninsula. We drive about half an hour west to Allihies, a village of painted houses above a long beach, where copper was mined through much of the 19th century, much of it by miners brought over from Cornwall. A trail climbs past the ruined engine houses and spoil heaps above the village, with views out to the Atlantic and across to the Kerry coast, about 2 hours on rough tracks with a modest climb. Leaving at about 11 am, we drive back along the peninsula through Glengarriff and Bantry, where we stop for lunch on your own by the bay, and on through west Cork, about 3.5 hours at the wheel in all. We reach Cork Airport (ORK) at about 3 pm and Cork Kent station soon after, for trains to Dublin. Book a flight that leaves after about 5:30 pm, or stay a night in Cork or Dublin; we can book extra nights for you.

   Included

   • Guided walk on the Allihies copper mine trail
   • Group transfer to Cork Airport (ORK) and Cork Kent station

   Easier option: Walk the beach at Allihies instead of the mine trail.

   Free time: Lunch stop on your own in Bantry

   Activity: About 2 hours on rough tracks. Book a flight leaving Cork after about 5:30 pm.

Wildlife and weather: Kerry is wet, and the hills make their own weather: a clear morning in Dingle can mean cloud on Mount Brandon by noon, so the guide picks the Brandon day on the forecast. May and June have the longest light, with dusk after 10 pm. Killarney National Park holds Ireland's only native herd of red deer, often seen near the Old Kenmare Road; gannets, choughs and seals are common on the Dingle and Beara coasts, and dolphins are sometimes seen from the Bere Island ferry. Midges can bite on still evenings in summer.

• Killarney3 nights
• Dingle3 nights
• Castletownbere1 night