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ViewsIrelandFrom eTripTips Wiki
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[edit] Understand Celtic tribes settled on the island in the 4th century B.C. Invasions by Norsemen that began in the late 8th century were finally ended when King Brian Boru defeated the Danes in 1014. English invasions began in the 12th century and set off more than seven centuries of Anglo-Irish struggle marked by fierce rebellions and harsh repressions. A failed 1916 Easter Monday Rebellion touched off several years of intense guerrilla warfare that in 1922 resulted in independence from the UK for 26 southern counties; six northern counties, two-thirds of the ancient province of Ulster, remained part of the United Kingdom — a disputed status that has continued to the present day. In 1949 Ireland withdrew from the British Commonwealth; it joined the European Community in 1973. Irish governments have sought the peaceful unification of Ireland and have cooperated with Britain against extra-state armed groups. A peace settlement for Northern Ireland, known as the Good Friday Agreement and approved in 1998, is currently being implemented. [edit] Get in[edit] By plane(The Republic of) Ireland is served by 4 international airports, Dublin (IATA: DUB), Shannon (IATA: SNN), Cork (IATA: ORK) and Ireland West, Knock (IATA: NOC). Dublin is connected to several cities in the US, Canada, the UK and continental Europe. Shannon, close to the cities of Limerick and Ennis, also has flights to the US, Canada, the UK and Europe. Cork has flights to most UK destinations and a wide variety of European cities. It is easily accessed from any of the major European hubs, including all of the London airports. Knock Airport has daily scheduled flights to several UK cities as well as to Boston and New York in USA, as well as various chartered flights to (mostly) holiday destinations in Europe. Smaller regional airports that operate domestic and UK services include Donegal (IATA: CFN), Galway (IATA: GWY), Kerry (IATA: KIR), Sligo (IATA: SXL) and Waterford (IATA: WAT). National carrier (and formerly state owned) Aer Lingus concentrates on providing cheap fares from central airports, with good service, and has cheap deals available from the UK, continental Europe, the USA and Dubai. It is usually considerably cheaper than Ryanair for flights booked close to the travel date. Ryanair is another source of flights to Ireland, particularly from the UK, however extras such as baggage charges, taxes and other charges can add a considerable amount to the total price. Comprehensive listings of airlines flying directly into Ireland, along with destinations and timetables, can be found on the Dublin, Shannon, Cork and Knock airport websites. A regional service is also provided by Aer Arann which flies internally within Ireland and externally mainly to and from the United Kingdom. [edit] By trainThe only cross-border train is the Enterprise service jointly run by Irish Rail and Northern Ireland Railways from Belfast Central to Dublin Connolly. A Rail-Sail Scheme is also available, linking Stena Line or Irish Ferries Ferry companies with Irish and UK Train Companies. They mainly operate from UK cities across the various Irish and British Rail Network via the Dublin-Holyhead routes. [edit] By busCross border services are operated by Ulsterbus and Bus Éireann. Eurolines operate services to Great Britain and beyond in conjunction with Bus Eireann and National Express (Great Britain). Bus Éireann also operates frequent services to and from Eastern Europe, in particular Poland, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia. [edit] By boatIreland is served by numerous services to Great Britain and France:
Other operators to Ireland include:
[edit] From the UK and Northern IrelandDue to Ireland's long relationship with Britain, citizens of Northern Ireland and the rest of the United Kingdom do not require passports to enter the Republic. As a consequence, there are no passport controls at land border crossing points. In fact, the border is rarely signposted and it is often difficult to tell when you have crossed from the Republic into Northern Ireland and vice-versa. The most obvious signal is that the roadsigns on the Republic side are jointly in Irish and English and speed limits and distances are shown in kilometres. Occasionally, the police (Garda) or Irish customs officials may set up random checkpoints at or near border crossing points and may stop and question drivers exiting and entering, but are usually friendly and will normally wave tourists through without any trouble. When arriving at an Irish airport from the UK, you will be required to produce photo ID (drivers licence or passport) to prove that you are a British or Irish citizen. [edit] Get around[edit] By carThere are many car hire companies in Ireland and you can pick up in the cities or at the airports, though it may cost more to pick up at an airport. Note that Ireland is unique among European countries in that it will not accept third party collision damage insurance coverage when you rent a car. Many credit cards, for example, will pay the cost of the collision insurance (CDW) when