Weather in Killarney

Although the brochures will all show sunny vistas it would be misleading to describe any part of Ireland as having a beautiful climate all of the time. Moderated by the gulf stream from the Atlantic ‘all the seasons in a day‘ would be more accurate way of describing conditions.

That said the weather in Kerry is almost as good as it gets in Ireland. My advice is to prepare for the worst and be pleasantly surprised by the Kerry you find, rain or shine. Chances are you’ll get a generous variety of weather during your visit.

Average annual temperature is about 9ºC (around 50 degrees Fahrenheit).

Most of the eastern half of the country has between 750 and 1000 millimetres (mm) of rainfall in the year. Rainfall in the west generally averages between 1000 and 1250 mm. In many mountainous districts rainfall exceeds 2000mm per year. The wettest months, almost everywhere are December and January. April is the driest month generally but in many southern parts, June is the driest. Hail and snow contribute relatively little to the precipitation measured.

The best source of weather information is the Irish meteoroligical service Met Éireann who provide detailed forecasts, rain radar and can even send forecasts straight to your mobile/cell phone. The following images (updated daily) are thanks to Met Éireann:

Whatever the weather be prepared to discuss it with everyone you meet; its a national pastime and often the ice-breaker in conversations. Here’s a short glossary of expressions: pissing, lashing, spitting, pelting, pouring, bucketing, soft day thank god, damp auld day, misty, rotten, dirty, soaked, drenched, saturated…” and so on, and on, until the rain stops. As the saying goes ‘if you don’t like the weather in Ireland, just wait 15 minutes.’