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Transport for a Kerry Golf Trip: Driving Times, Order of Play and Clubs

By Shane Dowling, managing director
Updated 2 November 2026 · 8 min read

Say there are four of you with five days, a list that reads Ballybunion, Tralee, Killarney, Dooks and Waterville, and flights in and out of Shannon. The golf is the easy part to book. The hard part is the order you play in, because the Kerry links sit at both ends of a county where most roads are slower than the map suggests.

This guide covers where the courses are, how long the drives between them really take, a sensible order of play, and how to move four or ten golfers with clubs and luggage.

Short answer: The Kerry links fall into two clusters about an hour apart: Ballybunion and Tralee in the north, Killarney, Dooks and Waterville in the south. Most drives between neighbouring courses take 35 minutes to 1 hour 15 minutes, and Killarney is 1 hour 45 minutes to 2 hours from Shannon. Play north to south, use two bases, and treat Waterville as a long day of its own.

The courses and where they sit

  • Lahinch, Co. Clare: the first game was played here in 1892, and Old Tom Morris worked on the course from 1894. Visitors play from May to October, and groups on the Old Course must take at least one caddie. About 45 to 55 minutes from Shannon, so it works as the first round off the plane
  • Adare Manor, Co. Limerick: the Tom Fazio redesign that hosts the Ryder Cup from 13 to 19 September 2027. Its 2026 season was for resort residents, so check access before you plan around it
  • Ballybunion, north Kerry: established 1893, with the Old Course and the Cashen, on dunes above the Atlantic
  • Tralee: an Arnold Palmer design at West Barrow, Ardfert, on the coast outside Tralee
  • Killarney Golf & Fishing Club: founded 1893, two 18-hole courses (Killeen and Mahony's Point) on the shore of Lough Leane, just west of the town
  • Dooks, Glenbeigh: one of the ten oldest clubs in Ireland, founded in 1889 on a corner of Dingle Bay, and rebuilt to a Martin Hawtree plan between 2003 and 2006
  • Waterville: an Eddie Hackett links, later reworked by Tom Fazio, on Ballinskelligs Bay out on the Ring of Kerry

Driving times between the courses

LegDistanceTypical drive
Shannon Airport to Lahinchabout 53km45 to 55 min
Shannon Airport to Adareabout 39km35 to 45 min
Lahinch to Ballybunion (Killimer to Tarbert ferry)includes a 20 min crossing1 hr 30 min to 2 hr 30 min
Adare to Ballybunionabout 67km1 hr to 1 hr 15 min
Ballybunion to Tralee Golf Club (Barrow)about 36km45 to 55 min
Ballybunion to Killarneyabout 64km55 min to 1 hr 10 min
Tralee Golf Club to Killarneyabout 46km45 to 55 min
Tralee Golf Club to Dooksabout 50km55 min to 1 hr 5 min
Killarney to Dooksabout 33km35 to 45 min
Dooks to Watervilleabout 50km45 min to 1 hr
Killarney to Watervilleabout 62km1 hr 10 min to 1 hr 20 min
Killarney to Kerry Airport13 to 17km15 to 20 min
Killarney to Shannon Airportabout 129km1 hr 45 min to 2 hr

Distances and lower times are route planner figures (Rome2rio, checked November 2026). "Killarney" means the town; the Golf & Fishing Club is just west of it. The ferry time depends on when you reach Killimer: in November 2026 sailings were hourly, and in peak season they run every half hour.

A sensible order of play

Start at the Clare or Limerick end, move south, and finish near the airport you fly home from.

  1. Arrival day: land at Shannon and play Lahinch (45 to 55 minutes away), or base yourselves in Adare if you are coming in that side
  2. Ballybunion: from Lahinch, take the Killimer to Tarbert ferry; from Adare, drive the hour west. Stay in north Kerry that night
  3. Tralee: 45 to 55 minutes from Ballybunion, then on to Killarney for the evening, about 45 to 55 minutes more
  4. Killarney: the Golf & Fishing Club on your doorstep, so a short day after two longer ones
  5. Dooks and Waterville: Dooks is 35 to 45 minutes from Killarney. Waterville is 1 hour 10 minutes to 1 hour 20 minutes each way, so either give it its own day or stay a night out there

Two bases, one in north Kerry and one in Killarney, means packing up only once. Avoid zigzagging: staying out at Waterville and teeing off at Ballybunion the next morning means over two hours of driving before breakfast. If you fly home through Dublin or the UK, Kerry Airport is 15 to 20 minutes from Killarney; if you fly from Shannon, allow 1 hour 45 minutes to 2 hours plus check-in.

