Is travelling throughout Ireland by train a good way to travel, especially with a 10 year old boy?

Question

I would like to be able to see some of the best places Ireland has to offer but also without driving or hiring a car so everyone can enjoy the trip, any feedback would be appreciated?

Answer 1

Travelling in Ireland using only public transport will seriously limit what you get to experience and will make your journey prohibitively expensive if you wish to go to more than one destination.  It is possible to go somewhere like Killarney and then go on daytrips by bus, or to hire bikes, but the bus system is far from comprehensive and is not integrated with other forms of public transport.

For the price of a return train journey from Dublin to Killarney for 2 adults and a child, you would be able to hire a car for 7 days from someone like Budget rental.

If you're trying to make your holiday a green one, why not travel to Ireland by ferry (much greener than flying) and use some of the ideas from the growing number of responsible tourism sites on the web?

And if the main concern is that only one of you can drive and thus will miss out on scenery etc, you could organise your trip around a small no. of places where there are clusters of interesting things to see and do and which could be accessed by bike or on foot, e.g. drive to Ballyvaughen and go by local bus to the Cliffs of Moher, the Ailwee Caves and the Burren. Then drive up the coast to Achill Island, hire bikes and tour around the beaches and cliffs, then drive to Donegal and spend a few days hiking in the national parks or surfing.

There are a few companies that specialise in biking holidays - then you wouldn't need to use a car or public transport: http://www.irelandwalkingcycling.com/

Many of the best places to visit in Ireland are off the beaten track. Driving really is the best (and cheapest) way to see the country.

Answer 2

Its possible but it wont take you everywhere and its expensive.

With a new fleet of trains it certainly is a comfortable way to travel but like i said it will limit where you can go.

Answer 3

The train if fine for travelling from city to city, but not if you want to see the best of Ireland! If you really don't want to drive, then I would recommend using the train to get from city to city and then using local bus services to visit the local areas and attractions! All of the bus timetables are available on the bus eireann website!!

Hope this helps!

Good luck!

Answer 4

As a mother and an Irish citizen there is no way I would use the Irish rail service.  It is just not up to standard, it is slow and it is way over priced.  Plus it doesnt go everywhere.

Have a look at this link

http://www.iarnrodeireann.ie/your_journe...

I would personally rent a car for a couple of weeks, Ireland is a small country and very straight forward to travl around with the use of a road map

Have fun!!!

Answer 5

The train system in Ireland does NOT go everywhere, it certainly doesn't get to the nicest parts of the country. If you don't want to hire a car, consider taking the buses, but you need to be aware that these don't go everywhere either ....

I would suggest, rather than trying to 'see' the place with a child in tow, you go to someplace that has interesting things for kids, and that you can get around fairly easily. Galway city is good, it has beaches, aquariums, playgrounds, sports facilities .... And simply stay in that area, and perhaps take day trip out to Connemara by bus or something like that, the tourist office can put you in touch with tour operators. If you're flying into Dublin, you can take the train from Dublin Heuston to Galway, and the easiest and fastest way to do that is to get a taxi, but there is also an airport coach service that costs a lot less and also gets to Heuston.

You could also take a bus from Galway to Limerick, and stop off at Bunratty castle and folk park, which is very interesting, and just before Limerick city. I think the bus journey might be 3 or 4 hours, but it takes you through the Burren, which is a very unusual landscape.  

Answer 6

I guess it's possible.  I would have thought a car would be much more convenient though.  You have all your belongings with you, you have music, you can stop wherever you want.  You wouldn't be at the mercy of train schedules and having to hoik your luggage constantly from the station to hotel, hotel to station, etc, etc.  And you'd be able to get around more easily when you do actually arrive at your destination.  

I regularly do huge road trips with my kids which they just love.  I think they'd go ballistic waiting around for trains, and being stuck on trains.  The train would probably be cheaper, but you'd also have to factor in cab fares, bus fares, tour costs, waiting times, etc.

Answer 7

I am from Donegal and we have no railway here. So a car/bus/coach would be the only option to see Donegal. Trains don't cover the whole of Ireland so you will be missing out on lots of places.