Royal Marine and Dublin
 

Hi there everyone,

I could use some advice about rental cars and exploring the city of Dublin. We arrive into Dublin on the 25th early in the morning. Our first hotel stay is at the Royal Marine. Wondering if we should get our rentals right away and drive to the Royal Marine before we head into the city? Does anyone know if there is good transportation from the Royal Marine back to Dublin?

Transport links between the Royal Marine and the city centre are excellent. You have the DART (commuter rail) and buses.

Driving into Dublin, OTOH, is a PITA. And parking ain't easy.

Dublin is not designed for auto travel, but is well served both by mass transit and by bus tours. I would not rent a car until you were ready to leave the city.

The aircoach goes straight from Dublin Airport to the front door of the Royal Marine (just make sure you get the right Aircoach as there are a few different lines). The Dalkey-bound one definitely goes to the Royal Marine and I suspect the Bray one does also.

DART (train) station is about 5 minutes walk from the Royal Marine and that brings you straight in to the city centre. Definitely wouldn't recommend trying to drive into, or park in, the city.

Go to this URL
http://www.aircoach.ie/booking
and select (1) Dublin Airport as your starting point (2) Dun Laoghaire as your ending point, (3) One-way or return, (4) the number and age of your passengers, and (5) your dates & times of travel. I chose some random dates & times for two adults, and found the cost to be 28€ grand total. That HAS to be less than one day's car hire. In other words, you'll save money and aggravation (and possibly time, unless you're SURE you won't get lost!) by taking this coach.

As LittleJane states, you do NOT want to drive or TRY TO find parking in Dublin.