How to get to Ireland

RedoX11

Hi!
I am a 18 year old student from Germany and i think about how i can get to ireland by little money.
The travel to Ireland will not be the problem i think that i can get there by ship and train but where to stay?
Is there anything like "social living" or public camping for no money?
Because that's what i have the less - so anyway my birthday is on the 17. march and you guys celebrate the st. patricks day round that date.
I always wanted to visit ireland but i think the best time is then! (at least in big cittys or even "middle cities")
I'm thankfull vor every tip you can give me.

regards,
Jonas

Kinetic^

Stay in Germany, at least that way the EU will look after you.

Fiend-Foe

Ryanair flights would be much cheaper than trains and ships to be honest.

TomCo

Check out http://www.couchsurfing.com/, a friend of mine might be able to put you up for a while.

Fanny Cradock

Yeah, Ryanair will probably be your best bet. Just keep checking the site for special offers. However, the closer you get to any national holidays the more expensive the flights become. It might be best to come a few days before the 17th.

As for accommodation, I'd imagine that in Germany you may very well have your act together and provide "social living", but in Ireland we don't really roll that way. So, unless can find somebody you can stay with or want to camp in a field somewhere, then I think you will have to pay money for accommodation.

Your best would be a hostel. Again, the prices fluctuate according to demand, and demand will be high around St Patrick's Day. Camp sites would be cheaper. Maybe someone here can help you out with suggestions.

If you do make it over here, I hope you have a good time. Try make it to the West of Ireland - Galway, for example, is great fun.

vektarman

Don't camp in the Phoenix Park, a german camper was murdered there in August 1991.
http://www.rathcoolevillage.com/commun_15_d.asp?ID=103&redirect=1
Look under travel and tourism in the link.

xOxSinéadxOx

a train to Ireland

slipss

Like Tomco said, couch surfing would be your best bet. Do not stay in a hostel in Ireland, not in Dublin in anyway, they are not like hostels in continental Europe or Australasia, they are populated mainly by Irish junkies/alcoholics and homeless not tourists.

Captain Chaos

xOxSinéadxOx wrote: »

a train to Ireland

I think he means he can get a train from Germany to the UK via the Chunnel and get a ferry from Hollyhead.

vektarman

xOxSinéadxOx wrote: »

a train to Ireland

Yes, it stops at Bremen road in Irishtown and then Hanover Quay.

4zn76tysfajdxp

Canoe.

Plug

Kinetic^ wrote: »

Stay in Germany, at least that way the EU will look after you.

good one!

AckwelFoley

Hello thar. Thank u for making after hours your top choice for advice.
When you arrive, go to the george public bar, you as an
18 yr old man are sure to find a patron willing to offer free accomadation.

slipss

-mod edit. mordeth

Ahh now there is no need for that sort of thing. Careful now.

Board-in-work

Caoibhin,

What the f*ck? The guy only asked how he could travel to Ireland. Steady on. Not very helpfull - hopefully he will ignore your post, and treat it with the contempt it deserves.

Gurgle

RedoX11 wrote: »

Hi!
I am a 18 year old student from Germany and i think about how i can get to ireland by little money.
The travel to Ireland will not be the problem i think that i can get there by ship and train but where to stay?
Is there anything like "social living" or public camping for no money?
Because that's what i have the less - so anyway my birthday is on the 17. march and you guys celebrate the st. patricks day round that date.
I always wanted to visit ireland but i think the best time is then! (at least in big cittys or even "middle cities")
I'm thankfull vor every tip you can give me.

regards,
Jonas

Hi Jonas,

First off, I would recommend that you avoid the east coast of Ireland entirely. You're likely to be beaten for being a foreigner.

In the western half of the country, if you knock at pretty much any farmer's door and ask if you can camp in his field they will let you.

On St Patricks day, Dublin is a sea of drunken scumbags trying to avoid puking for long enough to start a riot (or find some foreigners to beat up).

Try Galway.

