Conference tallis::celt

    I would recommend the Nissan Sunny. But there is little difference
    between either. The  cars are medium size family saloons, not too big
    but certainly not small (by Irish standards anyhow). 
      A minus would be the automatic transmission as fuel comsumption would
    not be as economical as a normal transmission which is around 35MPG
    around town.
    
    Tom 

    August '92 we did exactly what you're planning on doing.  One of the best
    damn vacations we ever had.  I left a note in here somewhere.  Look,
    you'll find it.
    
    Presuming you're use to driving from the left side of the car on the
    right side of the road (an American), you're smart to get an automatic,
    one less thing (ting as they say in Ireland, I never learned the secret
    of when they pronounce th as th or when they pronounce th as a t!?) to
    worry about when you drive.
    
    For me driving from the right side of the on the left side of the road
    was an experience.  Of course you learn real quick to stay on the left
    side, you must, it is life-critical.  But the little things fool you. 
    I never did learn to use the rear-view mirrors naturally.  I'd look to
    the right high, not there, to the left low, not there.  And once found,
    the rear view mirror information was near-meaningless.
    
    We rented a standard transmission.  Now even though nearly everything
    else in the car was flipped, using transmission wasn't.  The 3
    pedals were all in their "natural" position, which was goodness.  This
    may seem minor, but shifting felt strange.  As in the U.S., by moving
    the lever from left to right, you move to higher gears.  So in the U.S.
    it becomes natural to "push away" as you accelerate to higher speeds. 
    On a rightside driven car, you "pull towards" to accelerate.  Many
    times I ground a pound of gears.
    
    We found renting a car one of the more expensive items of the trip.  In
    the U.S., we're use to finding deals like $150/week to rent, over there
    expect $500+/week.  (Maybe some Irish reader can suggest how to find a
    better deal!?)
    
    As for your trip, the West is best, stick to the coast, take your time,
    plan to find a B&B early (by 3PM) in order to get your pick, and search
    for the music.  Our favorite was the small village of Doolin, about 30
    miles Southwest of Galway.  If you find it, you'll know why.
    
    -- Jim        

    
    For Visitors coming to Ireland it is always best to book your car in
    advance as during the summer months their is a shortage of hire cars
    and it would most likely work out cheaply as I equired about this when
    booking a car for a friend who's coming over in July.
    
    Ref 1.0.
    
    The Carina would be the best choice as it has a more powerful engine
    than the Sunny. With both having Auto. transmissions the Carina would 
    be slightly more powerful and you will notice this difference if you
    intend travelling round Kerry or other mountainous regions. Other pros
    and cons would be that the Carina has more space and is more economical
    than the Sunny cause it has a Lean Burn Engine.  
    
    
    Gary...

    When I got to Dublin from Zurich I always book a Fly-Drive which is
    apparently much cheaper than booking the car separately. Ask your
    travel agent!
    
    Therese

    Digital have a price agreement with Avis/Johnson and Perrot who have 
    a desk in Dublin Airport.  You can avail of this agreement simply by 
    presenting your Digital badge.  The Ireland car fleet administrator,
    Paula Noonan (DTN 7827 3333) can give you further details.
    
    Ciar�n.

    
    o drive standard (save �'s)
    
    o get a Volvo or Opel (you'll be more comfortable)

    
    Thanks for all the replies and info so far.  We're definitely going
    with an automatic... don't need the added hassles of a standard. 
    Driving on the left will be bad enough.  I tried Avis.  They don't
    seem to have the best rates to say the least so they won't be getting
    my business.  I didn't mean to imply that we were getting the Sunny
    or the Corina for the same price.  The rates I got were 294 pounds/week
    ($441) for the Sunny and 350 pounds/week ($525) for the Corina.  I
    also found that the Sunny is equivalent to a Toyota Corolla and the
    Corina is a Toyota Camry.   Since there's only the two of us, we're
    leaning toward the Sunny right now.   As comfortable as the Camry would
    be, it's a sizable amount of extra cash and I'm wondering if it might
    be sort of big for the roads over there.  If people think I'm making
    a big mistake here, we're still open to peoples' comments.... 13 days
    in a car is a long time!  I can still get the upgrade at the travel
    agent's quoted rate.
    
    Again, thanks for all the replies to date, any other comments still
    appreciated.
    
    Larry
    
    still get an upgrade.   
    
    
    
    
    
    

    Which air company are you flying with ?
    
    Maybe you should ring them direct and ask about any special offers !
    
    I booked a car in Ireland through the travel agent with Avis. A Ford
    Fiesta cost sFr. 1500 for 10 days. I rang Aer Lingus and was offered
    the same car with Avis for sfr.600.
    
    Therese

    
    If you book Avis thru Johnson and Perrot I'm sure you can get a better
    deal.  I took the paperwork from Avis in Shannon to the Galway counter
    and got a ~40% reduction.  Plus an upgrade to larger car.  The Shannon 
    folks just want to get you out the door.
    
