A WEEKEND TRIP TO THE CLIFFS OF MOHER AND GALWAY FROM DUBLIN, IRELAND
In the early Winter of 2021 I lived in a little shoebox room in Dublin, and one of my favorite memories from my time spent in Ireland was a trip that we took to the Cliffs of Moher and Galway. Short but sweet, a 30 hour endeavor that was and still is so special to me. The Cliffs of Moher have been on my bucket list since I understood the concept of a bucket list.
This trip can easily be done in a day from Dublin as driving from the east to the west of Ireland is not bad at all. We decided to stay the night in Galway and go out and visit the holiday markets at night as the Christmas season was starting, and left in the late afternoon the next day.
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THE CLIFFS OF MOHER
When I pictured my first time visiting the cliffs I did not picture it being so foggy that you could barely see. But the fog and cool winter weather made it so much better in a way. I will go back to the Cliffs of Moher many times in my future when the sun will be out, the conditions made the countryside and the ocean look so cool.
We ran around in the green grass on the edge of the cliffs and occasionally the fog would clear for a couple seconds and open up to the most insane, beautiful view of the huge cliffs and waves. If my younger self could see me living in that moment she would be so happy.
If you book a tour like we did, your ticket fee is covered in the cost. If you’re hitting the cliffs on your own, a ticket will cost you around €10, but apparently, if you book your ticket in advance on their website for a time a lot that is before or after the peak visiting times, you can save a couple Euros.
After around 2 hours of exploring the cliffs, we hopped back on the bus and we made our way to Burren National Park.
THE BEST TIME TO VISIT THE CLIFFS OF MOHER
In late November the cliffs of course are not the busiest, but in the early afternoon there was a decent amount of people there for it being the off-season. During the peak season of Irish tourism in June-September it will definitely be x5 more crowded so its best to visit in the early morning right after it opens, or during the evening/sunset. The peak times to visit the cliffs are apparently from 10am-4pm.
Low Season → November-February: Open 9am-5pm
Shoulder Seasons → March/April & September/October: Open 8am-7pm
High Season → May-August: Open 8am-9pm
BURREN NATIONAL PARK
This park is insane when you know what you are looking at. There are ancient ruins of megalithic tombs and Celtic monuments, some pre-dating the pyramids in Egypt…hello?!!??! Ireland blows my mind.
GALWAY
From the Cliffs of Moher and Burren National Park, Galway is around an hour drive away.
Galway is straight out of a postcard. We visited when the Christmas season was ramping up, and the atmosphere of the city and the pubs was so awesome. If you take a tour, take advantage of the walking tour of the city before going off on your own.
The tour’s bus left around 5pm, but we were off to drop our bags off before going out.
WHERE TO STAY IN GALWAY
SALTHILL HOTEL: Originally we were going to stay at Galway City hostel, but being the one who booked the trip, I totally messed up the dates, I actually have no clue how I did. Of course they did not have any availability-in November?-so we ended up booking a hotel room at the Salthill Hotel, just outside of the city center, that was a decent price for 5 of us in a room with two beds.
To our surprise, we arrived in our Uber to a beautiful hotel right on the beach. Like everything during my Ireland trip, plans ended up being more perfect than expected. I don’t know if it was just us in shock after 3 months of traveling and staying in crazy places, but this place was so nice.
BEST HOSTELS IN GALWAY:
There is a good amount of hostels in Galway, and with all of the pubs and the energy of the city being so lively, this is a perfect place to solo travel to and stay in a hostel. The following are some options that I think look best and that I would stay in, including the one we were originally supposed to stay in.
GALWAY CITY HOSTEL & BAR: ∼€36/BED DURING PEAK SEASON.
YOU CAN BOOK THE GALWAY CITY HOSTEL HERE.
KINLAY EYRE SQUARE HOSTEL: ∼€30/BED DURING PEAK SEASON.
OUR FAVORITE THINGS TO DO IN GALWAY
THE SPANISH ARCH (AN PÓIRSE):
We did not mean to end up here at the Spanish Arch, we stopped to get some breakfast (more on that later) and it ended up being right on top of the arch.
The Spanish Arch was built in 1584 where ships from mainland Europe would dock in the city to sell goods. It was connected to the old wall surrounding the city, until the tsunami caused by the 1755 Lisbon Earthquake destroyed some of the wall/arches.
It was just so crazy learning the history of the wall while being right there, I like to wonder about everything that those arches and that land has seen. Hundreds and hundreds of years of insane history. So cool.
EGLINTON CANAL SEA LOCK/PARK:
We sat here for a while after brunch and the view was amazing. Probably my favorite spot that we hit in the city. Such a sweet, fun memory.
QUAY STREET:
Even though Quay Street is most likely the most touristy street in Galway, the atmosphere was so fun with all of the pubs and cute stores especially during the holiday season with all of the lights. My favorite pub-of course-is pictured below.
