Airport Transfers in Killarney

Kerry Airport, at Farranfore, takes 15 to 20 minutes to reach from Killarney, close enough for a group to land and be beside the lakes the same morning. When the flight leaves from Cork or Shannon instead, the transfer is a longer drive, covered here too.

Farranfore, Cork or Shannon

Kerry Airport is about 13 to 17 km north of Killarney on the N22, and for flights it serves it is the obvious choice. Cork Airport, about 90 km and an hour and a half east, has a wider choice of routes, and that wider choice is the usual reason a Killarney group lands there instead. That road is the N22 past Ballyvourney and the Macroom and Ballincollig bypasses to the N40 on Cork’s south side, with no toll. Shannon is further: the coach goes north to Castleisland and along the N21 to Limerick, about an hour and three-quarters from Killarney, then through the tolled Limerick Tunnel to the N18, putting the airport a little over two hours away. At Cork, hired coaches load and unload at the airport’s Bays C and D, out front.

Loading at Kerry Airport

Kerry has a single terminal with a bus terminus directly outside the main building, and a pre-booked coach or minibus loads there. The airport is small, so the walk from arrivals is short once the bags are off the belt. If someone in the party arrives by train, Farranfore station lies just 1.4 km away and the vehicle can collect them there. Pass the flight number and scheduled time to the operator, and say whether everyone is on one flight. A delayed evening arrival matters more here than at a large airport, because hotels in Killarney may need to know the group will check in late.

Setting down around Killarney

Killarney’s hotels sit in four areas: in town itself, along the Muckross Road, on the Park Road and East Avenue side, and beside the lakes at Fossa on the Killorglin road. Name every hotel at booking, and the driver can work out a single loop instead of crossing town twice. On East Avenue, laybys are reserved for buses dropping passengers, and the council keeps watch on the bus spaces in the centre, so a coach cannot sit waiting there. The Gleneagle INEC Arena seats 2,000 for conferences and stands roughly a kilometre from the centre on the Kenmare road; its delegates can go straight there from the airport. If a hotel stands on a tight street, the group is set down at the closest legal stop and walks the rest.

Golf bags, the park and the Ring

On a run this short, the luggage, not the seats, decides the vehicle. Golfers bring a club bag each on top of a suitcase, and a 16 to 19-seat minibus with about two cubic metres at the back fills long before every seat is taken. A coach with underfloor bays holds both. Count cases and golf bags separately on the request. Many groups go straight from the airport into Killarney National Park: Muckross House has separate coach parking, and every group must reserve in advance. the Gap of Dunloe begins at Kate Kearney’s Cottage, a quarter of an hour from town, and a full Ring of Kerry loop of about 180 km fills a day, so it suits the morning after arrival.

Is it worth flying into Cork instead of Kerry?

It depends on the flight. Cork has more routes, but the transfer to Killarney is a 90-minute drive along the N22, against 15 to 20 minutes from Farranfore. For a group with an early tee time or a tour the next morning, the shorter transfer can outweigh a less convenient flight.

How early should we leave Killarney for a flight from Kerry Airport?

Take the airline’s check-in deadline, then add the 15 to 20-minute drive, the time for each hotel pickup and a margin for summer traffic in the town. Once the operator has the flight time and the hotel list, it sets the first pickup from them.

Can the transfer take us straight to Muckross House?

Yes, if the visit is reserved. Muckross House asks all groups to book ahead and has its own coach parking, separate from the car park. With the cases locked in the hold, the coach can bring the group on to the hotel afterwards, once rooms are ready.

Get a quote

Send the date, the passenger count and any timed entries you already hold. We come back with a fixed price for airport transfers in Killarney.

Request a quote online, or call +353 1 265 9152 and we will price it on the spot.

Pick-up points we cover in Killarney

  • Killarney town centre
  • Muckross Road hotel strip
  • Fossa and the Killorglin road
  • Aghadoe heights