18 Dreamy Things To Do in Dingle Ireland with Kids
We recently returned from visiting the areas of Killarney and Dingle, Ireland as a family (kids ages 7,4 and 1) and had a lovely time.
The Dingle Peninsula is full of stunning beaches to play at (yes, even when it’s chilly and rainy!), easy hikes/walks, so many animal encounters (feeding baby lambs, learning about sheep dogs and how they herd, falconry experiences, etc.!), castle ruins, epic coastline and more.
Dingle town is SO cute, walkable and full of great places to eat, fun shops and delicious treats- and that’s all within just a short drive of some of the most picturesque spots in all of Ireland.
Visiting Dingle as a family is a great idea if you are looking for a fun, adventurous experience that both you and the kids will love.
In this family-friendly guide to Dingle, Ireland, I’ll let you in on 18 of the best things to do in Dingle with kids that both our kids and we loved! Plus tips on where to stay, how long to stay and things to know to help you have as smooth a trip as possible.
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🇮🇪 IN A RUSH? CHECK OUT OUR IRELAND FAVORITES:
✨ WHERE WE STAYED IN DINGLE:
🛏️ 😍 2 COIS CHNOIC- DINGLE HOLIDAY HOME: Where we stayed! Perfectly clean and nice townhome just a 5-minute drive from Dingle town and a 25 minute drive to iconic sights along the Dingle Peninsula. Great price for lots of space and a great base to explore the area.
✨ WHERE WE STAYED IN NORTHERN IRELAND:
🛏️ 😍 TOWNHOME NEAR BEACH IN PORTBALLINTRAE: We loved staying in this clean and spacious townhome right across the street from an amazing, cozy beach that the kids loved and just a short drive from the highlights of the Causeway Coast!
✨ EXCURSIONS/ACTIVITIES TO BOOK:
🐴 SCENIC BOAT RIDE WITH GAP OF DUNLOE JAUNTING CAR RIDE: We did the jaunting car in the Gap of Dunloe part of this tour and it's one of our favorite things we've done in all of Ireland.This experience includes a scenic boat ride and an even longer jaunting car ride than we did!
🪕 IRISH DANCE PARTY IN DUBLIN (FAMILY-FRIENDLY): One of our favorite things we've done in all of Ireland! Experience traditional Irish music and dance with this fun, interactive, mid-afternoon music session! Most Irish music and events are late in the evening/not suitable for kids- but this one is perfect!
☕ AFTERNOON TEA BUS TOUR IN DUBLIN: Combine traditional afternoon tea with a sightseeing tour of Dublin on a cute, vintage double-decker bus!
🚤 EXHILARATING DINGLE SEA SAFARI RIB BOAT TOUR EXPERIENCE: Enjoy a super fun, exhilarating boat tour of Dingle's dramatic coastline and scenery on a fast RIB boat! It's one of the most popular things to do in Dingle. We felt it would be too cold when we were visiting in early April, but it looks like a blast!
🐏 SHEEPDOG EXPERIENCE: I highly recommend finding a sheepdog/sheepherding experience while in Ireland! This place is where went near Dingle, but there are so many options all over the country, including this day trip from Dublin.
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📸 Tours/Excursions: Viator & Get Your Guide
🚕 Airport Transfers with Car Seats: Welcome Pickups
👉 Travel Strollers: Zoe Traveler & Zoe Double
🍼 Baby Carriers: Tula Carriers, Wildride Hip Carriers
📱 International Data Phone eSIM: Airalo
🚗 Cheap Rental Cars: Economy Bookings
🏠 Accomodations: Booking,Expedia,VRBO,Airbnb
🌎 Travel Insurance: World Nomads
Best Time To Visit Dingle with Kids
The warmest months to visit Dingle are from May to September, with July and August being the warmest and busiest.
I say the ‘warmest months are July and August’, but keep in mind that the average high temperatures in Dingle in July and August are still only in the high 60°s F with a chance of rain. But you could also luck out with some amazing, warm, sunny weather in the summer months.
We visited Dingle in April, and the temperatures were in the 50°s F with off-and-on rain and moodiness (but who doesn’t want some good moody weather when in Ireland?).
