mjm

The thing is that Scotland is a diamond with so many facets, each of which is extraordinary, one must really go several times, not trying to pack in too much each time, but instead taking a few weeks here and there to slowly absorb things. One of the often overlooked intangibles which draws me back time and again is the hospitality. Add to that the joviality and general sense of happiness, and it is hard not to keep going back. Spending time there as an adult of drinking age, of decent enough health to take long walks, of a personality type that looks at rain and says, "well I am fully washable, let's go!", and a passionate explorer I am there every year. Next up for me is to fly into Inverness, hire a car and drive to Ullapool from where I will get the ferry to Stornaway then a slow exploration down the Hebrides to the bottom, and then a ferry back to Oban. Keep heading south, and after a brief overnight side trip to Islay, a drive right down to the bottom of the Kintyre Peninsula. Will probably expect to take 3 weeks at least in that little sojourn.

plunet

If you just focussed on Scotland (or Ireland) for the two weeks I feel you would get much more from your trip.

With a few days in Edinburgh, meander up to the Cairngorms, catch the bottom of Loch Ness and then head over to Skye and Mull and then drop down through Glencoe into Glasgow for a few more days you would have the chance to really start to explore Scotland with places you can visit what would be of interest to your children, rather than just do a whistle stop tour of a few places and see it all through the window. I am happy to do a road trip but I draw the limit at 4hrs of driving a day.

A word of warning - March can still be quite wintery up in Scotland. I did the NC500 back in March 2022 and we were exceptionally blessed with the best March weather for decades but if it's a cold spring then you can still encounter the tail end of winter. You also don't have the benefit of very long days in March, less than 12 hrs of light

TravelDoorsOut

Version 2:

Day 0: Depart March 21 or 28th (Friday)
Day 1: Arrive in EDI
Day 2: EDI
Day 3: EDI
Day 4: Long drive day, via Cairngorms Ntl Park, INV, Loch Ness,Eilean Donan Castle to Portree
Day 5: Portree and explore Skye.
Day 6: Drive to in Glasgow via Glencoe, night in Glasgow.
Day 7: GLA/EDI to SNN/NOC?
Day 8: Western Ireland (The Burren and Cliffs of Moher)- open to recs where to stay?
Day 9: West to Killarney
Day 10: Ring of Kerry Road, stay in Killarney
Day 11: Killarney to Dublin via Cork, Blarney Castle and Rock of Cashel
Day 12: Dublin
Day 13: Dublin, day trip to Belfast
Day 14: Dublin
Day 15: Fly Home

mjm

Fine tuning.

1. Save a few bucks flying into DUB, hire a car there and return it there. Better selection of vehicles is also likely.
2. (edited to add you meant The Burren in Clare. My bad.)
3. If, big if, the weather is good the day you drive to Belfast, consider a quick run up to the Giant's Causeway. (Full disclosure I am a massive Led Zeppelin fan and that was the setting for the cover of Houses of the Holy)

Misco60

Long drive day, indeed. That's about 7 hours' driving, leaving almost no time to stop and enjoy the lovely places en route. Don't underestimate the toll of driving those narrow, winding, remote roads, and on the "wrong" (for you) side of the road, too: it will require constant concentration and will be exhausting. And then you're going to do it all again, but to Glasgow, two days later.

Skye is really not feasible as a side-trip from Edinburgh and, as beautiful as it is, I think you'd have a much better vacation if you dropped it from your itinerary.

mjm

You could cut out the Loch Ness detour and go straight to Portree. That takes you past Eilean Donan if you go via the bridge to Portree. That is maybe 5-5.5 hours. A pretty straight shot, all very good roads. I did it from EDI about a month ago. And back again three days later. I even managed a side trip down the Skyfall road to the bottom to Glen Etieve (now that was a single track road which required some careful concentration, but so worth it). I would favor Skye over Loch Ness for sure, and driving straight there makes it very doable and the trip to GLA is even 45 minutes short on the way back.

TravelDoorsOut

I thought if we are staying in Portree, that is Skye? We are doing 2 nights there.

TravelDoorsOut

https://maps.app.goo.gl/8yECVKG1J96doQLRA

is 5.5 not feasible?

TravelDoorsOut

youre right about DUB. I just didnt want to drive 3hrs to the cliffs.

zkzkz

Fwiw this is a very long day of driving too. It is possible to do but it's going to be already a significant drive to Cork and then a long day of driving ahead to get to Dublin.

Fwiw when I did Valentia Island from Dublin we broke the trip in half and did things on the way. On the second day stopped at the Foynes Flying Boat Museum and the Lartigue Monorail (though this did take us through some smaller roads). We did drive back to Dublin straight from Kerry in a single day but we didn't go via Cork or any other major stops.

mjm

Yes, Portree is Skye.

Yes, 5 1/2 hours (EDI to Skye) is easy with a pitstops, leg stretches, etc.

It tend to agree about the Killarney, Cork, Blarney, Cashel, Dublin day being long. I would add that it is not just a drive per se, but rather a day of stops at places you'll want to see. I would maybe recommend stretching that out to two days and spending more time at the stops. As an FTer you'll likely be traveling to Europe frequently, and when doing so maybe schedule a layover in DUB on the way and get your DUB fix then. Perhaps giving up a DUB day to take advantage of the time in the more far flung spots would be good?

TravelDoorsOut

We would stay in Cork or somewhere between Killarney and Dublin.

TravelDoorsOut

Sorry, I clarified above, that Killarney/Cork/Blarney/Cashel would be one day. We would stay somewhere between Killarney and Dublin, perhaps Killkenny?

Is Killarney a good base or is there a better town in the area thats better to stay?

mjm

Killarney is perfect for the Kerry and Dingle (also highly recommended as is the local gin) Peninsulas. I would probably look for change of venue for that next day simply for variety. Maybe take a run to the coast and stay in Wexford for example.

antichef

Dublin to Giants causeway is 3 hours drive in each direction. It will not be "a quick run up"

This itinerary already has a very punishing schedule of non-stop days of long driving with small children, without adding another. I am not sure that the OP has also considered that those days at that time of year in Scotland and Ireland could be raining all day with poor visibility and slower transit times - and what any alternative plan will be!