Doolin & The Cliffs of Moher

Ireland is a wonderful island situated in the North Atlantic Ocean and west of the United Kingdom. It is about 4 hours from west coast to east and about 6.5 hours from it's northern most point to the south. I saw quite a bit of the island in about 9 days, which is definitely manageable, but two weeks would allow you to cover most of the highlights of the island country.

Getting There

The largest international airport on the east side of the island is Dublin (DUB). Air Lingus is the national airline and I had a good experience on my connection into Dublin on the airline. I found Dublin International to be the best option to fly in and out of, although Galway (GWY) on the west side of the island could be an option as well. Doolin is about 80 minutes by car from the Galway Airport or 3-3.5 hours from Dublin's airport.

Getting Around

I suggest renting a car to get around the island. The roads are quite easy to navigate and although some of the roads are narrow, it is manageable. If you do not feel comfortable driving, there are a wide variety of chauffeurs you can hire to get you around the island. I met a couple who used Pat O'Brien who can be reached at pat@exquisiteireland.com

Rest Your Head

I booked a room at West Haven House on Booking.com, just a one minute drive from the heart of Doolin. The room was nicely decorated, spacious, clean, and came with a good complimentary breakfast.

Adventure

Doolin is a tiny town that is best known for the location of the Cliffs of Moher. The Cliffs meet the Northern Atlantic and create a striking landscape. You can easily spend a half day exploring the Cliffs, although due to weather challenges, our time at the Cliffs was cut short. We ended up spending about 90 minutes, which was certainly better than no time at all, and ended up working out great.

In retrospect, I do wish that we walked the Cliffs of Moher Walking Trail that originates near Doolin town.

Driving from the Cliffs back to Doolin offers a beautiful drive overlooking this uninhabited castle.

Make sure you stop into the fantastic craft shop called Irish Crafts- they offered fantastic Irish gifts.

Right on the coast of Doolin is the Doolin Ferry. The ferry is the best way to get to the Aran Islands- Inishmore, Inishmaan, and Inisheer. It is only a one hour ferry ride to Inishmore from Doolin and you can opt to visit for the day or stay overnight.

Culinary Delights

Anthony's of Doolin is a wonderful restaurant in the heart of town. The food is excellent, there is often live music, and parking is available in the back. We had the good fortune of seeing this wonderful, local Irish duet play while we waited for our table.