Mingle in the Dingle – The Traveluster

National Geographic once touted the Dingle Peninsula as the most beautiful place on earth… and it was voted one of the top 100 destinations in the world on Trip Advisor.

The western-most point in Europe, the Dingle Peninsula juts, fierce and rugged, into the Atlantic. I believe the saying goes something like, “next Parrish, America.” (Get it? Because you’ve reached the end of the line.) Only 30 miles long and up to 12 miles across, it’s easy to squeeze this staggeringly beautiful land in to a cram-packed itinerary.

The town of Dingle is considered the prettiest town in all of County Kerry (which was our favorite county). The Irish breakfast wasn’t so bad either.

People often talk about the famous Ring of Kerry, which is very similar in its striking and raw beauty. Dingle is like the little sister, smaller, not as foreboding. Perhaps not quite as popular, I would argue that it rivals the Ring in attractiveness.

Apparently these crazy sun-shiny days were not quite so typical, either (I’ve been getting quite a few comments from people whose days in Ireland were much more rain than sun. I don’t want to give a false representation!)

Pressed for time, we fit our quick tour of the Dingle Peninsula and exploring Killarney National Park at The Ring of Kerry’s entrance in the same day. With almost 17 hours of daylight, it was much easier to see and do a lot more in July than it would be in, say, December (obviously).

Recapping the Irish Road Trip Itinerary

Three American girls invaded Ireland via Dublin, where we visited the Guinness Storehouse and sampled the city’s best pubs
We beelined it out west to Galway and took in Connemara’s “tragic beauty”.
Making our way south to the Burren region, we explored the Cliffs of Moher and Dunguaire Castle in County Claire.
Continuing on to our favorite county Kerry, we drove to the town of Dingle, taking in the divine sunshine and stunning scenery, before heading to the Ring of Kerry and Killarney National Park (next post!)