Car rental - driving throughout Ireland

My advice is to reserve an automatic shift car and the smallest one you can get. I've driven over there with a Camry and it felt too big on some of the smaller roads.

Bring a GPS from home with the Ireland roads in it. Even if you buy a new one and throw it away after your trip, it's much cheaper than renting it with car. Also, bring a good map-book as a backup/planning tool. The small roads aren't always in the fold out maps. Definitely get the super CDW insurance from the rental company. Make sure your price comparisons include this insurance.

Thanks Ken & Larry! What is that insurance? From what I have read its like 25 to 30 dollars a day my hostels are only 22 a night! I have also read with Amex or capital one you don't need it? I don't know God forbid I have driven in the BVI's, Cook Islands etc and been fortunate and fine.... Not sure since I have three weeks if I should just do trains and busses!!! I'm so confused!? Do you think I need 3 weeks? Thanks again Guys!
Lisa :)

You will find the most credit card companies including AMEX do not cover rentals in Ireland. To cover my rental I got a trip insurance policy for my whole trip that included CDW. It was cheaper adding that to my trip insurance than paying the car rental company. Call your credit card to be sure about Ireland. I concur about getting the very smallest car you can as once you are off the motorway roads are very narrow. Avoid using Hertz at the Dublin Airport. I reserved a small car but they said they had none when I arrived and stuck me with a large one. I had to go through the hassle of trading it in at my next stop and that only after making several expensive phone calls to complain. Also watch out for blind corners when driving as locals will come swinging around fast. Just missed by inches on one turn. I got GPS with my rental but discovered that there has been a lot of road construction in past few years that are not recorded into GPS so suddenly you find yourself unable to follow its directions. So also take with you a very good road atlas. I ordered Collins Ireland (3.2 miles to 1 inch) for my trip and it really helped. I also printed out some google maps as well. But then enjoy the freedom of having wheels!

Thanks Tamara! Great info! I will look into the insurance here. How long was your trip thru Ireland? I have three weeks wondering if I need that long.
Lisa :)

Lisa - regarding length of trip: We had 2 weeks beginning with 2 days in Dublin, then renting a car and driving south, eventually heading up to the Burren and returning via Shannon airport. We did not have time to get to Northern Ireland which I would like to see. Rick's 3 week tour probably covers Northern Ireland so yes, I'd say you do need 3 weeks. We enjoyed driving. It is difficult to navigate the small roads as they are not as well marked either on the road or on the maps, but we didn't get too lost. Be aware that the "bushes" on the side of the road are often up against a stone wall. We found that out as we moved over to let a tourbus by-added a few scratches to our already deeply marked rental. Our AmX did not cover Ireland so we did purchase the insurance. We had a great time driving!

I really appreciate all the advise! I need it! Thanks Karen

Be sure you understand how third-party car insurance works. If there is an accident, your credit card would be charged for the damage and the insurance would reimburse you later - several weeks later. With rental counter super CDW, you just turn in the keys and walk away. If you have plenty of credit line on your card, that might not be an issue to wait for reimbursement, but you need to be aware that that is how it works. As for how long you "need" to see Ireland, I have been four times and haven't seen it all yet. I could easily still fill three weeks with things to do and see.

Nancy-I've used my AmX for all our car rentals. The two times we had damages (small scraps, bent fender) my card was initially charged but upon notifying AmX and starting the claims procedure it was temporarily suspended from the charges. Then when the process was finished, the credit was deemed permanent. Bottom line-I was not out 1 cent for the damages for any amount of time. I did not have to pay the credit card charge while it was being investigated. Of course this did not apply to Ireland where my AmX did not cover insurance.

"Of course this did not apply to Ireland where my AmX did not cover insurance." And therein lies the difference. Ireland is a whole other place with regard to how they do things. I speak from experience on this. There have been others who bought third party insurance for Ireland that had to wait about six weeks for their refund from the insurance company. It's good to know that in other countries Amex will suspend charges in that way (as they should, since it's their insurance you are using, not a third party), but it doesn't apply to Ireland, as you said.