How Long to Stay in Dingle with Children
Dingle has been one of our favourite places we’ve visited in Ireland, and even with multiple days to explore, we wish we had more!
There are so many fun things to do with kids that I suggest at least three full days on the Dingle Peninsula, and I definitely don’t recommend Dingle being treated as a day trip.
Over the years, we’ve slowly been visiting different areas of Ireland, including Dublin, Northern Ireland and now the southwestern area of Ireland.
We’ve done it this way so that we can reduce our drive times and really have time to experience and relax in each area.
It’s also nice to add an extra day for a buffer in case you come up against really poor weather and can’t get out much on one of your days.
Where to Stay in Dingle as a Family
We stayed just a 5-minute drive outside of Dingle town in this lovely 3-bedroom holiday home. It was super spacious and comfortable and perfectly clean and came outfitted with a great kitchen, which is often a must because we like to cook most dinners at home and pack lunches.
🛏️ ✨ CLICK HERE TO SEE WHERE WE STAYED IN DINGLE ✨ 🛏️
I would have loved to stay in this Old Irish Cottage, right on Slea Head Drive, with views of the water, but it was a bit out of our price range.
The bonus of this cottage is that it’s actually connected to where we fed baby lambs, watched a sheepdog demonstration and saw beehive huts!
✨😍 CLICK HERE TO SEE WHERE I WOULD HAVE LOVED TO STAY IN DINGLE ✨😍
How to Get Around Dingle with Kids
By far the best way to get around Dingle with kids is by hiring a car.
Dingle is about 2.5 hours away from the two closest airports, Cork and Shannon, and navigating to Dingle by public transit let around around the Dingle Peninsula by public transit would be quite tricky (especially with kids).
Our go-to website for booking car rentals when we travel is Economy Bookings. We don’t ALWAYS book through them, but more often than not, I find the best deal on their website.
🚗 CLICK HERE TO CHECK RENTAL CAR PRICES ON ECONOMYBOOKINGS.COM 🚗
If you’re really set on not driving in Ireland, you could navigate to Dingle via train/bus (you’ll most likely need to take 2-3 different trains/buses depending on where you’re coming from), then you could hire a private driver for a half-day tour of the Dingle Peninsula.
Alternatively, if your kids are older than five years old, you could consider joining a group tour of the Dingle Peninsula like this one, but you’d still need to reach Dingle via public transit for this tour as well.
Personally, I think you need way more than a few hours to experience Dingle, but if you’re short on time and don’t want to drive, a day tour could be a good option for you.
🚐 CLICK HERE TO CHECK OUT THE PRIVATE TOUR OF DINGLE PENINSULA 🚐
Kids’ Gear I recommend for visiting Ireland
We live in Denmark and, because of that, are very familiar with outfitting our kids for rainy weather. A rainsuit and rainboots can do wonders when out exploring with your kids in wet/muddy or rainy weather.
Our favourite rainsuit brand is CeLaVi. The CeLaVi rain suits are amazingly waterproof, super comfortable, and come in some extremely cute colours.
On our trip to Ireland, our kids wore their rain gear every single day, even if it wasn’t raining.
It was great to have in case we encountered mud, a stream or water of any kind that they inevitably would want to play in. There were so many times we found ourselves saying, “Wow, I’m glad they’re in their rainsuits”.
Even though our favourite brand is a Danish brand (and therefore can be trusted) you can still find them here on Amazon!
☂️ CLICK HERE TO SEE OUR FAVORITE DANISH RAINSUITS ON AMAZON ☂️
The suits come in one-piece and two-piece variants and are the perfect top layer for your kids when exploring Ireland.
You can even purchase rain pants separately if your kids already have a good rain jacket they like.
If you’re visiting outside of peak summer, you’ll also want to pack along a beanie and some gloves.
Map of Places to Visit in Dingle with Kids
*Use this interactive map to see the top things to do in Dingle Ireland as a family. Click on the full-screen icon in the top right corner to have this map open in your own Google Maps app or click on the arrow in the top left corner to see a pullout list of all points on the map*
18 Dreamy Family-Friendly Things to do in Dingle Ireland
1. Play at the stunning Coumeenoole Beach
One of the best few hours we had in Dingle was playing at Coumeenoole Beach.