you rent a car using that credit card. However, Irish car hire agencies will not accept this insurance. Once you have picked up your rental car, you can choose from ten different self-drive tour itineraries from Authentic Ireland [2]. These tour packages include Ancient Ireland, Hidden Ireland, Irish Castles, Pubs & Music, and more. Or, they will help you to create a custom tour. [edit] TaxisIt is highly recommended that you call ahead to book a taxi. The hotel, hostel, or bed and breakfast you are staying in will usually call the cab company they work closely with for your convenience. Taxis should be reasonably easy to pick up on the streets in Dublin and Cork but may be harder to find crusing the streets in smaller cities and towns so it is often best to telephone for one. It is recommended to call the cab company in advance if possible and give them a time to be picked up, no matter if its 4 hours in advance or 30 minutes in advance. Work with the same cab company your hotel does and let them know your final destination if there is more than one stop. You will also need to give them a contact phone number over the phone, so if calling from a pay phone, be prepared for them to deny your claim for a taxi cab. The average waiting time may be anywhere from 5 to 30 minutes depending on demand and time of day. All Taxis in Ireland operate on a National Fare basis, so the price should be relatively easy to calculate. For more information, see the Commission of Taxi Regulation website. Always ensure that the taxi you use has a meter, and that it is used for the duration of your journey. [edit] Rules of the Road/Road User EtiquetteDriving and road rules are similar to the UK - e.g. drive on the left and yield to the right on roundabout. The most noticeable difference is the fact that distances are (almost always) displayed in kilometres and speed limits in kilometres per hour (km/h) in the Republic of Ireland. This can be confusing to anyone travelling across the border from Northern Ireland, which, like Britain, uses miles and miles per hour. The legal blood-alcohol limit is low so it may be best to abstain. Drivers often 'thank' each other by flashing their hazard lights or waving - this is purely a convention. Irish road signs are nominally bilingual, with place names displayed in Irish in italic font, with the corresponding English name in capitals immediately below. In the "Gaeltacht" areas in the far west, some road signs are written in Irish language only. There are five types of road classification:
Ireland has a small but steadily growing motorway network which centers around Dublin. The main motorways are:
Note that unlike their UK counterparts, most Irish motorways have some tolled sections. Tolls are low by French or Italian standards, and vary from €1.70 upwards, depending on which motorway you are traveling on. Tariffs are displayed a few kilometers from the plaza. For the visitor, it's important to note that the only tolled road that accepts credit cards is the M4 between Kilcock and Kinnegad. All others are Euro cash only, so take care if you're arriving from the North via the M1. For 2007, the tolled sections and their charges (for private cars) are as follows:
Until relatively recently, the road network in Ireland was very poorly maintained and road signage sparse. Things have changed markedly on the major arterial N-roads which have seen major renovation work with help from EU funding. Lesser roads, however, are still, in many parts, poorly signposted, the only indication of what route to take often being a finger-sign at the junction itself. The road surfaces can be very poor on the lesser used N-, R- & L- numbered routes. Driving in Ireland requires etiquette, courtesy and nerves of steel. Roads are generally narrow with little to no shoulder or room for error. Sight lines can be limited or non-existent until you are partway into the road. Caution should be taken when entering onto the roadway as well as when driving along it, with the understanding that around the next turn may be another motorist partway into the road. This is especially true in rural areas. Parking along the road, farm animals, as well as large lorries or machinery may also appear around the bend and be the cause for quick thinking or braking. It is not unusual for oncoming cars to navigate a wide spot in the road to pass each other. On the other hand, when driving slower than following cars, it is common for drivers to allow others to pass or signal if the way is clear. Calculating driving time can be slower than expectations, due the increase in motorists and road conditions/hazards. [edit] Speed LimitsAs mentioned above, speed limits in the Republic of Ireland (but not in Northern Ireland) are in kilometres per hour. The general maximum speed limits are as follows:
Local Councils may apply other limits in specific areas as required. A very common limit is that of 60 kph when leading from a higher speed limit into a built-up area, and vice-versa. Also when roads are being maintained or worked upon in some way, the limit may be temporarily changed. [edit] Car rental companiesThere are numerous car rental companies, many with contact desks at air and sea ports.
