Getting to the start
Killarney is the conventional start and is the easiest town in south Kerry to reach without a car. Iarnrod Eireann runs direct trains to Killarney (station code KLRNY) on the Dublin Heuston to Tralee line, and the Kerry Way committee puts it at seven to eight services a day; from Cork you change at Mallow. Killarney bus station is beside the rail station at the Outlet Centre, and Expressway route 40 (Waterford to Tralee) calls there via Cork city, Macroom and Farranfore. Flying in, Kerry Airport (KIR) at Farranfore is the closest, with Bus Eireann routes 40, 271 and 14 calling and a licensed taxi rank outside the terminal; Cork (ORK) and Dublin (DUB) carry far more flights and both connect by rail, with Irish Rail selling the airport coach leg as an add-on when you book the train. One thing peculiar to how we hold this route: our stored model is the pruned cycle, so chainage 0 lands in the Glencar area rather than in Killarney, about 11 km from the town. A walker following the convention simply walks out of Killarney on the waymarked route; anyone wanting to stand on chainage 0 itself needs a taxi from Killorglin or Killarney, because no bus goes there.
Leaving the finish
It is a circuit, so the finish is the start and the return leg is the one you already arranged. Killarney station and bus station are the departure points for Dublin, Cork and the airports. If you cut the walk short, the practical exits are Kenmare (Bus Eireann 270 to Killarney, several journeys a day including a late one), Waterville, Cahersiveen or Glenbeigh (TFI Local Link 280 to Killarney, Monday to Sunday) and Sneem or Caherdaniel (Local Link 281 to Kenmare, then 270 onward). From Cahersiveen there is also Bus Eireann 279A back to Tralee via Killorglin.
The one-way journey
The usual linear-trail headache does not arise here. The route closes on itself, so a car left in Killarney is waiting where you need it. The concrete long-stay answer is the Killarney railway station car park: 102 spaces, open 24 hours, run by APCOA, tickets from the machine inside the station, and Irish Rail's published machine tariff of roughly 4.50 euro a day, 11 euro a week or 30 euro a month (seen 30 Jul 2026). No maximum stay is published, so confirm before leaving a car beyond a month. For fly-drive walkers the Kerry Airport long term car park takes a car for weeks at around 12 euro a day with published caps of about 70 euro for eight days and 100 euro for 13 to 15 days (seen 30 Jul 2026); there is no pre-booking, you take a ticket on entry and pay at a paystation. Killarney town car parks are pay and display and no long-stay tariff is published for them.
If you need to leave the trail early
The western and southern half of the circuit is unusually well covered for a remote Irish trail. TFI Local Link 280 shadows the route from Waterville through Cahersiveen, Kells and Glenbeigh to Killorglin and Killarney, Monday to Sunday and with no booking; Local Link 281 covers Waterville to Caherdaniel, Castlecove, Sneem and Kenmare on the same basis. Bus Eireann 270 closes the loop from Kenmare back to Killarney. The weak stretch is the first two stages. Between Killarney and Glencar, through the Black Valley, the only published public transport is Local Link R45 between Killarney and Derrycunnihy, which runs on Saturdays only and must be pre-booked on 066 714 7002. Assume that on the high ground from Killarney to Glencar your escape is a phone call to a taxi, not a bus.
Useful access hubs
AirportKerry Airport
At Farranfore between Killarney and Tralee, ICAO EIKY, aerodrome reference point published by the operator. A bus terminus sits outside the terminal: Bus Eireann Expressway 40 (Waterford to Tralee), 271 (Tralee to Killarney via Kerry Airport) and 14 (Limerick to Killarney) all call, tickets bought on board, and Local Link 283 links Currow, Currans, Farranfore and Tralee. Farranfore railway station (FFORE) is 1.4 km away for the Dublin Heuston to Tralee line. Five licensed taxi operators work the rank. Long term parking on site. Scheduled destinations are Dublin, London, Manchester, Frankfurt-Hahn, Faro, Alicante and seasonal French routes with Chalair, so most walkers will find more choice at Cork or Dublin.
The airport is year-round. The French Chalair routes are described by the airport as summer holiday destinations, so do not plan a shoulder-season arrival around them.RailKillarney railway station
On the Dublin Heuston to Tralee line, with a change at Mallow for Cork. The Kerry Way committee gives seven to eight services a day. The station is in the town, next to the bus station and the Outlet Centre, so no onward transfer is needed to start walking. Staffed early morning to late evening seven days; the booking office keeps shorter weekday-only hours, but ticket machines are on site. Car park of 102 spaces open 24 hours, operated by APCOA.
Year-round daily service. Sunday and bank holiday patterns differ, so check live times.CoachKillarney bus station
Beside the rail station at the Outlet Centre and used by Bus Eireann and Expressway for the national network, plus Local Link 280 for the western side of the peninsula and 270 for Kenmare. The Kerry Way committee's own transport page names this as the Local Link pick-up point in Killarney; the matching drop-off is the Tesco car park at Deer Park, a few hundred metres away, which is worth knowing if you are meeting someone.
Year-round.RailFarranfore railway station
The nearest station to Kerry Airport, 1.4 km by the airport's own reckoning, on the Dublin Heuston to Tralee line. Useful only as an airport connection; there is nothing here for a walker otherwise.
Year-round, but a much thinner stopping pattern than Killarney. Check before planning a connection.AirportCork Airport
No direct bus to Kerry. Bus Eireann 225 and 226 link the airport with Cork city centre, Parnell Place bus station and Kent railway station every 30 minutes on weekdays and Sundays alike, and Irish Rail will sell that transfer as a 1.55 euro add-on when you book a rail ticket to Cork Kent (seen 30 Jul 2026). From Kent take the train to Killarney via Mallow, or pick up Expressway 40 at Cork bus station. Bus Eireann advises allowing three hours before a flight.
