Booze Runs To The North

dxhound2005

The Spar car park is very close to First & Last. It is a lot bigger.

Hotblack Desiato

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122816860#Comment_122816860

Recent fall is down to ECB rate cuts, Bank of England rates are still much higher.

waywill1966

May not be much cheaper but the north has a better selection. I drink John Smiths bitter and tennents lager and you can’t get them in the south , in boxes anyway!

brick tamland

I always find there is good value to be had in cheapest lagers like Fosters, Carling, Carlsberg but less to be had in anything crafty or more "premium" like Corona , Peroni ect.

Although you need to be careful as what you get isn't always same as you'd get here, eg Carlsberg is weaker and tastes different.

If you live near border or are in the north stock up but not sure it's worth the trip otherwise.

Marcusm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122803604#Comment_122803604

ROI clubcard won’t work and Tesco app is geolocated on App Store at least. I still have U.K. App Store so regularly use Nectar and Tesco UK clubcard to get the discounts. Not interested in points as not allocated for alcohol. Had to get physical RoI Coubcard to access cheap shoppin in Dublin. I go

Up maybe 4 times a year and time it for the buy 6 get 25% off deals. Sometimes those are at short notice.

a typical trip would involve Sainsburys and Tesco in Newry, Asda off the Falls Road and M&S near Banbridge. Yes, I am a bit obsessive. Generally book for click and collect equivalent and then am assured of product (generally).

Marcusm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122811547#Comment_122811547

that’s why you pre buy/click & collect. The shop is then for topups or alternatives (i don’t allow swaps).

Marcusm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122816638#Comment_122816638

I have to confess that I have bought M&S bottled water in the North and collected the deposit return (not paid) in Ireland. To avoid amorality, I matched it off with other bottles on which I could not obtain the refund.

Marcusm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122820200#Comment_122820200

I have generally found good value in the Moretti/San Miguel end plus Legfe and La Chouffe. True savings are on champagne (not for me). A typical purchase would be 40

Or more bottles at £25 or so rather than €65 or more for same in Republic. Needs a good discount plus the 25% off to get to that - there has been a fair increase over past 3 years even in the U.K. UK supermarkets are the biggest global buyers of champagne. (Moët, Bollinger, Laurent Perrier, Lanson, Mumme, Veuve Clicquot etc. I found the cheapest Bolly was in Asda in The Falls Road. My childhood would have been filled with that as a place of utter terror from news reports).

Firblog

FYI for OP

Craft Beer, Ales & IPAs - ASDA Groceries

dxhound2005

What is that Asda on the Falls Road like? I was in it a few years ago and it was very run down then. If someone wanted to avoid Belfast, the Asda in Portadown is big, and a nice place to shop with good parking. The Rushmere Centre is out the road from Portadown as well, but their Sainsburys closed down a while back.

https://www.rushmereshopping.com/

Maxface

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122820120#Comment_122820120

Not sure about the John Smiths but, in Donegal you would be able to get Tennents in any off-licence, and it is on draught in most pubs in the county. The further counties down you go the harder it is to get mind.

Maxface

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122824330#Comment_122824330

I grew up on Tennents, 6 for 5 punt :)

zell12

Why no mention of Dunnes in NI? Are they just plain expensive?

Marcusm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122821914#Comment_122821914

The Falls Road one is grand (certainly cleaner than the Asda). You can order in advance to collect from the van outside just like Newry too.

Sorry misread that as in quiet about Sainsburys Falls Road.

Marcusm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122824482#Comment_122824482

The U.K. supermarkets have greater buying power because of their size. They are sourcing from the U.K. market whereas I expect Dunnes NI is more of an outpost of the Republic. I go in every now and then but certainly never found the offering compellingly priced.

ellejay

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122813276#Comment_122813276

I drink Heineken, and I can tell you I bought many boxes of Heineken for €10. 20 bottles of 330ml in Tesco.

It's 23.50 at the moment, with a clubcard.

Now I will say it wasn't always at €10 but regularly at €12/€13.

That's a huge difference.

bladespin

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122821438#Comment_122821438

Log in to Appstore and download whne you're in the shop, very simple and fast.

ec18

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122813400#Comment_122813400

In lidl you used to be able to get a 4 pack of cans for 8 euro every few weeks. Same with a few other brands like Sierra Nevada

murpho999

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122815545#Comment_122815545

Where is this south you talk of? Waterford? Cork?

ballyharpat

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122804187#Comment_122804187

Revolut gives a good rate, but having said that, only about the same as a bureau de change

bladespin

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122830277#Comment_122830277

Much easier to pre-buy than getting shafted on the day as such, stock up when the rate's good, it's not huge but all the same.

