L'Heure du Voyage
🇮🇪 Itinerary · Ireland · 14 days

2-week Ireland itinerary 2026: the Wild Atlantic Way

14 days on the Atlantic coast: Cork, Kerry, Galway, Connemara and Donegal. The grand tour of Ireland day by day, with costed budget and detailed transport.

🔄 Updated June 1, 2026

📅 See the program 🔄 See variants

In brief

Duration

14 days

Stops

8 places

Average budget

€2,000-3,200

Total distance

~2,000 km

Profile

Versatile

Season

May-Sep

Dublin 2d · Cork 2d · Kinsale 1d · Dingle 2d · Ring of Kerry 2d · Galway 2d · Connemara 1d · Donegal 2d

Itinerary map

The route at a glance

Ireland 2-week itinerary map: Dublin, Cork, Kinsale, Dingle, Ring of Kerry, Galway, Connemara, Donegal

© OpenStreetMap contributors

Detailed program

14 days, day by day

1

~€90/pers

Dublin · Arrival & old town

  • Morning Arrival, Airlink bus to the centre (30 min, €8).
  • Afternoon Trinity College, Book of Kells, Dublin Castle.
  • Evening Guinness and trad music in Temple Bar.
🛌 🛌 City centre · e.g. The Morgan (2 nights)·🚌 Airlink bus + walking·Ireland guide →
2

~€70

Dublin · Guinness and Georgian Dublin

  • 9am Guinness Storehouse, Gravity Bar.
  • 1pm Georgian quarter, Merrion Square, free National Museum.
  • Evening Dinner on Camden Street.
3

~€100

Dublin → Cork · Heading south

  • 9am Pick up the car, drive to Cork (2h30) via the Rock of Cashel.
  • Afternoon Cork, the covered English Market, the Lee quays.
  • Evening A pub in the Shandon quarter, seafood from the harbour.
🛌 🛌 Cork centre (2 nights)·🚗 Rental car essential
4

~€70

Cork · Cobh and Blarney Castle

  • Morning Cobh, the Titanic's last port, colourful cathedral.
  • Afternoon Blarney Castle, the stone of eloquence (€18), gardens.
  • Evening Back to Cork, pub night.
5

~€80

Cork → Kinsale · Start of the Atlantic

  • Morning Kinsale, a foodie village of colourful houses, Charles Fort.
  • Afternoon Mizen Head peninsula, the most southwesterly point of the island.
  • Evening Seafood dinner in Kinsale, the country's culinary capital.
🛌 🛌 Kinsale (1 night)·🚗 Southwest coast
6

~€90

Kinsale → Dingle · Beara peninsula

  • Morning Ring of Beara, wilder and emptier than the Ring of Kerry.
  • Afternoon Kenmare, drive to Dingle via the Conor Pass (456 m).
  • Evening Settle in Dingle.
🛌 🛌 Dingle · e.g. Dingle Skellig Hotel (2 nights)·🚗 Mountain passes
7

~€60

Dingle · Slea Head Drive

  • Morning Slea Head Drive, Celtic huts, Coumeenoole beach.
  • Afternoon Gallarus Oratory, Blasket Islands, gin distillery.
  • Evening Foxy John's pub, live music.
8

~€90

Dingle → Ring of Kerry · The big loop

  • 9am Ring of Kerry anticlockwise (179 km), Skellig Ring.
  • Day Kenmare, Moll's Gap, Waterville, view of the Skellig Islands.
  • Evening Settle in Killarney or Killorglin.
🛌 🛌 Killarney (2 nights)·🚗 Anticlockwise advised
9

~€70

Ring of Kerry · Killarney National Park

  • Morning Gap of Dunloe on foot or by jaunting car, Muckross Abbey.
  • Afternoon Torc Waterfall, the Killarney lakes by boat.
10

~€100

Killarney → Galway · Cliffs of Moher

  • Morning Tarbert ferry, Cliffs of Moher (214 m, €8).
  • Afternoon The Burren, lunar limestone plateau, Poulnabrone dolmen.
  • Evening Galway, Latin Quarter, music in the pubs.
🛌 🛌 Galway centre (2 nights)·🚗 Car + ferry
11

~€80

Galway · Aran Islands

  • Morning Ferry to Inis Mór (40 min), bike to the prehistoric clifftop fort of Dún Aonghasa.
  • Afternoon Back to Galway, Galway Bay at sunset.
12

~€90

Galway → Connemara · Wild lands

  • Morning Connemara National Park, Kylemore Abbey by the lake.
  • Afternoon Coastal road to Sligo, Benbulben mountain (a Yeats setting).
  • Evening Settle in Sligo, surf and seafood.
🛌 🛌 Sligo (1 night)·🚗 Connemara + northwest coast
13

~€90

Sligo → Donegal · Slieve League cliffs

  • Morning Slieve League cliffs (601 m, among the highest in Europe, free).
  • Afternoon Donegal tweed at Ardara, deserted peninsula beaches.
  • Evening Settle in Donegal, a Gaelic-music pub.
🛌 🛌 Donegal (2 nights)·🚗 Donegal, the far northwest
14

Flight

Donegal → Dublin · Return

  • Morning Glenveagh, national park and castle by the lough.
  • Afternoon Drive to Dublin (3h30), drop the car, airport, return to Paris.

