Help Planning Golf Trip to Ireland

[Divot_Forensicist]

My wife and I have an opportunity to work for two weeks in Dublin in 2025 (end of May through early June). We will try to play some of the courses near Dublin (e.g., Portmarnock and County Louth) during that time, but we are thinking of extending our stay at least one week, maybe two, to play more golf outside of the Dublin area.

 

We would prefer staying in the same VRBO rental over a longer period of time instead of jumping from one place to the next every other day (rather be exhausted from playing golf than packing and unpacking), and so my first question is: What towns/locations would you recommend that are centrally located in other regions of Ireland in close proximity to top golf courses (e.g., Northwest [Narin & Portnoo, County Sligo, Enniscrone, Carne], Southwest [Ballybunion and Lahinch], or Northern Ireland [Royal Portrush, Royal County Down]? Which region(s) would you recommend?

 

We are not excited about the idea of renting a car and driving around Ireland (I have driven in other countries outside of the US but not ones that drive on the opposite side...), which leads me to a two-part question: (a) Is travel by train to a town such as described above a viable option for travelers with luggage and golf clubs in tow? and (b) Would a car hire or shuttle be a viable option to get to and from the courses once settled in our rental property?

 

Any advice for planning a two-week golf trip in Ireland would be much appreciated. Thank you in advance.

 

[jvincent]

I've done/planned three different regions in Ireland over the last 5 years.

 

This year we went to the northwest and stayed in Downings, which is the town where the Rosapenna resort is. From there the three Rosapenna courses (5 min from town) and Portsalon are all close. After that you 90 min away from Ballyliffin (to the north) and 90 min from Narin (to the south). 

 

If you go to the southwest (Lahinch, Tralee, Ballybunion, etc) then staying in Limerick or Shannon are your best bets.

 

Hiring a car and driver is certainly an option, but it will dramatically increase the cost. That said, driving in Ireland, especially the nortwest, is not for the faint of heart.

[Divot_Forensicist]

23 minutes ago, jvincent said:

I've done/planned three different regions in Ireland over the last 5 years.

 

This year we went to the northwest and stayed in Downings, which is the town where the Rosapenna resort is. From there the three Rosapenna courses (5 min from town) and Portsalon are all close. After that you 90 min away from Ballyliffin (to the north) and 90 min from Narin (to the south). 

 

If you go to the southwest (Lahinch, Tralee, Ballybunion, etc) then staying in Limerick or Shannon are your best bets.

 

Hiring a car and driver is certainly an option, but it will dramatically increase the cost. That said, driving in Ireland, especially the nortwest, is not for the faint of heart.

Very helpful. Thank you!

[hammergolf]

1 hour ago, Divot_Forensicist said:

My wife and I have an opportunity to work for two weeks in Dublin in 2025 (end of May through early June). We will try to play some of the courses near Dublin (e.g., Portmarnock and County Louth) during that time, but we are thinking of extending our stay at least one week, maybe two, to play more golf outside of the Dublin area.

 

We would prefer staying in the same VRBO rental over a longer period of time instead of jumping from one place to the next every other day (rather be exhausted from playing golf than packing and unpacking), and so my first question is: What towns/locations would you recommend that are centrally located in other regions of Ireland in close proximity to top golf courses (e.g., Northwest [Narin & Portnoo, County Sligo, Enniscrone, Carne], Southwest [Ballybunion and Lahinch], or Northern Ireland [Royal Portrush, Royal County Down]? Which region(s) would you recommend?

 

We are not excited about the idea of renting a car and driving around Ireland (I have driven in other countries outside of the US but not ones that drive on the opposite side...), which leads me to a two-part question: (a) Is travel by train to a town such as described above a viable option for travelers with luggage and golf clubs in tow? and (b) Would a car hire or shuttle be a viable option to get to and from the courses once settled in our rental property?

 

Any advice for planning a two-week golf trip in Ireland would be much appreciated. Thank you in advance.

 

I go to Ireland every year. First off, don’t be afraid of driving. You will adjust very quickly. You can travel by train, but finding taxis can be tough in the rural areas. If driving is just an absolute no go, hire a driver. Here are my recommendations for towns to base yourself for the different regions:

 

Mayo/Donegal/Sligo

Sligo, Enniscrone, and Ballina are all options. Sligo would be closer to Narin & Portnoo and obviously Rosses Point.

Enniscrone and Ballina would be closer to Carne and obviously Enniscrone. 
I prefer staying in the smaller towns as it tends to be less expensive and not as busy and you’re appreciated more.
For reference, if you were to stay in Enniscrone, you are 45 mins from Carne, 2 hrs from N&P, and 1hr from Rosses Point

If you stay in Sligo, you’re 1.5 hrs from N&P, 2 hrs from Carne, and 1hr from Enniscrone. One course I would add if you can is Murvagh Links in Donegal.