I would say 3 weeks would definitely include Northern Ireland. I agree - rent a smaller car - automatic. Road signage is not good even in Dublin. After 3 days, I just resigned myself to the fact that I would get lost everyday. The "M" highways are just like interstate but most driving is country 2 lane roads - no shoulders - look for turnouts for the many photo ops you will have. Slea Head Drive & the drive from the Cliffs of Mohrer were amazing! I would spend 3 days in Dingle. Lighthouse B&B is the best. Mary & Denis are great! I can't wait to go back and hit the northern half from Connemaera - Donegal - Belfast.

Jerry,
Thanks for the tips I like when I get advise about how long to stay in certain places :) yes i can't wait and know I will get lost everyday as well! Part of the journey & exploring the new! Lol I see ur from Carrollton I lived off Willow when I was little and my mom worked for the city of Farmers Branch small Big world we live in :D

I have been on a 3 week trip through Ireland. I would agree, the smallest car possible. I rented a four-door Ford Focus and honestly after the second day, I felt the car was too large! I typically drive a large SUV so I am used to big - so that should give you an idea. If you are worried about traveling on the roads, you can always start your trip going south (towards Wexford/Waterford) - the roads are larger and there are many motorways. If you go north (which is the way I usually travel), you will find the roads a little more challenging.

Also, I went ahead and bought the GPS from a TESCO in Northern Ireland on my second day. (basically cost me $85.00). I started off with great intentions - I had google maps to all lodging destinations and a Michelin Ireland map (the best one that I have found - a definite good buy) and the overview Rick's Ireland map and tour book. I felt lost. I know before you go, like everyone else, you say, "getting lost is just part of the experience in Ireland." It is... but trust me after the first couple of days being "lost" it gets old really quick. The GPS is also great if you travel into Northern Ireland - the speed changes into miles per hour and on my car, the speedometer only read in kilometers. My GPS acted as my speedometer since I could program it into miles. Get the full coverage insurance. Just as an FYI. I have discovered if you go to the actual country sites to reserve the rental... where the webpage ends in ".ie" the basic insurance is included in the price. If you go through the US sites to reserve a car internationally, the insurance is never included. You will be traveling their narrow roads where the side mirror is hitting against the hedges. You will travel through small towns where you are a few inches from hitting oncoming & parked cars. Plus, parallel parking is a true adventure - you will hit the curbs with the tires the fist few times. As people say, It's part of the experience.

There is much good advice here. Probably the best is getting the smallest car possible. We were "upgraded" to a Ford Focus. While the car itself was great (5speed diesel) it did indeed feel big. Nothing can quite prepare you for driving in Ireland. About the third day in I emailed back home, saying I was getting the hang of the narrow twisty, high speed (95km) roads, and that when a bus or lorry was approaching from the opposite direction, I no longer started to recite the Lord's Prayer while at the same time telling my wife how much I loved her, but was not just able to grab the steering wheel hard and whimper! We did put a small ding in the car. We are in Canada and our CC do cover the damage, but the credit charges were not suspended while repayment was made ( $1700 was put on the card in Ireland) and it took almost 3 months to get our money back. If doing it again, I would opt for the super CDW and not have the hassel. I was able to download the latest maps on our Tom Tom while still at home. They cost about $70, but our marriage is still intact because of it.
We did get lost occasionally, even with the GPS, but we tried to tell ourselves we were lost in Ireland, and seriously, how bad could that be?

Rob, Yes I can't thank everyone enough for all the advise! And Thanks for Laughs! I like your sense of humor! I defiantly am getting the smallest car thats for sure! Cheers
~Lisa

I actually enjoyed driving in Ireland. My insurance agent here in the US long ago advised me to get the maximum insurance from the rental company. Here's my formula: when I get the quote for renting, I double it. The actual cost is usually somewhat less, but I 'm not stunned at the bill. We have a Garmin with European maps. I downloaded them before we left. It was marvelous. The roads are not well marked. The name of the road was listed at the top of the screen along with the speed limit. We drove for 15 days and never got lost. We also had a Ordinance Survey spiral type map that we used constantly. We bought the map at the tourist office n Dublin. We like the actual map to keep a mental concept of where we are going.
The roads are small, but the speeds are not excessive. I was never nervous, but I have driven on the left several times before. Do get an automatic. You will share the roads with busses, lories, bicycles, hikers, people standing in the road to visit, and motorized wheelchairs... So just be alert. We really enjoyed our trip. I really think you need the car to maximize your enjoyment. It was really quite easy. Just insure yourself, plug in your gps, and take off.

