Ireland Planning a Trip
How to get there, how to get around, where to find stuff and how to ask for it. These are tips from the local insider to make your stay here a breeze
Tipping in Ireland
To tip or not to tip - that is the question! Tipping is one of those things that vexes travelers the world over. Do you tip at the bar? Do you tip your waitress? Do you tip the taxi driver? Is there an automatic tip added onto your bill? These are all questions which can confuse and confound, but don’t be confused about the issue anymore - here is what you need to know about tipping in Ireland.
Tipping has traditionally been considered not necessary, but a nice gesture in some cases (with a particularly nice meal or helpful waiter).
More recently, tipping has become more common - perhaps due to the large percentage of foreign tourists who tip as a matter of habit at home - although 12-15% is considered the upper end of the scale.
Date: January 9th, 2008 |
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10 “useful” phrases in Irish (as gaeilge)
You probably know I’ve been running posts on Irish slang. You may remember back in May I published a substantial post about the use of the Irish language in modern Ireland. Heck, I even auditioned for the Irish Sesame Street as gaeilge, but I’ve actually made very little mention of the Irish language itself on this blog.
The truth is, you won’t NEED any Irish language during your visit to Ireland. But, it’s a cool thing to know a bit of Irish, so here’s my challenge for you, o visitor to the emerald isle: attempt to use all 10 of the little bits of Irish listed below in a single day.
Date: September 18th, 2007 |
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Flying to Ireland with an Infant
This is going to be an entry about babies and transatlantic flights.
You know that baby on the airplane? The one that just Won’t. Stop. Screaming. Hmm? This is every parent’s nightmare - for that to be YOUR child. Well, this last flight home from San Francisco to Dublin - poor little munchkin was THAT child. How did it happen? Well, I’ll get to that.
Her reaction was really distressing because the munchkin has done a lot of flying (especially for someone her age) and has never had a problem. At six weeks of age she flew to England. At three months her first transatlantic flight to New York. At 9 months it was France. This past February she flew home to San Francisco. Throughout all of these experiences she was manageable, if not a model of good behavior. So, two weeks ago we flew from Dublin to San Francisco again and she was an angel. An active, fidgety angel who didn’t sleep but one hour of our 13 hours in transit, but hey - for someone her age she was great. The way back - woah nelly.
Date: June 9th, 2007 |
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Irish taps
One of the wonderful, quaint little things you’ll probably notice on your visit to Ireland is the two separate taps on the sink.
This may seem charming and old-world, but for those of us used to adjustable water temperature in our lavatories, this is the bane of our existence.
It is just about impossible in Ireland to wash one’s hands - especially in winter - without nearly freezing or scalding oneself.
Date: May 18th, 2007 |
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Hire a Phone in Ireland?
Just not done. Oh, a few years ago a few places were trying it, but it’s too cheap nowadays to just buy one.
Remember that in Ireland all incoming calls are free (yes, FREE) to mobile phones and there’s no such thing as roaming charges. Chances are you’d end up spending as much on a hired phone anyway.
I checked with Tourist Information in Dublin airport and they told me there were no companies that hired phones. However, I found this website offering an Irish phone hire …
Date: March 1st, 2007 |
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Plan your visit to Ireland
The only post you’ll ever need: this is your one-stop Irish travel guide!
So, after a year and almost a thousand posts on Ireland, I thought I’d put the site to the test and demonstrate how to use Irelandlogue.com to plan your visit to Ireland. What follows is a step-by-step process using the logue to plan your trip:
Date: September 28th, 2007 |
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Tipping in Irish pubs
During my brief visit to the bay area a few weeks ago I did somehow find the opportunity to have a couple of beers at a bar and it all came back to me.
Allow me to provide some context: like most socially-minded young men I spent a number of months tending bar around the time I was in school, so I’ve experienced the perspective from both sides of the counter. I can assure you that in the United States of America the customers who leave healthy tips not only receive a bartender’s gratitude but it pretty much guarantees prompt service and the occasional generous pour. Those customers that do not tip . . . wellll, let’s just say they might be waiting around a while for their drink. Yes, the USA is a capitalist nation; God bless America.
So the thing is, after several years in Ireland you forget that things are different elsewhere.
Date: June 28th, 2007 |
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Adjusting to Irish time
Going from Ireland to California isn’t too bad. There may be 8 hours in the difference between them, but when you arrive in California from Ireland, the challenge is to simply stay up later. You’re wide awake in the mornings and tired in the evenings - no problem. Going the other way though is a nightmare.
Arriving in Ireland from Pacific Standard time is a miserable experience. You’re wide awake in the evenings and exhausted during the day.
One must struggle to fall asleep when one’s brain is insisting it is early afternoon. One must fight to keep oneself alert mid-afternoon when one’s body is telling one that it is 4am and one hasn’t slept. The experience must be exponentially worse for babies - the poor little munchkin is far too young to understand why she is being put to sleep when she wants to stay up and why she is expected to be sociable when she’s cranky, tired and ready for bed.
So, what should be done? Well, here’s what we’ve found works the best:
Date: June 4th, 2007 |
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Hire (rent) a car in Ireland and Irish roads
I mentioned in a previous post that hiring cars at Dublin Airport is a better idea than you might think, but I haven’t really discussed the experience that awaits the foreign driver in Ireland. I have, in fairness, expressed my thoughts about whether auto-based tourism is changing for the better or the worse in this previous post. But as regards car hire:
First off, it’s very easy to find a rental car in Ireland. There are many companies online and at Ireland’s airports that are falling over themselves to take your money. You will end up paying somewhere between €25 - €85 a day for your car, depending on the size, insurance and package that comes with your hired car.
Here are a few facts about hiring cars in Ireland:
Date: March 11th, 2007 |
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Fly for less to the Irish midlands!
If you have ever flown into Ireland, you know what a nightmare it can be to pass through Dublin airport.
Well, back in the 1980s a small midland airport was mysteriously developed to accommodate international flights to Ireland (if you ask Christy Moore, it was for bombers to refuel before flights over communist Russia). The airport has languished from a lack of viable destinations until recently.
Just yesterday Globespan, a low cost airline, has announced the first transatlantic flights from Knock airport starting in May 2007.
Date: January 30th, 2007 |
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