Day 2: Killarney, Ireland (Castlerosse Park Resort and Killarney National Park)

We spent days 2 through 6 in Killarney (Sunday through Thursday, 4 nights) and it was magical. Ireland's beauty is quiet here in the states in the sense that you don't hear much about it, but it is so apparent when you spend time in this country, especially outside its major city. The greenery, the restaurants, the outdoors, the friendly people, the amazing food, we fell in love with Ireland and it started right here in Killarney.

Between the resort we stayed at, the access to the trails and National Park, the city/downtown area itself, and the launching point to Gap of Dunloe, Blarney Castle, Kinsale, and Dingle Peninsula, this corner of Ireland was our favorite. The town itself is dreamy with busy cobblestone streets, live music, quaint shops, a ton of restaurants with outdoor spaces, and everyone out on the sidewalks enjoying a pint. 

Ireland with Kids Day 1: Red Eye, Rock of Cashel, Aherlow and Mallow Castle

International travel has always been important to me. I love to experience a new culture, new food, new scenery, and a different part of the world. You probably won't believe me but I promise I've done the math but more often than not, a trip to Europe is more affordable than a trip I can take within the states. While flights sometimes cost a little more, everything is cheaper once you are there, lodging especially. I knew when we had kids the gift of international travel was something I wanted to share with them and so, every year we try to visit a new country. Whitney has a few stamps on his passport first to Portugal at 15 months (Lisbon and the Algargve), then to Italy and Switzerland at 3 (focused on the Lake Iseo region). This year his newest passport stamp was Ireland and our newest challenge was traveling with both kids at the challenging ages of 2 and 4. Let me start by saying that traveling with kids is not for the faint of heart and it will test you and your marriage in ways you can't imagine. Yet, every time we do, we get through the hard parts, we have an amazing trip watching our kids enjoying life abroad, and do it all over again.

I picked Ireland for my first international trip with both kids for a few reasons: direct flight from our smaller international airport right in Connecticut, affordable with a lot of options to explore the outdoors, and a relatively small country that is easy to see with kids. With that being said, I knew a few things were going to be challenging: the time of the red eye (6pm to midnight - truly couldn't be any worse), the 5 hour time difference, and driving a car on the wrong side of the road and the wrong side of the car.