Ireland in May

Hi,

I'm flying to Dublin, Ireland in mid-May for a week. Are American bank cards
(not credit cards) accepted in hotels as they are in the U.S. or is their
another method in which you have to reserve and pay for a room?

Also I, of course, wish to venture out beyond the city into the countryside.
Are the rates for tours of the island reasonable? i'm not old enough to rent
a vehicle from a car rental company (I believe you have to be 25) so a tour
bus of some kind would be one of my only alternatives. If you have any other
suggestions, please let me know! :-)

Jacob.

On Tue, 24 Aug 2004 10:45:33 -0400, "Jacob Bradshaw"
wrote:

Hi,

I'm flying to Dublin, Ireland in mid-May for a week. Are American bank cards
(not credit cards) accepted in hotels as they are in the U.S. or is their
another method in which you have to reserve and pay for a room?

First of all, you'll get a lot more answers to your questions if you
post in the group rec.travel.europe. However, I'll try to answer some
of your questions.

If you have an ATM card with a Visa or Mastercard logo, it should be
accepted as if it were a credit card. Otherwise, if it has a Plus or
Cirrus or Star logo, or some other international network logo, you
should be able to use it to withdraw cash at an ATM.

Also I, of course, wish to venture out beyond the city into the countryside.
Are the rates for tours of the island reasonable? i'm not old enough to rent
a vehicle from a car rental company (I believe you have to be 25) so a tour
bus of some kind would be one of my only alternatives. If you have any other
suggestions, please let me know! :-)

I would suggest travelling around by train and bus if you can't rent a
car. You can't get everywhere, but you can get to a lot of places. The
Lonely Planet guidebook to Ireland has pretty good information about
how to get to most places by public transport. I think you'l have a
lot more fun striking out on your own than sitting in a tour bus.

A week isn't much time, so don't plan to see too many places. Other
than Dublin, you should have no problem finding lodging, either in a
youth hostel or a B&B at that time of year. You might want to reserve
for Dublin. Ireland has an excellent network of youth hostels and they
are a great way to travel, especially if you're on your own. You will
meet other people that way, and maybe end up taking a trip with a
newfound friend.
--------
Barbara Vaughan

My email address is my first initial followed by my last name at libero dot it.

On Tue, 24 Aug 2004 10:45:33 -0400, "Jacob Bradshaw"
wrote:

Hi,

I'm flying to Dublin, Ireland in mid-May for a week. Are American bank cards
(not credit cards) accepted in hotels as they are in the U.S. or is their
another method in which you have to reserve and pay for a room?

First of all, you'll get a lot more answers to your questions if you
post in the group rec.travel.europe. However, I'll try to answer some
of your questions.

If you have an ATM card with a Visa or Mastercard logo, it should be
accepted as if it were a credit card. Otherwise, if it has a Plus or
Cirrus or Star logo, or some other international network logo, you
should be able to use it to withdraw cash at an ATM.

Also I, of course, wish to venture out beyond the city into the countryside.
Are the rates for tours of the island reasonable? i'm not old enough to rent
a vehicle from a car rental company (I believe you have to be 25) so a tour
bus of some kind would be one of my only alternatives. If you have any other
suggestions, please let me know! :-)

I would suggest travelling around by train and bus if you can't rent a
car. You can't get everywhere, but you can get to a lot of places. The
Lonely Planet guidebook to Ireland has pretty good information about
how to get to most places by public transport. I think you'l have a
lot more fun striking out on your own than sitting in a tour bus.

A week isn't much time, so don't plan to see too many places. Other
than Dublin, you should have no problem finding lodging, either in a
youth hostel or a B&B at that time of year. You might want to reserve
for Dublin. Ireland has an excellent network of youth hostels and they
are a great way to travel, especially if you're on your own. You will
meet other people that way, and maybe end up taking a trip with a
newfound friend.
--------
Barbara Vaughan

My email address is my first initial followed by my last name at libero dot it.