FAQ

Hey Y’all!

After spending many years traveling to Ireland and living here full time for the last three, we get a lot of questions. Below are some of the most frequently asked and also some travel tips that you might not have considered.

Keep in mind when you are reading our advice that one size does not fit all. The only wrong way to do Ireland is by trying to do it in a way you aren’t comfortable with. If you hate traveling with strangers then a group tour probably isn’t the way for you. However, if the thought of driving on the left gives you nightmares, then you may want to look into that group thing.

Because we are from the United States the majority of the questions we get are from other US citizens so our basic information is geared more for them. A lot of the information will still be beneficial for travelers coming from other countries, but it definitely has a USA slant to it.

Also, because we live in The Republic of Ireland, when we say Ireland, this is where most of our advice is geared to.  Please keep in mind that if you visit Northern Ireland on your vacation, it is part of the United Kingdom and therefore uses a different currency and different practices and laws may be in place.

If you have any questions that we haven’t covered here, feel free to email us at slainteyall@gmail.com.

Happy Trails!

When is the Best Time to Visit Ireland?

Ireland is beautiful year round and the best time to visit depends on what you want to see and how you like to travel. 

• Summer – June through August is the high season.  The green is so bright it will hurt your eyes and EVERYTHING is blooming and beautiful. The days are long and this is your best chance for warm weather and sunshine.  On the downside, expect crowds, lines at popular attractions and high airfare.
• Shoulder Season -April/May and then September/October are the shoulder season months.  Airfare is more reasonable, the crowds have thinned as school is back in session, and most attractions and businesses are still open, although they may have reduced hours compared to the high season.  September was always my favorite time of year to visit Ireland before we moved here full-time. 
• Winter – November to mid-March. This is when you can find amazing travel deals.  Airfare, rental cars, and accommodation prices are slashed almost to nothing.  The price you pay is extremely short days and many attractions, businesses and accommodations are closed. 

What is the Best Way to “Do” Ireland?

Just like when is the best time to visit Ireland, there is no best way to see Ireland.  

• Driving – In Ireland we drive on the left and most rental cars are standards.  That said, driving is a great way to take the roads less traveled, have the freedom to stop and smell the gorse, and change your itinerary as the mood strikes. We suggest that instead of staying in a different place every night, pick a few good base locations and then day tour from them.  
• Pro tip: forget what the GPS says or how long google maps shows it will take to get somewhere.  With small roads, confusing signs, millions of sheep to take pictures of and intriguing villages, everything takes sooo much longer to get to than you think it will.  In Ireland it is truly the journey, not the destination, so enjoy it, but know that you will never get anywhere in the amount of time you think you will.
• Group Tours – If you absolutely don’t want to drive in Ireland or sort out accommodations and what to see, then a group tour may be for you.  There are tours to accommodate any group size or travel preference. With hiking tours, biking tours, small village tours, history, and even Texas music tours, there is something for everyone.  
• Trains – Europe is known for its amazing train system.  Unfortunately, Ireland’s train system is not up to the rest of Europe. Unless you are traveling between large towns, the train system is not convenient and as much of Ireland, including its attractions, is rural, the train system is not a good way to see the country.  That said, we had friends who came over last year and made the system work for them.  They used the train system to move between the larger towns of Dublin, Cork, Limerick and Killarney.  They stayed a few days in each place taking day tours to the main attractions.  If you don’t want to drive, but you don’t want to be stuck on a large group tour with the same people for your entire vacation, this combination of train travel and day tours may be the perfect option for you.
• Public Transportation – Ireland has an extensive bus system.  You can plan a vacation from larger towns to small villages via buses, just know that they may only run once per day.  It can be done but takes a lot of planning and luck for all the connections to work out the way you need them to.

Where Should I Fly Into?

There are three main international airports in Ireland.  They are Dublin, Cork, and Shannon. 

