atm's in ireland
 

Will we have a hard time finding atms in towns throughout ireland?

no

Not at all. Any town has at least one ATM that works round the clock and takes cards affiliated with Visa/Plus or Mastercard/Cirrus.
Just make sure your card works internationally, has four-figure PIN, linked to your checking account and you tell your bank you are using it abroad to prevent it being blocked as a security measure.

cable, In 2005, Doolin & Lisdoonvarna County Clare did not have ATMs. Close by the town of Ennistymon did. Really, those are the only 2 places I haven't found an ATM in Ireland. I haven't been to all of Ireland so there may be others. I'd not worry at all, you will find plenty of ATMs.

Our experience was everything Alec said.
Repeat; tell your bank.

You should be aware that in areas which have not yet got electricity, the ATMs are mechanical and you need to wind them up before use. Where there is no phone line to allow linking to the central office, they dispense only coins to a maximum value of five euros. So nobody is left without the price of a pint.

It all depends wherer you are at. If you are visiting more rural, less travelled areas there will be fewer ATMs. We were in Mayo and were staying in Ballycastle and it was 25 minutes to get to an ATM. We were told that one day a week a bank van comes in to do banking and has an ATM. So it all depends on where you are. We stayed in Doolin and there were no ATMs there and the drive was 25 minutes to the nearest one. Sounds insignifigant, but when you don't know the way it is and you are heading to do a cash only activity, it can change your day. No problem finding one in most towns.

Padraig
We don't have those new-fangled wind-up ATMs here.
You put your card in the hole, type in the number and the wee wifie behind the machine puts down her knitting and passes the money through the slot.

I forgot about those ones! Once, when I attempted to overdraw, I reached into the box for the money and was stabbed with a knitting needle.

Any town will have a bank and therefor an ATM. Also a lot of the small spar type shops will have a machine inside as well. We have to get cash too! I find it hard to believe there is not one machine in Doolin????

Haven't seen any of the 'wind up' ATMs in a while, but I do believe I HAVE been jabbed by the auld Missus herself before...

From my 2006 'RENEWAL TOU' Trip report:
http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34787168

""Another glorious day, as by 9AM the sun chased away the gloom. Since the shop in Kilcrohane carries every conceivable variation of Coke product EXCEPT Diet Coke, I stopped into the market in Durrus. As Iwas beging to run a bit low on Euros, I inquired as to the location of the nearest ATM. As our destination was Mizen, I was advised that the nearest was in Goleen, or barring that, Skull. Durrus is not a LOT bigger than Kilcrohane, but it IS bigger, but I wasn't to the point of being desperate for cash, so we headed on the R591 along the north shore before crossing South, to Toormore. From there, we followed the South coast to Goleen (Not much bigger than Durrus). There, I replenished my Diet coke and inquired again.
"The ATM is at the Post Office," the young shop girl told me, without guile, as she handed me my change. Walking out to the car, I scanned up and down the street, looking for the green AN POST sign. Eventually, I spotted the small, rectangular banner, proudly jutting from the facade of the shop that I had just exited. Rentering the store, I now noticed the tidy little cubicle -- on the far wall directly opposite the shop's cashier. When I asked the young man behind the shelf about the ATM, he replied that it was only accessable by AIB customers, and that the nearest other that "would do any good" was located in Skull.""

Bob

Just a tip, if your card is also a MasterCard or Visa, the ATMs in the petrol stations will likely run it through as a credit card charge. That means it will be subject to the currency conversion fees (usually 1%) that are charged by credit card companies.

Bank of Ireland ATMs and other bank ATMs run them through as debits and there won't be the extra charge appearing on your statement. So if you have the choice, use the bank ATMs.

Here in Glencolumcille, the nearest ATM is a half hour away in Killybegs.. they even have a bus service to get you there...They say the bus only takes 20 minutes which given the kind of roads is rather worrying...hardly anyone knits here these days either....

But sure ye don't need money in Glencolumcille: ye pay for everything with dried fish -- that is, when ye pay at all.

What happened to Father McDyer's knitwear enterprise?

Ah, times change. how long is it since you were here?

The knitting industry is still around, but fading slowly now. Times are hard and not getting any easier... The young ones are not interested in the old skills....The looms lie idle now; still going at Ardara and one in Kilcarra..But not out here, sadly.

It's about five years -- perhaps a bit longer -- since I was in SW Donegal.

It's spectacular country, mountains falling into the sea. We did the cliffs (memory blank: what the hell are they called?) and they scared the shit out of me. I was much happier at sea level going down to Teelin pier, a lovely spot.

Glencolumcille has an end-of-the-world feel about it.

Killybegs, Ireland's biggest fishing port did not have, at least as far as I could find, a good seafood restaurant.

For those who do not understand my earlier reference to Fr. McDyer, let me explain: he was the Parish Priest of Glencolumcille some time ago, and drove a movement for rural development. A big local hero.

Recovered memory: Bunglass cliffs. Not for acrophobes like me.

Padraig; I agree re Bunglass/Slieve League... The year before we came here, I stopped in Carrick and asked at the pub about some cliffs I had vaguely heard about. "They are about ten minutes away and well worth the drive," came the reply, words that echoed in my mind as, heart in mouth, I drove the switchback. In places, you literally seem to be driving over a hump into thin air.
Fr MrDyer brought electricity and industry to a dying part of Donegal only a few decades ago.
See http://www.glenfolkvillage.com/frmcdyer.html
Upsetting the establishment in the process. The Folk Museum has a loop video of his speeches etc; fighting talk.

Glencolumcille is way out on a peninsula, with the road ending a few miles beyond it. Since he died, there has been no one of equal status.

Yes a peaceful place.... worth a visit indeed. Blessings

Killybegs; the fishing fleet is "grounded" now with the loss of 1500 jobs. Small town is dying...Great fish and chips here though. Kitty Kelly's does good seafood.