Car Rental in Ireland - need some advice please
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Anonymous
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We are road tripping around Ireland for a week this summer. We will be going to some very rural areas far out West to visit with family. We will have 9 people - 6 adults, 3 elementary age kids. One of the adults is 80 years old.
We are planning to rent two cars, and take turns with one having 5 people one having 4. Everything I read says to rent small due to narrow roads. But I also need to make sure the 80 year old is relatively comfortable and we can manage the luggage. I am considering a Toyota C HR (described as intermediate hybrid SUV) or an Opel Astra or similar (described as intermediate auto). Given the need to balance car size for narrow roads and the fact we will at times have to have 5 people in one car, can anyone recommend which to choose? Or suggest something different? I appreciate the input I am having a hard time visualizing this stuff. |
Anonymous
| Buses. Trains. Local drivers. Pack lightly. Rethink your itinerary. All of these are better options than expecting rural Irish roads (stone wall on one side, ditch and hedgerow on the other, tour bus and/or sheep in the middle) to make room for not one, but two (2!) SUVs. |
Anonymous
Yes. The arrogance of Americans never ceases to astound me. |
Anonymous
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We road tripped through Ireland last May and, although can be a bit stressful (for the reasons you stated), a smallish SUV is just fine. We rented an intermediate sedan and I think it was longer than some of the smallish SUVs we saw while there.
I would say anything that isn't bigger than say a BMWX1, Mazda CX-5, RAV 4, etc. I realize the car options are different than what we are used to (as you listed) but you should be able to research sizes easily. We found parking everywhere we went without issue. All the small towns we visited, stops along the way, etc. had plenty of parking. I don't think you will have any issues parking 2 cars. You will certainly need to pack light in order to fit luggage for 4-5 ppl in the back of a smallish SUV or even a sedan. Ireland was great! Don't let anyone discourage you from driving yourselves. Yes, the buses and local drivers can be a challenge but take it slow and you will be fine. Have a great trip! |
Anonymous
| Hello! Sounds like a fantastic trip! I can not speak regarding specific cars but I will say that you absolutely want small cars! There will be plenty of times when you need to get over as far as you can to let another car by! I would strongly suggest that you be sure to reserve automatics (unless you are a great stick driver…my husband and dad both drove stick in Ireland but with driving on the left side of the road, and very narrow roads, it would have been easier with automatics.,most important advice we received, get full coverage insurance!!! We initially scoffed at this, but gave in after being told by multiple people that it was the way to go…..it was 100% the way to go! You are going to hit the tire rims on something….you are just going to. Pay the insurance and it will make it so much easier! Have a fantastic time! |
Anonymous
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Eh, the caution to rent small, tiny cars is overblown. You can go bigger than the cars you mentioned - I don’t think you’d even be able to fill them with people and all your luggage.
Are some roads small? Sure. Are there trucks and busses on those same roads? Yep. And somehow they do just fine. You may have to back up at parts to let another vehicle pass but the width difference between a tiny car and a small SUV really isn’t that significant and it’ll make your trip that much more enjoyable. Ignore the previous posters. |
Anonymous
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Some posters are funny. You’ll be renting a car in Ireland. That car will fit the roads in Ireland. The only thing you’ll need to worry about is the driver. It’s an adjustment to have steering wheel on right.
Yes, smaller cars are easier when you start out. Our rental in Ireland was a Kia See. A small suv. Probably a little snug for 4 people though. Quick advice, take pictures of the car *before* you leave rental lot if there are any scratches. A lot of rentals had scratches on the left side. 🙂 |
Anonymous
| Get the Amex card. If you rent a car with it you automatically have car insurance |
Anonymous
Check if it covers Ireland. Most credit cards don’t, even when they cover rentals in other countries. We traveled with 5 people and got bumped up to a BMW but I don’t remember which one. The roads are much better than they used to be. My family is also in the West and it was fine. You just want to check the maps that you’re taking as main a road as possible, one that goes from town to town. Avoid anything that looks like a shortcut, lol. |
Anonymous
I’ll also recommend that if you plan to use Google Maps, that you download the areas you’ll need so they are available offline. We were fine most places, but less so in the more rural parts of the west. https://support.google.com/maps/answer/6291838?hl=en&co=GENIE.Platform%3DAndroid |
Anonymous
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I have driven in Ireland. The caution against larger vehicles is justified- you will have a much more relaxed time with a smaller car. An Astra Opel is absolutely fine. I would not rent an SUV, even a smaller one.
Distances are small, it isn’t like the US where you will be spending many hours in a car, so the comfort thing is overblown. |
Anonymous
| We rented a large car (an Audi) and the back seat was horrible for our teens. We tried an alternative car and it was equally bad. You could not have put three people in the back. As it was our kids literally had their knees pulled up to their chests. |
Anonymous
| With that many people would it make sense to hire a van and driver? We did ok with our car despite the tight backseat but for the adult driving it requires a lot of concentration to drive on the left. |
Anonymous
Yes and if your card does cover you in Ireland (most Chase cards do, for instance), get a letter from them confirming coverage, print it out and take it with you. The rental car company won't let you decline their CDW coverage without the letter. I saw multiple people at the airport in other lines having this argument with the agent at the desk. When I unfolded my letter they were clearly disappointed because I think they lost a commission! |
Anonymous
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Be careful about trunk sizes. Cars are smaller and you might be very uncomfortable if you try to squeeze into something small.
We had 2 adults and 4 kids. Can you drive stick? We rented a Combo Life minivan. It was standard transmission. It was completely fine on the roads. There’s a Ireland Facebook group that is helpful: https://www.facebook.com/share/g/1PKEmR4GvA/?mibextid=wwXIfr |