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picking up car rental downtown Dublin

Posted by (Abruzzo Mountains) on

I've read through older posts here that strongly advise starting a car rental from the airport rather than downtown. Is it really that bad? On the morning we leave Dublin, we'll still have active LEAP cards, so would take the AirLink bus - but it takes an hour to get from Heuston Station to the airport and it's exactly opposite to the way I want to go. We're headed to County Kerry but I wanted to meander down the coast, go to Glendalough and Wexford, then over to Cordal, rather than taking the motorway straight through the middle of the country. We have all day, not in any rush.

If it helps, I drove a stick shift at home for more than 20 years, I have driven a stick shift in England successfully years ago, and will have just driven in England again on their narrow roads surrounded by hedgerows. I'm a good, accident-free but not overconfident driver and will have both an electronic (Google Maps) and a human navigator with me.

Do you really think I need to go to the airport first to avoid the hassle of getting out of downtown? The car rental office is on South Lotts Rd near Aviva Stadium.

Posted by
3227 posts

Given all the above, I think you will be fine! Go for it!
Most of the advice not to get car from downtown, is for people who have never driven on the left in a manual transmission. You sound like you know what you are getting into.

Posted by
2825 posts

I agree with diveloonie - given your experience you should be fine.
You might benefit from previewing your route out of town by looking at the street view feature on Google maps.
Suggest taking the Old Military Road to get to Glendalough - it's a beautiful drive on a sunny day.

Posted by
1034 posts

thanks, both of you! I'll give it a go, and wandering down any road that starts with "old" is precisely what I'd love to do.

Posted by
2825 posts

A particularly evocative stop along the Military Road is the WWII German POW cemetery in the village of Glencree. Can google it to see if it might be of interest. There's a coffee shop nearby if you just want to pause and stretch your legs a bit.
Just south of there you'll pass thru a feature called the Sally Gap, which has one of the prettiest panoramic views in the Wicklow Mountains.
It's an "L" road, which means it's one of those narrow (one-lane in places) meandering things that rural Ireland is famous for - you'll love it.

Posted by
1034 posts

I will love it! Marking up a map before we go. Thank you

Posted by
186 posts

We picked up our rental in downtown Dublin at the Enterprise office. They were great--efficient and easy. You will have no problem. I would just recommend you choose an international company to make it easier with booking online, etc.

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