Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Killarney Connections
From Killarney Around the Ring of Kerry:
Bus Éireann drives the loop around the
Ring of Kerry from Killarney—suitable for a quick peek. While it generally stops only
long enough to pick up and drop off travelers en route, there is a 50-minute stop in Sneem
(€23, daily July-mid-Sept, departs the Killarney bus station at 12:45 and returns to Kil-
larney at 17:45, no reservation needed,
www.buseireann.ie
)
. You can catch this same bus
from Tralee at 11:50, returning to Tralee by 18:45 (€25).
By Bus to: Kenmare
(3/day, 45 minutes),
Tralee
(hourly, 40 minutes),
Dingle
(4/day,
1.5-2.5 hours, 2 direct, 3 with change in Tralee),
Shannon Airport
(6/day, 3.5 hours),
Dublin
(every 2 hours, 6 hours, change in Limerick). The bus station has a left-luggage
desk. For bus schedules, call 01/836-6111 or visit
www.buseireann.ie
.
By Train to: Tralee
(8/day, 35 minutes),
Cork
(every 2 hours, 2 hours, most with
change in Mallow),
Waterford
(5/day, 4-6 hours),
Dublin
(every 2 hours, 6/day on Sun,
3.5 hours, 1 direct in morning, rest with change in Mallow). For train schedules, call 01/
836-6222 or visit
www.irishrail.ie
.
To Muckross House:
There's no bus service. You can hike 30 minutes (get directions
from TI), rent a bike, hire a horse buggy, or catch a cab (€12).
Muckross House and Farms
Perhaps the best stately Victorian home you'll see in the Republic of Ireland, Muckross
House (built in 1843 and worth
▲▲
) is magnificently set at the edge of Killarney Nation-
al Park. It's adjacent to Muckross Farms, a fascinating open-air farm museum that shows
rural life in the 1930s (worth
▲
). Besides the mansion and farms, this regular stop on the
tour-bus circuit also includes a fine garden idyllically set on a lake and an information
center for the national park. The poignant juxtaposition of the magnificent mansion and
the humble farmhouses illustrates in a thought-provoking way the vast gap that once sep-
arated rich and poor in Ireland.