Roald Dahl

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122824482#Comment_122824482

I don't know about their other NI branches, but Dunnes' supermarket in Newry doesn't sell booze at all.

Yeah Right

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122804187#Comment_122804187

"I am old school and use cash as I always know how much I am spending."

What does this sentence mean? Why wouldn't you know how much you're spending if you were using a card? You realise it's a lot quicker and easier these days to know exactly what you're spending?

Revolut generally offers the best exchange rate as mentioned above. Paying in sterling is almost always the cheapest option. I've often used my banks debit card before revolut came on the scene. You're beholden to whatever exchange rate PTSB or AIB have on the day (their online calculator is not working for some reason), but you don't have to stop off at Dundalk, sit in traffic, park the car, queue at the desk then rejoin the motorway and continue north. Seems like a load of hassle for very little gain.

That Dundalk crowd you linked above now charges €369 for £300. The likes of wise.com charge €360. Revolut charges €364 at today's rates so it works out cheaper before you factor in the extra time, petrol and hassle. It's a no-brainer, really.

Hotblack Desiato

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122829973#Comment_122829973

Those weren't 500mL and 7.5% though

murpho999

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122830277#Comment_122830277

You don't pay a bank fee with Revolut which your normal bank may charge you.

dxhound2005

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122830451#Comment_122830451

There's a Bureau on the Newry Hill, with a good rate for cash. Stay away from Dundalk, it's miserable enough already.

https://www.dublinroadbureau.co.uk/?gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAiAudG5BhAREiwAWMlSjKx53meabmGYUsfepvKZEbkY2PIUeNE8osfs8L30BGkFuWuC6ADbXhoCp2EQAvD_BwE

Yeah Right

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122833976#Comment_122833976

What?

You're the one who introduced that Dundalk place into the conversation last week, remember?……."For cash this lot are probably as good as it gets". Nobody would be talking about them at all, only you mentioned them. Now you're telling everyone to steer clear? Why the sudden change of heart? Why bring them up at all?

I'm not stopping anywhere, I'm using revolut, in case you didn't cop it. That Newry hill place works out more expensive than Rev anyway.

You never addressed the question about "I always know how much I am spending" either.

Charles Babbage

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122830120#Comment_122830120

Yes, the cans are indeed 90c in Cork.

dxhound2005

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122834877#Comment_122834877

I got £300 for €330 back in the day. Just for Walking Around money when in the North, and it lasted me a few years. My judgement that it was a good time to buy proved correct. And as has been said on the thread, loading up in advance can work out better than taking the rate on the day of the Booze run. I don't do Booze runs.

I knew each time I spent a few Pounds that it was worth the rate I bought it at. No doubt you could do the same with Revolut. I just used the Dundalk Bureau as an example of a good rate in the South. No invitation was issued for anyone to stop off. I take it you would not be interested in the suggestion made on the thread to combine Booze runs with sightseeing. Diverting to local villages or going for a drive up the mountains?

Yeah Right

You're all over the shop here.

I got £300 for €330 back in the day. Just for Walking Around money when in the North, and it lasted me a few years. My judgement that it was a good time to buy proved correct.

It could have gone the other way also, no guarantee it was a good time. Glad it worked out for you.

And as has been said on the thread, loading up in advance can work out better than taking the rate on the day of the Booze run.

And it can work out worse. Listening to the advice of someone for whom it worked out "back in the day" is like listening to a lottery winner about whether or not lottery tickets are a good investment.

I don't do Booze runs.

Funny thread to be taking part in, if that's the case.

I just used the Dundalk Bureau as an example of a good rate in the South.

And then immediately told everyone to steer clear of them. After you introduced them into the conversation.

No invitation was issued for anyone to stop off.

You provided information on a bureau de change on Newry Hill that you (presumably) have used in the past. Do they have a drive through window? If not, how in the hell do you expect anyone to use that place without stopping off? Why bring them into the conversation if not to recommend that others stop there?

I take it you would not be interested in the suggestion made on the thread to combine Booze runs with sightseeing. Diverting to local villages or going for a drive up the mountains?

???????????????

No, I wouldn't. Which is why I'm in the Booze runs thread. My brother lives in Antrim. I've done plenty of sightseeing and driving through the mountains and will continue to do so in the future. I most certainly won't be doing it as an addendum to an already long 6hr round trip, in the depths of winter, with a boot full of booze and perishables. Time and a place, pal.