Loughrea

Stu79

Hi Stu here from Dublin married with 3 kids , were thinking about selling up and moving to Galway , Looking at Loughrea been up a few times just for the day looks a nice place and houses are reasonable prices , Would like to know if anyone from Loughrea or near would know have advice as in estates or estates to avoid , the area in general and schools, also our biggest fear is not knowing people would the area be welcome to blow in dubs.
Any comments or advice be most welcome thanks

Hi Stu,


I live about 5 miles away and my mother is in the nursing home there. Its quite a nice town.



I think it's small enough that there aren't really any specific areas to avoid.


The lake is a great amenity, especially since you have kids and it's stocked with trout if you are into fishing.



Can't give any advice on schools, as my only experience of a loughrea school was playing hurling against one about 30 years ago. We won(!).


It has really grown up as a town in the past 10 years or so, with the addition of an Aldi, Polish shop, and Indian restaurant.



It's certainly a spot worth considering.

Milly33

Their are a few estates i would think to avoid, id say a lot of trouble goes on... One over by the hotel ill get the name of it..

Tis a nice area in fairness to live you have everything close by, and well you will never fear of running out of hairdressers or mens grooming stations, or beauty places because every second shop is one or the other...

Not to offend anyone but locals are'nt friendly unless you talk to them.. Can be very heard to mix, we are here 5years and well yeah bar the few in our estate thats it...It might be differant with kids going to school..Galway can be very very clicky, people are just not as friendly as you think they would be.. Its like they size you up first and then think about whether they would like to talk to you or not.

Stu79

Thanks very much for reply

[Deleted User] wrote: »

Hi Stu,


I live about 5 miles away and my mother is in the nursing home there. Its quite a nice town.



I think it's small enough that there aren't really any specific areas to avoid.


The lake is a great amenity, especially since you have kids and it's stocked with trout if you are into fishing.



Can't give any advice on schools, as my only experience of a loughrea school was playing hurling against one about 30 years ago. We won(!).


It has really grown up as a town in the past 10 years or so, with the addition of an Aldi, Polish shop, and Indian restaurant.



It's certainly a spot worth considering.

Stu79

Thank you will take on board .

Milly33 wrote: »

Their are a few estates i would think to avoid, id say a lot of trouble goes on... One over by the hotel ill get the name of it..

Tis a nice area in fairness to live you have everything close by, and well you will never fear of running out of hairdressers or mens grooming stations, or beauty places because every second shop is one or the other...

Not to offend anyone but locals are'nt friendly unless you talk to them.. Can be very heard to mix, we are here 5years and well yeah bar the few in our estate thats it...It might be differant with kids going to school..Galway can be very very clicky, people are just not as friendly as you think they would be.. Its like they size you up first and then think about whether they would like to talk to you or not.

Mad_maxx

Milly33 wrote: »

Their are a few estates i would think to avoid, id say a lot of trouble goes on... One over by the hotel ill get the name of it..

Tis a nice area in fairness to live you have everything close by, and well you will never fear of running out of hairdressers or mens grooming stations, or beauty places because every second shop is one or the other...

Not to offend anyone but locals are'nt friendly unless you talk to them.. Can be very heard to mix, we are here 5years and well yeah bar the few in our estate thats it...It might be differant with kids going to school..Galway can be very very clicky, people are just not as friendly as you think they would be.. Its like they size you up first and then think about whether they would like to talk to you or not.

Galway county is unreal clannish

Mad_maxx

Mad_maxx wrote: »

Galway county is unreal clannish

You could say the same about any place

You make friends by getting out and getting involved. You into sports? Join the local team etc.

Having kids is an easy way into any local community.

Years ago Loughrea, Athenry, Tuam, Gort etc were all made up of mostly locals to those area but the boom, bust and subsequent growth since has seen a LOT of mobility so most of these places are anything from 30-50% made up of outsiders. As an example, Loughrea went from 4k to 5.5k in 14 years between the 2002 & 2016 census' and Athenry went from 2.1 to 4.4k in the same period.

As for being a Dub, that won't make any difference. Sure you will get slagged for being a jackeen from da big smoke etc but who doesn't enjoy a good slagging session.

If you are going to go ahead with the move and choose Loughrea best of luck to you, hope it works out for you and your family. Just make sure you make the most out of that lake (swimming, fishing, paddle boarding, kayaking etc) for you and your kids. I've been to Loughrea loads over the years and I can honestly say I'm jealous of that amenity, very few places have something like that

afkasurfjunkie

[Deleted User] wrote: »

You could say the same about any place

You make friends by getting out and getting involved. You into sports? Join the local team etc.

Having kids is an easy way into any local community.

Years ago Loughrea, Athenry, Tuam, Gort etc were all made up of mostly locals to those area but the boom, bust and subsequent growth since has seen a LOT of mobility so most of these places are anything from 30-50% made up of outsiders. As an example, Loughrea went from 4k to 5.5k in 14 years between the 2002 & 2016 census' and Athenry went from 2.1 to 4.4k in the same period.

