First Time to the "Homeland": Ireland & Northern Ireland

April 2025

I had an overnight flight from Charlotte to London before meeting up with my mom, friend, Liv, and Liv's husband, Colin, in the Dublin Airport on Friday morning. We picked up our rental vehicle (a 9-seater sprinter van for what would be six of us total and all our bags), and immediately headed south (slowly but surely, as they drive on the opposite side of the road from us) toward Kilkenny Castle, but not before stopping for lunch at a quaint restaurant called Canvas Cafe.

Upon our arrival into Kilkenny, we, again, tentatively parked our van and explored the grounds of Killkenny Castle. Just as we got back into our van, the sky opened up with a rainstorm, and we drove another bit toward another castle, the Rock of Cashel, where we were pleasantly surprised by this gorgeous mountaintop castle overlooking expansive pastures of cows and sheep below. After roaming around the castle grounds, through the cemetery, and down the hillside, we piled back into the car, playing games and catching up along our road trip to Cork.

In Cork, we briefly settled into our flat before popping out for dinner in the main downtown area just a 5-minute walk from our place. After meandering the pedestrian alleyways, we landed at a cocktail lounge for dinner and drinks, and headed back after a couple of hours, calling it an early-ish night after a long couple days of travel.

Saturday morning started with a slightly rainy walk to grab coffee and breakfast at a nearby cafe, and another quick loop through the city of Cork. We loaded up the van and headed half an hour northwest of Cork to Blarney Castle where we walked the beautiful gardens and climbed the narrow steps of the tower to kiss the famous Blarney Stone.

Kissing the Blarney Stone at Blarney Castle is a tradition believed to grant the kisser the gift of eloquence or the "gift of the gab." Essentially, it's said to make you a more persuasive and eloquent speaker, particularly when it comes to flattery. The stone is located at the top of the castle, and to reach it, visitors must climb the tower's stairs, lie down along the castle's perimeter, before leaning backwards (almost completely inverted) to kiss the special stone, which is built into the castle wall. Liv and I, of course, plumped our lips and practiced our kissy-faces to ensure we reaped all the possible benefits from our kissing of the Blarney Stone.

From Blarney, we headed the hour and some change toward Killarney (not to be confused with Killkenny) where we drove a loop called the Ring of Kerry; along the Ring of Kerry, Ross Castle was our first stop, Muckross Abbey including its palace and gardens our second, and Torc Waterfall was third; this was a day marked by driving a while, pulling off, popping out, doing a quick hike or tour of the site in question, snapping some photos, and hopping back in the van.

After the waterfall stop, we drove by the Ladies View, a viewpoint of the valley between a handful of gorgeous, green mountains, before we would eventually make our way another hour and a half to the Kerry Cliffs, which are located on private property. The Kerry Cliffs were truly the pièce de résistance of the Ring of Kerry, and we had them almost entirely to ourselves. Fighting the brutal wind and the spattering of water (both from the sky and ocean), we summited the ledge of the park to take in the terrifying and beautiful coastline views.

We then drove along the northern half of the Ring of Kerry to our Killarney hotel, where we met my friend, Schyler, and her husband, Emil; although it had only been two days of exploring without them, it was so good to finally all be reunited and officially kick off the trip. We all settled into our rooms and briefly freshened up before walking into town for a lovely dinner and rowdy night out!

Moving slowly the next morning, we all convened at breakfast around 9 and hit the road shortly thereafter, toward the Cliffs of Moher, my non-negotiable of the trip. It was roughly an hour and a half to the car ferry, and from there, just a short distance farther to the Cliffs of Moher; upon arrival tot he park, the weather was extremely foggy, with clouds and mist literally disappearing the impressive and gigantic cliffs.

Although, we stayed hopeful, hiking along the cliffs' footpaths for a bit, and our patience paid off (only slightly) as we got a glimpse of the cliffs toward the end of our visit. From the Cliffs of Moher, we had a beautiful hour-long drive or so to Morans, a restaurant near Galway where Schyler had dined many times with family. It was nostalgic to say the least, plus we enjoyed fresh oysters, seafood, and bubbly, during our slow dining experience, doing impersonations of each other, practically licking garlic butter from our plates, and cheers'ing to Schyler's late uncle, Jack, who spent many fond moments at Morans.

