Planning a Trip

Getting There -- Bus Éireann (tel. 064/34777; www.buseireann.ie) provides limited daily service from Killarney to Cahersiveen, Waterville, Kenmare, and other towns on the Ring of Kerry. The best way to get to the Ring is by car, on N70 and N71. Several Killarney-based tour companies offer daily sightseeing tours of the Ring.

Visitor Information -- Stop in at the Killarney Tourist Office, Aras Fáilte, at the Town Centre Car Park, Beech Road, Killarney (tel. 064/31633; www.killarney.ie), before you explore the area. It's open October to May Monday to Saturday 9:15am to 5:15pm, June and September daily 9am to 6pm, and July to August daily 9am to 8pm. During low season, the office occasionally closes for lunch from 1 to 2pm. The Kenmare Tourist Office, Market Square, Kenmare (tel. 064/41233), is open daily Easter through September from 9:15am to 5:30pm, with extended hours in July and August. The rest of the year (Oct-Easter), it's open Monday to Saturday. More information is available online at www.kerrytourist.com.

Beware of the GPS! -- You can drive either way along the Ring of Kerry, but we recommend a counterclockwise route for the most spectacular views. Drivers of very large vehicles also stick to this direction in order to avoid bottlenecks on the perilously narrow bends. This all worked fine for years-until modern technology intervened with the spread of GPS technology. Now some drivers unfamiliar with the route are being sent in a clockwise direction, thus causing all sorts of chaos, including some of the worst traffic jams ever seen on the ring. These problems don't happen every day, but nonetheless, proceed with caution, and perhaps plan on taking a different route if you absolutely have to get somewhere on time.