 

Clare/Kerry

Limerick is pretty centrally located if you have Lahinch on your list. Listowel is very centrally located to Ballybunion and Tralee. I like Listowel as it’s smaller and tends to be less expensive. Another inexpensive option is Ballyheigue. It’s a small coastal town that’s just great! It’s basically the middle of Ballybunion and Tralee. 
 

N.I.

Belfast is basically half way between Portrush and County Down. However, I would stay in Portballintrae which is a great coastal town that is 10 mins from Portrush and 20 mins from Portstewart. Plus you are 5 mins from Dunluce Castle, 10 mins from Giants Causway, 5 mins from Carik-a-rede, and 10 mins from the Bushmill Distillery. Then drive down to play Ardglass then to NewCastle and play County Down the following day.

 

[Divot_Forensicist]

23 minutes ago, hammergolf said:

I go to Ireland every year. First off, don’t be afraid of driving. You will adjust very quickly. You can travel by train, but finding taxis can be tough in the rural areas. If driving is just an absolute no go, hire a driver. Here are my recommendations for towns to base yourself for the different regions:

 

Mayo/Donegal/Sligo

Sligo, Enniscrone, and Ballina are all options. Sligo would be closer to Narin & Portnoo and obviously Rosses Point.

Enniscrone and Ballina would be closer to Carne and obviously Enniscrone. 
I prefer staying in the smaller towns as it tends to be less expensive and not as busy and you’re appreciated more.
For reference, if you were to stay in Enniscrone, you are 45 mins from Carne, 2 hrs from N&P, and 1hr from Rosses Point

If you stay in Sligo, you’re 1.5 hrs from N&P, 2 hrs from Carne, and 1hr from Enniscrone. One course I would add if you can is Murvagh Links in Donegal.

 

Clare/Kerry

Limerick is pretty centrally located if you have Lahinch on your list. Listowel is very centrally located to Ballybunion and Tralee. I like Listowel as it’s smaller and tends to be less expensive. Another inexpensive option is Ballyheigue. It’s a small coastal town that’s just great! It’s basically the middle of Ballybunion and Tralee. 
 

N.I.

Belfast is basically half way between Portrush and County Down. However, I would stay in Portballintrae which is a great coastal town that is 10 mins from Portrush and 20 mins from Portstewart. Plus you are 5 mins from Dunluce Castle, 10 mins from Giants Causway, 5 mins from Carik-a-rede, and 10 mins from the Bushmill Distillery. Then drive down to play Ardglass then to NewCastle and play County Down the following day.

 

Awesome advice! Just the kind of info I was looking for. Thank you.

[hammergolf]

14 hours ago, Divot_Forensicist said:

Awesome advice! Just the kind of info I was looking for. Thank you.

If you have any other questions, just let me know. I’m happy to help.

Edited June 1, 2024 by hammergolf

[migolfke]

I just got back from my first trip to Ireland. Driving certainly wasn't as bad as people made it seem going in. Take your time and read up a little before going and you will be fine. After an hour or so, it felt normal driving on the left side of the road, pulling over for people to pass on rural roads, etc. 

 

We really enjoyed the small towns in Southwest Ireland that we stayed in and the golf is excellent!  If you are willing to change locations a few times, you could do a night in the Lahnich area (Doonbeg, Lahinch, Spanish Point), Tralee (Ballybunion, Tralee, Ceann Sibeal and Castlegregory), and Waterville (Dooks, Waterville, and Hogs Head if you can get access). 

[carrera]

On 6/4/2024 at 3:10 PM, migolfke said:

riving certainly wasn't as bad as people made it seem going in. Take your time and read up a little before going and you will be fine. After an hour or so, it felt normal driving on the left side of the road, pulling over for people to pass on rural roads, etc. 

Agree...I just turned my rental car in (when we got back to Dublin) and driving on other side became second nature.   As did making way for oncoming cars/trucks on narrower roads.

[Divot_Forensicist]

Follow-up questions: If one were to bracket the idea that "this is the only time I will be in Ireland to play golf" and therefore forego the temptation to play as many of the best courses in a single trip as one can, what area(s) would you recommend for a longer stay? Currently we are strongly considering staying in Enniscrone which puts in reasonable proximity to Carne, County Sligo, Standhill, of course Enniscrone, and, with a bit of a stretch Narin & Portnoo (any other gems I am missing within an hour or two?). We wouldn't mind, even, playing the same course--e.g., Carne--a couple of times to really take it in and appreciate it. The second area we are strongly considering is Killarney which gives us reasonable access to Ballybunion, Dooks, Tralee, Waterville and, with a bit of a stretch Lahinch (any other gems I am missing within an hour or two?). If you had to choose only one of these areas to spend 7-10 day at playing golf, which would you choose? Or would you argue it best to jam all of the "best of" courses into an itinerary rather than exploring one area and set of courses in more depth?

