Purchasing a mobile phone in Ireland \ hiking in Connmara and The Burren...

Connemara National Park may not be open at that time of year. We were past there in late February and it was closed (I suppose it could open March 1). And much of the Burren is actually farm fields. There are walking routes, but I'm not sure how extensive they are. As for the phone, you'd be best off to purchase an unlocked GSM phone on eBay and buy a local SIM card once you arrive there.

The only problem with ebay is being sure you get a phone with the proper frequencies to work in Europe and being sure you get a working phone. I've bought a lot of phones off ebay and about 90-95 percent of them worked fine. I did get a couple of duds over the years, though. Because you are asking for advice on renting vs. buying, my guess is that you may not be too keen on puzzling out the best deal on ebay and taking a chance so close to your departure date. My suggestion is to buy an inexpensive prepaid phone when you get to Dublin. There is a Carphone Warehouse in Dublin, for example, and you can get a low-priced phone from them. (Check out their website on the Internet to see some of your choices.) To save money, sign up for skype before you go, load some credit into your skype account, and then get a "skype to go" number. The skype to go number is local number in Ireland that when you call it, it forwards your call to the U.S. at low rates. That way you can use your prepaid cell to call home and not have to pay international calling rates that the cell phone carrier charges.

Samantha, Renting is usually not the most cost effective solution. I'd suggest either: > Purchase a PAYG phone when you arrive in Ireland. You might want to research the networks there to determine which plan will provide the best rates for calls back to the U.S. You'll also need to verify how to "top-up" the phone. > Purchase a phone from one of the "travel phone" firms such as Roam Simple, Cellular Abroad, Call In Europe, Telestial or Mobal. These typically operate on a "post paid" basis, with calls charged to a credit card. I tend to prefer this as there's no risk of "running out of minutes" in the middle of a call. Be sure to review their websites and calling plans so that you have a clear idea on the costs. I believe most of the firms offer toll-free phone numbers, so you might want to give them a call. If you'll be communicating with family back home via cell phone, you could also consider text messages, as that's VERY inexpensive. Happy travels!