The Slea Head Drive
The Slea Head Drive is a signposted loop of about thirty-eight kilometres on the R559, out and back from Dingle around the western tip of the peninsula. Under an hour of driving, and at least half a day in practice.
Drive it clockwise. That means west out of Dingle to Ventry first, round the head, and back through Ballyferriter. This is a convention rather than a one-way system, but it is what the coaches do, and the cliff section at Slea Head is single track. Turn the sat-nav off and follow the signs, which is the local advice and it is sound: mapping apps put people onto boreens out here.
Going clockwise it runs Ventry, then Fahan under Mount Eagle where the beehive huts are, round Slea Head itself with Coumeenoole below and the Blaskets ahead, then Dunquin, then inland through Ballyferriter and back by Gallarus and Kilmalkedar.
The facts
- Ventry beach
- Free. Blue Flag, car park, toilets, lifeguards in season.
- Dunbeg Fort
- Charges. Iron Age promontory fort through a private visitor centre at Fahan. dunbeagfort.com
- The beehive huts
- Charges. Several farm gates along the Fahan stretch, cash on the spot.
- Coumeenoole
- Free. The cove below the cliffs, and strong currents.
- Dunquin pier
- Free. The zig-zag ramp down the cliff. Park at the booth and walk.
- The Blasket Centre
- €5 adult, €13 family, daily 10am to 6pm, March to November
- Gallarus Oratory
- The oratory is free from the small car park up the road. The visitor centre alongside charges €5.
- Kilmalkedar
- Free. Romanesque church of about 1134, an ogham stone and an alphabet stone.
- Reask
- Free. An early monastic enclosure with cross-inscribed pillars.
Good to know
Lunch out there is seasonal. Almost everything west of Ventry either shuts out of season or opens on restricted days, so ring rather than arrive hungry at three o'clock. Tig Áine at An Ghráig above Clogher beach is a café and gallery in one, Tuesday to Saturday, 11.30 to 5. Kruger's in Dunquin calls itself the most westerly bar in Ireland and does bar food. Caifé na Trá at Coumeenoole is the only stop on the exposed western stretch. Tigh TP at Ballydavid pier does seafood.
The potteries. Louis Mulcahy at Clogher sits right on the drive: everything is thrown on the premises, you can walk through the working workshop, and they run a session where a potter takes you through throwing your own. Sinéad Lough Ceramics and Smashing Pots are both at Ballyferriter, and All About Ogham does slate and copper there. Those three are small studios, so ring before calling in. All four sell through the Original Kerry shop on Lower Green Street in Dingle, which is our sponsor.
The Gallarus visitor centre and the oratory are two different things. You can walk to the oratory free of charge from the small car park further up the road. What you pay for at the centre is the interpretation, the parking and the tea.
How we checked. Route, direction and villages from dingle-peninsula.ie. Admission and hours from the Office of Public Works for the Blasket Centre and Kilmalkedar, and from the operators for Gallarus and Dún Beag. Makers from Original Kerry's own directory. Opening hours and prices on this coast change without notice, so ring before you travel. If anything here is wrong, tell us and we will fix it.