Amazing breathtaking hike of about 7km. Truly an experience no matter which way you go. You can choose to start at Ross castle and hike first followed by a boat tour of the three lakes or do it the other way round. It's a must do in Killarney and has so much natural beauty to offer!! read more

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Our group recently took the drive through this area, and wish we would have planned to take the hike. Gayle and I live in the Eastern Sierra, so we're used to stunning Mountain scenery. In comparison, Gap of Dunloe is certainly pretty and enjoyed for too short of a time within a small tour bus. read more

Spectacular!!! Just spectacular! We did a tour with Jaunting cart from Kates cottage to Lord Brandon's for a boat ride thru the lakes. The views are amazing! We walked the steepest part - you can walk the whole thing, rent bikes in Killarney or like us Juanting cart. Pictures do not do this justice!!! read more

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This is one of the best hikes I've ever been on. The scenery is just amazing! There is a road that you can drive on, but it's much better to get out and walk the trail. The road is very narrow. When we went, the weather was chilly but still clear skies. We didn't have enough time to do the whole hike, but would definitely want to come back and try again for the whole path. This is probably the best views I've ever had doing a hike & there were cute sheep along the road to gaze at! read more

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Beautiful, breathtaking walk! Park at Kate Kearneys cottage and take the 1.3k walk up to the wishing bridge for a phenomenal view of the gap. Take some time to skip some Rocks and enjoy the fresh air. Note: cars and horse + buggy share this road. Mind where you are walking and always look for cars. This path IS stroller friendly to keep little ones safe Note: bathrooms are at the parking lot read more

This area is beautiful and definitely worth a visit. We visited on a rainy day and it was so beautiful. We walked one of the wishing bridges and were able to see breathtaking views. This is a must if in the area. read more

Gap of Dunloe - Local Flavor Near Me - Killarney, Kentucky

6/14/2019 - Out of all of our stops in Ireland, the Gap of Dunloe was my favorite. We had dinner at Kate Kearney's Cottage first, then drove to the Gap. The road is narrow in many places. We decided to drive a little then walk. We left the car at the beginning and walked to the old bridge known as the 'Wishing Bridge'. It is said that wishes made here really do come true! The walk was so tranquil, you could hear the water running though the mountains. The Gap of Dunloe is approximately 7 miles of the most breathtaking scenery. We saw sheep, deer and horses roaming free. The landscape is the prettiest I've ever seen. They say you can see all the shades of green here. We got here at the perfect time and saw the most incredible sunset. read more

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This is one of the most beautiful spots in Ireland. Unfortunately it was a stormy day when we planned our visit, but we were able to drive through as the traffic was minimal. This is worth the stop if you are diving by. read more

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This was our last stop of the day, so unfortunately, we got there pretty late. While you can drive through the gap, it's not recommended. Since it was late, we weren't up for walking the 7 miles each way so we took the horse carriage back. It cost us 35 Euros each. It was a gorgeous ride and our guide was really friendly. There are several very pretty lakes. The whole ride was very beautiful. It took us about an hour to go out and back. I would highly recommend seeing this in some way! read more

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Visiting The Gap of Dunlop was a high point of our trip. It is a 7 mile road that is forged between the Purple Mountain and Macgillycuddy Reeks by glacial flows and ends at Lord Brandon's Cottage. We decide to take a Jaunting Car to Lord Brandon's Cottage. Our tour guide was terrific and he made the trip even better. With his ancestry knowledge and the stunning view we had a awesome time. All of the Jaunting Car guides live in the area and the job is passed down from father to son since around the 1920's. There are five lakes connected by the River Loe. We stopped between the first two lakes and learned about the Wishing Bridge. It is said that wishes made while on the bridge do in fact come true. Our tour guide gave us lots of fun facts and history throughout the 2 hour tour. The entire view from start to finish is beyond beautiful. You can walk or bike the 7 miles. It is greatly frowned upon to drive it. read more

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Some of the most beautiful scenery I have ever seen! And that's saying something coming from a girl who grew up in Hawaii. Now some may want to do a whole day treck, some may want to hike, but if you want a romantic, magical time, go by jaunting car with the first jarvey you meet driving up the road to kate kearneys cottage....named Bob Ferris. Bob is a 3 generation jarvey, and take it from me, he is the most knowledgeable and quintessentially Irish person you'll meet. Warm and funny, if you're lucky he will echo his voice against the walls of the valley, a sight to see (or hear). We were lucky, at the end of June to get beautiful weather, though a bit brisk (Jarvey Bob packs extra blankets to keep you warm), but I'm sure the Gap is beautiful in any weather. Winding road, sheep dotting the hillside, dramatic green mountains surrounding you, and a fairytale bridge, all help to make this a 'must do' when you visit Ireland. read more

