jolimunch

My husband and I are planning a September trip to Ireland. I'm having fun booking modest B&B's and small hotels in small, well-located towns. Our last stop will be in Rathdrum, Wicklow County. I'd like to make sure we can get to the Dublin Airport for our Friday flight home at 11:30 a.m. Google maps says the drive from Rathdrum to the airport takes an hour if you use the motorways. Is this a reasonable estimate? How much time should we allow for returning the car and checking in for our flight to the U.S.? Thanks.

Padraig

That one hour estimate depends on there being no traffic. Not a safe assumption. I'd allow at least 90 minutes, plus 30 minutes for getting sorted out returning the car and getting into the terminal.

I'll leave it to others to suggest what time you should be at the check-in desk.

Macross

You need to be at the check in counter three hours before flight. I would book a hotel closer to the airport. Turn the car in the night before your flight.

Macross

Sorry, feeding my dogs so rushed that. You go through US customs in Dublin and it takes awhile if you are flying to US. Sometimes I have a bit of time for duty free and other times just enough time to get to the gate. A flight at that time of day will be a busy time so would not risk it. Malihide is a nice village close to airport.

auntie_raine

You will definitely need at least three hours at the airport before your flight. I flew from Dublin back to the US last month and passport control was very crowded. My niece and I had a 12:30 pm flight out, and arrived at the airport before 9 a.m. We had a relatively short wait to get through, but the line was building behind us. We had plenty of time before our flight after making it through the lines, but our flight wound up being held for 30 minutes past the scheduled departure time waiting for at least 5 people who had gotten held up in the lines.

jolimunch

Thanks for the info about the airport. Looks like we'll be staying closer in.