[edit] By planeAer Arann and Aer Lingus operate domestic flights out of Dublin, Donegal, Cork and other locations to various regional destinations. Ryanair also operates flights from Dublin to Cork to rival Irish Rail. [edit] By trainMost trains in Ireland (all operated by the state-run Irish Rail also known by their Irish name, Iarnród Éireann) operate to and from Dublin. Enormous expenditure on modernising the state-owned Irish Rail system is ongoing, including the introduction of many new trains. The frequency and speed of services is being considerably increased, especially on the Dublin-Cork line. If you book on-line for Intercity travel, be aware that there may be a cheaper fare option available to you at the office in the station itself. Not all special rates, e.g., for families, are available on line. Note that there are two main stations in Dublin - Connolly Station (for trains to Belfast, Sligo and Rosslare) and Heuston Station (for trains to Cork, Limerick, Tralee, Kilarney, Galway, Westport, Kilkenny and Waterford.) In the Dublin city area the electrified DART (acronym for Dublin Area Rapid transit) coastal railway travels from Malahide and the Howth peninsula in the North to Bray and Greystones in Co. Wicklow via Dun Laoghaire and Dublin city center. An interchange with main line services and the Luas Red line is available at Dublin Connolly. [edit] By tramDublin has a tram system, known as Luas (the Irish word for speed.) There are two lines. One (the red-line) operates from Dublin city centre (Connolly Station) to a large suburb south-west of the City (Tallaght) and the other (the green line) runs south-east (to Sandyford) from St Stephen's Green. Tickets must be puchased from machines before boarding the tram. Tickets are checked in the Luas at random by guards but generally ticketing works on a trust system. Thus free rides are possible, although not advisable, as the fines for fare-dodging can be quite high. The Luas tram provides a very useful link between Dublin's Connolly and Heuston railway stations. [edit] By bus
[edit] By boat
[edit] By bicycleIreland is beautiful for biking, but have a good touring bike with solid tires as road conditions are not always excellent. Biking along the south and west coasts you can be prepared for variable terrain, lots of hills and often into the wind. There are plenty of campgrounds along the way for long distance cyclists. The planned Eurovelo cycle route in Ireland will connect Belfast to Dublin via Galway, and Dublin to Rosslare via Galway and Cork. Visit their website for updates on the status of the path. Dublin has some marked bicycle lanes and a few non-road cycle tracks. Traffic is fairly busy, but a cyclist confident with road cycling in other countries should have no special difficulties (except maybe for getting used to riding on the left). Cyclists have no special right of way over cars, particularly when using shared use paths by the side of a road, but share and get equal priority when in the traffic lane. Helmets are not legally required, but widely available for those who wish to use them. [edit] TalkEnglish is spoken everywhere but Irish (Gaeilge) is the first official language. Most people have some understanding of this but it is used as a first language by only about 400,000 people, most of whom live in rural areas known as the Gaeltacht. About 40% of Irish citizens claim to understand and speak the language. As the Gaeltacht are generally scenic areas it is likely that visitors will go there. Tourists will not be expected to speak Irish but it will be noticeable on road signs, etc. For instance, a law was recently passed that behooves the English name of Dingle, County Kerry to be changed to An Daingean, the Irish version. This should not confuse visitors. In order to enter certain Irish Universities, it is necessary to have taken Irish to Leaving Certificate (Examinations taken on leaving secondary or high school) level, and passed. Indeed it is a compulsory language at school, although its method of teaching has come under criticism. Nevertheless, although it has come under threat, and sometimes is seen as a waste of resources by a certain few, the language is held fondly amongst the Irish themselves. There is extensive Irish language broadcasting on TV and radio. Irish is related and very similar (but not identical) to Scottish Gaelic. However, some native Irish speakers may take offense if you call Irish "Gaelic" as this is the incorrect term and refers to Scottish Gaelic. The correct Irish term is Gaeilge (Pronounced "Gale-geh"). Referring to it simply as "Irish" is a fine alternative. It is not necessary to know any Irish in order to get around in Ireland. See also: Irish phrasebook [edit] BuyIreland is part of the Eurozone, so