During the day there was live music playing throughout the streets, and I bought a couple of awesome watercolor paintings from this sweet, talented Irish man. I have them hanging in my room still and I will treasure them forever.
WOOL SWEATER SHOPPING AT ARAN SWEATER MARKET:
Bringing home an Aran sweater is one of the best materialistic things that you can bring home from Ireland. Though it is not the flagship store, this spot has 4 floors of beautiful wool products located right in the Latin Quarter.
OUR FAVORITE SPOTS TO EAT IN GALWAY
We ate breakfast here and it was amazing. The latte? Fabulous. The food? Delicious. The restaurant itself? So cute. Right next to, basically on top of, the Spanish Arch, the building that Are Bia is in is so cool and so beautiful. 10/10 and good prices if I am remembering correctly.
We ate here before going out to the holiday markets and the whole restaurant was packed and it was such a “real” authentic feeling Irish atmosphere. I totally forget what I got there. And I wish I took more pictures.
Another Murphy’s, I had to go in. Right in the center of Galway’s Latin Quarter, Murphy’s Ice Cream was pretty much in the center of everything and of course it was pretty busy-but….The dairy free ice cream and sorbet…so good. Any actual Irish resident that could be reading this is laughing at me. I went to the one in Dublin the day after we got back from Galway.
GALWAY’S NEIGHBORHOODS
GALWAY CITY CENTER: This is where all if the historical monuments and spots, stopping, pubs, and restaurants are at, and this is where you would want to stay in a hostel.
THE CLADDAGH: Right outside of the city center, the Claddagh is a quieter neighborhood that a short, few minute walk from Galway’s center. Still, it is filled with pretty streets, and beautiful views of the city center across the water.
SALTHILL: This is where we ended up staying, and it was perfect! Quiet and right on the beach, Salthill is a short uber or taxi drive away from everything in the center of the city. It is so beautiful and very nice to sit on the beach and look at the stars at night. It is also much cheaper to stay in this neighborhood, even when you factor in the cost of the rides.
NEWCASTLE: Even cheaper than the Claddagh and Salthill, the newcastle neighborhood is a quiet, residential part of Galway, north of the city center. I never visited this neighborhood, but like Salthill, it is a short uber or taxi drive away from everything in the main part of town.
BUDGET/SPENDING IN GALWAY
Of course as it is Ireland, and as it is one of the more visited cities, Galway is not the cheapest city, but it is not the most expensive city either. One huge plus is how a lot of Galway’s biggest attractions are free, such as the cathedrals, free live music, and old city monuments.
MEALS: $20-$30
DRINKS/COFFEE: $3-$15
UBERS/TAXIS: $5-$15/ride
HOSTELS: $30-$50/night
HOTELS: $80-$250/night
Day total (with group fares split between 5 of us): $120
This is not including the transportation to and from Galway, it will be much cheaper if you take public transportation.
BEST TOURS TO THE CLIFFS OF MOHER AND GALWAY
Instead of renting a car or taking public transportation, we ended up going with a tour company called WILD ROVER TOURS,I don’t remember how we found it at all, but it ended up being awesome. This weekend ended up being perfect because of this tour company and they offer so many more trips too. If you are planning to go to the cliffs of moher or galway just book THIS. Make it easy.
Currently this tour will cost you from €70, and it is worth it. It is a day trip from 7am-9pm, and instead of heading back to dublin that night, we stayed, and the company was so nice to offer to let us just hop on the bus back to the city the following day.
Of course I love to travel on my own speed but doing a tour like this is always fun because you learn so much more and take such scenic routes out of the way.
We all got on this huge bus at 7am, and made our way west through the countryside, eventually reaching the coast and stopping at the most beautiful spots and ruins overlooking the atlantic ocean. There is no words to explain how beautiful the views from those roads were along the wild atlantic way.
When people ask me what my favorite place is, I always say Ireland with no hesitation. Every single day and week during my time there were the best days of my life so far. I was fully, 100% present and 100% happy wherever I was in Ireland, Galway being a hugely memorable city for me. <3.
THINKING OF TRAVELING TO GALWAY AND THE CLIFFS OF MOHER? DO IT.
HERE IS ALL OF THE RESOURCES I USE TO PLAN MY TRIPS:
FLIGHTS AND ACCOMMODATION: BOOKING.COM IS WHAT I WILL ALWAYS USE TO BOOK FLIGHTS AND STAYS. NEVER DONE ME WRONG.
TOURS, DRIVERS, AND ALL THAT FUN STUFF: VIATOR IS MY GO-TO.
TRAVEL INSURANCE: SAFETYWING HAS ALWAYS BEEN FABULOUS. THE BEST EVER.
RENTAL CARS: WHEN BOOKING ANY TRIP THAT YOU DECIDE TO RENT A CAR FOR, BOOKING.COM IS FABULOUS LIKE ALWAYS.
