What else can you do in Killarney, other than dance?

While you are in Killarney make sure you take in some of the tourist attractions below.
We've been to Killarney many times and can recommend them all!

You'll need to hire a Car to make the most of some of them (see our Car Hire offer here)

Don't miss a ride on a traditional horse drawn Jaunting Car. From the town centre you can ride through the town, or through part of the 25,000 acre National Park. Or take a trip out of town past the Gleneagles and pick one up for a trip into the Gardens of Muckross House (website). You can drive in through a different gate if you prefer but you'll miss the glorious rhododendrons! There's a ruined Abbey in the gardens, and the house itself is a must see. It's worth the trip just to take a stroll in the beautiful gardens overlooking the lakes and mountains.

Sadly the recently restored Ross Castle, closer to the town centre, is unlikely to be open, but the boat tours on the lakes behind should be running, taking in some spectacular views.

Try visiting the museum of Irish transport in the middle of town too for a look at a unique collection of vintage vehicles including perhaps the rarest car in the whole World,
a 1907 Silver Stream.

You really must try one of the many Pubs and Restaurants in the area as the food is fabulous, and usually reasonably priced. If it's shopping you're after don't miss the fabulous
Quills Woollen Market in the middle of town, where you'll find a fantastic range of traditional Irish wares. For the more modern there's the Killarney Outlet centre (the only one in Ireland I believe) which features a Nike factory store.

Head out of town past the Gleneagles and Muckross House and you'll drive through the lakes area up into the mountains where your first stop should be the dramatic Torc Waterfall. Further along you'll find Molls Gap, one of the most beautiful places in the whole of Ireland. The restaurant and shop are well worth a visit, but likely to be closed at this time of year. Keep going and you'll reach a point called Ladies View, offering a look back across all of the lakes. You'll definitely want to take camera for the view here. It is stunningly beautiful, and is alive with the very essence of the Celts that once walked this land. You could just stand here for hours, it's so peaceful yet also exciting at the same time. Be warned if you decide to take a stroll you'll need waterproof boots as the ground is very soggy here!

Just along from here take a right and you'll head down a road (rough track really) that seems to be leading nowhere but is heading into the Black Valley. This is one of my favourite places, so called because the small lakes running through the valley are pitch black. This is caused by a combination of the shadows cast by the steep mountains either side, and the heavy peat content. The road is rough, and gets very narrow in places, but is okay to drive through in a normal small car, although you'll never get above 15 miles per hour! Unbelievably they used to send horse drawn carriages through!

As you leave the valley, through the Gap of Dunloe you really should stop to relax at
Kate Kearney's cottage, where long ago Kate refreshed travellers with her goats milk and the potent alcoholic beverage Poteen. The poteen may be gone now but a fine Irish coffee still awaits. Kate's cottage can also be reached by following the Killorglin road out of the other end of Killarney, but I think the best way to take in the Black valley is from the top, ending at the cottage

Tralee
About 20 miles North of Killarney you'll find the main town of County Kerry. Here you'll find a fantastic swimming pool complex with wave machines, fountains, slides, steam rooms etc.
Just alongside is the restored Tralee-Dingle steam railway leading to the
Blennerville windmill, For far too many Irish men and women this was the last sight they ever had of the home country as they left for the USA.

Head into this vibrant market town and you'll be able to visit "The Green". This town park hosts a memorial to the fabled Rose of Tralee, and the Ashe Memorial hall. Don't miss the "Geraldine Experience" time car ride in the Kerry the Kingdom museum housed at the Ashe building, which offers an amazing trip through the sounds, sights and smells of Tralee's history.

Head out of Tralee on the coast road towards Dingle and you have a very difficult choice to make, which of two routes do you take!

1. Through the Connor Pass to Dingle - not for the fainthearted this road climbs through some very narrow roads, clinging to the rockface, but you can take a break halfway up at a natural layby on your left to relax your nerves! Cup your hands under this waterfall to taste real mineral water! That should fortify you for the climb up the rocks behind, where a lake awaits at the top. Back in the car you've then only a short, but very steep climb to the parking area at the crest of the pass. The view from here across Tralee bay is worth the effort. Or face the other way to look down into Dingle. To my mind this is the most relaxing place on earth. Just sit for five minutes up here and the world goes away. The drive down the other side is much more relaxing!
2. Turn left to follow the brown signed "scenic route" to Inch. This road leads straight up and over the famed Slieve Mish mountains. The road is a fairly easy drive, and about halfway you'll come to a pathway leading away into the hills on your left to a castle. I've never fancied the climb but lots of people can be seen following the marked pathway. Just after this there's a chance to burn out the clutch of the car as you drive up a short, but incredibly steep hill! After that it's plain sailing all the way to Inch, where you'll find one of the best beaches in the World. you can then head right to Dingle.

Dingle
This small fishing village offers a multitude of fine seafood restaurants, and I'd recommend Murphy's pub by the quayside for a traditional Bacon & Cabbage lunch.

There's a Sealife centre here too, or follow the signs out to Slea head. This is a nice drive out along the cliff tops which ends in a dead end at the sea itself, in a beautiful little cove ideal for swimming. Fans of the film Ryan's Daughter might recognise this as the beach where the weapons were washed ashore in the storm.

And of course there's the famous Dolphins to swim with, just offshore. The organised boat trips are well worth a go!

Castleisland
To the East of Tralee, and North of Killarney you'll find the Show Caves known as
Crag Caves. These spectacular underground caves are worth a visit, particularly if the weathers too bad to do anything else!

That lot should keep you going!