The Gap of Dunloe is a gorgeous area but beware the jaunting cars. If you are driving, they will wave you down and try to tell you to stop and park; however, this IS a road for cars. Like many roads in the area, it looks like it is a wide biking or walking path at best and not a road for two way traffic, but it is an actual road that cars are allowed to drive on. If you choose to drive as we did (mixture of following the GPS which said to keep going, not realizing we were actually there, and having a time constraint), try to be as courteous as possible. We drove slowly and would pull off as much as possible to yield to the jaunting cars as we didn't want to spook the horses. This is definitely not the place to test out your car's performance capabilities. It didn't seem crowded when we went on a late September morning during a weekday and the weather was perfect. I definitely recommend visiting if you have more time to really enjoy the area and if the weather is nice. 4 stars. read more

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The Gap of Dunloe walk is highly recommended by the guidebooks and locals. However, don't believe the Irish assertion that it's a small walk - it does have a few significant gradients, bits where you share narrow paths with motor traffic and a fair distance to walk Having said that, it is worth doing the trek to see the local landsacape and vistas Some people start at Kate Kearney's cottage and take a horse trap ride back to the top of the climb and back. However, quite a few people combine the walk with a trip on the lake by boat and I think this offers more variety (and exercise!) Be aware that the boat trip may be cold, so dress in layers which can be taken off when you tackle the more physical parts of the walk. The boat trip is great as you pass from lake to lake, some of the which may involve jumping out and pulling the boat through the narrower channels. You then travel upriver to the start point of the walk There's a cafe where the boat docks for some sustenance before the walk. Coming from this direction, the initial direction is up and there's a good climb to the peak before descending on a shallower gradient to eventually reach kate Kearney's Cottage, passing 5 lakes along the way. Picturesque trip but be prepared for an active day! read more

It's beautiful! definitely worth a trip up if you have the time and physical ability. Definitely a must see. Must agree with Yee Gan O.'s review... it's a trek on foot... do-able if you're in decent health, but don't under estimate it. My friends and I went in the off season so it was empty. Literally. We ended up driving up to to the gap (or at least what I think was it, just to the bridge) w/o knowing it... stopped b/c we didn't want to get flooded in and stuck and turned back. BUT not till after getting out and take some great pictures of the lake and the mountains and the gap. I was so beautiful even if we didn't go all the way (maybe we did, not sure?), even though it was cloudy and drizzly, even though i was frozen. There road up is very narrow... seriously, if two cars were to come face to face there is little to no way you can get around each other. We apologize if we weren't suppose to drive up in a car but saw no signs. Luckily we didn't come across any other drivers or hikers. Again we went in the off season so i can't say much about boats or jaunting cars... it was empty when we went up. read more

One of my favorite parts of my trip to Ireland was running through the Gap of Dunloe. This place is absolutely stunning and breath taking, granted it was raining and the winds was blowing against me. Running 6.5 miles and back through this mountain pass was such a great experience, especially since I got to spend 2 hours savoring this beautiful scenery and being in touch with nature. Everything from the mountain to the water and the strong currents running beneath were beautiful. There were sheep here and there. It was so much fun running downhill, feeling the winds under my arms and pushing me forward and gliding down the paths. I highly recommend it! If you are in the area in Novemeber, and want to run through the Gap of Dunloe, check out Run the Gauntlet, it's a local half marathon that's not too expensive and a worthwhile experience. read more

No trip to Ireland would be complete if you didnt do the gap trip with the bus, boat ride, jaunty cars, kates cottage and return. It is the history, the stories, the views, and animals, the original historical use of the road. Now its not a cheap day, horses and busses and Ross Castle tour and Kates Cottage and tips for the boat guide/storytelllers adds up, maybe 80 bucks for the whole day, food and transportation. and worth every euro. read more