As for being a Dub, that won't make any difference. Sure you will get slagged for being a jackeen from da big smoke etc but who doesn't enjoy a good slagging session.

If you are going to go ahead with the move and choose Loughrea best of luck to you, hope it works out for you and your family. Just make sure you make the most out of that lake (swimming, fishing, paddle boarding, kayaking etc) for you and your kids. I've been to Loughrea loads over the years and I can honestly say I'm jealous of that amenity, very few places have something like that

I agree. Lovely walks by the lake, a nice playground and a tennis club there too. 2 mixed secondary schools to choose from. A large brand new gaelscoil has just been built by the bypass. An excellent SuperValu supermarket in the town and a range of nice eateries including Italian, Indian, Chinese and nice bakeries and butchers on main st. It’s a nice town. I don’t know the specific housing estates or where to avoid however.

Mad_maxx

Deleted User wrote: »

You could say the same about any place

You make friends by getting out and getting involved. You into sports? Join the local team etc.

Having kids is an easy way into any local community.

Years ago Loughrea, Athenry, Tuam, Gort etc were all made up of mostly locals to those area but the boom, bust and subsequent growth since has seen a LOT of mobility so most of these places are anything from 30-50% made up of outsiders. As an example, Loughrea went from 4k to 5.5k in 14 years between the 2002 & 2016 census' and Athenry went from 2.1 to 4.4k in the same period.

As for being a Dub, that won't make any difference. Sure you will get slagged for being a jackeen from da big smoke etc but who doesn't enjoy a good slagging session.

If you are going to go ahead with the move and choose Loughrea best of luck to you, hope it works out for you and your family. Just make sure you make the most out of that lake (swimming, fishing, paddle boarding, kayaking etc) for you and your kids. I've been to Loughrea loads over the years and I can honestly say I'm jealous of that amenity, very few places have something like that

I've lived in lot's of places, foreign and domestic

Galway county is by far the most clannish, didn't say Galway folk weren't decent but they're not friendly towards people who aren't seed breed and generation and getting involved locally doesnt change that

Countless blow ins I've spoken to have agreed

flazio

Mad_maxx wrote: »

I've lived in lot's of places, foreign and domestic

Galway county is by far the most clannish, didn't say Galway folk weren't decent but they're not friendly towards people who aren't seed breed and generation and getting involved locally doesnt change that

Countless blow ins I've spoken to have agreed

And do you want it to stay that way or something?
Have you given up all hope of inter county integration?

Mad_maxx

flazio wrote: »

And do you want it to stay that way or something?
Have you given up all hope of inter county integration?

just providing insights for the OP who is considering moving to county galway , no other agenda

Galwayguy35

You would be paying a few bob more for a house but maybe have a look around Oranmore as well, its a nice area.

tamara25

Op Have you ever considered a house on the outskirts of Tuam. It is a lovely town & I can honestly say people there are so friendly & genuinely nice. It has a swimming pool, lovely library, 3 secondary schools, lovely playground, lidl, super valu & aldi have been granted planning there recently. It’s worth considering?

Milly33

Reading through have to say that the clannish thing does seem to be very true, as an outsider.. Then Loughrea is what you make it, if you arent too worried about making friends and maybe just trying a bit harder to make friends then you are sorted. I cannot say not the schools are like as non of ours are of that age yet, but the amenities are nice. Like shopping is easy, the Loughrea medical clinic is great and just a short drive away. Town has everything bar the essential shops like kids clothing and bits and pieces.. Can say Galway city is a horrible place to go shopping between traffic and that and everything is scattered, but then Athlone is a mighty spot...

hoody

Stu79 wrote: »

Hi Stu here from Dublin married with 3 kids , were thinking about selling up and moving to Galway , Looking at Loughrea been up a few times just for the day looks a nice place and houses are reasonable prices , Would like to know if anyone from Loughrea or near would know have advice as in estates or estates to avoid , the area in general and schools, also our biggest fear is not knowing people would the area be welcome to blow in dubs.
Any comments or advice be most welcome thanks

Hi Stu, I'm from Loughrea, now living here, my wife is from outside the county and loves it here - she knows more people here than I do.

Great place for kids, ours go / will go the Gaelscoil, it's a new build with mixed classes and good space. We are just starting to be involved with local teams too and finding that's really good for meeting up with people etc. The old cinema in the centre of town is going to be completely renovated as a theatre / office space in the next couple of years which will really add to the town centre.

On the estates - best to have a drive around and see which you like. I never hear of much trouble in any of them but some of them are more recent / better quality builds. I love it here so hope you find the right place and enjoy a warm welcome when you move down!

cinnabar

I think the 'clannish' thing is a bit of an overstatement. Parts of County Galway could be described as clannish - but I think that is mostly in the west of the county, the east and south have a much higher proportion of 'blow-ins'. My experience of moving to the county has been really positive and the local community have been very welcoming. With kids in the local school and if you get involved with music or sports etc, you will get to meet folks locally. People will respond if you make a bit of an effort. We have made good friends here. I don't live in Loughrea but it is a nice town with good amenities.