FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS:

WHY DO I NEED TRAVEL INSURANCE?
Travel insurance is necessary in the case of interruption or cancellation, due to airline cancellation or delay, sickness or death to you or an immediate family member, or other valid reasons. It is strongly advisable to purchase travel insurance which also covers medical costs in the event of sickness or injury while in Ireland.

HOW DO I SIGN UP FOR A TOUR?XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

CAN I PAY MY BALANCE WITH A CREDIT CARD?
Although your deposit may have been paid with credit card, the balance is generally be paid by international bank transfer. If you need to make alternate arrangements for payment, please email us at irelandalongtheway @ gmail.com.

IS TIPPING INCLUDED IN THE PRICE OF MY TOUR?

NO, but it is customary to tip for personal services in Ireland. Generally for a tour guide, it is recommended to tip 7-10 per person per day of tour, and for a tour bus driver, 5 per person per day of tour.

HOW SHOULD I DRESS / WHAT SHOULD I PACK?
It's IRELAND! Be prepared for a mixture of weather, no matter when you come, it's predictably unpredictable (or unpredictably predictable!). Rain is often on the cards, and the temperature changes regularly. If you're attending an event in the early summer through to the autumn (Apr-Oct), we advise to dress for springtime, with a mix of short and long sleeve shirts, with a light jacket on hand. If you are attending a winter event (November-February), you'll need to bring a warm winter coat, comfy warm shoes/boots, and gloves. It's advisable to dress in layers during the colder months. Winter tends to be very damp, windy, rainy and icy.

WHAT DOES THE TOUR PRICE INCLUDE?The trip page of your individual tour lists what's included in your specific tour. Generally included is: coach transport throughout the tour, accommodation, two main meals per day, entrance into historic sites and other activity on the official itinerary.

CAN I PAY MY BALANCE WITH A CREDIT CARD?Although your deposit may have been paid with credit card, the balance should generally be paid by international bank transfer. If you need to make alternate arrangements for payment, please email us at irelandalongtheway @ gmail.com.

HOW ACCESSIBLE IS IRELAND?Although the capital city (Dublin) has been fairly modernised, the country as a whole is not fully accessible. Ireland is an ancient land, with many historic sites and buildings in the hundreds and even thousands of years in age, making accessibility in some spots not possible. Also, most historic hotels and castles do not have elevators installed.

WHAT IF I HAVE PHYSICAL LIMITATIONS?If you require the use of mechanical items such as wheelchair or scooter, or if you have physical limitations (such as difficulty in climbing uneven steps and/or walking on uneven / rocky terrain), please contact us to discuss the itinerary. Participation on a tour bus may not be suitable for you, as many of these vehicles are not wheelchair accessible, nor are many historic sites, buildings, hotels, castles. Or it may be necessary for you to bring a suitable companion on the tour to assist in your safe participation.

WHAT'S THE ETIQUETTE AT AN IRISH TRADITIONAL MUSIC SESSION? Irish music sessions are meant to present a taste of the Irish culture and are great social events. Plenty of new friendships are formed while attending a pub session. However, it is frowned upon to shout or talk loud over the music, particularly while someone is singing.

CAN I BRING MY ELECTRICAL ITEMS?

You will need to bring a 220V 3 pronged adaptor to recharge your cell phones, cameras, laptops. Ireland uses Type G electrical plugs. Motorised appliances may not work properly so make sure to check the tag/stamp on the item to ensure Most of the hotels have hair dryers.

WiFi services.

I have booked my flights to Dublin already. Which tours can I join?

The majority of our Ireland vacations start & finish in Dublin. Here's a full list of our Tours from Dublin.

Travel Insurance:

We do not sell Travel Insurance. We requires that all passengers secure their own travel insurance.

Will there be empty seats on the coach?

We purposely keep a number of seats empty on all of our tour coaches. This allows you extra space to spread out and ensures a more comfortable experience for all.

WHERE DO YOUR TOURS VISIT?

We design tours everywhere in Ireland. Each tour is individually designed based on the group of passengers for each tour.

I'm travelling on my own, would your tours be suitable?

Yes, our tours are suitable for solo travellers. It is very common for guests to come and join a shared tour on their own.

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I'M A FIRST TIME VISITOR TO IRELAND...WHAT ARE SOME OF THE THINGS I SHOULD KNOW?

We hope you find the below information useful, but please don't hesitate to reach out to us - we're happy to help and advise.

