The third and final week of our road trip was in Ireland and we kicked off with two days in the charming and lively city of Dublin.
Day one and our first stop was straight to the legendary Guinness Storehouse for a tour and some good ol’ fashioned beer tasting.
Of all the brewery tours we had done this trip (and there’s been quite a few), the Guinness Storehouse was a cut above the rest.
In terms of its modern, flashy and often extravagant displays, the Storehouse takes you through the beer brewing journey before heading into the history of Guinness, it’s heavy influence in Dublin with employment, tourism and charitable contributions, as well as a lesson in how to drink the famous dark stout.
Afterwards, it was up to the 360 bar at the top of the Storehouse to enjoy a pint each while admiring the view of Dublin.
The rest of our day was spent walking around the streets, enjoying a hearty Irish pub meal with a Guinness, which really does taste better here than back in Oz.
The next day we joined a free walking tour which took us through the interesting history of Ireland and the path to independence. We visited many interesting sites, from Dublin Castle to Temple Bar and Trinity College.
Later that evening we spend a night out in Temple Bar – an old part of the city full of lively Irish bars with plenty of live music, sport and friendly banter among patrons.
Day three we picked up our hire car and made our way to Kilkenny.
Driving into the small town we instantly spotted the 12th century Kilkenny Castle which had been restored to its former glory.
After a short visit we walked through the town towards St Canice’s Cathedral and Round Tower. The Round tower is the oldest building in the town. We finished with a hearty pub meal of bangers and mash and stayed in one of the nicest AirBnB’s of our trip just outside the town.
The next morning made our way to the a Rock of Cashel – a beautiful old church ruins on top of a hill which dates back thousands of years.
Then it was on to Cobh, a small but beautiful town on the southern coast of Ireland which also happened to be the final stop of the Titanic before her failed maiden voyage to New York.
The old White Star Line building has been turned into a museum called The Titanic Experience and goes through what it would have been like to be a first, second or third class passenger.
The museum features some of the best preserved photos of the Titanic thanks to a lucky passenger who disembarked at Cobh. It also features stories from survivors and testimonies from the investigation into her sinking.
We were also handed a boarding pass with a different name of one of the 132 passengers who boarded at Cobh, and at the end of the tour could find out their fate and whether they were one of only 44 who boarded at Cobh to survive.
Afterwards we made our way to Blarney just north of Cork to visit Blarney Castle and kiss the Blarney Stone.
Legend says those who kiss the stone will have the gift of eloquence bestowed upon them.
We also explored some of the beautiful gardens and made a wish to the local witch who lives in the Rock Garden.
That night we visited Cork and made our way to Oliver Plunkett Street which was recently named the best street in the UK. The town was covered in Christmas decorations and was quite beautiful. We enjoyed a nice dinner and some Irish music and dancing at The Oliver Plunkett Hotel.
Kerry was our next stop and given the weather was a bit wet, we decided to drive the Ring of Kerry for some beautiful views and stopped late afternoon in Killarney National Park – an area surrounded by beautiful mountains and lakes.
The next morning we had a decent drive to Galway, but we couldn’t miss stopping along the way at the most well known natural site in Ireland – the Cliffs of Moher.
Galway is a beautiful city to visit, particularly this time of year with the Christmas markets in the main square. The city was bustling on a Saturday night – with shoppers spilling out into the streets and the pubs packed for the Ireland v Argentina rugby match.
We enjoyed another hearty Irish pub dinner in Galway and enjoyed a friendly atmosphere that made us feel at home.
The next day it was back to Dublin but first we stopped by a nice little coastal town called Bray – the home town of our Irish mate Tiarnan.
With our three week road trip coming to an end, we couldn’t pass up one more Irish pub meal and a pint or two of Guinness.
After an incredible couple of months across Europe and the UK, it’s here we say goodbye to this continent for a while.
Next stop – Africa!
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