Dublin works without a car better than any other Irish city because Heuston and Connolly stations sit either side of the centre, feeding intercity trains to Galway, Cork, Waterford and Belfast, while the DART runs along the coast from Howth through Connolly and Pearse to Dalkey and Greystones. Base yourself within a ten-minute walk of the Luas Red or Green line and you can reach both stations with luggage. Aim for the streets between Parnell Square and Smithfield, or around Grand Canal Dock, and avoid the Temple Bar quarter if you value sleep. Expect mid-range rooms in the €130–200 band, higher on rugby weekends at the Aviva.
Dublin: the default base, if you choose your street carefully
Two full days here is enough: Trinity College and the National Museum, Kilmainham Gaol booked ahead, and a DART morning to Howth for the cliff walk. Then use Dublin as a springboard rather than a week-long home. Day trips by train reach Malahide, Bray and Maynooth cheaply, but Galway is a two-and-a-half-hour bus or train each way, and Cork two and a half hours by rail from Heuston. If your week includes the west, two nights in Dublin at the start is the sensible booking, not five.
Galway: the best single base for a car-free week
Galway wins on foot traffic alone. Ceannt Station and the adjacent coach station put you ten minutes from Eyre Square, and from there Latin Quarter guesthouses, Shop Street and the Claddagh are all walkable. City buses and the Bearna route cover Salthill, and the Aran Islands ferry from Rossaveal is reachable by the 424 bus, with Inis Mor day trips running from March to October. Rooms cluster in the €110–170 range for guesthouses off Dominick Street; summer weekends and the race meeting in late July push rates up sharply, so book those months early.
What makes Galway a genuine week-long base is the day-trip network. Buses run to Connemara villages, to Clifden via the Sky Road, and to the Cliffs of Moher through Doolin, all without a hire car. The Burren is trickier: the coastal route is beautiful but slow, and a guided day tour is the practical answer if you want to walk the limestone pavement. I would book five nights in Galway over five in Dublin for a first car-free week, keeping the city for arrival and departure nights.
Cork and Killarney: pick one for the south
Cork city is underrated as a rail hub: Kent Station connects to Dublin, Cobh, Midleton and Tralee, and the city centre around Patrick Street and the English Market is compact enough to walk. Base near the river between the market and the station, where rooms run €100–160. Cobh by train is a half-day, and the Jameson distillery at Midleton is a short rail hop. But Cork does not open up West Cork without a car; buses to Clonakilty and Skibbereen exist but are infrequent and slow, so treat the city as a two-night stop, not a week.
Killarney is the stronger southern base for walkers. The town is fifteen minutes on foot end to end, the national park gates are at the edge of town, and jaunting cars, the Muckross estate and Ross Castle are all reachable without transport. Buses from the town link to Dingle and the Ring of Kerry, though the latter is a long day. Guesthouses around New Street and College Street sit at €90–150. Skip the Gap of Dunloe unless you have transport; the bus connections are awkward and the walk is longer than most itineraries allow. Best months are May, June and September, when crowds thin but the weather holds.
Which base I would book
For a first week without a car, I would book four nights in Galway, two in Dublin at the end, and one night in Killarney or Cork only if you are flying out of Shannon or Cork rather than Dublin. Galway gives the most scenery per bus mile, Dublin gives the best arrival and departure logistics, and the transfer between them by coach or train takes about two and a half hours. Book Galway accommodation first; it is the tightest supply of the three in summer.
Practical detail worth knowing: Leap cards work on Dublin buses and the Luas, and TFI Go covers most regional operators, so you rarely need cash. Sunday timetables are thinner everywhere, especially in the west, so plan long transfers for weekdays. If your week falls in July, expect Galway to be busiest around the Arts Festival and race week; late August and early September are calmer and still bright. Base yourself once and travel light rather than relocating every other night.
