Sept 2024

We spent an absolutely delightful 6 days in Ireland in early September 2024, and we couldn’t have been luckier with the weather! We were thrilled to enjoy Ireland’s stunning outdoors under sunny blue skies.

Power Court & Killarney National Park

Day 1 we landed in Dublin in the afternoon and walked around the city for a few hours. Then we hopped in the car and drove to the beautiful and quaint Powerscourt Hotel Estate which looked like a giant castle in-between rolling hills. It was safe to say we fell asleep pretty quickly after our long day of travel.

Day 2 we woke up and enjoyed the scenic trails Powerscourt Estate had on their property. V went for a nice jog while Beef followed along with a free hotel bike (not recommended for hills). Perfectly crisp fall morning. Next we packed up the car to headed to Wicklow Mountain National Park. En route we saw Ireland’s tallest waterfall, the Powerscourt Waterfall. It was free for us, as we stayed on property, else it wouldn’t be worth the admission fee. At the NP we did a beautiful 5 mile hike around two lakes (“lough”). The hike was called Kippure via Lough Bray upper. This hike was awesome because it was so open and we saw maybe 2 people the entire time. Our favorite part was the these pretty purple wild flower fields. Recommendation: Wear your muddy shoes!

Next we drove a couple hours to Middleton to explore the Midleton Distillery. Per usual, Beef’s time management didn’t allow for a stop at Cork for a quick lunch. Midleton distillery is where Jameson, Powers and Midleton get distilled, but not bottled. Beef signed us up for a cocktail making class. In the class we learned how to make blackberry whiskey sours and an old fashions. This was super fun experience. V couldn’t get the whisky sour to have enough foam but Beef was a natural and his came out great! He even told the 20 year old cocktail instructor, he forgot to tell us to put the whiskey in one of the drinks!

Finally, we drove to our next hotel and oh boy this hotel did not disappoint. The Europe Hotel and Resort was nestled right outside Killarney National Park in front of Lough Leane, a beautiful lake. The best part of this hotel was the amazing outdoor pool and spa with a killer view. We had a wonderful dinner in their glass wall pandanorma restaurant where we enjoyed dinner with a perfect view.

Day 3 we woke up early and rented some gravel bikes. We rode all around the lake in Killarney, saw some super cool castles and had the best coffee in a little hut that was only accessible by foot, bike or boat. V didn’t think the bike ride was hard enough since it was all flat so we detoured and headed to the The Gap of Dunloe. The Gap of Dunloe is a narrow mountain pass forged between the MacGillycuddy Reeks and Purple Mountain by glacial flows. The river running through the gap is the river Loe from where the Gap gets its name. We climbed with our bikes up the mountain pass to The Black Valley passing five lakes. The entire ride was total perfection. We ended up riding about 30 miles. We highly recommend this part of Killarney. The route we cycled is here. We cycled directly fromt he shop to the Gap but most people take a bike boat across the lake to start the climb.

After our ride we walked around downtown Killarney and enjoyed some fish and chips the headed back to our hotel to get some hot tub relaxation time. The hotel had this amazing infinity outdoor hot tub that V was completely obsessed with. We enjoyed some yummy pizza at the hotel then went to the hotel bar to listen to some live music and even got a surprised firework show from a wedding that was happening at the resort.This was one of our favorite days.

Cliffs of Moher & Westport

Day 4 we packed the bags up and headed towards the Cliffs of Moher. The cliffs were awesome but as expected, it was SO crowded. We were really excited to hike the backbone of the cliffs but most of the trails were closed for maintenance so we just walked around the main cliffs. This is a must see when in Ireland but to be totally honest, we felt that Ireland had so much more to offer outside of the famous Cliffs of Moher. After that we drove a couple more hours to our last destination, Breaffy House Hotel.

Day 4: The Breaffy House Hotel was a giant castle hotel. The room was super spacious and cool inside. Wasn’t our favorite hotel but it did the job! The next morning we woke up then headed to town to rent bikes to cycle The Great Western Greenway. We rented the bikes and got shuttled 30 miles to Achill Island. From there we cycled back into town. The World Class Great Western Greenway is a 44 km traffic free cycling and walking path which primarily follows the line of the famous Westport / Achill Railway, which closed in 1937. You couldn’t ask for a more picturesque setting, as you drift from the bustling town of Westport along to the pretty village of Newport, where you move on along the coast to Mulranny and finally out to the gorgeous island of Achill.

Since the bike path was an easy flat 30 mile ride (with V’s hip pain, Beef was leading the entire time), V insisted we head over to the famous Croagh Patrick hike, so that is exactly what we did. Ireland calls this trail “The holy mountain”. Ireland’s patron saint, St Patrick, is said to have spent 40 days and 40 nights on the mountain in 441 AD, and the name ‘Croagh Patrick’ comes from the Irish ‘Cruach Phádraig’ meaning ‘Patrick’s Stack’. This hike was only 4 miles long but was SO steep. We made it to the top sub 2 hours, where the submit was completely engulfed in clouds. But it was worth it, at least it didn’t rain.

After our hike, we had a delicious meal in a pub in Westport where we enjoyed some fresh seafood and of course a few pints of Guinness.

Day 5: Our flight was in the afternoon so we woke up early and drove a few hours back to Dublin. This time we decided to do the Guiness factory tour. It was surprisingly a super cool experience. The seven-story Guinness building, built in 1904, has been fitted into an educational, interactive, and fun sensory experience.  We made quick rounds through the building then headed to the top floor to enjoy our Guiness in the Gravity bar which inspired a 360-degree views of the city. We got a quick snack at the many food spots in the factory and headed to the airport.

One thing we learned about Ireland is that they also drive on the opposite side of the road, like the UK. Beef insisted we rent an manual car so that was a fun experience. V was not impressed with Beefs left hand shifting on tiny back roads but we made it safe and sound.