The Best Viewpoints on the Ring of Kerry

Half the pleasure of the Ring of Kerry is what you see through the windscreen, but a handful of stops are worth pulling over and turning off the engine for. These are the finest.

Ladies View

The most famous overlook of them all, Ladies View sits high on the N71 and gazes back down the valley over the three Lakes of Killarney - named, so the story goes, for Queen Victoria's admiring ladies-in-waiting. Come on a clear day and early, before the coaches.

Moll's Gap

A little further along the same mountain road, Moll's Gap threads through bare, glacier-smoothed sandstone with a sweeping view to the MacGillycuddy's Reeks, Ireland's highest mountains. There's an Avoca café here for a warming coffee.

Coomakista Pass

On the coast road between Waterville and Caherdaniel, Coomakista Pass offers the definitive Ring of Kerry panorama: the whole of Ballinskelligs Bay spread out below, islands offshore, and the Skelligs on the horizon in fine weather.

Kerry Cliffs

The most dramatic of all, the Kerry Cliffs drop more than three hundred metres to the Atlantic near Portmagee and give the best mainland view of Skellig Michael. A short, steep walk from the car park leads to the platforms.

Geokaun Mountain

For a rare mountain-top view you can almost drive to, head up Geokaun Mountain on Valentia Island, where platforms give a 360-degree sweep over the Skelligs, the Blaskets and the mainland peaks, with a boardwalk over the sheer Fogher Cliffs.