I’d go in early fall…or late spring. If you live in the US, it’s the same time you’d visit the pacific northwest. The kids are in school, the weather is pleasant.

I went mid-August of ’02… the weather was cool.. and I had just missed the rain. The whole week I was there, it sprinkled a little as I was landing. Otherwise, I had beautiful weather the whole week there!

We went in February, and aside from being nippy and a little cloudy, it was quite nice. Besides, the brisk weather made the warmth of pubs all the more enjoyable.

I think I’d go so far as to say that Ireland is a year-round destination.

I was there this past July (the last week). The weather was great! It was very warm, actually; when we got up to Derry, the locals went on and on about how oddly wonderful the weather was.

The only problem is that everyone is traveling during this timeframe. Dublin was overly crowded to the point of being unpleasant. To avoid this, I would go either around late May/early June or late August/early September.

No matter when you go… have a wonderful time! :)

You need to expect pissy rain every month. Rain keeps Ireland green.

It’s warmest in July and August but rarely warm enough to warrant air conditioning.

You’ll encounter fewer people in September and October because all the backpackers have returned to college. Plus, there are occasional days of total sunshine during those months. There may also be total rain too.

Ireland offers as much comfy hospitality down the pub as it does down the country. I landed in December 1994 to look around and stayed. Now I’m talking about my adventures:

http://www.podcasting.ie

I´d say May-early June. Dublin, especially gets massively crowded in the July and August and the weather is nice enough in late Spring. Dublin gets a lot of rain all through the year. Don´t forget your umbrella!

Bernard’s answer is the most likely – you really have to cross your fingers when you go to Ireland, as you could be really unlucky with the weather. The warmest time of the year is July and August, but I do remember very pleasant times in April, May and June. I also remember very rainy times in April, May and June.

Between November and March the weather is quite cold. Though it depends on where you are in the country (please try and not just go to Dublin, try and see another part of the country, such as the Burren in Co. Clare), winters are mild with a minimum temperature that rarely goes below 0*C.

Summer or winter, there is still regular rain all year round. (The Atlantic’s favourite hobby is dumping itself on Ireland).

So, unfortunately the only think I can say is when you book your flight, take it with a pinch of salt and hope it doesn’t rain!

If you weren’t asking about Ireland from a weather point of view, then I’ll just talk a little about what’s actually going on during the year.

Obviously, there’s St. Patrick’s day in March and parades and celebrations go on in every bigger town in Ireland.

In mid-August, there is Puck Fair, in Killorglin, Co. Kerry – the southwest of Ireland. www.puckfair.ie – It is one of Ireland’s oldest festivals. Basically just 3 days of drinking though, and some people love it, others hate it so do your research before you go! (feel free to ask me a question)

Another festival I can think of is the matchmaker’s festival in Lisdoonvarna, Co. Clare. This runs in September. I’m sure if you google it, you can find information about this festival and others.

Good luck!

I’d go in the middle of June. As has been already mentioned, the chances of rain are pretty much 100% for any month, but in June it will at least be warm.

Also, Northern Ireland especially gets really long light evenings around then. It feels like daytime right up to 10 or 11pm, so you can catch some great sunsets on the north coast overlooking the sea.

Weatherwise, it doesn’t make much of a difference, it always rains! Actually last tima I was there it was April and we had wonderful weather the whole week.

But if you really want the best time to go there, then it is definitely March 17! It’s St. Patrick’s day celebrations, and you don’t want to miss out on that.

http://www.st-patricks-day.com/index.asp

I went in March and was in Galway for St. Patrick’s Day (much better than Dublin as far as crowds go – more of a festival of locals) It wasn’t too rainy and therefore it wasn’t as green as I’d expected it to be, but the daffodils were blooming. I’d go back in April-June – I had friends there during that time and they said it was much greener, and when it rains it tends to be a mild rain. From what they said you still beat the summer travelers by going late-Spring/early-Summer

Have fun – I can’t wait to return.

I went in April of 2001 and the weather was perfect in Dublin and Waterford. I think it only rained once and it was for a very brief time.

I have to vouch for everyone who suggested June. My last trip was for two weeks in mid-June 1999 and the weather was perfect; plus daylight lasts forever.

For instance, it rained for a small portion of time while we were at the Cliffs Moher (on the west coast). The rest of the time the weather was prefect for casual strolls through both cities and small towns.

We would be up and moving by 7am and it was fully bright out and we wouldn’t go back to our BnB until at 11pm and it was still kind of light out.

There were few other travellers crowding the towns/scenic locations and generally the entire trip was perfect.

June is an unbeatable month for visiting the Emerald Isle.

I visit Ireland a lot as my boyfriend is from Dublin. I think it’s fair to say that you are likely to get rain all year round (as Bernard said – that’s why it’s so green), so pack an umbrella. I also find Ireland really cold. I normally step foot off the Ryanair flight and stay cold until I land back in Stansted. So maybe pack some woolly socks too.

You’ll have a great time whenever you decide to go, Ireland is a great place. I would avoid Dublin on St Patrick’s Day but would definitely recommend checking out the Cork Jazz Festival: http://www.corkjazzfestival.com/ which is on late October.

I lived there for the fall semester in 99… and I would say I loved the weather in Sept. It was just lovely. I didn’t need anything but a sweater till the 2nd week of Oct. Good weather for exploring and travelling.

I’ve been in May / June, July and October. Each time it was wonderful.

The sun doesn’t set until 9 or 10 during the summer so I’d say that was best. Lots of time to wander, get lost, stumble upon something unexpectedly wonderful. However, do eat a big lunch (as well as a fry for breakfast) in case you miss dinner thinking you have time ‘cause it’s still light out!