Our next stop was a three-night stay in the town of Kenmare. The name Kenmare is the anglicised form of the Gaelic “Ceann Mara”, which means “head of the sea”. It sits at the very end of Kenmare Bay, at the junction of the Iveragh and the Beara Peninsulas.
Iveragh Peninsula is where travellers traverse the famous “Ring of Kerry”. Our itinerary did not include a drive around the ring, so if you were hoping to see pictures of that, you are going to have to come here and take those yourself. 🙂
An Irish friend of the Love-goddess told her that Kenmare was her favourite town to visit in Ireland, so we certainly had to go and check it out. We were not disappointed.
It is definitely a quality tourist town… Think Niagara-on-the-Lake in Ontario, or Baie-Saint-Paul in Quebec. Upscale, but in a very Irish way… upscale but not pretentious. The upscale bit got decided upon while the “favorite cousin” and I sat out on a patio having some pints admiring all the Range Rovers, Audis, and BMWs that constantly drove by.
As well as being a tourist town, it is a favourite area in which to own a “holiday home”- much like the Muskoka area in Ontario. The town’s population is less than 3000 inhabitants, but the disproportionately large number of restaurants, bars, and rental accommodation would indicate that the town is probably awash in many more people for most of the year.
Our activities were a little restricted by health issues, but we really enjoyed what we got to see and do while we were here. Have a look and decide for yourselves if it is a place you might like to visit.
“Photo Carousel” – Once again, I am presenting photo galleries using the “Carousel” format to show them in the best possible light. You click on the first photo (top-left) in a grouping to start the Carousel.
Stone Circle Video
A more active view of the Kenmare stone circle. As viewed in some proper Irish weather. 🙂
Yet Another Boat Ride
This is starting to become a bit of a theme this trip. We decided we should go for a cruise out on Kenmare Bay on the third day of our stay because the weather was so beautiful. The tour was provided by Kenmare Bay Boat Tours.
