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Dingle Peninsula

The Dingle Peninsula is the smaller and northernmost of the two peninsulas that make up County Kerry, in Southwest Ireland.

The landscape is wild and beautiful from the eastern spine of the peninsula in the steep Slieve Mish (mountain of phantoms) to the western end where the land breaks into a scattering of uninhabited and dramatic islands and cliffs and beaches alternate around the coast. Dingle town (An Daingean) is small enough to walk and big enough to be lively.

Regions

Other destinations

  • Mount Brandon. At just under 1,000 meters, this is one of Ireland's highest mountains, and it offers wonderful panoramic views of the ocean and surrounding country-side. There are various routes to the peak, though due to its close proximity to the Atlantic, weather conditions are unstable and prone to sudden changes. Therefore, it is advisable to check weather forecasts before setting out and to carry rain gear and other provisions.

Culture and History

The Great Blasket island to the west, which was evacuated in the 1950s produced at least three well-regarded Irish writers, the most well-known being Peig Sayers. Until recently the western end of the peninsula, including Dingle was very cut off from the rest of Ireland by sheer distance and poor roads.

The peninsula has an association with St Brendan the navigator who sailed from Brandon on the north of the peninsula to America, by way of Iceland and Greenland in the dark ages, on a sailboat made of laths and hides. Tim Severin replicated this journey in the 1970s, demonstrating that the story was plausible.

Once described by the National Geographic Traveler as “the most beautiful place on earth”, the Dingle Peninsula is a place of intense allure, with a plethora of green landscapes, rocky hills, long sandy beaches and staggering cliff edges. The warm Gulf Stream reaches the peninsula, giving has a wonderful mixture of sometimes rare and unusual flora and fauna.

Dingle is one of Ireland’s Government-protected Irish (Gaelic)-speaking areas, called “Gaeltachts”. Dingle's Irish name is Daingean Uí Chúis which, to fit on signposts, is generally abbreviated to An Daingean.

Many of the towns and villages in the region have Irish names too and, as many maps use the anglicised versions of these names, visitors are advised to purchase maps that give both the Irish and English versions of all placenames.

Talk

The greater part of the peninsula is Irish speaking, although no-one will expect you to speak any. However it has recently been decided that all road signs referring to Irish speaking areas will only be in Irish, so they might not look as they sound.

Travel to Dingle Peninsula & Visa Requirements

Tours & Getting around Dingle Peninsula

Dingle Peninsula attractions and sightseeing