WELCOME TO DINGLE TOWN
Lodging on a Rick Steves’ tour is always a treat.
Our stay in Dingle was hosted at Milltown House, a quaint family-ran bed and breakfast style hotel outside the town center.
Accommodations are always very nice on a Rick Steves’ tour, but this one went above and beyond our expectations. We enjoyed our first evening’s dinner here followed by a performance of traditional Irish music. We were also treated to a stepdance demonstration by world-renowned Irish dancer, David Geaney, and took part in an interactive falconry experience.
Dingle is the perfect mix of quaintness and convenience. It is characterized by the stark contrast between land and sea - with picturesque rolling hills, rugged cliffs, and colorful row buildings.
This classic harbor town feels very authentic due to the Dingle Peninsula being a part of the Gaeltacht, a district where the Irish government recognizes the Irish language as the predominant language. Dingle also is known for its crystal and distilleries. On our stunning peninsula tour, we were able to see firsthand authentic Dingle crystal being cut!
There are many shops and restaurants that line the streets, and a hearty meal of fish and chips with a side of sweet, cinnamon-y ketchup is a must! We enjoyed our last dinner at Fenton’s, a long-standing, family ran restaurant that locally sources all of their ingredients and took our last stroll in Dingle up the hill behind Milltown House.
From Milltown House looking over into town
Dingle Town
Outside the grounds of the St. James Church, the scallop shell has become a symbol of the church
Cemetery grounds at St. James Church - some of these graves date back to the early 1500s
Cemetery grounds at St. James Church - some of these graves date back to the early 1500s
O'Sullivan's Courthouse Pub
Memorial on The Mall in Dingle
Tiny creek that runs through the city
Outside a pub in Dingle
Looking down Goat Street
Exterior of St. Mary's Church on top of the hill in Dingle
Entry to Dick Mack's Pub
St. Mary's Church
St. Mary's Church
St. Mary's Church
Foxy John's - hardware store by day, pub by night!
Dingle Crystal being cut
Grounds of Gallarus Oratory
Gallarus Oratory built around 1300 years ago
Looking out the window of the oratory
Grounds of the oratory
Grounds of the oratory
Cliffs near The Blasket Centre
Oceanview by The Blasket Centre
Oceanview by The Blasket Centre
Oceanview by The Blasket Centre
Oceanview by The Blasket Centre
Homes on the western Dingle peninsula
A friendly horse by the Milltown House
After dinner entertainment hosted by Milltown House
After dinner entertainment hosted by Milltown House
Seamus, main resident of Milltown House
Adrian, Seamus, and Geauraud
Outside Milltown House
Our Neighbor
Meeting one of the birds for our falconry experience
Irish Barn Owl
Orla, the Golden Eagle
Notably extinct in Ireland since 1912, Orla is a working girl that's kept safe through the falconry program
Orla in flight
Outside ME Burke & Co.
Sculpture as you enter Dingle Town
Main center of town
Golden hour looking out from Milltown House
Cemetery overlooking Dingle Harbour
Cemetery overlooking Dingle Harbour
Cemetery overlooking Dingle Harbour
Cemetery overlooking Dingle Harbour
On our last walk back to Milltown House before packing to leave
Ran into one more friendly local!
We didn’t expect to see dolphins in Ireland!
The below photos were shot on a beautiful, blustery day.
Brendan and Gary took us out on the Draíocht through Dingle Dolphin Tours.
One of the most notable figures from Dingle is a dolphin named Fungie.
Fungie is known to have been a resident of Dingle since 1983. He loved interacting with tourists on dolphin tours and even with local fishermen, throwing his own catches into their boats. Fungie was last spotted in mid-October of 2020. He was crowned the longest-living solitary dolphin in the world the year prior by the Guinness Book of World Records. He is forever memorialized in the center of town by this bronze sculpture, unveiled by James 'Bud' Bottoms in 2000.
