Tourist in Ireland. Where should I go first?

I've never been to Ireland, but I think I would love it there. A few months ago I spoke with a Polish friend who moved there years ago with her family. She convinced me that I would love it there.
This year I didn't travel abroad, but maybe next year Ireland could be on my list. What should I see?

Flora, I've read a lot about the castles and "Kissing" the Blarney Stone!

What do you like to do when on vacation?

I was in Ireland many years (decades) ago. I liked the Southern part, it was almost tropical! Beautiful botanical gardens there. We took the plane to Cork, so we started there.

We went to the North to Donegal along the Western coast. In a few days we saw very different landscapes!
And castles indeed, there are more than only that one with the 'Blarney stone'.
And nice little cottages ...

If you want beautiful landscapes, take a ferry out to the Aran Islands, it is one of the best places I've been in Ireland. It is a little more secluded being islands, so you get some really great experiences there.

Sounds cool already!
I like sightseeing, nature, but also architecture and art.
Local food, and restaurants in more remote areas, which serve local food.
I sometimes travel with friends, but would be great if it was safe for a woman travelling alone.
I like horse riding! I love to watch horse racing, isn't Ireland like a capital of that? I don't ride racehorses (anymore), but watching them is my guilty pleasure.
And I don't like sleeping in tents.

Flora Eerschay wrote:Sounds cool already!
I like sightseeing, nature, but also architecture and art.
Local food, and restaurants in more remote areas, which serve local food.
I sometimes travel with friends, but would be great if it was safe for a woman travelling alone.
I like horse riding! I love to watch horse racing, isn't Ireland like a capital of that? I don't ride racehorses (anymore), but watching them is my guilty pleasure.
And I don't like sleeping in tents.

Flora, for 'local food' in my opinion there are better countries than Ireland. The food we had there (in guesthouses and B&Bs) was just potatoes with a meat sauce and some vegetables.
But for the rest (nature, architecture, arts, horses) and of course the traditional music and dance, yes, that's why to visit Ireland!

Bealtaine Cottage

In county Donegal, a wee little town called Glenncolmcille.
Sights include a church, a medieval graveyard, an napoleonic watchtower, the towns pub plays irish music every night. In short, nothing to see but pure Irishness.
Now for the more known sights, it is close to the Slieve League (huge cliffs over the sea), beautiful beaches like Malin Beg.

There is a route called 'the wild atlantic way' which travels up the west coast, would be one option.

Galway would be my destination of choice. Fly into dublin and get one of the direct buses that go from Dublin airport to galway city. Galway city is very small and you can walk the length of it in about 5 minutes, great city for pubs and live music. It's also a hub for tourism on the west coast, you can take day tours, which are excellent in good weather, to aran islands/cliffs of moher/connemara. All your buses are pretty small and include a lot of stuff and they all leave from the same bus station that you will arrive into from dublin airport.

If you came in the summer with good weather I would stay on the aran islands for a night or two, serious session.

From Galway you could then head to kerry, The ring of Kerry is really nice.

Don't waste time in dublin, it's just like any other city, boring .

I would like to see every place mentioned in a song. It would take a while.