    

    My wife and I have vacationed in Ireland twice, the last visit was
    in Sept '92. I book everything myself and can beat every "package"
    that we have seen offered. For a car I have gotten a Ford Fiesta
    both times. It is the same as the Ford Escort ('91 & newer version).
    Very comfortable and plenty of room for luggage (unless your planning
    to bring five steamer trunks).  Having automatic transmission is 
    over-rated and I don't think it's worth the extra price. The Irish
    Tourist Board has a publication that covers visiting Ireland in
    general. It lists all of the auto-rental companies that have agents
    in the U.S.  I call everyone of them and ask them for their weekly
    rate. Both times I have found one agent that is considerably less
    than the rest.  I asked an expat from Galway if he could book me
    through the GAO plant.  He said he knew the lady that does the
    car rental personally.  I beat his price by 80 punts. (I have
    to look up the receipt for the actual cost, I wouldn't want to give
    bad price info, I'll post it tomorrow).  As it turned out, I was
    renting from Hertz and they were using a "no-name" front.
    
    B&B's are great. Be sure to use the one's that have the Shamrock sign.
    They are "certified" and must meet minimum standards such as having
    a seperate entrance for guests.  Also, don't overlook the "Farmhouse"
    B&B's.  They are in a seperate book and we stayed at several last time.
    We liked them because they were usually in a pastoral setting.
    
    As to car size, there will be times when you wished your car was
    the size of a peanut. You will be getting out of it often enough
    to be a tourist. Don't make it sound like your going to be spending
    eight hours a day in the car. If you do, you won't enjoy yourself.
    
    An aside: I got a parking ticket in Galway. Parked across from the 
    Corrib Hotel in the square.  Something about you have to buy some
    permit which I didn't understand. Anyway, I threw it away.  I just
    got a letter from Hertz saying they were charging �25.00 to my credit
    card. Worked out O.K. for me since the punt has dropped 40p since
    our visit.
    
    My vote is with the west also.  Ring of Kerry, Dingle peninsula,
    Cliff's of Moher, Doolin, Galway, Connemara, Westport and Achill
    Island.
    
    ...Mike

    
    
    I got a parking ticket my first day in Galway.  The Great Southern people
    said hotel parking was across the street.  When I came out I found the
    ticket and went back to the desk.  "it's a rental is it not"  I said
    yes.  "well put the ticket back on the window and forget about it".  
    
    I did.  Avis never bothered me about it.
    
    Gary

    
    I had Toyota Carina II Wagon Xli last summer as rental car and
    despite the car was full of people & stuff and the speed was
    high every now and then, consumption was low and the car itself
    was reliable. It was 1.6 litre with manual transmission. It 
    was rented from Southern Car Rentals, Dublin. 800 miles with it.
    
    
    Hannu (2 summer holidays in Ireland and more to come...)

    
    Re: .11
    
    I don't know when you got your ticket but it took them seven months
    to catch up with me.
    
    Re: .10
    
    I looked up my receipt last night.  I called a listing for Treaty Car
    Rental which turned out to be handled by Grimes Travel Agency in
    White Plains, N.Y. (800-832-7778).  As I said before, the reservation
    that came through was with Hertz.  The off-peak rate (27-Sep thru
    11-Oct) I got was �121.00 per week including VAT.
    
    ...Mike

    
    ticket was Jan 1992... so it's been a while. 

    Larry,
    
    This is a late reply so you can flush it if it is too late.
    
    If it is only two of you and you can keep yourself to 3 average size 
    luggage cases, I'd recommend a class B type car between 1.3 and 1.6
    liter.  I was over recently in April of this year and had an Opel Astra
    for 2 adults and 2 kids, 1 in a car seat.  Good size trunk (boot),
    great road control and power.  I got this at the Dublin Airport at 
    O'Meara's for 220 pounds for 12 days, which was a very good rate.
    Using gold card took care of my insurance.
    Padraig O'Meara owns it and should remember me. ( a friend of Colin's)
    I had priced Avis and Budget as well.  Budget came close and Avis way
    out there.
    
    My first choice of Irish cars is the Carina but price was too high for
    me.  The Irish cars handle the road better than the USA cars.
    Ford, Toyota and Opel all have great class C and B cars. 
    The Opel Astra is a class B and Carina is a C car.
    
    If you can driver a standard efficiently and plan to drive at speeds
    greater than 60 mph, I strongly recomment a 5 speed standard.
    You will then have maximum braking capacity and control.
    
    Be very alert and practice concentrating 110% on the road when you
    drive.  Get out of the way of people wanting to go faster than you
    and get around people who go too slow for you.
    
    I don't recommend a Ford Fiesta at all very small and light on the
    road.
    
    Parking discs required in Galway.  They can be bought at most
    convienent (news agent) stores.  I found a great place to park in 
    Dublin the last time over.  There are a couple of small parking lots
    on the north side of the Liffey just up from the hay/half penny bridge.
    When we parked there we crossed over the famous foot bridge and passed
    through a cozy revitalized area south of Dame street, which heads up 
    past Trinity College to Grafton Street.  Don't miss Power's Court off
    Grafton street.
    
    Good Luck,
    Paul
    
                
     

Hamill's Rent-A-Car is a local vendor and routinely beat all of the
"big name" rental companies' prices.

They are at (from the USA, direct dial) 011 353 44 48682
or fax 011 353 44 41374

Example: A Group 4 (Toyota Carina or Nissan Primera for example)
manual transmission car is #184/week (plus 12.5% tax which you pay
on any rental) - using a Gold card or American Express card gets
your insurance free for up to 31 days.  This is an off-season
rate, but for substantial rentals (more than a few weeks) they
will give an off-season rate to an on-season rental.

-Jay
(Presently one month in to a three month rental and very happy
with my Nissan Primera at #184/week)