Coumeenoole Beach is a gorgeous beach surrounded by stunning, dramatic cliffs located at the bottom of a long, curving boat launch.
Above the beach are beautiful, green rolling hills dotted with sheep and farm houses and views from the beach are epic cliffs and crashing waves.
Swimming isn’t allowed at Coumeenoole Beach because of dangerous currents and waves, but that’s no problem!
The cliffs hugging the beach are a dream for imaginative kids. Even in 55° F weather with a heavy layer of fog, our kids played for over 1.5 hours gathering items on the beach, making dams and building with driftwood.
It’s always a win in my book when I get to be in a beautiful spot while the kids play to their hearts’ content.
Coumeenoole Beach is located along the beautiful Slea Head Drive just about 20-minutes from Dingle Town, making it super easy to reach.
2. Watch a Sheep Dog Demonstration
When in Ireland, I highly recommend visiting a sheep dog demonstration and the good news is that the Dingle Peninsula has multiple options to choose from.
We landed on visiting a place called Hold a Baby Lamb which is located along the coast (on the Wild Atlantic Way) with beautiful farm and water views. which offers a short sheep dog demonstration (about 20-30 minutes long) once an hour from 9:30 am to 5:30 pm.
It was nice to visit a farm that had the demonstrations so frequently throughout the day so that we could kind of fit it into whenever worked best for us without much advance planning.
It’s very interesting to learn about how a whistle is used to guide the dog in herding the sheep and bringing them where they need to be. It’s a fun, short experience that’s engaging for both kids and adults, located in a beautiful setting.
Along with the sheepherding, you can also feed baby lambs (if you visit in lambing season in March and April) and see 1,000-year-old beehive huts primarily used from 400 AD and 1200 AD for to house monks and hermits.
You can book spots for the sheepherding online, but I don’t recommend doing it that way. It’s a small operation, and I think they could fit as many people as arrive for the sheepherding.
But the biggest reason why not to book online is that the tickets were about 10 euros more *each* online than they were in person and we didn’t have to pay for our youngest in person; online, we didn’t have any options for that.
The farm has three large, connected huts that were unfortunately closed off when we visited for some construction to reinforce the huts. However, they look like they’d be very interesting to explore closer.
Two other options for sheep dog demonstrations on the Dingle Peninsula are:
3. Feed Baby Lambs
After our sheepdog demonstration at Hold a Baby Lamb, we bottle-fed some baby lambs, and you can even hold the small ones if you (and they) would like (hence the name of the farm🤪).
You’re most likely to encounter baby lambs in the spring and early summer; however, they said even outside of those windows, there are often a few baby lambs onsite.
You can visit Hold a Baby Lamb only to visit the baby lambs and see the beehive huts without paying for the extra experience of the sheep dog demonstration, but we wanted to do both.
The kids thought it was fun to bottle feed the lambs, and so did I!
4. Hunt for 1,000-Year-Old Beehive Huts
The beehive huts of the Dingle Peninsula are so interesting to me. These huts have been around for 1,000+ years and were initially used by monks and hermits living in the area.
They now dot the peninsula as protected landmarks on many different farms.
We hit three birds with one stone and saw the beehive huts along with our sheepdog demonstration and feeding the baby lambs.
Unfortunately, when we visited Hold a Baby Lamb, the main, large three-roomed beehive hut was fenced off and under construction for some reinforcement work, which was disappointing as it is the largest and most scenic of the ones on the farm.
However, right next to the house was another beehive hut we could walk into (it was just a little less scenic with the electrical lines, but what are you going to do ha ha).
I would have LOVED to have taken the boat trip out to the island Skellig Michael (made famous by Star Wars) to explore the even more remote beehive huts, however, the landing tours aren’t generally suitable for children under 12 years old, but you can look into it with one of the local operators here.
However, with kids, you CAN take a boat trip AROUND Skellig Michael (one that does not land) and you may get a glimpse of the beehive huts along with puffins and dramatic views of the island.
✨ 🐧 CLICK HERE TO SEE THE BOAT TRIP AROUND SKELLIG MICHAEL🐧✨
Another option for some beehive huts to visit is Tóchar Maothaithe that you can find on Google Maps here. For just a few euros, you can enter and explore.
