Renting and Internet in Cork

Brian M

Hi there,
Hope this is the right forum to ask this, just the first one that popped up on Google. Apologies if it isn't.

Me and my girlfriend will be moving to Ireland for a year in the fall as a graduation present to ourselves. We want to work and travel around Europe. First choice was Dublin... then we remembered Dublin and thought about looking at Cork.

The city website suggests not moving there in Sept/Oct due to the influx of students. Trouble is, my girlfriend has a contract that is up in September, so that's when we'd be going. Any thoughts on whether it's reasonable to expect a place in September (in the 700-800E range I think)? Are there any commuter towns we should be looking at?

Second thing, what is internet access like? I stumbled on the Irish Broadband website, is this a major telecommunications company? How much should we expect to pay etc?

Again, sorry if this isn't the place to be asking. If it's okay, thanks for any responses and I'm sure I'll be asking more questions in a bit.
Cheers,
Brian in Ottawa

PowerHouseDan

Irish Broadband is not the main telecommunications company by far... My advice is stay away from ibb, There is PLenty of internet providers around cork.. Depending on where you are living there are different options...Ibb is a no go area...

daveirl

This post has been deleted.

lostinsuperfunk

I wouldn't worry too much about looking in September, the student accommodation market is somewhat separate from the "real people's" market. Have a look at http://www.daft.ie/ to get an idea of prices. You should be able to get a 2 bed apartment in the city for the price you mention. Commuter towns will be cheaper but bear in mind that public transport to Cork's commuter towns is poor (with the exception of Cobh) and you might need to buy a car. Midleton, Carrigaline, Ballincollig and Blarney are popular dormitory towns within 20 km (ish) of the city.

Broadband prices start at Eur 10 per month, with the most popular packages around Eur 20-30 month (with some limitations on usage). Esat Bt and Eircom are two of the biggest home broadband providers in Ireland. Each has its own advantages and disadvantages. http://www.eircom.ie/ , http://www.esatbt.ie/
Have a look on the broadband forum to get a general idea of your options. Not many people have good things to say about IBB.

Good luck with the move!

Illkillya

Have a look back through this board and you will see other threads like this one by people moving to Cork, and you will find advice on where not to live etc.

As for broadband, this is no problem as long as you live in the city or near suburbs. I would expect to pay more than lostinsuperfunk suggested. €35 with Smart Telecom gives you 3mb/256k including line rental, while 4Mb/384k is available for €45. This is the provider that I would recommend, while Eircom and EsatBT are also good at similar cost (watch out for download caps).

Brian M

Illkillya wrote:

Have a look back through this board and you will see other threads like this one by people moving to Cork, and you will find advice on where not to live etc.

Sound advice. Shame no one ever follows it eh?

Thanks for the suggestions folks, especially the internet stuff. Hopefully everything goes smoothly when the time comes. I owe you drinks... but you'll have to find me first.

dahamsta

lostinsuperfunk wrote:

Broadband prices start at Eur 10 per month

(Obviously Ts & Cs should be checked beforehand; these cheap products have time limitations.)