Bring a bike from US to Ireland, or...?

Dave1442397

I'm heading back to my parents' house in Portmarnock in August, and trying to decide what to do about getting a road bike for two weeks.

1) I could (maybe) rent one from Paul at Phoenix Park bike hire, probably run 300 euro for two weeks.

2) Buy a used bike there and sell it again when I'm done. That's iffy because finding the right bike at the right time might not be that easy.

3) Buy a bike here, bring it with me ($200 to fly it over), and sell it there.

It seems that prices are generally higher in Ireland, although the whole bike-to-work tax refund thing makes it hard to tell what people are really paying for bikes.

I have a 54cm 2011 Cannondale 10-4 (SRAM Rival) with around 20,000km on it. I would probably keep that here and buy something else to bring over there.

I see plenty of brands I recognize for sale on donedeal.ie, such as Giant, Felt, and Ridley, all of which I can get easily enough on the used market here.

I appreciate any advice you guys might have.

07Lapierre

Bring your bike with u then bring it back with u to the US. Easy

Dave1442397

07Lapierre wrote: »

Bring your bike with u then bring it back with u to the US. Easy

Yeah, but costs $400. If there's enough of a price differential between here and there, I could bring something over and break even.

krissovo

I take my bike back and forth to the sates, costs $100 with the airline

OldBean

Who are you flying with? Do you already have a road bike you're happy with?

I flew BWI - BOS - DUB with JetBlue and Aer Lingus recently with a bike and wasn't charged thanks to the staff in JB not having a pricing system at hand for bicycles. And I Irished it up.

Aer Lingus would have been €40 or $60 per direction (Not flight!). Have your return flight information at hand going through customs in Dublin Airport, if the bike is going back with you, you won't have to pay tax on it.

dave2pvd

Carry on charges for US travelers are not the same as Irish travelers. Particularly for bikes.

OldBean

Are you sure? My OH is as (Oirish)American as they come and it was the same for her.

krissovo

I tend to fly KLM/Delta through Amsterdam. I just checked and its now a flat $200 charge on KLM.

07Lapierre

Dave1442397 wrote: »

Yeah, but costs $400. If there's enough of a price differential between here and there, I could bring something over and break even.

$400! :eek: who are you flying with?

Dave1442397

07Lapierre wrote: »

$400! :eek: who are you flying with?

$200 each way with US Airways. That's why I'm considering taking a bike on a one-way trip and selling it there...it could easily save me some $$.

joxerjohn

For close to the shipping cost $400 you should be able to buy a pretty decent 2nd hand bike if all you want to do is go for a few spins while you are here. You could then keep it at your parents house for your next visit.

Alternatively you could try the adverts section on here and see if any boardies would lend you or rent you a bike during your stay. You would need to give you requirements re size etc. There should a few decent winter trainers lying about that you could use.

Or you could contact a second hand retailer like Rothar.ie and see if you could do a deal where you buy a bike and then sell it back to them (less their profit of course) when you leave. They'd get the chance to sell it twice.

Or you could buy a bike in the US and ship it to your parents ahead of time and then sell it on. You might even make a small profit that way!

serendip

Buy a bike, ship it over ... and leave it here for the next time.

Seve OB

07Lapierre wrote: »

$400! :eek: who are you flying with?

he is probably putting his bike in the first class hold. it will be served with all the lube it can drink, a gentle rub down and polish

Dave1442397

stevieob wrote: »

he is probably putting his bike in the first class hold. it will be served with all the lube it can drink, a gentle rub down and polish

It could do with that It's crusty with road salt and needs a good cleaning.

It's -11C here today, and -18C with the wind chill. I hope it warms up enough for our usual Saturday group outing.

feck sake lads

have you thought of asking someone for a loan of a bike

Dave1442397

feck sake lads wrote: »

have you thought of asking someone for a loan of a bike

I don't know anyone there with a road bike. I've been gone 24 years, so not too many contacts to call on

I did find an ad from Cathal O'Carroll aka The Spokesman saying he is now renting road bikes. I emailed him earlier to see what he has. Still a ways off yet, of course, but might as well try to get something set up.

feck sake lads

good luck with it anyhow, if its 24 years since you cycled here for god sake be carefull, all the car drivers reckon there in a race and they will stop at nothing to get to where there going.
you have been warned.