as in many other European Union countries the currency here is the euro (symbol: €). Stand Alone Cash machines (ATMs) are widely available in every city and town in the country and credit cards are accepted in 90% of outlets. Fees are not generally charged by Irish ATMs (but beware that your bank may charge a fee). Along border areas, it is common for UK pounds sterling to be accepted as payment, with change given in euro. Some outlets, notably border petrol stations (fuel is much cheaper in the Republic, resulting in many Northern motorists purchasing their fuel in the Republic) will give change in sterling if requested. [edit] Credit CardsIn Ireland some hotels and many shops and restaurants will automatically bill your credit card in your home currency, at a very poor exchange rate, typically 1% or 2% worse than if they'd billed you in euros. This sometimes makes for as much as a 4% commission, split between the store and the provider, Fexco. Before using a credit card at a business that caters to tourists, ask if they use Dynamic Currency Conversion (DCC), and check your receipt afterwards, to make sure it doesn't show a charge in your home currency. Mastercard, Maestro and Visa are virtually accepted everywhere. American Express and Diners Club are not as widely accepted. Discover card is very rarely accepted and it would not be wise to rely on this alone. [edit] EatFood is expensive in Ireland, although quality has generally improved enormously in the last ten years. Most small towns will have a supermarket and many have a weekly farmers' market. The cheapest option for eating out is either fast food or pubs. Many pubs offer a carvery lunch consisting of roasted meat, vegetables and the ubiquitous potatoes, which is usually good value. Selection for vegetarians is limited outside the main cities. Modern Irish cuisine emphasizes fresh local ingredients, simply prepared and presented (sometimes with some Mediterranean-style twists). Meat (especially lamb), seafood and dairy produce can be of a very high quality. Try some soda bread, made with buttermilk and leavened with bicarbonate of soda rather than yeast. It is heavy, tasty and almost a meal in itself! In recent years many good quality inexpensive restaurants have been set up. The small town of Kinsale near Cork has become internationally famous for its many excellent restaurants, especially fish restaurants. [edit] EtiquetteOnly basic table manners are considered necessary when eating out, unless you're with company that has a more specific definition of what is appropriate. As a general rule, so long as you don't make a show of yourself by disturbing other diners there's little else to worry about. It's common to see other customers using their mobile phones - this sometimes attracts the odd frown or two but goes largely ignored. If you do need to take a call, keep it short and try not to raise your voice. The only other issue to be concerned about is noise - a baby crying might be forgivable if it's resolved fairly quickly, a contingent of adults laughing very loudly every couple of minutes or continuously talking out loud may attract negative attention. However, these rules are largely ignored in fast-food restaurants, pubs and some more informal restaurants. Traditionally, tipping was never considered to be a necessity and was entirely optional. However, recently it has become common to tip up to 10% of the bill total. Some establishments will add a 10-15% service charge on top of the obligatory 13.5% Government VAT charge, especially for larger groups. If a service charge is levied, a tip would not normally be left, unless to reward exceptional service. [edit] DrinkOne of Ireland's most famous exports is stout, a dark, dry beer. The strong taste can be initially off-putting but perseverance is well-rewarded! The most famous variety is Guinness, brewed in Dublin and available throughout the country. Murphy's and Beamish stout are brewed in Cork and available mainly in the south of the country. Murphy's is slightly sweeter and creamier-tasting than Guinness, while Beamish has a strong, almost burnt taste. Several micro-breweries are now producing their own interesting varieties of stout, including O'Hara's in Carlow, the Porter House in Dublin and the Franciscan Well Brewery in Cork. Ales such as Smithwick's are also popular, particularly in rural areas. Bulmers Cider (Known as Magners in other countries) is also a popular and widely available Irish drink. It is brewed in Clonmel, Co. Tipperary. The other competitor for national drink of Ireland is tea. The Irish drink more tea per capita than any other people in the world. Cork, Dublin and Galway abound with slick, stylish coffee bars, but if you visit any Irish home you will probably be