One of my favorites memories from our Europe backpacking trip is our Ireland Coast Road Trip. Our selected route started in Dublin (after spending three days there) and ended after dropping off our rental car back in Dublin.
Here is a map of the route we took around Ireland:
I wrote about our first day four days driving around Ireland here, here, here, and here. Today I’m sharing our fifth day of the road trip primarily spent at the Cliffs of Moher!
Cliffs of Moher
Many people think of the Cliffs of Moher as the primary stop on an Ireland road trip, and rightfully so. One could easily spend several hours sitting and gazing at the dramatic drop into the Atlantic Ocean, letting your mind rest and wander (weather permitting). We were apparently very lucky to have a sunny day at the Cliffs during winter, so if visiting the Cliffs is your main goal of an Irish road trip, I’d recommend going at a different time of year, but it worked out for us.
We saw a crazy amount of rainbows in Ireland. I took this picture on the way to the Cliffs of Moher.
Just a random castle on the side of the road while driving to the Cliffs!
We checked out of our hotel in Killarney in the morning and stopped by the Cliffs of Moher on our drive to Galway. Despite the very cold wind, we were thankful to have a sunny day for our stop at the Cliffs. The sun was shining in the wrong direction for ideal pictures, but we got a few decent ones I’m happy to share here.
Admission to the Cliffs of Moher is just under $7 per adult. It is open every day until sundown. It’s an easy drive from Killarney or Galway. The parking lot is well-marked and easy to find right next to the visitor’s center.
After spending a long time outside, we went into the visitor center for a snack and a look at the exhibits. We didn’t love the exhibits, but we were able to snag a delicious cup of soup. While perusing the brochure stand in the visitor center, we came across an ad for a local salmon smokehouse, The Burren Smokehouse, and decided that would be our next stop on the way to Galway.
Another Irish rainbow!
Once we arrived at The Burren Smokehouse, we visited with the woman behind the counter. She let us know that the restaurant attached to the smokehouse was closed for the season, but she directed us to a pub nearby that served their salmon. We walked over to the pub and enjoyed the salmon immensely!
This was such a great day! We finished our drive to Galway that night and checked into our hotel. I cannot wait to share our time in Galway – it was my favorite town in Ireland.
Click here to see all of my Ireland posts including our time in Dublin and various stops on our roadtrip.
I’ll be back soon with the rest of our Irish road trip!
{Click here to see all of my posts from our Ireland road trip. Our time in Ireland was part of a 2.5 month trip across Western Europe. Click here to check out all of my posts from this adventure!}
{Thanks for reading! Want to know a little more about me? I’m a CPA learning how to balance a career with frequent travel while planting roots at home in Austin, TX. When I’m not exploring my home city with my husband Daniel or cuddling with our chubby orange cat Banana, I’m probably planning, packing, traveling to, or daydreaming about our next adventure. After all, my travel mug collection is never complete. If you have wanderlust too, be sure to follow me on Instagram, Pinterest, Snapchat(emilya89), or subscribe to my blog!}
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