Itineraries · Seven days
Seven days in Ireland
Seven nights is the week most American trips actually take. These are the eight versions of it we route, each written as a whole week rather than a list of sights.
8 seven-night journeys
A week is long enough to change base twice and short enough that a third change ruins it. Every itinerary below obeys that, which is why none of them read like a coach tour.
If you want one route rather than a choice, take the week directly below. It is the seven days we give friends flying in for the first time: Dublin, Kerry, then County Clare, out through Shannon.
The classic week
The 7-day Ireland itinerary, day by day
Three bases, no one-night stays, and a private driver for the country legs. Land in Dublin, leave from Shannon.
Route checked 2026-09-01 · Open the full route in Google Maps
| Day | Base | Driving | The day | Sleep |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Day 1 | Dublin | No car | Arrive in Dublin, and do almost nothingMorning landing, bags dropped at the hotel, a walk through Merrion Square and Grafton Street, an early dinner and an early night. Jet lag wins on day one, so plan nothing you would be sorry to blur.Where to sleep in Dublin | The Merrion, two nights |
| Day 2 | Dublin | Walking, no car | Dublin properlyTrinity and the Long Room first thing, the historic centre in one guided morning, a free afternoon and one dinner worth dressing for.The Dublin guide | The Merrion |
| Day 3 | Killarney | Private driver, one stop at the Rock of Cashel | Dublin to KerryA transfer day, not a touring day. One hour at Cashel, then Killarney by mid-afternoon and an evening that belongs to the hotel.The Kerry Edit | The Europe, Killarney, three nights |
| Day 4 | Killarney | Short hops with your driver | Killarney and the national parkThe Gap of Dunloe, Muckross and Torc, the lakes taken slowly. The one day this week with nothing to catch, which is the point of three nights. | The Europe, second night |
| Day 5 | Killarney | Full day, private driver | The Ring of KerryThe Ring with a driver who reads the weather and the coaches on the morning, back to the same lake by evening. No hotel change.The Ring of Kerry drive | The Europe, third night |
| Day 6 | Newmarket-on-Fergus | Private transfer, Adare on the way | Kerry to County ClareA short leg by this week's standards. Be at Dromoland by early afternoon, because the grounds are the reason to come.The Clare Edit | Dromoland Castle, two nights |
| Day 7 | Newmarket-on-Fergus | Day out with your driver | The Burren and the Cliffs of MoherThe Burren in the morning, the Cliffs late in the day when the coaches have gone. The next morning is breakfast, then twenty minutes to Shannon. | Dromoland Castle, last night before Shannon |
Before you book
Bases, airports and timing
- Bases, not hotels
- Three bases in seven nights
- Dublin two, Kerry three, County Clare two. No one-night stays, and no attempt to circle the island in a week.
- Do you need a car
- No. A private driver
- No car in Dublin at all, then a private driver for the country legs. You never drive on the left after a red-eye, and the Ring day is one you can actually look at.
- Airports
- Dublin in, Shannon out
- The open jaw is what makes the week work. Dromoland is about twenty minutes from Shannon, so the last morning is breakfast, not a drive across the country.
- Best months
- May, June and September
- Long light, open season, and fewer coaches than July or August.
- If you only have five days
- Dublin two, Kerry three
- Drop Clare and fly home from Shannon or Kerry. You keep the city and the southwest, and the week still has no one-night stays.
Or take one of these weeks instead
- 01
7 Days in Greater Dublin: The Definitive Itinerary
Dublin and Wicklow · Greater Dublin
Seven days lets Dublin breathe and gives the surrounding counties the space they deserve. Two slow days in the city, a coastal day on the DART, a day in the Wicklow Mountains, a day in the Boyne Valley, a day at Powerscourt, a closing day in Kilkenny. One Dublin hotel for the first four nights. One country house for the last three.
Four nights in Dublin, three in Wicklow. The base change at Day 5 is the trick most itineraries miss.
Best for: A first trip that does not want a rental car for the first half.
