Walking Weekend on the Kerry Way | Short Break

Walking Weekend on the Kerry Way – June Weekend

Date: June Weekend June 3rd – 6th 2022
Cost: €575pps, Hilltoptreks Members: €525pps, SS + €125.
Deposit: €75 required at the time of booking.

3 nights BB with breakfast on the Iveragh Peninsula.
Walking along the Kerry Way.
Visit towns of Killarney, Kenmare, Sneem and Waterville.
3 Guided walks with qualified guides.
Transport from Dublin.

Tour Description

Walking Weekend on the Kerry Way:

The Kerry way is a long-distance way marked way on the Iveragh Peninsula in the south west of Ireland. The trail is over 200Km in length, we will be covering a section of this during this weekend.

Starting from just outside Killarney near Torc waterfall we will start this weekend’s walks along this famous trail.

Over the following days we will walk from Torc Waterfall to Kenmare, taking in part of the old green road. Then walking from Kenmare to Sneem over-looking the Atlantic Ocean and the Ireland’s southern coastline.

Then from here we will walk from Sneem to Caherdaniel where we can take in some of Ireland’s most scenic views and coastline trails.

The scenery in this part of Ireland is stunning with a rugged coastline, wild mountainous terrain and miles of sandy beaches.

Kerry is famous for its wonderful natural scenic beauty which attracts many travellers to walk here each year. The Kerry way travels through Killarney National Park with its very impressive lakes and high mountains as a backdrop. It takes in some of the area’s most scenic walking locations and coastal routes. The Kerry way travels around the coastline of the Iveragh Peninsula rather than across it. On the way you will visit some wonderful small coastal villages such as Kenmare, Sneem, Caherdaniel and Waterville. The Kerry way trail is world famous and is a great way to really get to see the natural beauty of this area.

Walking Weekend on the Kerry Way Includes:

3 nights BB with breakfast on the Iveragh Peninsula.
Walking along the Kerry Way.
Visit towns of Killarney, Kenmare, Sneem, Caherdaniel and Waterville.
3 Guided walks with qualified guides.
Transport from Dublin.

Pickup:

From the Molly Malone statue on Suffolk Street (Dublin) at 09:30am

If you are making your own way down, we will meet you in Killarney at 14:30

New Flexible Cancellation Policy:

If the tour is cancelled or you can’t do the tour due to the any COVID19 travel restrictions. You will get a full refund or we can postpone to another more suitable date, otherwise policy is as below.

A cancellation fee of 100% applies for cancellations made less than 7 Days in advance, or in case of no-show.
A cancellation fee of 50% applies for cancellations made less than 14 Days in advance.
No cancellation fee applies for cancellations made 2 weeks or more in advance.

Itinerary

Itinerary: Walking Weekend on the Kerry Way

Day 1) Pickup from Dublin, travel to Killarney, Walk to Kenmare.

Lakes of Killarney

Walking Details: Galway Bridge to Kenmare – Approx 10Km, ascent 320m, approx. 3hrs.

We will travel to Killarney in County Kerry, with a stop along the way, approx 4.5 hrs travel time in total.

Killarney is a small town in the South west of Ireland famous for it’s National Parks and lakes. It is also the traditional starting location for the Kerry Way. It is one of the most visited parts of Ireland for tourists to Ireland and has a huge amount of pubs, small restaurants.

Arriving in Killarney at approx 2.30pm. We will travel further out the road towards Torc waterfall, passing these the lakes of Killarney and Muckross House. Our walk today will start at Galway bridge, where there is a small old vacant church. Our walk will take through a beautiful valley between the hills of Peakeen and Knockanagulsh. Then continues south towards the town of Kenmare.

Once we reach Kenmare we can book into our accommodation and freshen up.

Kenmare is probably one of the most beautiful, brightly coloured towns in all of Ireland. With its beautiful shop fronts and hanging flower baskets its has won Ireland’s tidy towns many times. There are numerous restaurants, bars and cafes to enjoy a drink and a bite to eat after our walk.

We will be staying in Kenmare at the Kenmare Bay Hotel for 2 nights.

Day 2) Walk on the Kerry Way from Kenmare (Templenoe) to Sneem.

Walking Details: Kerry way Templenoe to Sneem – Approx 18Km, ascent 360m, approx. 5hrs.

Starting our walk today just outside Kenmare on the Sneem road at Templenoe, we will have removed a lot of small road from our trail. We will hug the coastline towards Dromore Castle and Lackeen Point. Then we travel inland slightly at Blackwater bridge switching between the road to Parknasilla looking across the Atlantic and Rossmore Island. On reaching Parknasilla we take a right turn more inland while following the coastline towards the coastal town of Sneem.

We can enjoy a bite to eat in the small town of Sneem before we are transferred back to Kenmare for the evening.

Day 3) Walk from Sneem to Caherdaniel or onto Waterville

Walking Details: Sneem (Derry West) to Caherdaniel– Approx 12Km, ascent 360m, approx. 3-4hrs.
Sneem (Derry West) to Waterville – Approx 22Km, ascent 670m, approx. 5-6hrs.

Today’s walk will bring us around the bottom of the Iveragh Peninsula on the Kerry Way towards Caherdaniel and Waterville. As you see there is a choice today to walk as far as Caherdaniel or continue onto Waterville. We will be taking a stretch of approx 5Km of road of the start from Sneem and starting near Derry West instead.

The walk today is mainly on mountain trails overlooking a wonderful coastline out towards the Atlantic Ocean while coming around the foot of Cahernageha Mountain.

Once we reach Caherdaniel or Waterville we will be staying in Waterville at the Smugglers Inn for the night.

Waterville is another coast town which is where Charlie Chaplin used to take his holidays.There are plenty of places to eat and drink.

Day 4) Goodbye to the Kerry way and Travel back to Dublin.

Today after breakfast and maybe a stretch or swim in the sea we will start making our way back to Dublin with a few stops along the way.

What to Bring

What to bring along for this walking weekend on the Kerry Way.

N.B. Ireland’s climate is of a moderate type and suited to walking all year round. Although it is quite changeable so starting a walk on a fine clear morning may not be the case for the afternoon.

FAQ

About the walks and fitness levels:

All the walks are taken at a pace to suit the group.
The groups can have a mixed level of fitness and age usually.
If the weather is to bad on a certain day to do the suggested walk, then the guide will suggest an alternative one.
The Guide will have the final say on the day of the chosen walk for the safety of the group.

The Accommodation: Kenmare Bay Hotel and the Smugglers Inn.

• The Kenmare Bay Hotel has a leisure center with a pool, sauna, steam room and jacuzzi
• All bedrooms are en-suite with bath & shower, tea & coffee making facilities, iron & ironing board and hairdryer.
• A comfortable lounge area, fine dining restaurant with seasonal & locally sourced food produce..
• Fresh breakfast is cooked to order with table service