Easter Sunday and it's a wonderful day in the Kingdom. We had brought our bikes with us to Kerry and we picked the Gap Of Dunloe to venture out on our two wheeled steeds. A bit apprehensive about how strenuous it might be, we head off. It was a fabulous day weather wise. It could not have been more perfect. We soon passed out the walkers, who probably headed out about 30 mins before us. There were no horse and carriages to overtake at this time of the day. Some of the up-hills were steep, so we got off and walked our bikes up those. But there wasn't too many of these and they were mainly near the top at the gap. The top was heavenly, the views on either side amazing. It was such a fabulous experience, but then again the weather really added to the day. I would advise you to either walk it or cycle it. You can drive it and we met at least six cars on our trip. If you are going to drive it, then I advise you come from the Black Valley direction. This way you avoid the wrath of the horse and carriage folk at the Kate Kearney Cottage side. If you do cycle, you can do the round trip back to the carpark at Kate Kearney Cottage over 30 miles via the National Park and Killarney town, which is what we did. The cycle down the Black Valley on the other side of the gap was amazing - make sure your brakes work before you try this! You can also get a ferry from the bottom of the Black Valley to Killarney, which will reduce your cycle by a fair amount - not sure by how much. But check the ferry times and co-ordinate your cycle to them. We got to the ferry dock at 11:30 am but the first ferry back to Killarney was not due to depart until 2pm, so we decided to kick on and cycle it all. Highly recommended, the Gap of Dunloe. PS Arrive early on nice days to get a parking space. And on hot sunny days, park on the same side as the toilets in the carpark to shade your car from the hot sun. read more

Breathtakingly beautiful! There's lots of options for traveling through the Gap of Dunloe - walking, cycling, jaunting car or on horseback. You can drive through, but I wouldn't recommend it as during the day it's busy with tourists and at night it is a truly terrifying drive - believe me, I've tried! It's about 11km all the way through, so be prepared! A friend and I rode through on horseback and then hopped into a boat at Lord Brandon's cottage, which took us for an hour-and-a-half long ride through the lakes to Ross Castle. Docked one star because the locals running the horses and jaunting cars are a bit pushy and loud - and you'll spend 11km alongside them, or not far from them. But sure, guess it's part of the experience. Indescribable natural beauty! read more

Amazing experience!!! Highly recommend. Everyone was super friendly. Beautiful country.

Okay, so I am mostly writing this review so at least ONE person has put this information out there. My friend and I spent literally hours researching on whether it is allowed to hike there and back through this gap (total approximately 14 miles). And the answer is yes! You do not somehow get stuck, and you are not forced to take a car or horse carriage. And this was the highlight of our trip, so I highly recommend it. Also highly recommend stopping at one of the lakes near the end of your journey and soaking your feet. Ahhh read more

Gorgeous scenery on a very mixed weather day. Cloudy, foggy, dumping rain, and sunny. A good day for a nice hike in one of the prettiest places. read more

Save the walk for Muckross Lake or Torc Mountain and take a horse drawn jaunting car up through the gap to the overlook with a great view of the Killarney Lakes. A fine older fellow named Eugene drove us for about two hours and the fare was 80 euros. Through the gap and back is just 30 euros. Eugene gave us a lot of good local information and none of it was boring. Whatever you do - don't drive it yourself. You may be able to do it but you will be a real pain to everyone else. The road is narrow and curvey. The mountains and lakes and especially the view through the gao itself are wonderful! read more

Beautiful scenery and would have been a wonderful hike if it wasn't for my husbands suggestion for a jaunty ride.

So far the highlight of our trip. We went all in for the tour. Bus from Killarney, horse buggy ride, lake crossing in a boat, dock at Ross Castle, another bus home. Roughly 50 euro per person. Take cash for the horse buggy. Overall a great day. I enjoyed the boat ride most, horse buggy the least. You can hike or bike, make arrangements at Ross castle to ride the boat. One tip, 95% of the time you will get wet. Might be a little, could be a lot. Expect this and you'll enjoy the day. The weather makes this place special. read more

Probably the most magnificent views of our trip. We took the boat tour and then attempted to walk it. We were with our family, who are Killarney locals, and they had never walked it before. Of course, we attempted this on one of the hottest days of our trip! We were exhausted and ended up hitch hiking just after we finished about half the trek. We met a great little family that rearranged their children for us and took us to the end! read more

Incredible views of the gap/valley with lakes throughout and so many animals. Parked at the Kate Hearney cottage as others suggested. You can't miss it, it's the last area to park before the entrance. If I did it again I would drive through the gap rather than walk. It's paved road which isn't forgiving on joints/feet so couldn't walk as far as would have liked. Most people walk or take horse and cart (lots of poop!) since it's a one lane road but everyone is courteous and shares the road so as long as you're used to driving on tight roads in Ireland, I'd drive and get to enjoy much more of the park. I believe if you hike/drive in, you have to come back same way so something to consider. Cafe/shop we parked at and ones along the way we're all great. Got a good lunch and beef and couple souvenirs. There should be tons of reviews, this is one of the most picturesque places! One of our favorite parts of trip, along with ladies views and cliffs of Moher. read more

one of the most scenic areas of Kerry. a great walk if you park your car at the nearby Kate Kearneys Cottage. it is about 6 Kilometers to the bridge and if the weather is good it is a lovely walk with plenty of spots for photos. read more