Editor’s note: during COVID-19 there may be additional travel restrictions. Check the latest guidance in [destination] before planning a trip, and always follow local government health advice.

East to west road trip

Start – Dublin; End – Doolin; Distance – approx  270miles/435km

Go West! As you quit Dublin’s suburban sprawl the landscape continues to soften and before you know it you’re in Galway, gateway to beautiful, brooding Connemara, where the mountainous landscape is punctuated by brown bog and shimmering lakes.

Explore one of the country’s most magnificent spots before looping south into the Burren of County Clare, the spiritual home of Irish traditional music.

Ancient Ireland road trip

Start – Brú na Bóinne; End – Glendalough ; Distance – approx  329miles/529km

Go time travelling through middle Ireland’s collection of ancient tombs, Celtic sites and monastic cities, and cover 3000 years in four days.

This trip transports you from the Neolithic era to the last days of the first millennium, via the signposts of Ireland’s astonishing history: the prehistoric treasure trove of Cruachan Aí; the ancient passage graves of Brú na Bóinne and Loughcrew; the ancient Celtic capital atop the Hill of Tara; and the rich monastic settlements of Clonmacnoise, Glendalough and Cashel – some of the most important early medieval universities in Europe.

Wexford and Waterford road trip

Start – Enniscorthy; End – Ardmore; Distance – approx  102miles/164km

Ireland’s favourite beach destinations are dotted along the coastlines of counties Wexford and Waterford, but there’s far more to the region than just buckets and spades.

Collectively labelled the ‘sunny southeast’, Wexford and Waterford get less rainfall and more sunshine than anywhere else in Ireland, but the southeastern counties are about more than resort towns and pretty beaches. There’s history aplenty round here, some stunning inland scenery and a vibrant foodie scene that mightn’t be as well known as that in neighbouring Cork but is just as good.

Ring of Kerry road trip

Start – Killarney; End – Ross Castle; Distance – approx  125miles/202km

Circumnavigating the Iveragh Peninsula, the Ring of Kerry is the longest and most diverse of Ireland’s prized peninsula drives, combining jaw-dropping coastal scenery with soaring mountains.

You can drive the Ring of Kerry in a day, but the longer you spend, the more you’ll enjoy it. The circuit winds past pristine beaches, medieval ruins, mountains, loughs and the island-dotted Atlantic, with the coastline at its most rugged between Waterville and Caherdaniel in the peninsula’s southwest. You’ll also find plenty of opportunities for serene, starkly-beautiful detours, such as the Skellig Ring and the Cromane Peninsula.

Dingle Peninsula road trip

Start – Killarney; End – Tralee; Distance – approx  115miles/185km

Driving around this history-infused headland, you’ll encounter churches, castles, neolithic monuments, captivating scenery and artistic little Dingle, the peninsula’s delightful ‘capital’.

As you twist and turn along this figure-of-eight drive, the coastline is the star of the show. The opal-blue waters surrounding the Dingle Peninsula provide a wealth of aquatic adventures and superbly fresh seafood, and you’ll find that where the promontory meets the ocean – at wave-pounded rocks, secluded coves and wide, golden-sand beaches – Dingle’s beauty is at its most unforgettable.

West Cork villages road trip

Start – Kinsale; End – Glengarriff; Distance – approx  220miles/354km

West Cork claims some of Ireland’s most scenic driving country, with three spectacular peninsulas and a cache of maritime villages filled with colourful shops and pubs alive with music.

This trip contains one of Ireland’s trinity of top peninsula drives: the spellbinding Beara Peninsula, straddling Counties Cork and Kerry. Beara’s southern side, along Bantry Bay, harbours working fishing villages, while on the rugged northern side craggy roads cut in and out of nooks and crannies and tiny coves are like pearls in a sea of rocks.

Wild Atlantic Way road trip

Start – Inishowen Peninsula; End – Kinsale; Distance – approx  1600miles/2600km

The most westerly fringe of Europe is the wild, rugged and incredibly beautiful west of Ireland. It offers quintessential landscapes, which is why Irish tourism created the Wild Atlantic Way as its signature driving route.

Ireland’s western coastline is one of the world’s most stunning shorelines – a 2500km necklace of jagged cliffs, crescent strands and latticed fields strung out from west Cork to northeastern Donegal. This official driving route is richly-decorated with the panoramic pit stops you came to Ireland to experience. Here you’ll discover the best beaches in Europe, the epic landscapes of Connemara, culture-packed Galway and Clare, and the kingdom of Kerry right round to West Cork’s wonderful fishing villages. This road trip is, in a word, epic, but it is also broken down into 14 stages that can be explored individually.

North Mayo and Sligo road trip

Start – Westport; End – Sligo Town; Distance – approx  165miles/266km

Travel from country-cosmopolitan Westport to nature at its most visceral on windswept Achill Island. Then, carry on via superb surfscapes to Sligo, Yeats’ beloved adopted hometown.

This area has something quietly special – the rugged and remote Atlantic scenery of the west, but with fewer crowds. Grab a board and face off an invigorating roller at Achill, take a restorative seaweed bath at Enniscrone, walk in WB Yeats’ footsteps round the ‘Lake Isle of Innisfree’ at the foot of Benbulben and enjoy the unpretentious company of lively Westport.

Donegal road trip

Start – Rossnowlagh; End – Buncrana;  Distance – approx  263miles/423km

Supremely scenic (sometimes scary) roads lead from sandy shores to exposed mountains, taking in horse rides, boat trips and world-class art along the way.

This trip prompts diverse sensations: looming Mt Errigal is overwhelming; a beach horse ride feels liberating; and driving the high mountain passes is heart-in-the-mouth stuff. Relax on boat trips around Donegal Bay to 600m-high sea cliffs and an island, then encounter international art, Ireland’s traditional industries and piles of hand-cut peat beside the road. On this trip you gain a true insight into delightful Donegal.

Causeway Coast road trip

Start –Bangor; End – Derry; Distance – approx  183miles/295km

From seaside to mountainside, via ruined castles, stately homes, museums and the Giant’s Causeway – this trip blends cracking coastal scenery with blockbuster historic sights.

This drive delivers a true taste of Ireland’s gloriously-diverse north: the must-see stops of the Giant’s Causeway and Carrick-a-Rede; castles and historic homes at Mt Stewart, Hillsborough, Dunluce and Downhill; and superb scenery, from Slemish to sea-sprayed cliffs and immense sand dunes. This mystical landscape’s extraordinary rock formations, ruined castles and wooded glens have made the region an atmospheric backdrop for the TV series Game of Thrones, with numerous filming locations here.

By stopping in Belfast and Derry on either end of your trip along the Antrim coast, you’ll experience two vibrant cities progressing beyond a painful past.

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