Looking for advice on the best places to go

I have about three weeks in Ireland from 29th of August until the 21 of September.

I'm traveling alone, don't plan on renting a car.

Looking for the best places to see, countryside, history, nature and "Real Ireland"...

Any suggestions will be welcome...

P.S- planning on traveling cheap...I'm a student

You should check out www.travaddict.com. They have lots of different options for trips, and Im sure they would have plenty of stuff for Ireland. They cater to young travelers on a budget.

It's kind of touristic, but the Ring of Kerry is gorgeous. The Ring of Skellig (an extension of RoK) is not as common. Not sure how you'd get out there without your own wheels...

Skip the Cliffs of Moher, (although Doolin, which is nice, near the Cliffs seems to cater to backpackers) skip the Dolmen, spend the least amount of time in Dublin (not represent of Ireland at all). Waterford is cute, port town-ish though.

If you're feeling bold, hitchhike! I haven't, but know people who have, and I have heaps of family there, and have met enough random locals that I'd feel comfortable enough doing it, and I'm not a huge risk taker.

For some random Irish history, Cong, County Mayo is The Quiet Man was filmed. It's an old Irish movie with John Wayne and Maureen OHara in it. Anyways, there's a lot of stuff dedicated to the movie there. I was there a few years ago with my family and the owner of the pub the cast hung out in closed the pub but let us stay as long as we like!

I know this bit of information isn't very helpful, but at least you know it can be done: I met a young couple hiking Ireland a few years ago. They had a map of hiking paths (which I guess run all over the country) and their tents and raingear. Don't forget the raingear!!

And about the weather: there's never bad weather, only bad attitudes and wrong clothing. Or something like that

Getting around Ireland is extremely easy. There are tons of trains and buses to all corners of the country. Yes, some of the best things to see in Ireland are just outside of towns. But as was already said hitchhiking is very possible. You may even find a ride just chatting to people in pubs. I completely disagree with people who say Dublin isn't real Ireland. Dublin is a modern, quickly growing capital city. Its easy to get sucked into the tourist traps in Dublin, but isn't that true of any large city? I will say though that theres so much in Ireland I wouldn't spend more than a day in Dublin. It doesn't need it. Hotels in Ireland are insanely expensive (though its getting better) so if you don't mind go with hostels (or couch surf).
If you're a fan of hiking and want to get some great views of Dublin Bay try Killiney Hill or the start of the Wicklow Way.

Honestly I could go on for ages about things to do in the Dublin area. The rest of Ireland I don't know so much about. But if you need any more advice feel free to send me a message. Hope you enjoy your stay!

I agree that it's all "real" even Dublin. If it's your first visit, I'd give the capital two or three days and then head to the southwest. The most scenic parts of the Republic, imo, are along the southern and western coasts from Cork to Donegal. One of my favorite places is Dingle, a smallish but lively town in Kerry. It's a bit off the beaten path, although not at all unknown. Bus service from Killarney or Tralee, I believe, and you can hire a bike once there to explore the Dingle Peninsula.

The following might be useful to you, as well.

http://www.npws.ie/en/

There's a part of Killarney National Park in walking distance of Killarney town (tourist epicenter of the Ring of Kerry, but it is a beautiful part of the country).

Give Dublin two or three days, and then head out to the west coast, by either train or bus. From County Kerry in the south to County Donegal in the north, you can't go wrong, though I'm quite partial to the northwest, myself. I spent several days in Glencolmcille last summer and quite enjoyed it. It's reachable by local bus from Donegal town.

I second Dingle!

Dublin's fun. But I did find that most of the tourist activities were structured around beer...maybe just find some less popular ones, and you'll be good. The history there is really interesting, and it's a lovely city. I wouldn't short change it, if you're at all interested in cities.

Anyway, I loved the Aran Islands and definitely recommend them as a good place to go. The ferry companies organise busses from Galway (also a good stop), so they're easy to get around. All are small enough to walk, and bike rentals are also available, at least on Inis Mor, which make it easy to get from end to end.

Connemara is gorgeous, some good hiking in the area. There's some rural hostels around that arrange buses from Galway, otherwise, there's also a Bus Eireann route that winds through the region.

Nothing else really springing to mind. I'd agree the ring of Kerry is pretty, but I found that the crowds sufficiently offset that that I wouldn't rate it as a highlight. I've heard good things about the far north, but it's much more difficult to do by public transit. Some friends recently did a bike tour through Donegal and had a great time, if that's something that interests you.

i agree with all the suggestions for Donegal. Im from the northwest and its a great spot and your trip can easily be done on the cheap

for the sligo/donegal area check out
http://www.sligotourism.ie/
www.donegaldirect.com
www.facebook.com/donegaldirect

There are a lot of interesting places in Ireland which you can visit. Here you can check for more information about Ireland http://www.lonelyplanet.com/ireland.

Ireland seems quite an attractive destination. I will consider visiting it together with my family next year. There are a lot of interesting places there for sure!

There are a number of locations every visitor to Ireland should see. The Hill of Tara, Dublin City, The Giant's Causeway, Bunratty Castle, Rock of Cashel, The Old Jameson Distillery, Cliffs of Moher are the best places of Ireland to visit.

Do you recommenders of hitchhiking think that it's safe for lone women to do so? I used to all the time in the US until people got too crazy and now I wouldn't even consider it but I might in Ireland as I used to love to hitchhike--I always met some really interesting people and nowadays I probably wouldn't get hit on as much.

Go Go Girl

Can't really comment on the safety aspect and only hitched a few times but as far as I remember from my childhood there's a lot less hitch hikers than there used to be (maybe this will change if the recession keeps rolling on), I think there's people on this forum that have hitched in Ireland that may have good advice if you start an separate thread.

Why not travel countries like Thailand and Philippines? It will be a more unique travel experience.