Clubs and luggage

Golf luggage, not passengers, decides the vehicle. A travel bag is long and bulky, and a group of four has four of them plus four suitcases.

  • Mercedes V-Class: up to 6 passengers, or 4 golfers with clubs and luggage
  • 16-seat Mercedes Sprinter: about 10 golfers with clubs and luggage
  • Hire cars: ask the hire firm how many golf travel bags the car group you are booking will take. If the bags do not fit, a fourball ends up with two cars, two drivers and two lots of parking

A driver for the week, or self-drive?

The 19th hole

The legal limit for a fully licensed driver in Ireland is 50mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood, and 20mg for learner, novice and professional drivers. The Road Safety Authority's guide is to allow at least one hour per standard drink, and its research found one in four drivers believe they may have been over the limit driving the morning after a night out. On a golf trip, the morning after is usually an early tee time.

The roads

The N21 from Limerick still runs through Adare, Newcastle West and Abbeyfeale, and the Ring of Kerry is 179km of mostly narrow road where tour coaches drive anticlockwise because they struggle to pass each other. You will be driving on the left, often tired after a round or a flight. None of that is beyond a confident driver, but it is not relaxing either.

Early tee times

From Killarney, Ballybunion is about an hour and Waterville over an hour. Add time to check in and warm up, and an early tee time means a very early start. A driver takes the navigation and parking off your hands, and the group arrives together.

One driver, all week

A driver can stay with the group for the whole tour, so the same person collects you each morning and already knows the plan, the roads and the group.

The honest downsides

  • Cost for small groups. For two golfers with light bags who are happy to drive and go easy in the evening, a hire car is cheaper and works fine
  • One timetable. One vehicle means one plan. If half the group wants 36 holes and the other half wants the pub, someone waits
  • Less spontaneity. A detour means asking the driver, rather than just turning off the road
  • A Killarney-only trip barely needs transport. If you stay in town and play only the Killarney club, a taxi out to the club is enough
  • The driver's accommodation. On a multi-day tour, ask how the driver's nights away are handled in the quote so there are no surprises

Questions people ask

How far apart are Ballybunion and Waterville?

Over two hours by road. Ballybunion to Killarney is 55 minutes to 1 hour 10 minutes, and Killarney to Waterville is another 1 hour 10 minutes to 1 hour 20 minutes, so do not put them on consecutive mornings.

What order should we play the Kerry links in?

North to south from Shannon: Lahinch or Adare, then Ballybunion and Tralee, then Killarney, Dooks and Waterville. Base yourselves in north Kerry and then in Killarney.

How many golfers fit in a V-Class with clubs and luggage?

Four golfers with clubs and luggage, or up to six passengers without the golf kit. For about ten golfers with full kit, a 16-seat Sprinter is the right size.

Do we need the Tarbert ferry?

Only if you are going between West Clare and north Kerry, for example Lahinch to Ballybunion. The crossing takes about 20 minutes and you cannot book it, so allow for the wait.

Can we fly home from Kerry Airport instead of Shannon?

If your route home goes through Dublin, the UK or mainland Europe, yes. Kerry Airport is 15 to 20 minutes from Killarney, against 1 hour 45 minutes to 2 hours for Shannon.

Dowling Executive Travel moves golf groups around Kerry and Clare in a Mercedes V-Class for four golfers with clubs and luggage, or a 16-seat Mercedes Sprinter for about ten. The same driver can stay with you for the whole trip, we track your flights, meet you in arrivals with a name board, and agree a fixed price before you travel. Send us your dates, tee times and group size through the quote form, email info@det.ie or call 085 164 0618.

Related: Golf and tourism transport · Planning a golf tour of Southwest Ireland · Shannon Airport to Killarney · Shannon Airport to Lahinch · Our fleet

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