Would you recommend Maynooth as a place to live?

achtungbarry

Hello all,

I am looking for your feedback/advice/opinions.

Myself and the wife are strongly thinking of buying in Maynooth at some point in the not too distant future.

I know the place well as I went to college at NUI Maynooth (graduated 2001)although there has been quite a few changes since then. I always liked it and go there from time to time for a walk or do some photography in Carton/College.

I suppose what attracts us most is that Maynooth seems to have decent facilities: schools, new shopping centre, supermarkets, restaurants, Carton House/College for walks etc and is well served by trains to Dublin city centre.

I would imagine that the high student population may be an issue in some areas in terms of peace and quiet. I have nothing against students having been one relatively recently but I also remember some of the parties I was at and some of the antics we got up to .

Anyway, any feedback and guidance would be much appreciated.

Are there particular areas you would recommend/not recommend.

What do find to be the positive/negative things about living in Maynooth.

Many thanks.

Moonbeam

We moved here a few months ago.
When hunting for a house we ruled out any estate with students:)
There is a train to Dublin city and plenty of buses.
There is a lovely childrens playground which is well kept,great schools,lots of open green areas,3 supermarkets.
I like the way everyhting in the town is within walking distance.
So far I am enjoying life here but it is hard to get to know anyone.

irish_goat

Depends on where you live I'd say, we(students) live in a relatively quiet cul-de-sac with about 50/50 students/"grown ups" living there and whilst we're not constantly having mad parties it gets on the neighbours nerves if we make even a tiny bit of noise late at night. Remember too that all it takes is for one noisy group to move in beside you/across the road and you'll have to deal with them for a full year.

It's great town for amenities and handiness to Dublin but unless you're prepared to deal with noise and disruption from students (cause there's no real way of avoiding/dealing with it on a permanent basis) I'd recommend you maybe consider somewhere else. If like moonbeam though you can get an estate with no students, go for it.

Clare Bear

We'll be doing the same in the next year or two. I'm also a fellow graduate of Maynooth but been away a few years now.

Out of interest, since I have left (2007), what estates are (or at least almost) student free these days?

token56

Living in Moyglare Village at the moment, 3 postgrad students but we are very quite compared to general students. The rest of the estate seems to be very much family orientated. Towards the front of the estate I think there might be a few more student houses but thats about it but its a very nice quite estate I think anyway.

In my experience it will be very hard to find an estate completely student free but there will be ones where they will be few and far between and a few to certainly avoid. However there will always be the risk that a noisy student house could pop up close to you in any year I guess, best you can do is try minimize the risk if you are really keen on maynooth I guess.

Moonbeam

It would depend if you are looking to buy or rent and what size.
I reckon Parklands and Rockfield would be pretty ok with regards to students.

Ms. Koi

I'm living in Maynooth 12 years now, moved here when I was nine.
There is no estate that is free of students, sorry!! The more student orientated estates are going to be closer to the college, but the estates further away would have less students, Carton Court etc.

I don't think it's fair to say that all students will be loud and noisy. I know a lot of them are, but the majority of those students live in on campus accomodation. I live in Moyglare Abbey. There are a lot of students living here, but there is an awful lot of young families, with children always out playing and that have early bedtimes. The majority of students do respect that fact.

I am a student of the college now myself, but I still live at home with mammy and daddy!!

As regards pros: lot of shops with a large variety. I prefer the shops that have been there for years, which are slowly being shifted out! Mc Cormacks Pharmacy on the main street is the place to go for chemist requirements! They're all very friendly and chatty!!

As regards negatives: Mantra! I hate the place! If you can avoid driving through the town around midnight on a friday and saturday, do. Taxi drivers just stop everywhere and it is very dangerous as people just walk across roads willy nilly.

Other than that one bad thing, the place is brilliant! Don't see myself ever wanting to leave, if I do, it will just be a bit more out into the country. While the town has grown in the last years, it still has a village feel, with everyone always saying hello! It's close enough to town, Liffey Valley and Blanchardstown, but it still feels like it its a small country village!

Hope this helps! I'm putting off learning about a complex play! Back to it now though!

Michael B

Moonbeam have you joined any local clubs etc to get to know people? That's my main worry about moving there when we eventually do, I've lived in the same place all my life so it's going to be a big change. I suppose if we get friendly neighbours that's a start.

Moonbeam

Our neighbours are all lovely but about 3 times my age!(slight exaggeration);)
I have never lived in the same place for very long so no idea what it is like.
I haven't found any clubs to join and the library is a huge disappointment.I suppose it depends what you are in to,there are sports clubs.