offered a cup of tea (usually served with milk, unless you explicitly state otherwise!). Coffee is also widely drunk in Ireland. (If you don't drink tea, you drink coffee!) [edit] SleepThere are hotels of all standards including some very luxurious. Bed and Breakfast is widely available. These are usually very friendly, quite often family-run and good value. There is an official youth hostel association - An Óige. These hostels are often in remote and beautiful places, designed mainly for the outdoors. There are also independent hostels which are marketed as Independent holiday hostels of Ireland. These are nearly always found in towns. There are official campsites although fewer than many countries (given the climate). Wild camping is tolerated, although you should seek permission. There is a free accommodation finder for Dublin called Almara Accommodations Dublin [edit] LearnYou can learn many interesting facts about Ireland's history and culture. One of the things Ireland is most famous for is Irish dancing. ('Riverdance,' a popular show centered on Irish step dancing, started in Ireland.) Irish traditional music is also world renowned, with The Chieftains musical group being its international ambassadors. Ireland has internationally-respected universities, including the venerable Trinity College Dublin (the only college of the University of Dublin). The National University of Ireland has constituent colleges in Dublin, Galway, Cork and Maynooth. Other colleges/universities include Dublin City University (DCU), University of Limerick (UL), Institues of Technology in the larger towns/cities around the country and other higher education colleges. Literature has many great Irish authors, including James Joyce, Samuel Beckett, Oscar Wilde, Brendan Behan and Oliver Goldsmith. The writer of "Gulliver's Travels", Dean Jonathan Swift was from Dublin and poets, W. B. Yeats and Patrick Kavanagh also hailed from Ireland. Especially in Dublin, there are many literary tourist attractions and tours. [edit] WorkIreland is part of the European Union/European Economic Area, and as such any EU/EEA or Swiss national has an automatic right to take up employment in Ireland. Non EU/EEA citizens will generally require a work permit and visa. Further information can be found on Citizens Information, the Irish government's public services information website. [edit] Stay safeThe police force is known as An Garda Síochána (or just "Garda"), and police officers as Garda (singular) and Gardaí (plural, pronounced Gar-dee), though informally the English term Guard(s) is usual. The term Police is rarely used, but is of course understood. Regardless of what you call them, they are courteous and approachable. Uniformed members of the Garda Síochána do not carry guns. It is a proud tradition of the service that standard policing is carried out in both rural and urban areas by uniformed officers equipped only with a modest wooden truncheon. Firearms are, however, carried by detectives. Crime is relatively low by most European standards but not very different. Late night streets in larger towns and cities can be dangerous, as anywhere. If you need Gardaí, ambulance, fire service, coast guard or mountain rescue dial 999 or 112 as the emergency number; both work from landlines and cell phones. [edit] Stay healthy[edit] SmokingSince March 2004 almost all enclosed places of work, including bars, restaurants, cafés, Etc., in Ireland have been designated as smoke-free. Rooms in Hotels and Bed & Breakfast establishments are not required by law to be smoke-free. Even though they are not obliged to enforce the ban, owners of these establishments are, however, free to do so if they wish. Most hotels have designated some bedrooms as smoking and some as non-smoking, so you should specify at the time of booking if you have a preference either way. The smoking ban also applies to common areas within buildings. This means for example that corridors, lobby areas and reception areas of buildings such as apartment blocks and hotels are also covered under the law. Most larger bars and cafés will have a covered smoking area, often with heating. If one does not exist be aware that it is illegal to consume alcohol on the street so you may have to leave your drink at the bar. Any person found guilty of breaching the ban on smoking in the workplace may be subject to a fine of up to EUR 3,000. [edit] RespectOften, in smaller towns and villages and especially on a country road, if you walk past somebody it is customary to say hello. They may also ask you "how are you?", or another similar variation. It is polite to respond to this greeting but it is not expected that you would give any detail on how you really are, if the person is a stranger - a simple hello or "how are you?" or a simple comment on the weather will suffice! When driving on rural roads, particularly where a driver has to pull in to allow you to pass, it is customary to wave a thanks to the other driver, by raising your hand from the steering wheel. This is particularly prevalant in rural areas of the West of Ireland where many drivers will automatically wave at everyone who drives past them. A polite hand wave (or even with just the index finger raised from the steering wheel) is cutsomary and will be appreciated. When accepting gifts, a polite refusal (such as, "no really you shouldn't") is common after the first offer of the item. Usually, this is followed with an insistence that the gift or offer is accepted, at which point your answer is likely to become more recognized. However, some people can be very persuasive - this isn't meant to be over-bearing, just courteous. One thing which some visitors may find disconcerting is the response an Irish person may give to a "thank you". Most Irish people will respond with something along the lines of "It was nothing" or "not at all". This does not mean that they didn't try hard to please, but rather it is meant to suggest "I was happy to do it for you, so it was not any great difficulty" (even though it may have been!). [edit] ContactPhone numbers in this guide are given in the form that you would dial them from within Ireland. This form in general is a two- or three-digit area code (always begins with a 0), and the local number, which may be from five to seven digits long. When dialling a land line number from another land line within the same area (i.e., the same area code) the area code can be ignored, and the local number only is required. There are more mobile phones than people in the Republic of Ireland, and the majority of these are prepay. Phone credit is available in very many retailers, usually in denominations from €5 to €40. be aware, taht some retailers charge a small commission on this credit, while many others don't, so it does pay to shop around. All mobile numbers begin with 087, 086, 085 or 083 (this code must be dialled regardless of location or operator of dialler). Mobiles are cheap by European standards to buy, and if staying for more than 2 months, it could be cheaper to buy a phone than phone cards. The era of the pay phone is coming to an end, and nowadays, the only way they make a profit, is for the booth itself to be covered in advertising. When calling Ireland from abroad, dial your international access code, followed by 353 and the area code (dropping the starting '0'), then the remainder of the number. [edit] Non-geographic numbersNon-geographic numbers are those which are not specific to a geographical region and are technically charged at the same rate regardless of where the caller is located.
[edit] Calling HomeIreland has 4 mobile networks (prefix code in brackets)
A tri- or quad-band phone will work, but you should check that your operator has a roaming agreement. You can also buy prepay GSM cards if you have an unlocked handset. This can be considerably cheaper as it means that you will be assigned an Irish number which you can be called at during your trip and your outgoing calls are charged at normal Irish mobile rates. Pay phones are fairly widely available (but becoming less so) and most take euro coins, prepaid calling cards and major credit cards. You can also reverse charges/call collect or use your calling card by following the instructions on the display. To dial internationally: 00 + country code + area code + local number To dial Northern Ireland from Ireland a special code exists; drop the 028 area code from the local Northern Ireland and replace it with 048. This is then charged at the cheaper National Irish rate, instead of an international rate. To dial an Irish number from within Ireland: Simply dial all of the digits including the area code. You can, optionally, drop the area code if you're calling from within that area, but it makes no difference to the cost or routing. Fixed line numbers have the following area codes:
Operator service is unavailable from pay phones or mobile phones. Emergency Service dial 999 or 112 (Pan European code that runs in parallel). This is the equivilant of 911 in the US/Canada and is free from any phone. Directory information is provided by competing operators through the following codes (call charges vary depending on what they're offering and you'll see 118 codes advertised heavily):
These companies will usually offer call completion, but at a very high price, and all of them will send the number by SMS to your mobile if you're calling from it.WikiPedia:Republic of Ireland Dmoz:Europe/Ireland/ World66:europe/ireland
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