5. Soak in the Views at Dunquin Pier
Dunquin Pier is a beautiful, quick stop along the Slea Head Drive to take in some gorgeous views and to snap a pic of the gorgeous rocks jutting out of the sea in front of the winding pier.
This spot is famous for gorgeous views and a quirky, twisting pier that leads down to the departure point for the ferry that heads out to Blasket Island.
Side note: there are amazing, restored cottages for rent out on Blasket Island with wood-burning stoves for heat and no electricity but set in a STUNNING spot. It would be such a unique experience to stay there!).
6. Taste Unique, Local Ice Cream at Murphys Ice Cream
I’m a sucker for local ice cream joints that feature unique (sometimes weird) flavours, and Dingle has just that.
Murphys Ice Cream has been making homemade ice cream right in Dingle for over twenty years, with some of their most popular flavours being Irish Brown Bread (so good), Dingle Sea Salt, Kieran’s Cookies and more.
It’s such an amazing, delicious ice cream shop with such kind workers who encourage you to try as many flavours as you’d like before you land on one.
We stopped at Murphys one night after dinner for some cones and then swung by another night to grab a pint to take back to our Airbnb.
Murphys has two locations right in Dingle town just a short walk from each other-( yes, they’re THAT popular).
The ice cream shop is generally open daily from 12 pm – 9 pm, but check online just to make sure.
7. Scamper up to Peddler’s Lake from Conor Pass Waterfall
One of the most kid-friendly, fun, adventurous things we did was make the rocky scramble up from the Conor Pass Waterfall up to Peddler’s Lake.
Conor Pass is a gorgeous, narrow, winding road that is absolutely beautiful. From Dingle town, it only takes about 10 minutes to get to the Conor Pass Waterfall, where you can park to climb up to Peddler’s Lake.
There is no direct trail, just a sign indicating that up above is Peddler’s Lake. The kids LOVED scrambling up the massive boulders, dodging the muddy puddles and playing in the stream on our way up to the lake.
The ‘climb’ would only take about ten minutes or so if you weren’t playing along the way, but we made a whole experience of it and the kids had a blast.
The lake is a pretty glacial lake, but the views of the valley from the lake were possibly my favourite part! If you’re visiting Dingle as a family, I highly recommend adding Peddler’s Lake to your itinerary!
8. Pick up some goodies at Courtney’s Bakery
I can’t resist a good bakery, and Courtney’s Bakery was amazing. First of all, the outside is so darn cute and inviting, located right next to Dick Mack’s in Dingle.
Don’t let the unassuming nature of the display case deter you,, because when we first saw the goodies, I wasn’t sure they were going to be good. But we ordered a few anyway and oh how we were wrong. They were SO GOOD.
We got a couple of donuts, a flapjack (buttery oat bar), and a cookie and they were all delicious. But the donuts and flapjack were truly amazing. We had to keep ourselves from going in and ordering five more of everything.
We realized they were making everything onsite in the next room and the kids enjoyed looking through the windows to watch.
Courtney’s Bakery really is a must-visit in Dingle.
Not only can you get baked goodies at Courtney’s Bakery, you can also get coffee and sandwiches.
9. Get Up Close to Falcons and Owls at Kingdom Falconry
If you want a chance to have falcons and owls land on your arm MULTIPLE times, then I highly recommend booking an experience at Kingdom Falconry.
At Kingdom Falconry, we booked a one-hour experience (the public one, not the private one) where we got to meet Barn Owls, Eagle Owls, Falcons and Harris Hawks.
Up close, we got to watch a falcon fly and dive to catch a piece of meat on a string (they dive SO fast) and had the opportunity to have multiple birds fly and land on our gloved hand while learning about the birds the entire time.
The falconers were very kind and encouraging of taking photos and ensuring everyone got multiple turns of the owls and hawks landing on their glove.
*One thing to note is that their website still shows images of the experience being held along the water in Dingle; however, they seem to have recently moved and are in a less picturesque spot, although still a nice experience.
At the end of the show, they took us over to the kennels where the rest of the birds are kept that we didn’t get to see during the show, and they taught us about those as well.
It was a really unique experience to get to have SO MANY different (adorable) owls and hawks land on our arms!
