Has anyone done this bus route? My daughter is going to go to grad school in Galway and we'll be flying into Shannon and need to get to City Centre. What are the pros and cons of the bus vs. car rental? Any other suggestions?
Thanks, Jan

There is an express bus from Shannon Airport to Galway City: http://www.citylink.ie/timetable-galw2shan.htm

Citylink seem to have only four daytime buses from the airport to Galway. Bus Eireann's express buses run hourly (www.buseireann.ie). In both cases, they go to the centre of Galway. I can't think of any reason why anyone would want to rent a car to do this.

CityLink will take her to the Tourist Office on Forster Street, about 100m from Eyre (AKA JFK) Square. BusEireann will take her to the Galway Bus/Rail Station about 50m off Eyre Sq. I've taken CityLink from Dublin to Galway but I always take BudEireann from Shannon.

Bus vs rental car?? I don't drive in Ireland; rental car might be quicker if she knows the way. I usually get a BusEireann from Shannon around 9:30AM arriving Galway (via Ennis) 11:30AM.

Pros.: Bus is cheaper than car rental; and she wouldn't have to drive after a TransAtlantic flight jet-lagged. If she rents a car, she may have to go to Automatic unless she can handle a stick shift with the gear shifter on her left.

Cons.: If she plans on some Tourism, Bus skeds can be a hassle.

Suggestions: buy an Expressway Bus Schedules (book) at the BusEireann counter at Shannon (if they have them)or at the Galway Bus/Rail station.

Hiring a car will give you the flexibility to do trips with Galway as a base.
With respect to NEDSIRELAND's comments, I think he over estimates the difficulty driving here. If you can drive in your own country, you can drive in Ireland bearing in mind sensible precautions like not driving without sleep/ after alcohol on a flight etc. (Like how is it we can all get into cars in your country and drive without worrying about it?)

If you're travelling on your own, I can see why bus travel would appeal- it's reasonably priced and you get to meet people on the bus. However, if you are a couple or family, I'd plump for a hire car.

Also, driving from Shannon to Galway is a cinch and doesn't require one to 'know the way' or any special map reading skills. It's one big straight road till Galway. The first section (ca. 20 miles) is dual carriageway and the rest is single lane national road. It will take 1.5 hours.