From there, we continued the trek (albeit only 30 mins this time) to Galway to check into our boutique hotel, situated in the downtown area. I enjoyed a dirty martini at the adorable hotel bar before we headed out for a night of exploring, which included the main drag called Latin Quarter, with all its Irish flags, pubs, shops, cobblestone streets, and twinkly lights, and grabbed light bites and a night cap at one of the cozier-looking pubs. Needing a decent night of rest, we called it after dinner and parted for the evening.

For our first and final morning in Galway, we popped out for a quick walk and to pick up breakfast/coffee before hitting the road toward Louisberg/Westport, stopping along the way at Killary Fjord with its gorgeous mountains and muddy plains and babbling brooks and little waterfalls. From there, we headed to Louisberg, a small town close to where Schyler’s family is from.

In town, we picked up coffee, sandwiches, medicine, and snacks, while Schyler chatted with a store owner who knows her mum. As we drove out to one of Westport's beaches called Silver Strand, we drove past Schyler's family's properties, where we serendipitously passed Schyler's cousin, Pat, on his tractor; we pulled over to say hello, and Pat invited us in for tea after we playfully enjoyed the donkeys, horses, and days-old sheep bopping around his farm.

From Pat's property, we drove the winding and gorgeous road out to the beach, which boasted stunning views of the mountains, rocky shore, and Atlantic ocean. We parted with Pat and made our trek up the side of a rolling hit, where we plopped on a boulder and sat for a picnic and passing of the Jameson, under the watchful eye of Croagh Patrick, a mountaintop church, famous for the pastor's weekly summit.

This was undoubtedly one of everyone's favorite moments and days from the trip; we just basked there together in the sunlight, with a gentle breeze on our faces, enjoying one of life's beautiful moments and soaking in each others' company.  It was all so special and nostalgic and sentimental and random and hilarious and amazing.

We stopped for a quick moment at Schyler’s granny’s grave on our way into the quaint and precious downtown area of Westport. After dropping bags to the hotel, we shopped a bit, explored the town, grabbed a couple beers at nearby pubs with live music, and landed for dinner at an amazing restaurant along the water!

Of course from dinner, we headed for more rounds of Carlsberg Pilsners and Baby Guinness shots at the nearby pub, where things evolved (devolved) into us making friends with a group of childhood friends, Irish but in town from elsewhere, and, together with these newfound pals, we did self-led karaoke, magic tricks (??), and cracked up so often in a side room of the pub that the sweet but young bartender had to keep asking us to quiet down. In case you don't realize, being told by Irish people that you're too rowdy is an impressive feat, so we considered the noise complaint with pride!

Having been a late night, we slept in and enjoyed a slower morning in Westport, with some of us dining at our boutique hotel for breakfast, and others popping out to shop the main drag's many cute clothing and home goods stores or grab coffees/hangover juices. We then packed up the van and hit the road for a long day of road tripping to Northern Ireland, a four+ hour trek from Westport to Belfast.

We winded through the countryside, passed Sligo and various other cute towns, before arriving to bustling Belfast. Upon checking into our Airbnb and somehow navigating the teeny tiny parking deck in our 9-passenger van (assigning each other as spotters with the sliding doors open), we sat and visited for a bit, enjoying wine and charades before heading out for dinner and drinks at a yummy Asian restaurant in our courtyard quarter. Exhausted from a long night the day before and a long few days of travel, we called it an early night. 

Wednesday was a special one that started with coffee and breakfast from a nearby cafe in Belfast before hitting the road for a day trip to the coast. We popped in at Dunluce Castle (an architectural masterpiece that many Game of Thrones fans will recognize), where we walked the grounds and marveled at the rugged cliffs before we made our way to Giants Causeway, famous for its coastal park with a rugged peninsula and hexagonal rock formations.

Giants Causeway (with its expansive views and golden flowers) was overwhelmingly beautiful. We walked the upper path, then descended the stairs to the water, rocky shoreline, and crashing waves, with expansive farmland just beyond the cliffs. We took in the moment there for quite some time before hiking back up toward the visitor center and hilltop hotel, where we dined in the quaint and historic restaurant overlooking the ocean.