Read the week - 02
7 Days in Ireland's Castles and Country Houses
Midlands, Mayo, Clare and Limerick · Castles & Country Houses
Seven nights, four castles, no compromise. Ballyfin in the midlands, Ashford in the west, Dromoland over the Shannon, Adare in Limerick. Each picked for the room and the table, not the gift shop. The Ireland Americans imagine, slept in properly.
Four castles. No drive over two hours. Each stay long enough to use the grounds.
Best for: Travelers for whom the house is the destination.
Read the week - 03
The Ireland Honeymoon: 7 Nights, 4 Luxury Hotels
Dublin and the west · Romance
Seven nights, four houses and a private driver: The Merrion, Ashford Castle, Adare Manor and Sheen Falls Lodge. Long dinners, late mornings, and the room we would book at every stop.
A townhouse, a castle, a manor and a lodge above a waterfall. Nobody drives.
Best for: A honeymoon that would rather be private than busy.
Read the week - 04
7 Days of Golf in the South of Ireland
Clare, Limerick, Kerry and Cork · Golf
Seven nights. Seven rounds. Three bases. This is the trip we route for American golfers who want the South West done in the right order, at the right pace, with the right rooms. Lahinch and Doonbeg played out of Dromoland Castle on the Clare coast. Ballybunion, Tralee and Adare Manor played out of the Manor itself across the Shannon. Waterville and Old Head played out of Sheen Falls Lodge in Kenmare. No Dublin, no Northern loop, no 36-hole days, no early tee times on the arrival flight. Every drive under 90 minutes. Every hotel a caddie call away. The seven courses people actually travel for, in the sequence that keeps your back, your handicap and your marriage intact.
Three bases, one round a day, seven championship links ranked among the world’s finest. Everything else is noise.
Best for: American golfers doing the South West properly, once.
Read the week - 05
7 Days Walking the West of Ireland
Connemara, the Burren and Donegal · Walking the West
Seven days lets the West breathe. Three nights at Ballynahinch in the heart of Connemara, two at Gregans on the lip of the Burren, two at Lough Eske in Donegal. The full Atlantic edge on foot: Diamond Hill, the Cliffs coastal walk, Slieve League. The order is what makes the trip work, every walking day landing before the next one starts.
Seven days, three bases, no walking day shorter than two hours or longer than five. The Atlantic the way it was meant to be met.
Best for: Walkers who want the Atlantic edge on foot, not through glass.
Read the week - 06
7 Days Walking the South of Ireland
Kerry and West Cork · Walking the South
Seven days through Kerry and West Cork. Three nights in Kenmare for the Killarney walks and the Kerry Way, three in Dingle for the peninsula and Brandon, one closing night in Kinsale for the harbour and the coastal path to Charles Fort. Open-jaw from Shannon into Cork. No drive over two hours, no walk under three.
Shannon in, Cork out. No drive over two hours. Three bases, seven walks.
Best for: Walkers who want Kerry without the Ring of Kerry traffic.
Read the week - 07
7 Quiet Days in the West
Connemara · Quiet Ireland
Seven days, three houses, one bay. Three nights at Ballynahinch on the river, three at Rosleague Manor over Ballynakill harbour, one transfer day with a long Clifden lunch. The West read slowly, the way the West actually reads.
Two houses, no rush, seven days. The West held at the pace it actually keeps.
Best for: Anyone whose idea of a good week is two hotels and no schedule.
Read the week - 08
7 Days for the Second Trip
Donegal, Sligo and Connemara · Return to Ireland
Seven days for travelers who already did the first one. No Cliffs. No Ring of Kerry. No Trinity College. Two nights in Donegal at Lough Eske, two in Sligo at Markree, two in Connemara at Ballynahinch. The Ireland you missed because the first trip was about the photos.
Three bases, no first-time beats, the Ireland the second trip is for.
Best for: Second and third visits, where the obvious is already done.
Read the week
Where you sleep decides the week
Every week above is built around two or three houses. If you would rather choose the hotel first and let the route follow, start with the reviews.
Seven days in Ireland
7-day Ireland itinerary questions
The Ireland Edit
We drive these routes ourselves and pay for our own rooms.
Deborah Nunez · Itineraries