10. Scramble on Rocks with Views of Minard Castle
One of the most Irish fairytale spots we visited in Dingle was Minard Castle. Minard Castle was built in the 1500s, and the remains of it are now perched on a grassy coastal hill overlooking a lovely beach on the Dingle Peninsula.
At low tide, there is a perfect sandy beach that would be perfect for playing within perfect view of the castle ruins.
However, we visited at high tide and were only able to scamper along the huge boulders lining the beach (which the kids also enjoyed).
You can’t access the castle itself as there is a sign indicating private property. But, the view of the castle from the beach is amazing.
It’s one of those places where you just think of times gone by and imagine the people who lived here and what their life was like.
11. Wander Through Adorable Dingle Town
Dingle town is our favourite town we’ve been to in all of Ireland. It’s SO cute, SO colourful, and SO easy to walk around.
There are a lot of cute shops, with our favourite one being Dingle Bookshop.
One of our favourite things to do when travelling as a family is to find cute, local bookshops to let the kids loose in.
It’s especially nice if the bookshop features a lot of local authors and stories about the area, and the Dingle Bookshop has exactly that!
The Dingle Bookshop is a small, independent, cozy bookshop with an impressive children’s section, including an abundance of Irish stories both old and new.
We let the kids each pick out a book to take home, and it’s such a great souvenir!
The Dingle Bookshop is generally open Monday to Saturday from 10 am – 5 pm.
12. Listen to Live Music & Get a Bite To Eat at Marina Inn
When in Ireland, you HAVE to find some live, traditional Irish (trad) music. So many pubs and restaurants have live music; however, the tricky part is to find somewhere that features music early enough in the evening to enjoy as a family.
Children are allowed in pubs until 9 pm, but live music tends to start right at about 9 pm (plus I don’t want to keep my kids out that late anyway).
Although kids are allowed in pubs until 9 pm, I still like to find a pub that feels more family-friendly. I look for places that serve food, not just drinks and that offer a kids’ menu. A kids’ menu immediately helps me feel like we’ll be welcome.
As far as experiencing traditional Irish music as a family, this is what I’ve learned… I’ve spent hours on hours researching pubs in Ireland with earlier music and have come to realize that your best chance of experiencing live music at a pub/restaurant as a family is on a Sunday.
Many pubs will have music starting around 5- 6 pm on a Sunday as compared to 9 pm or later on other days of the week.
Marina Inn in Dingle checked all of the boxes I was looking for when trying to find a pub to visit as a family with live music. On Sundays, they often have music that starts at 6:30 pm, plus they have a kids’ menu (checks all the boxes!
It was fun to eat traditional pub food (think Irish stew, cottage pie, etc.) while listening to traditional Irish tunes.
We felt very welcome by the staff, and they even offered to expedite the kids’ meals if possible so that they could start eating sooner (a much-appreciated gesture).
The one downside was that Marina Inn is quite a small pub, so once the music was playing and the pub filled up with people standing at the bar, it got quite loud inside, which was overwhelming for the kids so we didn’t stay as long as we’d hoped.
We were seated right next to the music, so maybe had we been on the far end of the pub, it would’ve been less overwhelming for the kids.
If you do want to visit Marina Inn for dinner, reservations are highly recommended (especially on a Sunday when there is live music). We got reservations for 6:30 pm. The pub was almost empty when we arrived, but within about 15 minutes, all the tables were full.
You can make reservations by phone or email. Visit their website here for more information.
13. Take an Adventurous Sea Safari on a RIB Boat
The Dingle Sea Safari is one of the most popular experiences to book from Dingle, with over 1,000 five-star reviews on Viator.
The Dingle Sea Safari is on an exhilarating, speedy RIB boat that takes you to see Dingle’s dramatic coastline, the Blasket Islands and the opportunity to spot wildlife such as whales, dolphins, and puffins.
It really sounds like a great time (especially if you read the reviews, people rave about it).
We didn’t take this trip because we weren’t sure how it’d work with our one-year-old and it seemed like it was still a bit too cold in April (although they do outfit you in warm gear!)
If we visit the area in a few years, we will FOR SURE book the Sea Safari.