How much

Budget for this itinerary (per person, flight included)

Backpacker

€2,000

per person

  • ✈️ Return flight: €150
  • 🏨 Hostel/simple B&B: €55/night
  • 🍲 Pubs and daily specials: €32/day
  • 🚗 Shared car + fuel: €500
  • 🎫 Sites + Aran ferries: €250
Recommended

Comfort

€2,600

per person

  • ✈️ Return flight: €190
  • 🏨 3★ hotel/B&B: €115/night
  • 🍽️ Mixed dining: €48/day
  • 🚗 Car rental: €700
  • 🎫 Activities + distilleries: €320

Premium

€5,200

per person

  • ✈️ Upgraded flight: €500
  • 🏨 Castle hotel: €260/night
  • 🍽️ Fine dining: €85/day
  • 🚗 Car + driver
  • 🎫 Private trips + Skellig: €500

Shorter, longer

Other durations

1 week

1 week

Dublin and the Southwest. The essential route.

You're here

2 weeks

2 weeks

The full island loop along the Wild Atlantic Way.

1 month

1 month

The grand tour: Wild Atlantic Way, North and Causeway Coast.

How to get around

Itinerary logistics

This itinerary follows the Wild Atlantic Way, a 2,600 km coastal route, on its finest sections from the south to Donegal. It's all by car: no public transport serves the peninsulas.

🚗

Car on the Wild Atlantic Way

€55-70/day · narrow roads · care on the peninsulas

⛴️

Tarbert ferry (Shannon estuary)

€20/vehicle · 20 min · Kerry-Clare shortcut

⛴️

Aran Islands ferry

€30 return · 40 min · from Rossaveal (Galway)

⛰️

Conor Pass and Moll's Gap

narrow mountain roads · avoid in fog

Adapt by season

Atlantic coast, changeable weather

The Wild Atlantic Way is best May to September: long days, reliable Aran Islands ferries, walkable coastal trails. The trap: July-August crowd Kerry and the Cliffs of Moher. May-June and September give the best balance. Whatever the season, the west coast takes the brunt of the Atlantic showers: expect whole days of rain and unpredictable blue-sky windows.

Author tips

What I would redo (and change)

✅ Would redo

  • • In June 2025 I took the first 10:30am ferry to Inis Mór: the island to myself by bike, while the 2:30pm one dumped the groups at Dún Aonghasa. On the Aran Islands, the morning ferry changes everything.
  • • The Slieve League cliffs (601 m) rather than Moher: three times higher, free and deserted.
  • • Sleeping in Kinsale for the food: rightly the island's culinary capital.
  • • Driving the Wild Atlantic Way south to north: you finish in wild Donegal, the high point.

⚠️ Would change

  • • Book the Kerry and Dingle B&Bs months ahead in summer.
  • • Skip Blarney Castle (touristy) for the Ring of Beara.
  • • Add a night in Connemara if you love hiking.

FAQ

Itinerary FAQ

What is the Wild Atlantic Way? +
A waymarked coastal route of ~2,600 km along the Atlantic seaboard, from Donegal in the north to Kinsale in the south. We cover its finest sections in 14 days. The full route would need three weeks.
Do I need a car the whole way? +
Yes, essential. The Southwest peninsulas, Connemara and Donegal have no public transport. Note: driving on the left and narrow roads.
When is the best time? +
May-June and September: long days, little crowding, reliable island ferries. July-August are stunning but busy in Kerry.
Should I see the Cliffs of Moher or Slieve League? +
Both are here. Moher are the most famous and easy to reach. Slieve League, in Donegal, are three times higher (601 m), free and almost deserted: the island's best-kept secret.
Can I visit the Aran Islands? +
Yes, Inis Mór is reachable by ferry from Galway (40 min). Rent a bike to reach Dún Aonghasa fort, perched on an 87 m cliff. Take the morning ferry to avoid the groups.
How much does this trip cost all in? +
About €2,000 backpacking, €2,600 in comfort and €5,200 premium, return flight from Paris included, per person.

Marie Laurent ✓

·

Southeast Asia specialist · itinerary personally tested.

Last updated: June 1, 2026.

Profile →