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You will notice all kinds of clothing on the streets- anything goes! We advise you to be comfortable! In particular for walking tours, sightseeing and long days, flat/sport shoes are best. Make sure that you have rainproof clothing with you at all times (see weather). For evening wear ‘smart casual’ is suitable. Jeans can be worn to restaurants, but very often door-men of pubs and clubs will not allow entry to those wearing sports shoes.
Culture
Some useful information includes:
- The national sports of Ireland are Gaelic Football, Hurling and Camogie. These are controlled by the GAA (the Gaelic Athletic Association). The home of the GAA is Croke Park stadium in Dublin. The most important competitions in the games take place over two weekends in September each year.
- People associate Ireland with traditional Irish music and dance. You will find these played in many Irish traditional pubs. A ‘session’ is when a group of people come together to play Irish music. The Irish like all forms of music though, as is evident from the many great Irish music exports, from U2 to Boyzone, The Pogues to Enya!
- Irish people tend to buy drinks in ‘rounds’ when in a pub. This means that if you are drinking with 3 friends, you buy 3 drinks at the bar, and they in their turn buy your next drinks. This is considered polite.
- Irish people are genuinely friendly and if you are lost or unsure of where to go most people will be glad to help you. In public places, bars and restaurants people will often strike up conversation with strangers.
Currency & Banking
Since 2002, the currency in the Republic of Ireland is the EURO (€).There are seven denominations of Euro bank notes in different colours and sizes. They are denominated in 500, 200, 100, 50, 20, 10 and 5 euro. The Euro is divided into 100 cents. There is a coin for 1 Euro and 2 Euro.
Credit cards, particularly MasterCard and Visa, are widely accepted. American Express and Diners club are accepted by some establishments.
The majority of banks in Ireland are open from 10.00 to 16.00 with most open until 17.00 on Thursday. There are ATMs (cash machines) available outside banks, in many commercial outlets and on the main thoroughfares available 24 hour. You may require a particular type of bank card to withdraw from these machines (Cirrus and Plus are the two most popular networks along with the major credit cards).
Most major banks have a foreign exchange facility.
Electrical plugs are UK style three-pin. Adaptors for these can be purchased quite easily, and should also be available at your hotel’s reception. Shaving sockets in hotels generally support the international two-pin 110 VAC shaver. The standard voltage in the Republic of Ireland is 220 VAC at 50 Hz.
English is the spoken language in Ireland. Irish or Gaelic (Gaeilge), the ancient Celtic language of the country is also spoken by about 5% of the population. You will notice signposting in most places, including Dublin, is bilingual. Galway is considered a bilingual city. Many people speak Irish in their day to day lives; this is because it is located beside an Irish speaking region called Connemara.
You may notice that there are lots of different Irish accents. This is based on the region of the country or part of a city or town that a person is from. Listen carefully and you’ll soon know what everyone is saying!
The population of the Republic of Ireland is just under 4.2 million people, while the Greater Dublin area is home to 1.6 million people.
As in any major cities, petty crime occurs, but this is nothing to be overly concerned about. However, take all reasonable precautions and take care of your own personal belongings. Prime tourist areas in Dublin, including Trinity College, are favoured by pickpockets.
Shopping
Ireland is known for good wool products, linen, glassware and pottery, and you will find many traditional and contemporary forms of these. For genuine Irish products and gifts we would advise in Dublin that you visit:
- The House of Ireland, Nassau Street, Dublin
- The Kilkenny Design Store, Nassua Street, Dublin & High Street, Galway
- Carroll’s Irish Gifts, Suffolk Street, St. Stephen’s Green Shopping Centre & others, Dublin
All major towns and cities have popular high street areas. Brown Thomas is an example of a high end department store located in Dublin (Grafton street), Galway and Cork cities.
Smoking
Dublin was Europe's first smoke free capital city. Since March 2004, a smoking ban in the work place has been in force. Dublin pubs, night clubs, restaurants and cafés are now smoke free zones. Many have dedicated smoking areas to the outside. You can still smoke out of doors or in private accommodation. Some hotels allow smoking rooms, but most no longer allow in room smoking.
If you are a resident from outside the EU, you are entitled to claim your taxes back when shopping in Ireland. Please refer to www.globalrefund.com for further information.
There is a tax refund office at Dublin Airport. Keep your receipts and request in gift stores about tax back. In particular the souvenir stores will be able to assist you.
Taxis
Dublin in particular has a large number of taxis available on the street. An available taxi should have its roof light on. To hail a taxi just raise your arm in its direction. You will also find taxi ranks in the city centre area eg. St. Stephen’s Green and College Green.
Taxis run metered fares and larger taxis will charge an additional cost per person.
You can pre-book a taxi if required from your hotel reception.
Telephone & Emergency calls
The international calling code for Ireland is + 353. The local area code for Dublin is 01.
Emergency numbers are 999 or 112. Specify whether you require the police (Gardaí) an ambulance, the fire service or coastal rescue.
Time zone
Ireland is on Western European Time along with the UK and Portugal.
Tipping
Tipping in Ireland is not ‘standardised’ and so remains a matter of personal discretion, in particular in smaller cafes and bars/pubs. It is usual to tip staff for service in restaurants, while in some restaurants a service charge is automatically included for larger groups. For other services, tipping depends on the level of service provided. A rough guide is between 12-15 % of the bill.
Traffic
Remember that driving in Ireland is on the left side of the road, which means that when crossing a road look to your right! Dublin city is very busy with traffic, please use pedestrian crossings and lights.
Weather
Irish weather is difficult to predict at the best of times so it is advisable to expect all forms of weather in any one day. Always carry an umbrella and your sunglasses! September temperatures average between 15- 18°C.