Drax

Kinetic^ wrote:

Stay in Germany

vektarman wrote:

Don't camp in the Phoenix Park, a german camper was murdered there in August 1991.

slipss wrote:

Do not stay in a hostel in Ireland ...... they are populated mainly by Irish junkies/alcoholics and homeless

snyper wrote:

When you arrive, go to the george public bar, you as an
18 yr old man are sure to find a patron willing to offer free accomadation.

Gurgle wrote:

You're likely to be beaten for being a foreigner.

Ah Ireland... the land of a thousand welcomes. FFS lads, can ye not be a bit more welcoming and a bit more positive to the guy!? If I asked a similiar question about going to Germany I wouldnt be going after reading this We are coming across as agressive, racist and very unhelpful bunch. I know this is After Hours but jasus.

Jonas, Ryanair is your best bet as was pointed out. Dublin is a great city but it can get a bit crazy around St.Paddy's day. Cork and Galway are great cities (a bit smaller than Dublin but very nice anyway). My own preference would be to go to Cork.

I gave a lift to a Swiss hitchhiker during the summer who was hiking around Europe - an amazing trip. He mentioned he was using the www.couchsurfing.com and also http://www.hospitalityclub.org/ sites and that it was a very good way to get free accommodation and meet people.

There is a quite a difference in the east and west of Ireland - the west is more rugged and friendlier than the east. However there are plenty of cool places north and south of Dublin if you are not going to go to far.

Well have a good time whatever you do and enjoy Ireland.

board-in-work wrote:

The guy only asked how he could travel to Ireland. Steady on. Not very helpfull - hopefully he will ignore your post, and treat it with the contempt it deserves.

Well said that man. Caobhin you should be banned for that post.

ScumLord

Gurgle wrote: »

Hi Jonas,

First off, I would recommend that you avoid the east coast of Ireland entirely. You're likely to be beaten for being a foreigner.

In the western half of the country, if you knock at pretty much any farmer's door and ask if you can camp in his field they will let you.

That's only because they eat foreigners.

Couchsurfings the best way to go if you want free, there are loads around Ireland at the very least you might find a group meeting up for drinks.

Sir Digby Chicken Caesar

Two things

(1) i hate you all

(2) keep it civil

(3) I hate you all.

Dudess

Drax wrote: »

Ah Ireland... the land of a thousand welcomes. FFS lads, can ye not be a bit more welcoming and a bit more positive to the guy!? If I asked a similiar question about going to Germany I wouldnt be going after reading this We are coming across as agressive, racist and very unhelpful bunch. I know this is After Hours but jasus.

Ah... tis only a bit of ironing, no malice intended. And we can't be racist to white Germans (if the OP is white).
However while it's funny for the likes of me, it's probably lost on our young German friend.
Only a bit of fun though (apart from caoibhin's post).

Drax

Dudess wrote: »

Ah... tis only a bit of ironing, no malice intended. And we can't be racist to white Germans (if the OP is white).
However while it's funny for the likes of me, it's probably lost on our young German friend.
Only a bit of fun though (apart from caoibhin's post).

Dudess, I was referring to Caobhin's post on the first point.

Hobbes

vektarman wrote: »

Don't camp in the Phoenix Park, a german camper was murdered there in August 1991.

Wow one German camper 17 years ago. :rolleyes:

You not find something more recent?

120_Minutes

once you get here, lie cheat and steal.

its what everyone else does.

Fratton Fred

RedoX11 wrote: »

I always wanted to visit ireland but i think the best time is then! (at least in big cittys or even "middle cities")
I'm thankfull vor every tip you can give me.

good luck on finding one of them in Ireland

Dudess

Hobbes wrote: »

Wow one German camper 17 years ago. :rolleyes:

You not find something more recent?

Hobbes, obviously if a camper - who happened to be German - was murdered in Phoenix Park over 17 years ago... then the Phoenix Park is a no-go area for all Germans. I can't understand what's so difficult about that for you to grasp.

Fratton Fred

Dudess wrote: »

Hobbes, obviously if a camper - who happened to be German - was murdered in Phoenix Park over 17 years ago... then the Phoenix Park is a no-go area for all Germans. I can't understand what's so difficult about that for you to grasp.

An Irishman got murderd in Dublin last week.......