[hammergolf]

1 hour ago, Divot_Forensicist said:

Follow-up questions: If one were to bracket the idea that "this is the only time I will be in Ireland to play golf" and therefore forego the temptation to play as many of the best courses in a single trip as one can, what area(s) would you recommend for a longer stay? Currently we are strongly considering staying in Enniscrone which puts in reasonable proximity to Carne, County Sligo, Standhill, of course Enniscrone, and, with a bit of a stretch Narin & Portnoo (any other gems I am missing within an hour or two?). We wouldn't mind, even, playing the same course--e.g., Carne--a couple of times to really take it in and appreciate it. The second area we are strongly considering is Killarney which gives us reasonable access to Ballybunion, Dooks, Tralee, Waterville and, with a bit of a stretch Lahinch (any other gems I am missing within an hour or two?). If you had to choose only one of these areas to spend 7-10 day at playing golf, which would you choose? Or would you argue it best to jam all of the "best of" courses into an itinerary rather than exploring one area and set of courses in more depth?

I’ll say this, although the courses of West Ireland may not be as well known as the courses in SW Ireland, the courses are every bit as good if not better. I’ve done trips both ways, playing a different course every day for a week, and playing fewer courses multiple times. The guys in my group prefer playing fewer courses multiple times. 
However, if I was only going to go to Ireland one time, I would set the following itinerary:

 

Day 1 Arrive in Shannon, Play Lahinch then drive to Enniscrone

Day 2 Play Enniscrone

Day 3 Play Rosses Point

Day 4 Play Carne

Day 5 Drive to Conemarra and play, then drive to Listowel

Day 6 Play Ballybunion

Day 7 Play Tralee

Day 8 Play Dooks

Day 9 Play Waterville

Day 10 Depart Shannon

[El Gringo]

2 hours ago, Divot_Forensicist said:

Follow-up questions: If one were to bracket the idea that "this is the only time I will be in Ireland to play golf" and therefore forego the temptation to play as many of the best courses in a single trip as one can, what area(s) would you recommend for a longer stay? Currently we are strongly considering staying in Enniscrone which puts in reasonable proximity to Carne, County Sligo, Standhill, of course Enniscrone, and, with a bit of a stretch Narin & Portnoo (any other gems I am missing within an hour or two?). We wouldn't mind, even, playing the same course--e.g., Carne--a couple of times to really take it in and appreciate it. The second area we are strongly considering is Killarney which gives us reasonable access to Ballybunion, Dooks, Tralee, Waterville and, with a bit of a stretch Lahinch (any other gems I am missing within an hour or two?). If you had to choose only one of these areas to spend 7-10 day at playing golf, which would you choose? Or would you argue it best to jam all of the "best of" courses into an itinerary rather than exploring one area and set of courses in more depth?

I wouldn’t choose either. I concentrate on Narin and Portnoo to Rosapenna St Pats to Portrush to County Down. Many cool courses to play in a generally quieter area. 

[Divot_Forensicist]

6 hours ago, El Gringo said:

I wouldn’t choose either. I concentrate on Narin and Portnoo to Rosapenna St Pats to Portrush to County Down. Many cool courses to play in a generally quieter area. 

Yeah, I thought about that, too. But I felt weird not playing Ballybunion and ever since I first read about it, I am drawn to Carne, and so those two have more gravity for me. But the north has some awesome tracks I want to play...

[hammergolf]

9 hours ago, Divot_Forensicist said:

Follow-up questions: If one were to bracket the idea that "this is the only time I will be in Ireland to play golf" and therefore forego the temptation to play as many of the best courses in a single trip as one can, what area(s) would you recommend for a longer stay? Currently we are strongly considering staying in Enniscrone which puts in reasonable proximity to Carne, County Sligo, Standhill, of course Enniscrone, and, with a bit of a stretch Narin & Portnoo (any other gems I am missing within an hour or two?). We wouldn't mind, even, playing the same course--e.g., Carne--a couple of times to really take it in and appreciate it. The second area we are strongly considering is Killarney which gives us reasonable access to Ballybunion, Dooks, Tralee, Waterville and, with a bit of a stretch Lahinch (any other gems I am missing within an hour or two?). If you had to choose only one of these areas to spend 7-10 day at playing golf, which would you choose? Or would you argue it best to jam all of the "best of" courses into an itinerary rather than exploring one area and set of courses in more depth?

