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County Kerry Travel Blogs

Background: Celtic tribes arrived on the island between 600-150 B.C. Invasions by Norsemen that began in the late 8th century were finally ended when King Brian BORU defeated the Danes in 1014. English invasions began in the 12th century and set off more than seven centuries of Anglo-Irish struggle marked by fierce rebellions and harsh repressions. A failed 1916 Easter Monday Rebellion touched off several years of guerrilla warfare that in 1921 resulted in independence from the UK for 26 southern counties; six northern (Ulster) counties remained part of the United Kingdom. In 1948 Ireland withdrew from the British Commonwealth; it joined the European Community in 1973. Irish governments have sought the peaceful unification of Ireland and have cooperated with Britain against terrorist groups. A peace settlement for Northern Ireland, known as the Good Friday Agreement and approved in 1998, is being implemented with some difficulties.

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By nelsonvic
November 16th 2008

west ireland coast

Europe » Ireland » County Kerry

ring of beara

Left early this morning to drive the spectacular Irish west coast. The weather was still warm and sunny with blue skies. The plan was to drive the three rings of Beara, Kerry and Dingle. The Beara penisula is where the Sullivans are from. And they are everywhere. Ever business was owned by one. Thought i might try and stake a claim on a nice house. Anyhow as we left Cork the cloud started rolling in slowly. It kept rolling in and in and in and eventually everything was covered in thick fog. It still has not lifted 2 days later. So [View Full Entry]

By Anaru
November 12th 2008

Wonderful Kenmare

Europe » Ireland » County Kerry » Kenmare

I was told that the the best way to see Ireland was to arrive, hire a car and just head on down the road. They were right. Wanting to avoid the bigger cities we flew into Shannon and have took in most of the west coast heading down into County Kerry and Cork. While the driving can be an experience in itself it didn't take long to adjust to driving on the other side. The scenery really is as spectacular as the pictures but the real highlights were the little towns along the way. Dingle and Kinsale in Co. Cork were [View Full Entry]

By JamesandLauren
October 25th 2008

Killarney

Europe » Ireland » County Kerry » Killarney

Mountains in Killarney National Park

James had another day off, another trip. We went west again but this time to Kerry, and went to Killarney National Park. We rented bikes for the day, there are lots of trails to ride around on. First we went to Ross Castle, part of the trail was completely flooded but we managed to find an alternate route. We went on to Muckross Abbey which is a 15th century abbey. Then on to Muckross House, Queen Victoria stayed there. It was nice, lots of deer heads on the walls. We finally saw some red deer on our way to Muckross, and [View Full Entry]

By saintjohnnymexico
October 24th 2008

Creepy Louie and His Pal Brian

Europe » Ireland » County Kerry » Dingle Peninsula

Tough As Nails
If there was a headbutting league back home, i have my horse.

A.A. is a Very Bad Acronym Think of all the A.A. acronyms. They’re all awful. 1. Alcoholic’s Anonymous 2. Adult Acne 3. All American 4. AA the Bra Size I’m sure there’s more, but I started eating beef jerkey and drinking beer and I’m no longer in a negative frame of mind. There are many dangers that exist in the world. The first two that come to mind are hen and stag parties which are the Irish versions of Bachelor and Bachelorette parties. Both are so ridiculous here that they are banned from certain pubs here because they annoy the shit [View Full Entry]

By Axel and Laurie
October 19th 2008

Day 4: All Over Dingle

Europe » Ireland » County Kerry » Dingle Peninsula

ominous white caps

Howling winds woke us several times during the night. It seemed like the full force of an Atlantic gale was battering the walls of the house. Despite the double-thick window panes, it seemed at times like the wind was blowing straight into the room. In the morning, as we dined on the best breakfast yet, we watched sheets of rain blowing horizontal outside the windows. Given that Dingle is in a well-sheltered natural harbor, we could only imagine what the conditions would be like out on the shore, our intended destination for the day. Emlagh house made us a yummy breakfast. [View Full Entry]

By Schaaz
October 19th 2008

Ireland's West Coast

Europe » Ireland » County Kerry » Dingle Peninsula

I love that I'm in Dingle. The name makes me laugh. Last night was hilarious. I drank way too much, but had a wonderful time talking to the locals, dancing, listening to incredible live music and getting lost to AND from the bar. The night began in O'Connors pub in Killarney. Full of local farmers (we'd been previously warned about how lonely they may be!) and far cheaper beer than Dublin. Our tour guide gave us a scale on how to figure out if said locals would be up for buying us girls a drink; ask what kind of tractor they [View Full Entry]

By Schaaz
October 18th 2008

Ireland pt. 2

Europe » Ireland » County Kerry » Killarney

Well day one of tour is exactly what I needed/wanted. Have kissed the Blarney stone, crawled round an ancient monastic ruin, and consumed nearly 1 litre of cider. The bus is--of course--80% Ozzies, with a few Americans thrown in for good measure. I am the only Canadian on board, and my RMT status has been well received. : ) I knew I'd feel better once we got out of Dublin. In the last 12 hours I've been able to have more conversations than in the last 4 days! Going out dancing tonight with the crew, cannot wait. Tomorrow off to Galway [View Full Entry]

By Axel and Laurie
October 18th 2008

Ireland Day 3: Driving to Dingle

Europe » Ireland » County Kerry » Dingle Peninsula

Blarney Castle

Driving day. Day 3 involved the longest bit of driving of the trip and so required a departure from Waterford at a reasonable hour. We also had plans to stop at Blarney castle outside of Cork to kiss a stone along the way (more on that later). Ireland is not a very large country. East to West, the greatest distance is perhaps 200 miles. Nevertheless, such a trip can easily take 5-6 hours because Ireland has very few motorways (aka limited-access highways). For those of us who did not grow up in an era where single-lane highways with the occasional passing [View Full Entry]

By Suitcase Shaman
October 13th 2008

On the Road. . . Again

Europe » Ireland » County Kerry » Killarney

Kilarney, Ireland
Bus to Ennis Scenery

(by Becky) Killarney was our next destination and we thought we'd be going by bus. Buses here are not very reliable especially off season & Sundays so eventually we landed a taxi with a driver who was both good looking & funny. Gene O'Sullivan is the personal driver for Maureen O'Hara who lives in town and he is more like a tour guide than any other driver we have had. He stopped at a Chocolatier along the way. Yes, all needs were being met this day. He dropped us at "Woodlands" B&B where we each had our own room. In [View Full Entry]

By Suitcase Shaman
October 13th 2008

St. Mary's Cathedral Killarney, Ireland

Europe » Ireland » County Kerry » Killarney

Killarney, Ireland
St. Mary's Cathedral

Our taxi driver, Charlie O'Leary, gave us some information about St. Mary's Cathedral in Killarney as we drove by. He told us that 600 children were buried on church grounds who were victims of the great famine. St. Mary's operated as a famine relief center. A family immigrating to Ireland to make a new start soon lost their child to the great famine of 1840's. The father planted an American Redwood tree that still stands today to honor his child. [View Full Entry]

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