🚤 ✨ CLICK HERE TO SEE THE POPULAR DINGLE SEA SAFARI RIB EXCURSION✨ 🚤
14. Taste Local Fish and Chips
If you like fish and chips, Dingle has plenty of great options.
We tried both Reel Dingle Fish and The Fish Box food truck (there’s also The Fish Box sit down restaurant that is very popular, but it’s small and reservations are required).
Fish doesn’t get much fresher than the fish in Dingle straight from the sea!
15. Play in the Sanddunes at Inch Beach
If you’re someone who loves a massive, long stretch of beach, then Inch Beach is for you.
Inch Beach is located right at the start of the Dingle Peninsula and is a great place to get some wiggles out on the way on or off the peninsula.
Unlike Coumeenoole Beach where swimming isn’t allowed, Inch Beach is a blue flag beach with lifeguards during the summer, a surf school, and water sports and wetsuits for hire.
There is a parking lot for the beach or you can also drive right onto the beach itself.
My favourite part of Inch Beach are the sand dunes lining the entirety of its back. The kids loved exploring the sand dunes and playing hide and seek while we ate a picnic lunch, followed by walking out to the water, running from the waves, and searching for seashells.
16. Get Your Wiggles Out at the Dingle Town Playground
Right in Dingle town is quite the impressive playground with a lot of fun things to keep kids of all ages engaged. We were staying just a five-minute drive from the Dingle playground and ended up visiting on two different occasions.
We visited once in the morning before our falconry experience and another time around dinner. If you want to do some shopping in Dingle, the playground is a great motivation for the kids to explore the town a bit.
Our kids always enjoy meeting new friends when we travel, and the Dingle playground is a great place to do that!
17. Take an Easy Hike To the Glacial Lake Lough Adoon
After our kids enjoyed the easy ‘hike’ up to Peddler’s Lake, I began searching the area for other, similar, family-friendly hikes and came across the Lough Adoon Walkway.
To reach Lough Adoon, you take Conor Pass, but this time continue past Conor Pass waterfall to reach the other side.
You walk along a stream, over/through a stream, and take steps over fences to a beautiful glacial lake with a waterfall flowing into it.
It looks really beautiful, and I think the kids would have eaten it up. But, unfortunately, we couldn’t fit it into our itinerary… next time!
I hear that the path can be VERY muddy, so be sure to have everyone in boots, preferably rain boots! Learn more about Lough Adoon on All Trails here.
18. Play at Clogher Strand
One more great beach to play at on the Dingle Peninsula is Clogher Strand (one can never visit too many beaches with kids).
Clougher Strand is also located along Slea Head Drive and has beautiful views of Blasket Island.
Had we had one more day in Dingle, we would’ve had time to visit Clogher Strand, but alas, we didn’t. If you go, let me know how it is!
What We’d Change If We Did it Again
We visited Dingle after spending a couple of days in Killarney, but from Killarney, we took the Ring of Kerry Drive “on our way” to Dingle (big quotation marks around on our way).
We usually really check and double-check how much driving we’ll be doing, but we just didn’t realize we’d be spending about four hours driving with almost no stops that interested the kids.
It was just a lot of time in the car, and instead, I wish we had taken the 1-hour drive directly to Dingle to have an entire extra day on the peninsula rather than driving the Ring of Kerry.
We had 2.5 days on the Dingle Peninsula, but I feel like 3.5 days would have been perfect.
And that’s everything I think you need to know for a family-friendly visit to the Dingle Peninsula! Let me know in the comments below if you have any questions. I’ll be sure to get back to you.
🇮🇪🐑 LOOKING FOR MORE ABOUT VISITING IRELAND?
DUBLIN:
🪕 3 Amazing Family-Friendly Pubs in Dublin With Live Music
🇮🇪 24 Hours in Dublin with a Toddler or Young Kids + Map & Tips
NORTHERN IRELAND:
🐑 19 Lovely Places to go in Northern Ireland for Families + 5 Day Itinerary & Map
☘️ Crossing Carrick-A-Rede Rope Bridge with Kids (Even Toddlers & Babies)
WESTERN IRELAND:
🚗 Conor Pass Dingle Peninsula: What To Expect
🐴 Jaunting Cars Gap of Dunloe: How They Work
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