• Pro tip – Consider flying into one airport and out of another.  Dublin and Shannon are on opposite sides of the country.  You may spend an entire day driving back to the airport you flew into.  Instead, plan your itinerary flying into one and out of the other.  Usually this will not add a lot cost wise to your trip, but will save you driving back across the country if you don’t make it all the way around.
• Pro tip – Don’t have a rental car in Dublin. The public transportation in Dublin is very good.  Try to start or end your trip there with a few days.  If you start in Dublin, don’t pick up a rental car until you are ready to leave. If you end in Dublin drop off your rental car when you arrive.  It will save you a couple of days on a rental car that you will most likely be paying to park somewhere.  If you intend to use Dublin as a base and take day trips, compare the cost of day tours to the cost of the rental car and parking fees.
• Dublin and Shannon both have US pre-clearance for travelers going to the USA.  This means that you go through passport control and Customs in the airport in Ireland.  It is wonderful to land in the US and not have to wait in lines and deal with Custom forms.  
• Cork airport does not have US pre-clearance, but it is a very small airport that is lovely to fly in and out of.  

Where Should I Stay?

With over 7 million tourists visiting Ireland a year, there is no shortage of places to stay.  

• Bed and Breakfast – or BnB’s.  BnB’s took off in Ireland in the 1950s when tourism increased. They were mainly family homes with rooms opened to guests.  Today, they are still mainly family homes, but with upgraded rooms and bathrooms from years past. They may also be rooms over pubs or other businesses in a village. Included in the price of the room is usually a full Irish breakfast.  BnB’s are a wonderful way to meet locals, get tips for places to visit off the beaten track and to meet other travelers as you are often eating breakfast together.  
• Pro Tip: When you book a room make sure that ensuite is listed in the description.  Some of the BnBs still have rooms without ensuite bathrooms.  It isn’t the end of the world if you have to trek down the hall to the bathroom, but if you absolutely don’t want to do that, make sure when you book what you are booking.  Don’t assume.
• Hotels – any level of hotel can be found in Ireland. There are chain and stand alone hotels. You can even stay in castles or manor houses if that’s what floats your boat.
• Self-catering – if you don’t want share a space with anyone else you can rent a home or apartment for your stay.  Some companies to look into are Hogan’s Irish Cottages and Dream Ireland. In the past, (some still are) many of the rentals were set at a week and rented from Saturday to Saturday.  Some still rent this way.  However, with the advent of Airbnb self-catering has become a lot more flexible.
• Airbnb – You can rent rooms, apartments, cottages and large homes throughout Ireland on Airbnb.  The most important thing, if you haven’t used Airbnb before, is to determine what type of space you are renting.  You may think that you are renting an entire house, only to find out that you are just renting a room in someone else’s house.  Most listings try to make this clear, but make sure you read the fine print.
• Pro Tip – Ireland is really cracking down on drinking and driving, so if you plan on drinking even a small one with dinner or while out listening to a trad session, look for places to stay within walking distance of the pubs.  Taxis can be few and far between in the rural areas. When they are in the towns, during the high season they may be too over booked to take you home and during the off season the drivers may be on vacation.
• Pro Tip – in rural Ireland wi-fi is spotty and even getting cellular service in some areas is impossible.  Wherever you book, if internet is important to you, make sure that the description specifically states that it is included. Again, don’t assume.

I’ve Rented a Car, Do I Really Need the Insurance?

Yes, yes, a thousand times yes.  But, really? Yes! Ireland is one of only a few countries in the world that Mastercard and Visa* won’t cover your insurance. Your personal insurance won’t cover you here either. Throw in driving a standard, shifting with your left hand, driving on the left, roundabouts, and narrow roads lined with stone walls and you have a pretty solid recipe for dings, scrapes and crumpled fenders.

The full insurance -called SCDW or Super Collision Damage Waiver- usually runs from 15-20** euros per day. Yes, it sounds like a lot, but consider for 7 days that is approximately 140 added to your costs for complete peace of mind. We have had friends come over and total cars while they were here. We have had friends sideswipe other cars and stone walls. When you get to the airport, rather than haggling over car damage and claims, you simply hand the keys over and go catch your flight.

