7 days in Ireland: itinerary

Seven days covers Dublin and one region well. The mistake is trying to loop the island: Dublin to Galway is about 2 h 30 by train, Galway to Killarney is 3 h 30 by car, and every extra base costs you half a day of packing, driving and checking in.

The route below follows the parent Ireland guide: 3 nights in Dublin, 2 in Galway, 2 in Doolin or Clifden, then out through Shannon. It gives you a capital, a music city, sea cliffs and either limestone country (Clare) or bog and mountains (Connemara).

If cliffs and villages matter less to you than lakes and the Ring of Kerry, take the variation at the end instead — but pick one, not both.

The line is simple: Dublin → Galway → Clare or Connemara → Shannon. It runs west across the country and ends near an airport, so you never double back.

Distances are short by US or Australian standards but slow: most west-coast roads are two lanes with tractors, tour buses and no hard shoulder. Treat 80 km as 1 h 30, not 1 h.

Day 1 — Dublin. Land, drop bags, walk Trinity College and the Georgian squares, eat early. If you are jet-lagged from North America, keep it to one pub and sleep.

Day 2 — Dublin. Book the Book of Kells and Trinity Long Room for the first slot, then Kilmainham Gaol in the afternoon. Both sell out days ahead in summer. Evening: trad music in a city-centre pub.

Day 3 — Dublin day trip. Glendalough (monastic site, lakes, walks) or Newgrange (prehistoric passage tomb, timed entry). Both are easier with a tour or a car than by bus.

Day 4 — Galway. Morning train from Heuston, about 2 h 30. Afternoon: Spanish Arch, the Claddagh, a music pub after 21:00. Pick up a rental car here if you did not drive from Dublin.

Day 5 — Galway day. Either the Connemara loop (Kylemore Abbey, bog roads, Roundstone) or a ferry to the Aran Islands for stone forts and cycling. Both are full days.

Day 6 — Move to Doolin or Clifden. Clare option: drive the Burren coast, walk the Cliffs of Moher, sleep in Doolin. Connemara option: stay in Clifden and take the Sky Road and beaches.

Day 7 — Fly out of Shannon. Allow 1 h from Doolin, 2 h 30 from Clifden. If your flight leaves Dublin instead, add a 3 h drive or a bus back the day before.

Train: Dublin Heuston to Galway runs several times a day, about 2 h 30, and is the easy way to start. Irish Rail sells online; book a few days ahead for cheaper seats.

Car: rent in Galway rather than Dublin if you are only driving the west — city-centre parking is expensive and the motorway west is straightforward. An automatic costs more than a manual. Insurance excess is high; many travellers take the extra cover.

Bus: Citylink and Bus Éireann cover Dublin–Galway and Galway–Clare, but rural stops such as Doolin and Clifden have few services a day, so a car is the practical choice for days 5–7.

Flights: fly into Dublin and out of Shannon if you can. Shannon is small and quick; it sits beside the Clare coast, which is where this route ends.

Dublin: stay south of the river near Trinity or Grafton Street for walking, or in the Docklands for newer hotels. Three nights is the right minimum for a first visit.

Galway: the Latin Quarter and Eyre Square area put you among pubs and music. Book early for festival weeks in July and August.

Doolin or Clifden: Doolin is a village of guesthouses and hostels 15 minutes from the Cliffs of Moher; Clifden is a small town with hotels and a good base for Connemara. Both need booking months ahead for June–August.

Keep it to three bases. A fourth hotel change in seven days costs you most of a day.

Figures are 2026 estimates for one person sharing a double room, excluding flights. Ireland is expensive by European standards, and summer accommodation is the biggest variable.

South-west instead of the west: Dublin 3 nights → Cork 2 → Killarney 2, flying out of Cork. This trades the Cliffs of Moher for the Ring of Kerry and Dingle. It is a longer drive from Dublin, so consider the train to Cork and a car from there.

Fewer bases: Dublin 3 nights and Galway 4 nights, with day trips to Connemara, the Aran Islands and the Burren. Less driving, less packing, slightly less coast.

More time: 10 days adds Clare, Dingle and Killarney; 14 days adds Belfast, Donegal and Sligo. If you want both the west and the south-west, book 10 days rather than squeezing them into 7.