Prices and budgeting

To give you some idea of costs a lunch of soup and sandwich with tea/coffee would be about €8-10 per person.

A pint of Guinness will range from about €5.50 in Dublin to about €4.50 in Cork/Kerry. A Gin & Tonic in a bar/pub would be about €7.00.

Souvenirs range from as little as €2.00 for a postcard to €20.00 for a Plate with Irish Blessing.

Banks

Banks are typically open between 10.00 am and 4.30 pm Monday to Friday. Some banks also open on Saturday mornings, usually from 10 am to noon. There are ATM (cash) machines outside most banks in Ireland.

Currency

The currency in Ireland is the Euro (€). The currency in United Kingdom (including Northern Ireland and Scotland) is the pound sterling (£). The cheapest, easiest and safest way of getting Euro or Pound Sterling is to use your debit card in any of the thousands of ATM's across Ireland & Northern Ireland. You get the best exchange rates and you can take out money as you need it.

Gratuities and Tipping

Ireland does not have a strong tipping culture. We only tip in restaurants, taxis and for personal services. All tips are at your discretion and are around 10%

Our escorted tours: At the end of the tour, if you are extremely happy with your tour guide (also your driver) — which we know you will be — then a gratuity of 10.00 Euro to 15.00 Euro per person, per day, would be considered an excellent tip.

Language

English is the main language spoken, but you will see some road signs and place names written in Irish Gaelic. There are many Irish-speaking areas in the west of Ireland, but everyone who has Irish as a first language also speaks English.

Clothing

Bring a good rain jacket. There can be rain showers on the Atlantic coast. The average temperature is 50 F. Not too hot and not too cold. Weather can be changeable but it's rarely extreme. Packing layers, that you can add or remove easily, is advisable throughout the year. For up to date weather forecasts please see met.ie.

During the day as you tour around casual clothing is the order of the day. In the evenings in the hotel dining rooms and bars, smart casual would be the norm. (If you wish to step it up a bit further for example in 5-star Lough Eske Castle and 4-star Ballynahinch Castle you would not look out of place).

Laundry

The majority of hotels have laundry and dry cleaning facilities. You can hand in your laundry soon after check-in, so that it is ready on the next day of your hotel stay. This option is only suitable for 2 (or more) night stays in a hotel. You can also find more information on laundry services offered directly on each hotel's website.

Luggage

Handling (Porterage) of one large piece of luggage per person is included in the cost of Our Escorted Tours. One piece of carry-on luggage is also permitted per person (without porterage).

Smoking

Since 2004, the Republic of Ireland (and since 2007 in Northern Ireland) have a complete ban on smoking in all workplaces, including bars and restaurants. While there are a small number of hotels that allow smoking in designated bedrooms, smoking is prohibited in every other part of a hotel in Ireland.

Time zone

Ireland is part of the same time zone as London. During the winter, the time is Greenwich Mean Time (GMT). From last Sunday in March until the last Sunday in October, Ireland moves its clocks forward from GMT by one hour (GMT+1). Smartphones and similar devices will usually detect the correct time zone when they connect to WiFi. Your airline will also tell you the local time when you land.

Making Calls

Calling home from Ireland

The international prefix used when dialling somewhere outside of Ireland is 00. To call a US phone number from Ireland, the phone number should begin 001. For Australia, the number should begin 00 11.

Calling Ireland from home

The Irish country code is +353. To call an Irish number from United States/Canada the number would be 011 353. To call an Irish number from Europe the number would be 00 353. To call an Irish number from Australia the number would be 0011 353. To call Ireland Along The Way you would dial:

From United States/Canada:
011 353 87-3877409
From Europe:
00 353 87-3877409
From Australia:
011 353 87-3877409

Driving in Ireland

Both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland drive on the left. The legal age to drive in Ireland is 17 yrs old.

There are plenty of locations to hire cars in Ireland, including at all the airports.

Please note: if you are used to North American roads, you may find our Irish roads rather narrow and windy!

Irish Airports

The main transatlantic and long-haul airports in Ireland are Dublin and to a lesser extent Shannon. The vast majority of transatlantic flights come through Dublin. There are also airports in Belfast, Cork, Kerry and Knock (Ireland West Airport) but these are for regional (European and UK) destinations only.

The Irish national carrier is Aer Lingus, though many international airlines do long-haul flights into Ireland. For European flights, Ryanair and Aer Lingus are the main two, though again there are countless other airlines operating flights from Ireland to the rest of Europe.