Driving in Ireland

First: it depends where in Ireland. And yes, they have narrow winding roads, too. But for me the scary thing is driving on the wrong side of the road.

Ireland does have narrow roads in some places, particularly in the west. But an increasing number of the more populated areas are connected by good roads and motorways. In much of Ireland, the roads are more like our two-lane highways. Since you already have some experience, you won't find it a problem.

tammy, Yes, some of the road in Ireland ARE narrow, especially in the less populated areas of the south, so there are some "perils". For example, I encountered some travellers from the U.S. when I was in Galway who had sustained some "damage" to their tire and rim. It took the rental firm a day or so to sort that one out. I also noticed that in some of the Gaeltacht areas (where Gaelic is emphasized), the English portion of road signs had been painted over with black spray paint, so a GPS or good map would be a really good idea. I'd suggest opting for a good CDW / LDW insurance package! If you're relying on credit card coverage, BE SURE to read the Terms & Conditions carefully as there are always exclusions and other things to be aware of. Some credit cards may not cover rentals in Ireland.
Good luck and happy travels!

From our experience, there are two main differences between driving in Ireland and driving in Scotland. Both have narrow winding roads. In Scotland, there are numerous turnouts that allow for cars moving in opposite directions to avoid each other safely. Turnouts are less common in Ireland. Also, the drivers in Scotland are more tame, whereas in Ireland we experienced many more drivers who were less careful. For us, driving in Scotland was a much more pleasant experience.

There were only a couple of times we encountered extremely narrow roads, all in the west. We were able to pull over and let other car pass, not a big problem. We still LOL, driving over
Connor Pass to Dingle, tour bus coming towards us, we were able to pullover to a cut out in the mountain as we held our breath as if that would have made the car smaller.

Tammy,
"Too bad I'm not rich and could hire a driver." If your fortunes improve, you could also consider the RS 14-day Ireland tour. That way you could leave the driving worries to someone else, and enjoy the scenery. Cheers!

Thanks for all the good comments and information. I guess I will have to steady my nerves again if I want to drive. Too bad I'm not rich and could hire a driver.

I see posts like this all the time. I didn't think that it was all that difficult. It took about a half an hour to get used to being on the other side of the road and then it was ok. There are some narrow roads with little shoulder, but to be honest it did not seem that much different than some of our roads here in Montana. In more populated areas the roads are no different than anywhere else in the western world. Be cautious on your first day driving, but you don't need to freak out or worry about it.

Renting a car in Ireland was one of the few times we DID take the full LDW insurance. As always be sure to look over the car well to be sure all damage is listed on your rental agreement - missing front covers on side view mirrors is very common. Some roads you won't believe are two-way...and even some two way roads are not always two-way, by practice, so maybe ask the locals...we stayed out in Coumeenoole with the intent of going back to Dingle town in the morning, and even though the road back to Dingle town IS two way, all of the RV and tour bus traffic traveling west from Dingle turn the road effectively into a one way road (their way!). We had to turn around and go back the long way, and that was after having to go in reverse probably 1/4 mile to get back to a pull-off!

We did not find driving in Ireland any more difficult than Scotland or England. I just pull over and let the fast drivers go by. Take your time and pay attention all the time to the road. The driver must not sightsee to left and right while driving. Enjoy! Julia

You really need to drive to optimally visit Ireland. That said, I found it to be surprisingly intimidating. Driving on the "other" side of the road was easy; what was challenging was the speed/aggressiveness of the drivers following me on very narrow winding roads (and I'm very comfortable driving mountain roads and bad coastal roads at home). Plus there was a real lack of places to turn out to get out of the way. I have a couple of recommendations: (1) allow extra driving time in your planning since distances are short but it will take longer than you expect, and (2) while GPS is very helpful, get a really detailed map and review the day's route before setting out. There were a number of times GPS wanted to take us a tiny trail, but a few miles farther there was a much better quality road.