One way car rental -- from one country to another

Amy,

I haven't checked but an alternative might be to take public transit from Galway to Belfast and then rent the car there. After touring Portrush / Bushmill's / etc. you can return the Car in Belfast, which shouldn't incur any extra charges.

That's probably the approach I would take.

Good luck and happy travels!

Well, that doesn't really solve my problem. The bus/train from Galway to Portrush already includes going through Belfast. And unfortunately that trip includes going back through Dublin as well. It would take us 6 hours to get to Belfast, and then we'd have to go get the car, and drive the rest of the way which would end up being about 9 hours - same as just taking public transport. My reason for wanting to rent instead was that it would only take about 5 hours to drive from Galway to Portrush. If I can't figure out how to return a car in Portrush, then I will have no option than to pay for a few extra days and keep the car until we get to Belfast. None of us are keen on driving in Northern Ireland. There's going to be a lot of "NOT ITS" in the group! :) In addition, it's cheaper for each couple in our group to rent a compact car than it would be to split the cost of a van (split among 6 people.) So we can't even ride together! I wish public transport in Ireland was as good/easy as Germany. Sigh.......

Amy,

I'll have to ponder this for a while, as I don't see an easy solution at the moment.

I suppose taking a RS Ireland Tour would be out of the question? At least you wouldn't have to worry about the transportation.

I doubt that driving in Northern Ireland will be any different than driving in the Republic of Ireland. Either one could be problematic.

Cheers!

It's the whole driving on the left side of the road and car thing that is so daunting... And we aren't interested in the RS tour. We have a 3 week itinerary, and luckily this is the only dilemma that we're having... I can't even imagine how much one of those tours costs!

Amy,

"I can't even imagine how much one of those tours costs!"

The prices are listed in the "Tours" section of this website if you're interested. I found the tour to be a very efficient way to cover a lot of ground in a short period of time, to see at least the "highlights" of Ireland and the Guide was incredible!

I'd recommend getting the full CDW on the rental car, as driving in Ireland can be hazardous. When I was there I spoke with a number of people who were driving but wished they weren't due to problems they encountered. There were also several really bad MVI's at that time.

However, I've seen many Posts here on the HelpLine from people who have driven in Ireland without any problems, so you'll get a variety of opinions on the subject. You might find this Blog interesting - blog.theeuropetraveler.com/2007/12/most-dangerous-european-countries-for.html. I've driven in England on the "correct" side of the road without any problems, but so far haven't driven in Ireland.

Good luck!

I looked up the RS Tours. They seem really great. But we've already planned our itinerary and the tour really isn't for us. We want flexibility that a tour wouldn't offer. We'll probably have some pretty late nights at the pubs while there and don't want to feel like we have to get out of bed early every morning! Also, we're visiting friends in Dublin and won't be touring everyday. Also, his tours only cover one country at a time. We'll be doing Ireland, Northern Ireland and Scotland. I actually enjoy planning these trips on my own. But one day, one of those tours may be nice if I don't feel like doing all the planning!

I started a thread a few months back about driving, and just as you said, there were mixed reviews about driving in Ireland. We do not want to drive at all. But like I said, it will save us 3-4 hours of travel, so we're going to probably give it a go...

Amy,

Actually, the RS Ireland tour covers parts of Northern Ireland as well, including a short stop in Belfast and also the places you mentioned (the stay in Portrush was one of the highlights). My choice to take a tour in Ireland was somewhat "pragmatic" due to the very transportation realities that you're now working through.

Also, to clarify another point - not ALL of his tours "cover only one country at a time". Some examples are the Best of Europe tours, Germany/Austria/Switzerland, Eastern Europe, Spain & Portugal, etc.

My usual travel method lately is to combine a RS Tour along with an equal amount of self-guided travel, so in your situation I would use that same method - two weeks in Ireland on the tour and an equal amount of time in Scotland before or after the tour (which could include time visiting friends in Dublin). However, I can appreciate that you want to do the trip on your own, so hope someone here will be able to resolve the car rental question for you.

Good luck!

Amy,

Check out www.budget.ie. A quick look at the site shows the difference between a one-day Galway-Belfast rental fee and a four-day rental fee to be as low as €52.

Amy driving in Northern Ireland is not a problem.The drive along the Antrium Coast is spectacular.We drove from Portrush to Belfast.Also if you are going back to Dublin a stop at Newgrange is excellant.

Thanks guys. Tim, that website gave me what I needed. Thanks. I still wish I could find a rental agency in Portrush, though! Simply to save money... But it's nice to know that driving in NI won't be a big deal...

Hi Amy, like Tim I was going to suggest Budget. If there are six of you traveling you could get a people carrier they seat a driver and 6 passengers or you could go for a minibus which would hold 9. The extra space maybe handy for luggage. On www.budget-ireland.com between six people a minibus would not be much over €100 each. I'd imagine you'd spend at least €100 on trains, buses and taxis for 4 days travel.
Northern Ireland is exactly the same as Southern Ireland for driving (although the roads are prob that bit better!) If you can drive round the rental car park for a few minutes to familiarize yourself with the car/minibus. pay most attention at T-junctions or turning off the main roads (make sure you look both ways!) Also as said earlier get full CDW it maybe that bit more expensive but for ease of mind if nothing else I think it's worth it

Oh I'm just after reading this which you'll be happy to see!
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/7810486.stm

LOL, thanks for all the info, Fergal!