Getting there

Take a peek at the map we made to see local airport options and the distance to our wedding venue in Kenmare.

Ireland is best explored by car and we highly recommend doing a road trip down the western coast before or after our wedding. With that being said, driving on the left side of the road (with right-hand drive) and taking country roads is not for everyone — please take a look at the alternative travel options we’ve listed at the bottom of the page if you’d feel more comfortable letting someone else do the driving or taking a train from one destination to the next.

Sheen Falls Lodge is 36 miles south of Kerry International Airport (56 min drive), 61 km west of Cork International Airport (1 hour 22 min), 102 miles southwest of Shannon International Airport (2 hours 22 min), and 225 miles southwest of Dublin International Airport (3 hours 50 min).

Dublin and Shannon Airport are the only airports in Europe with US Pre-Clearance. You can access pre-clearance and customs prior to your departure back to the US and avoid customs after your return flight. Please leave plenty of extra time on your return to account for time to make it through both Irish security and US customs at these airports.

Airports

  • Direct flights to Dublin (DUB) from DC, NY/NJ, Boston, Philadelphia, Miami, Orlando, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Toronto

  • Direct flights to Shannon (SNN) from NY/NJ, Boston

  • More direct flight info on Irish airline Aer Lingus here 

  • Closest airport to venue: Kerry/Farranfore (KIR) (currently serviced via connection with Irish budget airline, RyanAir)

  • RyanAir and Aer Lingus are the primary airlines for local connections in Ireland

Kindly note: for guests who would prefer not to drive or take public transit at all, the concierge at Sheen Falls can help you arrange airport pickup with a local taxi company.

Rental cars

Major American rental car brands are available at Dublin Airport, Kerry Airport, Cork Airport, and Shannon Airport.

Remember to indicate automatic transmission on the booking site if you need to — the default in Ireland is manual transmission.

Example itineraries

Shortest flight // lots of sightseeing

Direct flight from US to Dublin Airport, take the highway straight across to Galway (2 hours), then stop and see sights along the west coast until you arrive in Kenmare

Close to venue // some sightseeing

Direct flight from NY/NJ or Boston to Shannon Airport (on the west coast), and either go sightseeing or head straight to Kenmare  

Closest flight to venue // no car

Direct flight from US to Dublin Airport, schedule a connection to Kerry Airport (on the west coast) via Ryanair later the same day or after spending a couple days in Dublin. Then arrange an airport pickup in Kerry and avoid driving altogether

Alternatively, book a direct flight from US to Dublin Airport, schedule a train to Killarney, the next town over (more details in the section below)

Alternative travel options

Trains and ferries

Irish Rail has routes all over the country and very inexpensive train tickets (less than 30 euro). You can get just about anywhere from Dublin, and there are train stations close to the venue (at Killarney, Farranfore, and Tralee). We recommend the train route from Dublin-Heuston to Killarney (usually with one stop in Mallow), the town neighboring Kenmare.

From Killarney, which has lots of shops, restaurants, and hotels itself, you can get a taxi over to Kenmare (about a 40 minute ride). You can book this in advance with local taxi companies, or ask one of the many hotels in Killarney to call a taxi for you.

As another travel option, you can also take a ferry to/from Ireland to/from Britain or France.

Charter buses, taxis, ride sharing, guided tours, etc.

 If you’d prefer to have someone else do the driving there are plenty of options, including:

  • Old-fashioned taxi services are still quite common in Ireland, and hotels can make arrangements for you during your stay. They generally accept cash and card payments.

  • Uber, Free Now (Ireland’s Uber equivalent), Car2Go (Ireland’s GoCar equivalent)

  • Guided tours, airport pickups, etc.