Public Transportation

Ireland has a pretty extensive public transit system. Transport for Ireland offers a good hub for planning trips by bus, train, tram, taxi, bicycle and carpool. 

If you're planning a trip to Connemara you will probably be coming into Shannon Airport, western Ireland's major airport. It's a short hop NW of Limerick and about an hour's drive south of Galway. Shannon doesn't have a train station but there are buses that will take you to Limerick and from there you can connect to railway service to Connemara. The website Rome2rio has a worldwide (!!) travel planner that can, among other things, help you plan your trip from Limerick to Westport. 

All prices are, obviously, subject to change. And my sources may be wrong, but I've tried to do due diligence.

Buses 

There are a number of bus service options in Ireland, both public and private, even in rural areas (like Connemara). Some can even provide door-to-door service. I took Bus Éireann many years ago and don't remember having any problems, but according to Tripadvisor reviews, I may have just been lucky. 

There's a bus direct from Shannon Airport to Galway. To get from Shannon to Cleggan you'll need to make a few changes and it will take a bit over four hours. I recommend a stop or overnight in Galway though. I'll list some Galway attractions in a later post. You can get a bus from Galway Coach Station right to Oliver's in Cleggan. 

Oliver's is the pub/restaurant/B&B/Disco/etc. in Cleggan; basically, downtown consists of Oliver's. Period. (NB: In Europe, "disco" does not refer to the 70s phenomenon but just to any dance club. Apparently only Americans are so ashamed of their behavior during the 70s they can't bring themselves to utter the D word ever again.) 

Irish Rail Map

Iarnród Éireann/Irish Rail

Irish Rail has a pretty robust route map throughout Ireland. They have a 3 out of 5 score on Tripadvisor which seems to be a mix of 5 out of 5 and 1 out of 5 reviews, so "caveat emptor" as they say. Buying tickets online is cheaper. They have Wi-Fi on the trains but apparently not necessarily in the stations, so buy your online ticket in advance. Also be aware that (per their website) food and drink service has been suspended due to COVID, so pack a snack and some water. No alcohol allowed. 

From Limerick to Westport requires one or more changes and costs about €33. To get from Galway to Westport costs €16.79 and requires one change. 

If you'd like to check out Dublin from your Connemara home base, It takes about 3.5 hours to travel by rail from Westport and costs €33.30 one-way, €36.00 for a Day Return ticket and €48.65 for an Open Return (good for return within 30 days).  If you have an interest in seeing Northern Ireland I'm afraid there is no direct route from the west of Ireland- you'll have to travel through Dublin.

Driving & Car Rentals

 IMPORTANT:

1. DO NOT GET AN SUV! Irish roads are about 2/3 the width of American ones and out in the country two-way roads are rarely wide enough for two vehicles to pass without luck and prayers. Cars in Ireland are smaller than we're used to, but still...
2. CHECK YOUR INSURANCE COVERAGE! This is serious. Apparently having your American insurance cover your Irish rental is NOT automatic- read the fine print! Buy extra if you have any doubt. My experience says there is at least an 75% chance you will smash your passenger side mirror. Those narrow country roads don't have shoulders- they have stone walls that are inches from your car. Your front seat passenger will probably be grimacing with apprehension much of the time. Don't worry, you don't notice it after a while. 
3. Remember to DRIVE ON THE LEFT! Tie a string around your finger, put a Post-It on the windshield, put a rubber band around your left wrist- do what you have to. This issue is most serious in big cities, where our American reptilian driving brain will try to take over as we're making turns in big intersections. 

   

   Image by DESI MAXWELL from Pixabay

Other Info:

• Shannon Airport has about a dozen car rental agencies, including American staples like Budget, Avis and Hertz. 
• Your American driver's license will be fine- you don't need an international license. 
• Make sure everyone who might be driving is allowed to under the contract and is covered by insurance. 
• Pack light. You'll only be able to fit 2-3 medium-sized bags in most cars if you want to leave the back seat free. Leave the mammoth luggage home.
• If you want to use a debit card, check to see if your car rental company accepts them. Some may only accept credit cards. 
• I repeat: Irish roads are narrow. Irish country roads are often narrow, winding and closely bordered by stone walls. Driving in Connemara requires concentration. No sipping coffee, no snacking, no napping, no juggling. Also there will be sheep and cows walking in/by the road. Herds have right of way. 

Car rental prices: 

Approximately €400-600 per week. Automatic transmissions are on the higher end. It's cheaper to rent a car in Limerick than at Shannon Airport, but obviously less convenient. You can drop a car off at a different location than where you picked it up, but there will be an additional charge. 

Gas prices:

The only good thing about our crazy high gas prices? It won’t be such a shock when you see European prices. And yes, they sell by the liter, not the gallon. Irish gas prices as of today: about €1.859 per liter (€7.037/gallon).