Dingle Peninsula

Endless sandy beaches, adventurous mountain passes, remains of Celtic and early Christian settlements and the Irish literature of Blasket Island - these are just some of the highlights that the Dingle Peninsula in Ireland's southwest has to offer.

For a long time, the Dingle Peninsula eked out a shadowy existence next to the Ring Of Kerry, which is popular with tourists. But nowadays you can hardly call it an insider's tip, as the peninsula, which juts 48 km into the Atlantic Ocean, is becoming increasingly popular.

If you explore the peninsula from Tralee, the N86 leads directly to the main town of Dingle. However, it is worth making a detour at Camp. Along Tralee Bay there are seemingly never-ending sandy beaches to explore. Near Castlegregory, a little-known treasure is hidden in the hinterland: the Glanteenassig National Park. You can also reach Dingle via this secondary route. To get there, however, you have to cross one of the most beautiful mountain passes in Ireland, the Connor Pass. From up here, on a clear day, you can enjoy fantastic views over steeply rising mountain ridges and the sea.

The market town of Dingle, the main town and namesake of the peninsula, invites you to linger with its colourful little houses and countless pubs. A real godsend for the town was the dolphin Fungi, who "settled" in the spacious bay in 1984 and became the main tourist attraction until he died in 2020.

From Dingle, Slea Head Drive leads west into a Gaeltacht area, one of the regions of Ireland where Irish is still predominantly spoken. Countless prehistoric settlements can be found here in the west of the peninsula. From Slea Head you can see the Blasket Islands, whose main island Great Blasket was inhabited until 1953. The island produced some great Irish authors such as Peig Sayer and Tomás Ó Criomhthain, who wrote remarkable works about the islanders' way of life in the seclusion of the Blaskets. Visitor boats depart from Dunquin to the Blasket Islands. Here you will also find the Blasket Visitor Centre, an exhibition dedicated to the former inhabitants and life on the islands.

Out here in the far west, a landscape reveals itself that one would describe as typically Irish. Green hills, rugged cliffs, small bays and tiny harbours. There are also some remarkable early Christian buildings here, near Ballyferriter: The remains of the monastic settlement of Reask and Gallarus Oratory, a chapel with exceptional architecture. Nearby is the sheltered bay of Smerwick with its extensive sandy beach.

Speaking of sandy beaches, to the south of the Dingle Peninsula at Inch is one of Ireland's most popular beaches. This beautiful sandy beach stretches over 5 km with its dune ridge into the sea.