Driving Slea Head: the loop, the stops, and how to do it right

The Slea Head Drive is a circular route of around 47km that runs west from Dingle around the tip of the peninsula and back, part of the Wild Atlantic Way. You can do it in a couple of hours flat, but that misses the point. The road is dense with sites, and the right way to do it is slowly, with stops, on a half-day rather than a quick lap.

Which way to drive it

Drive it clockwise, heading out of Dingle towards Ventry first. This is the local convention and there is a reason for it: the road is single-track in stretches, and the tour coaches all run clockwise, so going against them means meeting them head-on on a narrow lane. Follow the flow. If you can, set off before ten in the morning or after five in the evening in summer, because the coaches cluster at the viewpoints in the middle of the day.

The stops, in order

Going clockwise, Ventry comes first, a wide sandy beach on a sheltered bay, a good early stop. Past Ventry the road climbs along the coast to the beehive huts, the clocháin, drystone cells clustered on the farmland at Fahan. Several of the sites are on private land with a small honesty-box fee, usually a couple of euro, so bring coins. Then comes Slea Head itself, marked by a white crucifixion shrine on a bend, with the Blasket Islands lying out across the sound. Just beyond is Coumeenoole, a dramatic strand below the road that featured in the film Ryan's Daughter and disappears at high tide. Dunmore Head, the most westerly point of mainland Ireland, is a short walk out and doubled as the planet Ahch-To in the Star Wars films. The road then turns north past Dunquin Pier, where the Blasket ferries leave, and the Blasket Centre, before running back east through Ballyferriter and past Gallarus Oratory to the town.

The early-Christian sites

The peninsula is one of the richest places in Ireland for early-Christian remains, and two are worth stopping for on the way back. Gallarus Oratory is the best-preserved drystone church in the country, built without mortar in a corbelled boat-shape that has stayed watertight for over a thousand years. The monument is free; the visitor centre beside it charges for parking and an exhibition. A short drive away, Kilmalkedar is a roofless Romanesque church with an ogham stone and a sundial, free and open.

About the dolphin

You may see old signs and listings mentioning Fungie, the solitary dolphin who lived in Dingle Harbour for nearly forty years. He disappeared in 2020 and is presumed dead. The boat operators now run genuine wildlife tours out around the Blaskets, looking for seals, dolphins and seabirds, rather than the old Fungie outings. Anything still promising to find him is selling something that no longer exists.

Practical notes

Fill up with fuel and pick up picnic supplies in Dingle before you go; there is little out on the loop. The road is narrow, twisting and exposed, so it is slower than the distance suggests, and the Atlantic weather can close the long views in minutes then clear again. The named viewpoints have laybys, but do not stop on blind bends. If you would rather not drive it, day tours run the loop from Dingle and from Killarney, which lets you look at the scenery instead of the road. Strong cyclists take the loop on as a full-day ride, but it is hilly and exposed, so pick a settled day.