Honestly, you couldn’t go wrong. It would be like picking a supermodel…. For me, I prefer the Enniscrone option, but most would probably pick the more famous courses.

[El Gringo]

6 hours ago, Divot_Forensicist said:

Yeah, I thought about that, too. But I felt weird not playing Ballybunion and ever since I first read about it, I am drawn to Carne, and so those two have more gravity for me. But the north has some awesome tracks I want to play...

That’s understandable. Ballybunion is an awesome course.

[Chanceman]

We did them all in one 3 week trip a few years ago but if I was to go back I would do the Carne-Enniscrone-Sligo option with side trips to Connemara and St Patrick’s. To me Carne was about the most exhilarating course I have ever played. But that’s not to say the County Down/Portrush or Ballybunion/waterville options are not equal or better. 

[Divot_Forensicist]

A couple more questions: (1) Do they typically allow you to book as a single or twosome online, or must you write the club to make a request that isn't a foursome? (2) When booking in advance online, do they typically require you to pay in advance or is it pay at the course? Thanks in advance for any and all insights shared!

[hammergolf]

Just now, Divot_Forensicist said:

A couple more questions: (1) Do they typically allow you to book as a single or twosome online, or must you write the club to make a request that isn't a foursome? (2) When booking in advance online, do they typically require you to pay in advance or is it pay at the course? Thanks in advance for any and all insights shared!

It depends on the course. Some allow you to book as a single, but some don’t. Best bet is to go online and use their booking site. They do require payment at the time of booking with either a deposit or full payment. Make sure to understand the cancellation policies. 

[El Gringo]

17 minutes ago, hammergolf said:

It depends on the course. Some allow you to book as a single, but some don’t. Best bet is to go online and use their booking site. They do require payment at the time of booking with either a deposit or full payment. Make sure to understand the cancellation policies. 

Sometimes it’s best to book via phone call to avoid upfront payment. It’s not often I am asked to pay full amount when booking. I like to avoid full payment in advance for obvious reasons.

[hammergolf]

9 hours ago, El Gringo said:

Sometimes it’s best to book via phone call to avoid upfront payment. It’s not often I am asked to pay full amount when booking. I like to avoid full payment in advance for obvious reasons.

The courses he wants to play are not going to take a reservation over the phone without payment. 

[klebs01]

19 hours ago, Divot_Forensicist said:

A couple more questions: (1) Do they typically allow you to book as a single or twosome online, or must you write the club to make a request that isn't a foursome? (2) When booking in advance online, do they typically require you to pay in advance or is it pay at the course? Thanks in advance for any and all insights shared!

I booked 5 rounds as a single for a July trip earlier this year. Some online some with a phone call. No real issues. Just be aware that weekend mornings are blocked for members. Most required a deposit between 50% and full payment. 

[migolfke]

Check online, but also call the courses and speak with the booking people. They will hold your tee time for a week or more without payment so you can make sure your itinerary is set with the other courses. If they are booked, they will also put you on a waitlist. Everyone I dealt with when booking a trip for two to the Southwest (all the courses you mentioned and some) were very friendly and accommodating. 

[ajgoodal.704]

Just returned a week ago from my second west of Ireland golf trip and my biggest piece of advice that isn’t a repeat of what has already been said is this; If you take the trip out to Carne, stay in Belmullet and play on consecutive days.  Both the Wild Atlantic Dunes and Hackett routings are excellent and shouldn’t be missed.  Honestly, I could spend a week tackling the infamous 17th/8th hole.  One of most difficult and best holes Ive ever played.  Bonus, the pubs in Belmullet are a ton of fun too.  Also, don’t miss Sandy Hills if you venture up to Rosapenna.  Incredible golf course.  We rated it our favorite of the week.  

[hammergolf]

5 hours ago, ajgoodal.704 said:

Just returned a week ago from my second west of Ireland golf trip and my biggest piece of advice that isn’t a repeat of what has already been said is this; If you take the trip out to Carne, stay in Belmullet and play on consecutive days.  Both the Wild Atlantic Dunes and Hackett routings are excellent and shouldn’t be missed.  Honestly, I could spend a week tackling the infamous 17th/8th hole.  One of most difficult and best holes Ive ever played.  Bonus, the pubs in Belmullet are a ton of fun too.  Also, don’t miss Sandy Hills if you venture up to Rosapenna.  Incredible golf course.  We rated it our favorite of the week.  

Awesome! I’ll be there in 58 days….. Can’t wait!