So, this Ireland road trip guide took a fair whack of time to research, plan out, and write.
It’s also pretty damn long.
If you don’t have 4 weeks to explore, you’ll find much shorter road trip routes in our Ireland road trip guide section.
Below, you’ll find a detailed itinerary to follow if you have 28 days to road trip around Ireland. Here’s a look at the route.
4 weeks in Ireland: A rough route overview
The dodgy map above (Photoshop was never my strong point) shows a very rough outline of the route that you’ll find in the guide below.
Here’s what you’ll get if you take the time to read it:
- A useful, detailed guide that removes the pain from planning:
- You’ll get an hour-by-hour (literally!) guide to each day
- Clear, concise itineraries to follow
- Advice on things to do along with recommendations on where to eat, sleep and drink
Yep, it’s long – so, if you’re stuck for time, sign up to our mailing list (no spam – only good stuff) at the bottom of this page and I’ll fire it onto you to read later.
Table of Contents
I’ve split this post up into different pages – this has nothing to do with getting more pages read or ad revenue (apologies for the ads, by the way).
Personally, I hate when sites do this, but in this case, I had to. Although I’ve done everything in my power to make this website speedy, this guide is long and tends to load much slower than 98% of our other guides.
So, I’ve given each day a dedicated page, which should make it easier for you to browse.
Just click one of the days below to dive in
- Day 1 (Dublin) – Arrive in Dublin, Castles, Cliffs and Historical Pubs
- Day 2 (Dublin) – Trinity College, the Guinness Storehouse and so much more
- Day 3 (Wicklow) – Mountains, lakes, long walks, and a brewery
- Day 4 (Carlow & Kilkenny) – One of the best views in Ireland, historic walks, castles
- Day 5 – (Wexford and Waterford) Famine ships, haunted houses and ancient lighthouses
- Day 6 (Waterford) – The incredible Copper Coast
- Day 7 (Tipperary and Cork) – A looped walk, the Rock of Cashel, Cahir Castle and more
- Day 8 (Cork) – Exploring the historic town of Cobh before tipping on to Kinsale
- Day 9 (Cork) – Exploring glorious West Cork
- Day 10 (Cork and Kerry) – Crazy roads and a big aul chunk of the Ring of Kerry
- Day 11 (Kerry) – Beaches, the Slea Head Drive and some of the best pubs in Ireland
- Day 12 (Limerick) – Thatched Cottages, Castles and Kayaking
- Day 13 (Clare) – Cliff walks, caves and craic agus ceol
- Day 14 (Clare, Westmeath and a bit of Galway) – An unforgettable drive, the oldest pub in Ireland and plenty more
- Day 15 (Galway and Mayo) – A hike, one of the best drives in Ireland and on to Mayo
- Day 16 (Mayo) – Croagh Patrick, beaches, the most extensive Stone Age monument on earth and lots more
- Day 17 (Sligo and Leitrim) – The Knocknarea Queen Maeve Trail, the highest waterfall in Ireland and more
- Day 18 (Fermanagh and Donegal) – Ireland’s Stairway to Heaven, caves, cliffs and more
- Day 19 (Donegal) – Beautiful beaches, one of the bendiest roads in Ireland and more
- Day 20 (Donegal) – Sunrise on Marble Hill Beach, One of the best views in Donegal and plenty more
- Day 21 (Donegal and Derry) – Forts, panoramic views and loads more
- Day 22 (Antrim) – Taking the Ireland road trip to the Causeway Coastal Route
- Day 23 (Antrim and Down) – A cliff walk, a historic prison and more
- Day 24 (Down and Louth) – A hike up Northern Ireland’s highest peak, one of my favourite drives, and a night in Carlingford
- Day 25 (Louth, Cavan and more Louth) – Slieve Foye, a forest walk and Ireland’s oldest town
- Day 26 (Louth) – Exploring the medieval town of Drogheda
- Day 27 (Meath) – Newgrange, Knowth, Trim Castle and more
Click number ‘2’ below to be taken to day 1. (Use Pinterest? Pin the below for later!)
Keith O’Hara has lived in Ireland for 34 years and has spent most of the last 10 years creating what is now The Irish Road Trip guide. Over the years, the website has published thousands of meticulously researched Ireland travel guides, welcoming 30 million+ visitors along the way. In 2022, the Irish Road Trip team published the world’s largest collection of Irish Road Trip itineraries. Keith lives in Dublin with his dog Toby and finds writing in the 3rd person minus craic altogether.
Leeann Nolan
Wednesday 15th of November 2023
Hi Keith Thank you so much for all the work you have done on The Irish Road Trip. I have used much of it to plan my 7 week trip to Ireland in 2024. It has been invaluable :)
Mick Bourke
Sunday 24th of September 2023
G’day Keith-thanks for your trip. My wife and I will be over there in late April and most of May (about a month in total before heading to Scotland for a couple of weeks). I think I’ll be using your trip (which is great (as also is the additional info at the bottom)) as the basis for ours, however, I would like to do abit more of the inland (like a figure eight of the island). Do you have any suggestions?
Keith O'Hara
Wednesday 27th of September 2023
Hey Mick,
Is there anywhere in particular you have in mind with the inland section?
Cheers,
Keith
MIchael Katekar
Tuesday 11th of July 2023
A big thank you for all of the time and hard work you have put into this blog. Great information. I don't think we can keep up with your pace but will certainly take up many of your suggestions.
Isabella Dennison
Sunday 26th of March 2023
Good day Keith,
Wow, what an amazing work you've done! I'm forever grateful!!! Please can you email this to me. We are planning to explore Ireland for the first time this year 2023, all the way from South Africa.
Thank you
Keith O'Hara
Monday 27th of March 2023
Thanks Isabell!
Sorry it's taken me so long to reply!
I've tried to get this converted to PDF on a number of occasions, but the result is very messy due to the volume of photos in it.
If there's any specific questions that I can help with, please fire them on and I'll do my best to answer them.
Keith
Jodie Wilson
Sunday 26th of March 2023
First retirement trip. Ireland for a month! Go big or go home. So excited to start this new chapter in our lives - and to hit the roads of Ireland. This guide is perfect - but I’d love a more readable copy if you could email it to me.