Originally Posted by
beachmiles
.....Staying at the Conrad Dublin, near ST Stephens Green, and then getting a rental and heading south west or west.
I'd like to make my first day of driving in Ireland as stress free as possible. Where should we begin.
Should we pick up the car near the hotel?
Should we take a train or cab to a pick up site farther from the center of the city?
Should we return to Dublin Airport and rent there?
Should we take the train to Galway, or Cork or somewhere else, and rent there?
........
If you want to go to Waterford, Ardmore, parts of Cork and Kerry, possibly Clare and Galway, you don't want to
start from Cork or Galway (although picking up a car in either would be easier), since it would involve backtracking.
How about train to Waterford, pick up car, take the coastal route to Ardmore, by which time you will have acclimatised? Then do a bit of Cork / Kerry, and if there is time, head for Galway, and come back to Shannon via Clare (but the roads in Clare, apart from the coast, are secondary). There is a small car ferry from near Killimer / Tarbert, between Kerry and Clare of course. If you are in Kerry, and its very misty, skip the famous 'Ring' as you won't see anything, and will have to concentrate on the windy road so much you will be exhausted for no result.
In Dublin, there is a Hertz pickup point on the South Circular Road, that is both easy to get to (cab if you must), and is on the way out of the city heading west. But you will need clear instructions. I dropped some Australian friends there to pick up a car and found it easily, though I had to 'translate' for them, given the strong accent of the member of staff! It wasn't overcrowded either.
However, I still think a train to Waterford would be worth checking out.