There, that should make getting around town a bit easier

Gurgle

Gurgle wrote: »

In the western half of the country, if you knock at pretty much any farmer's door and ask if you can camp in his field they will let you.

Are you just creul?

Dudess

An Irishman got murdered in Ireland? :eek:

But... I'm Irish! I'm getting the fuk out of here, there's no way I can feel safe now!

javaboy

Practice.

biko

OP go to Doolin
Not only is it on the lovely West coast, it's also close to Kerry (and far away from nasty Dublin). For some reason I always bump into Germans there so you can speak the old language too.
Fly to Shannon and take the bus down.

Ross_Mahon

Get some cheap flights over and stay in hostels about the place, Then invest in a tent from tescos.

Smart Bug

slipss wrote: »

Like Tomco said, couch surfing would be your best bet. Do not stay in a hostel in Ireland, not in Dublin in anyway, they are not like hostels in continental Europe or Australasia, they are populated mainly by Irish junkies/alcoholics and homeless not tourists.

Don't believe this! The vast majority of hostels in and around the Dublin city centre are perfectly good and safe places to stay, if a little expensive.

Fanny Cradock

Smart Bug wrote: »

Don't believe this! The vast majority of hostels in and around the Dublin city centre are perfectly good and safe places to stay, if a little expensive.

Most are perfectly fine. Only some 'hostels' are intentionally open to the homeless. This is why normal hostels ask you for your passport when you are staying.

Run_to_da_hills

Ross_Mahon wrote: »

Get some cheap flights over and stay in hostels about the place, Then invest in a tent from tescos.

As a European citizen he can apply for the dole and get rent allowance when he gets off the boat, it would be a lot better than living in a tent.

Karoma

OP: Welcome to After Hours, home of the 'relaxed discussion'; this unfortunately, also means even the idiots get to partake in discussions. Please take their input as your should: laugh it off, ignore it, print it off and beat the idiot about the head with it.
Everyone else: Play nice. I will not repeat myself.

Fratton Fred

Run_to_da_hills wrote: »

As a European citizen he can apply for the dole and get rent allowance when he gets off the boat, it would be a lot better than living in a tent.

Apply for asylum and they get a house in Foxrock, €40k per month living allowance, a car (with driver if they can't drive) and a hospitality box at Croke Park, plus three free return trips home, per week, to see the wife and kids.

Honest, I read it on boards:rolleyes:

javaboy

Fratton Fred wrote: »

Apply for asylum and they get a house in Foxrock, €40k per month living allowance, a car (with driver if they can't drive) and a hospitality box at Croke Park, plus three free return trips home, per week, to see the wife and kids.

Honest, I read it on boards:rolleyes:

It's only €20k a month. I've told you a million times not to exaggerate!

faceman

RedoX11 wrote: »

Hi!
I am a 18 year old student from Germany and i think about how i can get to ireland by little money.
The travel to Ireland will not be the problem i think that i can get there by ship and train but where to stay?
Is there anything like "social living" or public camping for no money?
Because that's what i have the less - so anyway my birthday is on the 17. march and you guys celebrate the st. patricks day round that date.
I always wanted to visit ireland but i think the best time is then! (at least in big cittys or even "middle cities")
I'm thankfull vor every tip you can give me.

regards,
Jonas

You will get more serious answers to your questions in the Dublin forums below.

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/forumdisplay.php?f=175

When you do get to Ireland, its great so it is. Despite driving on the wrong side of the road we have other flaws such as:

- The door handles are on the wrong side of the door
- Many establishments have a seperate tap for cold and hot water.
- No one speaks our national language in public except people living in areas where no one wants to live
- People from Cork are mental, avoid. We no longer sell translators for their language as its deemed discriminatory to people from Kerry.
- People who live in Caravans are considered to be an ethnic minority
- We have a curfew after 10pm
- Our army dont carry guns but have scary faces
- Temple Bar has no temples

RedoX11

Alright then thanks for all the serious anwsers!
But some crappy ones made me smile. So i think the best way is the hostel and couchsurfing(wtf?) to come around ?
Ok one more question - whats your original language? A kind of English with slang ?

