The Wild Atlantic Way: Cork to Donegal Road Trip

Today you begin driving the Wild Atlantic Way in earnest, following the wild, indented coast of West Cork before crossing into Kerry. You explore Kinsale's mighty Charles Fort, then head west along a coast of hidden coves, painted villages and dramatic headlands, perhaps pausing at Clonakilty, the model village, or the ancient Drombeg stone circle, and taking in the beauty of Bantry Bay and its gardens. Crossing into Kerry, the landscape grows wilder and more mountainous, and you make for Killarney, a charming, bustling town on the edge of its famous national park, ringed by lakes and the MacGillycuddy's Reeks, Ireland's highest peaks. As the day ends, you settle into your hotel in Killarney, the perfect base for the peninsulas of Kerry. This evening, enjoy the lively pubs and traditional music of the town. Rest well, for tomorrow you drive the legendary Ring of Kerry.

Today you drive the legendary Ring of Kerry, a 100-mile loop around the Iveragh Peninsula and one of the world's great scenic routes. You wind past glittering lakes and tumbling waterfalls, through the pretty villages of Killorglin, Cahersiveen, Waterville and Sneem, and along a rugged Atlantic coast of headlands, coves and wide beaches. You pause at breathtaking viewpoints looking out to the jagged Skellig islands, whose ancient monastery clings to the rock far offshore, gaze up at purple mountains and down over patchwork fields, and perhaps visit an ancient stone fort or the dramatic Kerry Cliffs. Threaded throughout are ever-changing skies and sudden rainbows. Back near Killarney, you might take a jaunting car through the national park past Muckross House and the lakes, or walk to Torc Waterfall. As the day ends, you return to Killarney. This evening, savour Kerry's warmth and music. Rest well, ready for the wild Dingle Peninsula tomorrow.

Today you journey over the mountains to the wild Dingle Peninsula, the most westerly point of Ireland and one of its most magical corners. You cross the dramatic Conor Pass, the highest mountain pass in Ireland, with breathtaking views over lakes, valleys and the sea, and reach the charming, colourful town of Dingle, famous for its music pubs, harbour and seafood. In the afternoon you drive the breathtaking Slea Head Drive, a coast road clinging to cliffs above the crashing Atlantic, gazing out to the Blasket Islands and passing ancient beehive huts, ring forts and early Christian sites scattered across the green hills. This is a Gaeltacht where Irish is the everyday language. As the day ends, you settle into Dingle for the night. This evening, join the craic in one of Dingle's legendary music pubs, where fiddles and bodhrans play late into the night. Rest well.

Today you journey north up the coast to Galway, crossing the Shannon Estuary by car ferry into County Clare, a scenic day along the heart of the Wild Atlantic Way. You reach the mighty Cliffs of Moher, where a wall of dark rock soars more than 200 metres straight out of the Atlantic, home to wheeling seabirds and, on a clear day, views to the Aran Islands. You walk the cliff-top paths and feel the raw power of the ocean, then cross the extraordinary Burren, a lunar landscape of grey limestone pavements scattered with wildflowers, ancient dolmens and hidden caves, perhaps pausing at the Poulnabrone portal tomb. Continuing north, you reach Galway, the colourful, bohemian city where the Corrib meets the sea. As the day ends, you settle into your Galway hotel. This evening, the pubs of the Latin Quarter spill traditional music onto the streets. Rest well.

Today you explore joyous Galway and, weather permitting, sail to the timeless Aran Islands. You take a ferry across Galway Bay to Inis Mor, the largest of the three windswept limestone islands where Irish is still the everyday language and life moves to the rhythm of the sea. You explore by pony trap or bicycle, visiting the spectacular prehistoric fort of Dun Aonghasa, perched on the edge of a 100-metre cliff above the Atlantic, and the patchwork of tiny fields divided by dry-stone walls. Back in Galway, you wander the medieval Latin Quarter, its narrow streets lined with painted shopfronts, craft shops and seafood bars, taking in the Spanish Arch and the buskers of Shop Street. As the day ends, you return to your Galway hotel. This evening, savour fresh oysters and a pint, and the traditional music that makes Galway everyone's favourite Irish city. Rest well, ready for wild Connemara tomorrow.

Today you drive west and north into wild Connemara, one of the most romantic and untamed corners of Ireland. You travel beneath the Twelve Bens mountains, past mirror-still loughs and golden bogs, along a ragged Atlantic coast dotted with white cottages and grazing sheep, through a deep Gaeltacht region where Irish is spoken and old traditions live on. You visit the fairytale Kylemore Abbey, a Victorian castle reflected in its lake beneath the hills, with its beautiful walled Victorian garden, and take in the dramatic Killary Fjord, Ireland's only fjord, a long sea inlet cradled by mountains. You might walk a stretch of coast or bog road, breathing the clean Atlantic air. As the day ends, you settle into your accommodation in the heart of Connemara. This evening, savour the deep peace, the huge skies and, perhaps, a session of music in a village pub. Rest well, for tomorrow you press on to Donegal.

Today you make the long, spectacular drive north through Mayo and Sligo to reach remote, unspoiled Donegal. You pass the pilgrim mountain of Croagh Patrick rising above Clew Bay, and the wide Atlantic strands of Mayo, then enter Yeats Country in Sligo, where the poet W B Yeats found his inspiration, beneath the flat-topped mountain of Benbulben and near his grave at Drumcliffe. Continuing north, you cross into County Donegal, Ireland at its wildest, a land of jagged peninsulas, empty golden beaches, heather mountains and a proud Gaelic culture. By evening you reach the town of Donegal, with its castle and harbour. As the day ends, you settle into your hotel in Donegal. This evening, enjoy the warmth of a Donegal pub and the sense of having reached the far northwest of Ireland, deep in the heart of the Wild Atlantic Way. Rest well, ready to explore Slieve League tomorrow.

Today you explore the wild grandeur of Donegal, crowned by the soaring sea cliffs of Slieve League. You drive out along a dramatic coast to Slieve League, whose cliffs plunge almost 600 metres straight into the Atlantic, nearly three times the height of the Cliffs of Moher and among the highest in Europe, yet gloriously uncrowded. You gaze in awe from the viewing platform, walk a stretch of the ridge if the weather allows, and feel the raw power of this untamed coast. You explore more of Donegal's tweed-weaving villages, empty golden beaches and jagged peninsulas, perhaps visiting Glencolmcille or the fishing village of Killybegs, and take in the fierce Gaelic beauty of the region. As the day ends, you return to Donegal town. This evening, savour a farewell dinner and a final session of music, reflecting on the epic coastal odyssey you have made from Cork to Donegal. Rest well ahead of your departure.

After a final morning in wild Donegal, perhaps a last look at the coast, some shopping for the region's famous handwoven tweed, or a quiet coffee overlooking the harbour, you are transferred to your departure airport, at City of Derry, Knock or Dublin, for your onward journey. You leave having driven the most spectacular stretch of the Wild Atlantic Way from the far south to the far north, colourful Kinsale and West Cork, the Ring of Kerry, the wild Dingle Peninsula, the mighty Cliffs of Moher, joyous Galway and the Aran Islands, untamed Connemara and Mayo, and the soaring cliffs of Slieve League. The images stay vivid long after you land, the Atlantic crashing beneath cliff after cliff, the empty beaches and Gaeltacht villages, the mountains and bogs, and the music and warmth of the pubs. The Wild Atlantic Way offers drama, freedom and beauty in abundance, and you depart already dreaming of a return to wild Ireland.