Dublin rewards a short-stay, low-mileage approach. Stay between St Stephen's Green and Merrion Square and you can reach the National Gallery, the National Museum of Archaeology on Kildare Street and Trinity College on foot, all on level pavements with benches and cafes at regular intervals. Ask for a ground-floor or lift-served room; Georgian townhouses often have steep staircases and no lift, which matters more than star rating. Hotels around Ballsbridge and along the Grand Canal are quieter, with taxis to Grafton Street taking roughly ten minutes outside rush hour.
Base yourself where the walking is flat
Outside Dublin, Killarney is the most forgiving base for older travellers. The town is compact, the walk to Ross Castle is flat along the lake shore, and Muckross House and Gardens sit three kilometres south with a car park beside the entrance and a tea room. Avoid the Gap of Dunloe pony-and-trap circuit if anyone has back trouble; the jaunting cars are open and the road is rough. Do the Torc Waterfall path only as far as the lower viewing point, which is paved and short.
Book a hotel with a restaurant on site in Killarney rather than a town-centre guesthouse. Evenings are long after a day of driving, and not having to walk back into town makes a real difference when one of the party tires easily.
Short drives, big scenery
Connemara works well from Clifden or Westport. From Clifden, the Sky Road loop takes about forty minutes with several pull-ins where you can stay in the car and look out over the Atlantic; from Westport, the run to Kylemore Abbey is roughly an hour on the N59, and the abbey has a shuttle from the car park to the house. Plan these as half-days. Irish secondary roads are narrow and winding, and two hours of driving is a full morning for most grandparents.
The Burren and the Cliffs of Moher suit a base in Ennis or Doolin. The Cliffs visitor centre car park is steps from the exhibition, and the main viewing platform is accessible, though the cliff-edge path climbs and is exposed to wind. In the Burren, the Aillwee Cave tour involves a guided walk of about a kilometre at a gentle gradient, and the adjoining bird-of-prey centre has seating. Book a hotel in Ennis with parking; it is a better evening base than Doolin, where options are small and book out early in July and August.
Cities by train, not by car
For Galway, take the train rather than driving. Heuston to Ceannt Station is about two and a half hours, city-centre to city-centre, and removes the parking problem entirely. Eyre Square, the Latin Quarter and the Claddagh are all within a fifteen-minute walk of the station, and the promenade at Salthill is a flat seafront stroll with frequent benches. Shop Street is pedestrianised and busy, so mornings are easier than afternoons.
Belfast is a straightforward add-on if you are flying into Dublin or taking the Enterprise train from Connolly, roughly two hours. The Titanic Belfast building is fully accessible, with lifts and seating throughout, and the Botanic Gardens and Ulster Museum are free and compact. Stay near Donegall Square or the Cathedral Quarter. Skip the black-taxi political tours with grandparents unless they specifically ask; the content is heavy and the vehicles are cramped.
Timing, weather and what to skip
May, June and September give the best balance of daylight, open attractions and manageable crowds. July and August are busiest at the Cliffs, Kylemore and Killarney, with coach traffic peaking between eleven and three; go early or after four. Rain is likely in any month, so build one indoor option per day — a museum, a distillery visitor centre or a hotel lounge with a fire. Pack a waterproof layer rather than an umbrella, which is useless on exposed coasts.
Skip the Ring of Kerry as a single-day circuit with older passengers. It is over 170 kilometres of narrow road with tour buses, and the pleasure disappears after two hours. If you want the scenery, drive the short section from Kenmare to Moll's Gap and back, then stop for lunch in Kenmare itself. Likewise, leave out the Carrantuohill foothills and any walk marked with a climbing time rather than a distance.
What we would book
For a five- to seven-night trip, we would book two bases: three nights in a Killarney hotel with a lift, on-site restaurant and free parking, then two or three in Dublin within walking distance of Merrion Square. This keeps daily driving under ninety minutes, puts the two most demanding sights — Muckross and the National Gallery — within easy reach, and gives a comfortable base for the wet afternoon. Add Galway by train as a day out rather than a third hotel.