Learning how the traffic circles work and finding your destination is fun.
A couple of ideas that helped us. 1.) every morning we would remind ourselves, drive on the left, look right and other useful tips. 2.) Is your passenger just gonna stare out the window or help in finding signs freeing you up to look for tourbuses coming? 3.) Get the Max insurance and order your rental from a ireland company as mentioned earlier

remember our round abouts aka rotary are counter clockwise ireland and england are clockwise (in the other direction)
read up on the different street signs/symbols and their meaning. this may be helpful before going abroad.

Thomas, Todd and Millicent! Thanks again for taking the time to give your advise... Never too much Good Advise! Much Appreciated! Cant believe how $$$$ Automatics are! Crazy but No Way can I drive a manual!
Cheers!

I have used with great success a Garmin GPS (my model has since been discontinued, but successor models are out there) with both North American and European maps native to the device. The system is not perfect, but an immense improvement over just a map, or even local advice. In fact, the device performed better the longer we used it (meaning, of course, that as we absorbed and assimiliated the rhythm and logic of the road and signage system, we felt more comfortable and better understood the GPS instructions). This all led to an American Express moment: don't leave home without it. I eventually bought the Garmin Lifetime Maps subscription, and just downloaded the latest map set for my upcoming trip to the Auld Sod.

I agree with Larry about local advice. Every time I asked a question about signage the advice was to ignore the sign. For mini roundabouts, the advice was always, oh just cut across them. Not very helpful.

Hi. We are going to ireland next week. several places gave us actual gps coordinates to find them by, but others just list town, name of b& b and "turn left at...."so my husband went onto google maps, and literally drove to them! you can actually see the street, shops, signs, turns, ect at street level. he "drove" to the house, looked at the street sign and address on the side of the building!We are taking tom tom preloaded at home, buying book maps at TI at airport as suggested in rick steves guide, have RS loaded in Kindle as well as hard copy and praying! hey, with your own car you have food and shelter if you get really lost! Oh, they warned us at RS that we will not be as efficient as they on our own, so we are not attempting to complete their 14 day tour in our 14 days. still.... can we add.....?hhmmm. melissa

Hi Lisa, Just skimming through many of the responses you've gotten so far, some real great advice. I just got back from my first trip to Eire, and we loved it! We did a modified version of RS recommended tour since we only had nine days, and I wish that I had three weeks to do a full tour. We rented the smallest car (manual) that we could get and in certain locations, I felt like we were in a tank! There just isn't enough room on the road (motorways are much better), but it all became the experience of being there. Though we didn't have any accidents, just knowing that we had the super CDW, just gave us a piece of mind. We used Dan Dooley, all the prices were up front. Also, if you overnight stay includes Doolin, you should try staying at the Sea View, close to the Cliffs of Moher and a almost across the street from Gus O'Connor's pub. In Doolin we loved staying at Castlewood - absolutely beautiful rooms and some of best breakfasts you will find on the west coast! No matter where you go, you're going to have a great time, the country and it's people are some of the nicest you'll ever meet! Patty

Lisa - We just recently returned from a 2 week vacation in Ireland. I would also strongly suggest getting as small a car as possible and I would also recommend getting the super CDW. I also took along a Garmin Sat/Nav that had a pre-loaded map of Ireland and a nice road atlas that I found in my local map store.

i) get a local GPS in ireland - they are relatively cheap... thankfully with the state of the economy over here, the road changes are rather less frequent ii) car rental insurance... well I can't say too much about that... (I have a car in ireland so am covered if I drive a hire car) iii) easiest way (for me) to remember which side of the road to drive on is that the steering wheel is closest to the center of the road... VERY easy to remember when you ping pong back and forth between ireland and new jersey like I do!