Year-round.RailCork Kent railway station
Change here for Killarney via Mallow. Also the point where the Cork Airport bus add-on is used.
Year-round.AirportDublin Airport
The widest choice of flights, and a direct Ryanair or Aer Lingus hop to Kerry Airport is one option. Overland, Irish Rail sells an Aircoach or Dublin Express coach leg between the airport and Dublin Heuston as an add-on to the rail ticket, from about 8 euro (seen 30 Jul 2026), bookable up to 24 hours before the train; Dublin Express runs around 50 services a day. From Heuston it is a direct train to Killarney.
Year-round.RailDublin Heuston railway station
Direct trains to Killarney on the Tralee line. Coach connection to and from Dublin Airport is sold as a rail add-on rather than needing a separate booking.
Year-round. Sources and research notes · 42 sources
- kerryway.ieOfficial Kerry Way transport page: Local Link pick-up and drop-off points with coordinates for Derrycunnihy, Glenbeigh, Dromid, Cahersiveen, Waterville, Caherdaniel, Sneem, Templenoe, Kenmare and Killarney; the suggested-walk table naming routes 280, 281, 287b, R45, R46b, R51b and Bus Eireann 270 with their operating days and booking requirements.Checked 30 Jul 2026
- kerryway.ieKillarney rail link to Cork and Dublin with seven to eight daily services; Killarney bus station beside the Outlet Centre; Kerry Airport at Farranfore; pointers to locallinkkerry.ie and transportforireland.ie. Also the Kerry Way Ultra date, routed to the season layer.Checked 30 Jul 2026
- locallinkkerry.ieOperator contact (066 714 7002, [email protected]) and the list of Regular Rural Services that need no booking, which includes 280, 281, 285 and 287.Checked 30 Jul 2026
- locallinkkerry.ieRoute 280 full name and stop order (Waterville, Cahersiveen, Kells, Glenbeigh, Killorglin, Beaufort, Fossa, Killarney), Monday to Sunday operation, no booking, and the journey count used for the frequency note. Also R37 and R75 serving Glenbeigh.Checked 30 Jul 2026
- locallinkkerry.ieRoutes 280, 281 and 285 at the Butler Arms stop; 281 Monday to Sunday with no booking; 285 Monday to Saturday and not on bank holidays; journey counts for the frequency notes.Checked 30 Jul 2026
- locallinkkerry.ieRoutes serving Cahersiveen including 280, 285, 287a, 287b, 287c, R37, R38, R40, R42 and R83.Checked 30 Jul 2026
- locallinkkerry.ieR30 Glencar to Killorglin on Fridays and S235 Glencar area on the second and fourth Thursday, both door to door with pre-booking where the route deviates.Checked 30 Jul 2026
- locallinkkerry.ieRoutes at Sneem: 281, R44 Sneem to Kenmare via Blackwater and Templenoe, R45 Sneem to Killarney via Molls Gap.Checked 30 Jul 2026
- locallinkkerry.ieRoutes at Kenmare including 281, 282, R44, R46a, R46b, R51a and R51b.Checked 30 Jul 2026
- locallinkkerry.ieRoutes at Killarney including 280, 276, R45, R46b, R51b and the Beaufort and Fossa feeders.Checked 30 Jul 2026
- locallinkkerry.iePayment methods and the pass answer: cash on all services, TFI Leap Card and TFI Go on Regular Rural Services with a stated 30 to 50 percent saving, contactless for single journeys, Free Travel Pass accepted, large notes refused.Checked 30 Jul 2026
- locallinkkerry.ieNo booking on Regular Rural Services and booking advised on demand responsive ones; folding bicycles carried free subject to space; e-scooters refused; only guide and assistance dogs carried; services open to visitors.Checked 30 Jul 2026
- buseireann.ieRoute 270 Skibbereen to Killarney via Kenmare, its stop order through Glenflesk and Kilgarvan, the separate weekday, Saturday and Sunday timetables, and the journey count behind the frequency note.Checked 30 Jul 2026
- buseireann.ieRoute 279A Tralee to Cahersiveen via Killorglin, with stops at Glenbeigh (Towers Hotel), Mountain Stage and Kells, and how thin the weekday service is.Checked 30 Jul 2026
- buseireann.ieExpressway route 40 Waterford to Tralee and its stop order through Cork bus station, Macroom, Killarney and Farranfore.Checked 30 Jul 2026
- buseireann.ieThe set of Bus Eireann routes in Kerry: 257, 270, 271, 272, 275, 279, 279A, 284 and 314.Checked 30 Jul 2026
- buseireann.ieRoutes 40, 14 and 271 serving Kerry Airport and the advice to change coach at Killarney or Tralee.Checked 30 Jul 2026
- buseireann.ieRoutes 225 and 226 linking Cork Airport to Cork city centre, Parnell Place bus station and Kent railway station every 30 minutes.Checked 30 Jul 2026
- kerryairport.ieBus terminus outside the terminal with services to Tralee, Killarney and Limerick and tickets bought on board; Farranfore station 1.4 km away; Local Link 283; the five licensed taxi rank operators with phone numbers and the note that Ger O'Sullivan is wheelchair accessible; car hire desks in the long term car park.Checked 30 Jul 2026
- kerryairport.ieLong term car park rates and caps, no pre-booking facility, ticket on entry and payment at terminal paystations by cash or card, overflow area at busy times, accessible parking arrangements.Checked 30 Jul 2026