Why this ride
From Kinsale it runs 300 km to Dingle; allow about 5 h 06 of riding. It suits an unhurried touring pace.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Wild Atlantic Way: Kinsale to Dingle
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 300 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 5 h 06
- Journey
- One way; return travel is separate
Distance and timing basis
Ordered leg totals agree within rounding. Stop distances are approximate sums of rounded legs. Stops, delays, approach and any separate return travel add time. Basis: producer-declared routed record.
Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.
Distance and riding time are measured on the routed road. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Kinsale
Kinsale is a small harbour town on the south coast of County Cork, and it has been around long enough to have seen plenty of drama. The Battle of Kinsale in 1601 ended in defeat for the Irish lords and their Spanish allies and is often treated as the real end of the old Gaelic order. The star-shaped Charles Fort, built later in the seventeenth century, still guards the harbour mouth, and you can walk its ramparts for a view across the water.
Read the complete Kinsale write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Kinsale is where the day begins. Next is Mizen Head.
2. Mizen Head
Ireland runs out here, and it does so with a flourish. Mizen Head is the south-western tip of the island, a ragged headland of dark rock and heather above a sea that is rarely calm, and the road ends at the point where there is nothing between you and Newfoundland but ocean. From the clifftop you can see the Fastnet Rock far out to the south-west, a lonely pinnacle with a lighthouse, which was the last sight of Ireland for many emigrants and is often called Ireland's Teardrop.
Read the complete Mizen Head write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Mizen Head comes up about 115 km into the recorded legs. Next is Dingle.
3. Dingle
Dingle is a small harbour town at the western end of County Kerry's Dingle Peninsula, with fewer than two thousand people but about as many pubs as you could want. The streets slope toward the water, shops and houses are painted in strong colours, and the harbour is full of fishing boats. This is a Gaeltacht area, where Irish is still the everyday language for many families, so you may see signs in Irish first, and the town's Irish name, An Daingean, appears on the road markers.
Read the complete Dingle write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
The route ends here after 300 km.
Leg by leg
Kinsale to Mizen Head
Kinsale → Mizen Head is 115 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
Mizen Head to Dingle
Mizen Head → Dingle is 185 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
More motorcycle rides nearby
- Cork long day · Sceilg Mhichíl · 342 km
- Beara Peninsula Ring from Kenmare · 147 km
- Ring of Kerry · 173 km