* Chase Sapphire Visa and World Elite Mastercard currently insurance offer coverage in Ireland with the use of their card to rent the vehicle. If you use this in place of insurance the rental car company will put a hold on your credit card for the entire time you have the car. If you don’t have enough available credit on your card to cover the hold, you will not be rented the car.  You will also need a letter from your credit card company to present to the rental agency that you will be covered by your credit card’s insurance. If you have an accident, the entire cost of the damages will be charged to your credit card and then you file a claim with your credit card company to pay the damages. Both cards have an annual fee in the $90-100 range, but currently show to be waiving their fees for the first year. 

** There can be quite a bit of variation on the per day charge so shop around to see which car company offers the lowest cost option.  Since I originally wrote this I have seen charges as much as €60 per day.

Do the Businesses Accept….?

• Euros – All businesses in the Republic of Ireland accept and are happy to receive Euros. They will not accept US dollars so plan to get Euros before you leave the airport. More on changing money later.
• Sterling – Sterling is the currency used in Northern Ireland as it is part of the United Kingdom. If you travel from Northern Ireland into the Republic of Ireland or vice versa you will need to have some of each currency.
• Visa and Mastercard -Visa and Mastercard, both credit and debit, are widely accepted throughout Ireland.  As with the US, you will go into small businesses that do not accept them but, for the most part, businesses take credit cards. Most businesses do have a minimum charge requirement so don’t expect to have a single beer or a cup of coffee and put it on your credit card everywhere you go.  
• American Express – Don’t count on American Express being accepted everywhere you go.  The larger stores – and by larger I mean department type stores – MIGHT accept it, but don’t count on it being accepted by pubs, restaurants or BnBs.  Leave it at home or have a Visa, Mastercard or cash as backup.
• Traveler’s Checks – Just don’t. They are very rarely accepted anywhere except at banks and sometimes the banks in the rural areas won’t take them. 
• Pro Tip – Make sure your credit cards do not charge foreign transaction fees.  When you go to make a purchase in Ireland normally the seller will give you the option of making the purchase in dollars or euros.  If your card DOES NOT charge foreign transaction fees always choose euros as it is the cheaper choice. If you choose dollars it charges you a very unfriendly exchange rate.

How Do I Get Money in the Local Currency?

• ATMs -We’ve found ATMS* to be the most convenient and cheapest way to change money when we travel. They are open all hours, are located everywhere, and usually give a better exchange rate than banks and money changing services. We carry minimal cash in our home currency and use an ATM at our arrival location to get cash in the currency of the country we are visiting, wherever it is.  This way we can get small amounts of cash out at a time so we are never in danger of losing or having a large amount of money stolen.
  • If you use this method have a back-up ATM card or a credit card you can take cash out on in case you lose one card or it stops working.
  • Always notify your banks and credit cards when you travel so they don’t holds put on them mid-trip due to “suspicious activity.”
• Credit Cards – We try to pay for as much as possible with credit cards* as we find we get a better exchange rate overall.
• Money Changing Services – We haven’t used these in years but, if you have your heart set on carrying around huge amounts of cash in your home currency and to be constantly looking for a place to change that cash into the local currency at poor exchange rates and pay transaction fees on top of it, then don’t let us stop you. You can change out cash at banks, bureau de change locations and, in some countries, post offices.  Keep in mind that exchange rates can differ from location to location as will the transaction fees. Most  locations charge from 1% to 1.5% of the amount you are changing.  So it will cost you a fee of anywhere from €5 to €7.50 to change your currency into euros.  
• Foreign transaction fees on credit and debit cards – make sure that you have a credit card and a debit card that don’t charge foreign transaction fees. If your cards charge them and you don’t want to get new cards (I would get new cards), then check to see what percentage they charge.  If they charge a higher transaction fee than what the currency services charge, then it might be a better option cost wise (definitely not convenience wise) to use the money changing services.

*Chase Sapphire Preferred, World Mastercard, Bank of America, Capital 1 360 banking, are just a few of the credit cards and banks offering no transaction fees on their credit and debit cards.

Those are our most frequently asked questions and the tips we give out.  Please don’t hesitate to reach out to us with additional questions, things you think we should add or updated information.

 

Happy Trails!