Wahoowa95

Hi - My husband and I are spending a week in Ireland in May. Our first 2 days will be in Dublin. Do we need a rental car while we're in Dublin, or is it pretty easy to get around without a car? We like walking places and are also fans of public transportation (assuming it's decent). We leave the 3rd day to head south (to Killarney), so I was thinking we could pick up a rental car on our way out. Then we'd plan to drop it off before we fly out of Shannon.

Also any recommendations on good rental car companies that would work for this type of plan?

Thank you!

artsbabe

You don't need a car in Dublin. You can walk or take public transportation, which is very easy to use.

Padraig

A car is not only unnecessary in Dublin: it's a disadvantage. Most of the things that would interest the average visitor are in the central area, which is easily covered on foot, or on the route of the hop-on-hop-off bus tours.

Wahoowa95

Great! Thanks for your help!

alcook2

Family just got back from Dublin and agree 100% with the no-car advice. Bus system is excellent, but service is much less frequent after 7 PM. We took the train for a one-day trip to Kilkenny. Train was fast and comfortable.

Our visit to Ireland was short so we didn't rent a car at all. But I did read in the forums while we were planning the trip that a car rental in Ireland can be tricky especially with deposit and CDW issues. You might do a Forums search "Car Rental Ireland" to avoid any surprizes.

P.S. Dublin is a great city. Left 4 days ago and ready to return!

PS

Shanghainese

Dublin is very compact, we took the bus from the airport to our hotel. Bought a 24-hour HOHO (hop-on-hop-off) bus ticket, did the entire route (more than 20 stops) in about 1.5 hours, then continued to the stops we wanted to get off and explore, and again the 2nd morning.

Wahoowa95

Thanks everyone for your input! So now that we know we don't need a car in Dublin, what's the best plan for picking up our rental car? (after Dublin we head to Kildare and overnight in Kilkenny). Would it be best to:
1) Go back to the Dublin airport and pick up there?
2) Pick up from a place in downtown Dublin?
3) Pick up in a town outside of Dublin?
4) Some other plan?

We will be leaving Dublin on a Sunday so that may pose a challenge as well.

Thanks again for your help!

Cowboy1968

5) That depends. You will probably want to check rates for rental cars first and choose the company you think is best for you. Then check which locations they offer, and if you can pick up/ drop off at the time you want. Hertz, for example, got one location in SW central Dublin which would not be an expensive taxi ride from the city center, and also got you set in the right direction, i.e. to leave Dublin SW towards Kildare without having to go across town. For other companies it may be a different situation.

GreenDragon

Some hotels also have shuttles to the airport. I would recommend renting outside the city, where ever it may be, so you don't have to drive IN Dublin, which can be headache-inducing at best. You'll understand once you see the traffic The airport pickup at least lets you drive around Dublin, as the motorway skirts the city.