The Wild Atlantic Way on Two Wheels – Motorcycling Ireland

Highlights from our recent motorcycle trip to Ireland where we rode a good portion of the Wild Atlantic Way. Though the weather wasn’t that great, we had a fantastic time exploring the emerald isle on two wheels.

We rented motorcycles from Lemonrock Motorcycle Tours in Trim, which is a short drive outside of Dublin. This was actually pretty nice as we were able to avoid the big city traffic and get on the road (and back used to left-side drive) with ease. From Trim we headed south to Kinsale, by way of the Rock of Cashel. Once in Kinsale, this marked our official start of the Wild Atlantic Way. From there we meandered along the winding shoreline riding epic roads and seeing amazing sights. And yes… getting rained on. Just a little bit (understatement).

The motorcycles served us well, with Beth on a BMW 750 and me on a Suzuki V-Strom. They were the perfect machines for cruising the Irish motorways.

While Healy Pass, the Ring of Kerry, and Dingle were definitely gorgeous – I think my favorite part of the trip was once we reached Kinvarra, County Galway, and Achill Island. It just seemed like the pace of everything slowed down up there and the natural beauty went from 10 to 11. Plus there were more sheep! And overall I think I’d say that riding around Achill Island was my favorite.

We rounded out our Ireland motorcycle adventure with a non-motorcycle trip (on a bus!) up to Northern Ireland to learn about the troubles firsthand and see a few more castles and the giant’s causeway. Overall Ireland was a fantastic country to visit and a great place to enjoy on two wheels – even if there was just a little bit of rain.