- Our army dont carry guns but have scary faces <-

regards,
Jonas

Nehaxak

RedoX11 wrote: »

Alright then thanks for all the serious anwsers!
But some crappy ones made me smile. So i think the best way is the hostel and couchsurfing(wtf?) to come around ?
Ok one more question - whats your original language? A kind of English with slang ?

- Our army dont carry guns but have scary faces <-

regards,
Jonas

Official language is Irish but everyone speaks English and not an awful lot of people speak Irish on a dialy basis anyway. Every county here though has their own accent/dialect of English (some counties even having a couple of different accents) - so you might find it hard at times understanding the accents when listening to the English being spoken. Just being honest though, it is the way it is.

I would highly recommend camping in West Cork but it would be far from city life if that's what you're after.

Dublin as the capital is expensive anyway and as others have said, steer clear of hostels really if you can.
Dublin or Cork are like any other big city anywhere else in the world, good and bad parts/elements but for the most part you'll be perfectly fine.

Run_to_da_hills

RedoX11 wrote: »

So i think the best way is the hostel and couchsurfing(wtf?) to come around ?

If you are considering "couch surfing" You should take up martial arts before you come over, you could bump into some wierdo. :eek:

Latchy

For god sake Op dont park your tent ( if you have a tent ) in the Phoenix Park .

Fratton Fred

RedoX11 wrote: »

- whats your original language? A kind of English with slang ?

That's exactly what it is, yes

loz

OP - have a look into WOOFING

I have one or two contacts that are regular taking on woofers - but there is work involved

4Xcut

Fiend-Foe wrote: »

Ryanair flights would be much cheaper than trains and ships to be honest.

Absolutely true. They aren't great but if you keep checking regularly for a few weeks they may have an offer on. It will certainly be cheaper than gettin trains and boats.

Oh, bring an umbrella.

RedoX11

Run_to_da_hills wrote: »

If you are considering "couch surfing" You should take up martial arts before you come over, you could bump into some wierdo. :eek:

What is a wierdo? Didn't find a translation for that

Nehaxak wrote: »

I would highly recommend camping in West Cork but it would be far from city life if that's what you're after.

Yes i think that talking with people from the country or smalltowns is much better than with people from big citties. Cause the "village people" are easier to talk with i think

Run_to_da_hills

RedoX11 wrote: »

Cause the "village people" are easier to talk with i think

It's fun to stay at the Y-M-C-A. :pac:

Bobalicious93

biko wrote: »

OP go to Doolin
Not only is it on the lovely West coast, it's also close to Kerry (and far away from nasty Dublin). For some reason I always bump into Germans there so you can speak the old language too.
Fly to Shannon and take the bus down.

+1 was there recently on a school trip and stayed here: http://www.doolin-tourism.com/accom3.html

third one down on the list. there was a couple of germans staying there at the time aswell.
Doolin is as if it's oblivious to the rest of the world and it's classic Irish craic, definitely recommend it

gabigeist

vektarman wrote: »

Don't camp in the Phoenix Park, a german camper was murdered there in August 1991.
http://www.rathcoolevillage.com/commun_15_d.asp?ID=103&redirect=1

Don't worry about that Jonas, that's old news. Do worry about this though. I've no idea what it is but it does seem to be coming soon. I'd advise not to travel if you spot your pic on it before you leave.
http://www.deadgermantourists.com/

ninty9er

If you fly to Shannon, you're near Limerick, not as bad as its reputation would make you think. There's a University here and you could turn up at any random house party and kip(sleep) on the couch. You're likely to find some Germans here that will take care of you if the locals don't oblige.

On top of that, you're 1.5hours from both Cork and Galway and about 2 hours from Dingle and Doolin by bus. There's no youth hostel in Limerick, but as I said students can be very accomodating, you may even be able to track someone you know who is studying here. There's generally about 800-1000 Eurpoean students here at any one time

For tips on where to visit try

http://www.discoverireland.ie/

Hope you enjoy your trip

RedoX11

Alright thanks that are some good tips but i don't want to sleep every night in the house of some students - i would like to because so one can collect much experience but i don't feel well when i ask them every day if i can stay one night longer...