After making our way back to the van, we mayyyy have enjoyed some beverages in the car as we took the scenic route back to Belfast, jamming out, taking time-lapses of the gorgeous coastline views, and playing car games; we freshened up back at the hotel and headed out for drinks at an indoor/outdoor bar and landed for dinner at a taco and cocktails lounge. We ventured around a bit before eventually spending most of the evening at a different outdoor bar with live music that began with an impressively talented solo musician who then yielded to another super talented band. After a fun and (fairly) tame night, we wrapped around midnight and prepared for our final day in Ireland together as a group!

We awoke Thursday morning, achey and exhausted from a physically tiring adventure the day prior, and scrambled to pack up our things and tidy the flat before liberating our van from the hilariously tiny parking deck and venturing south toward Dublin, our last stop.

After the two-ish hours to Dublin Airport to return the car, with its croissant crumbs and all, we caught a perfectly packed cab to our hotel in Dublin, expertly located in Temple Bar (the main downtown and commercial district). We dropped our belongings there and walked to lunch at a cafe in the main area around Trinity College; once we meandered to Trinity College, we did a tour of the Book of Kells, the world's oldest book that was transported to Ireland from Iona Island to escape Viking invasions; the Book of Kells includes transcriptions from monks of the four gospels, and is located in the world-famous Trinity College Library, that highlights a gently-spinning globe, ceiling-high shelves, and busts of historical figures.

From there, we meandered through town the 1.5 miles to the Guinness Factory for our scheduled tour. After walking the many exhibits and floors detailing the history and process of the beer's ingredients, manufacturing, packaging, and advertising, we tasted then tried our hand at pouring a pint of Guinness. We all tried to "split the G," a trend where people halve the word "Guinness" on the glass in one long, strategic sip.

Our final stop at the Guinness Factory was the rooftop bar with 360° views of Dublin, where we sipped our free/included pints and soaked in the late-afternoon sunshine. Fighting the exhaustion and slow-burn buzz of the world-famous stout, we returned to the hotel where we regrouped for dinner at a nearby Italian restaurant. After dinner we walked the short distance to THE Temple Bar for a round of drinks, landed at one more bar with yet another talented musician, where a few of us had nightcap martinis, and eventually called it a night in the wee hours of the morning to stroll home under the twinkling lights and light rain. 

On Friday morning, the final day of our trip altogether, my mom and I woke up, packed up, and said our goodbyes before taxiing to the airport for our flight home, with Liv and Colin a couple of hours behind us, and Sky and Emil planning to stay another week with Emil's brother, sister-in-law, and their goddaughter, all of whom recently moved to Dublin from London.

To say I'm grateful for this group is an understatement. I have been lucky enough to travel with these dear friends of mine, and now our group has expanded to include their husbands, who I always adored but who I now share special memories with; I was also thankful that my mama, as my trusty +1, not only kept us safe as the steadfast driver but who also got to experience Ireland with me and dear friends she's known for a long time, too.

Old friends are one thing, but traveling the world and experiencing new places with old friends is another thing entirely, and I count my blessings for girls that feel like sisters and trips that feel like core memories, even as they're happening!

Gallery

To Do or Not To Do?

Yes, I would recommend Ireland to most anyone, because, whether you're wanting an outdoorsy trip or city vibes or history or castles, this trip can be anything you want. Plus, Irish people are just the best. They are fun, light, joyful, and unassuming; they don't take themselves too seriously, but they work hard and play harder.  I have learned that, both ancestrally and vibes-based, Irish people are MY people for these very reasons!

#Ireland #NorthernIreland #Travel #TravelBlog #TravelBlogging #LoAroundTheGlobo #Castles #CliffsOfMoher #Dublin #Cork #Killarny #KillkennyCastle #RockofCashel #RingofKerry #KerryCliffs #Moher #Galway #BlarneyCastle #BlarneyStone #KissBlarneyStone #Westport #Louisburg #Morans #Belfast #GiantsCauseway #DunluceCastle #Irish #EuropeanSummer #SpringBreak #EuroGetaway