Ireland (Lonely Planet, 9th Edition) - Fionn Davenport [111]
Car theft and break-ins are a problem, and the police advise visitors to park in a supervised car park. Cars with foreign number plates are prime targets; never leave your valuables behind. When booking accommodation, enquire about parking facilities.
Public Transport
BUS
The office of Dublin Bus (Map; 872 0000; www.dublinbus.ie; 59 Upper O’Connell St; 9am-5.30pm Mon-Fri, 9am-2pm Sat) has free single-route timetables of all its services.
Buses run from around 6am (some start at 5.30am) to 11.30pm. Fares are calculated according to stages: one to three stages costs €1.15; four to seven stages, €1.60; eight to 13 stages, €1.80; and 14 to 23 stages, €2.20. You must use exact change for tickets when boarding buses; anything more and you will be given a receipt for reimbursement, which is possible only at the Dublin Bus main office.
LUAS
The Luas (www.luas.ie; 5.30am-12.30am Mon-Fri, from 6.30am Sat, 7am-11.30pm Sun) light-rail system has two lines: the Green Line (trains run every five to 15 minutes), which connects St Stephen’s Green with Sandyford in south Dublin via Ranelagh and Dundrum; and the Red Line (trains run every 20 minutes), which runs from Lower Abbey St to Tallaght via the north quays and Heuston Station. There are ticket machines at every stop or you can buy tickets from newsagencies throughout the city centre; a typical short-hop fare will cost you €1.90.
NITELINK
These late-night buses run from the College St, Westmoreland St and D’Olier St triangle (at Trinity College’s northwest corner), covering most of Dublin’s suburbs. Buses leave at 12.30am and 2am Monday to Wednesday, and every 20 minutes between 12.30am and 3.30am Thursday to Saturday. Tickets start at €4.
TRAIN
The Dublin Area Rapid Transport (DART; 836 6222; www.irishrail.ie) provides quick train access to the coast as far north as Howth (about 30 minutes) and as far south as Greystones in County Wicklow. Pearse Station (Map) is convenient for central Dublin south of the Liffey, and Connolly Station for north of the Liffey. There are services every 10 to 20 minutes, sometimes even more frequently, from around 6.30am to midnight Monday to Saturday; services are less frequent on Sunday. Dublin to Dun Laoghaire takes about 15 to 20 minutes. A one-way DART ticket from Dublin to Dun Laoghaire or Howth costs €2.20; to Bray it’s €2.50.
There are also suburban rail services north as far as Dundalk, inland to Mullingar and south past Bray to Arklow.
You can get fare-saver passes from www.dublinbus.ie or at the Dublin Tourism Office. Some examples:
Adult (Bus & Rail) Short Hop (€10.20) Valid for unlimited one-day travel on Dublin Bus, DART, Luas and suburban rail travel, but not Nitelink or Airlink.
Bus/Luas Pass (1/7 days €7/29) One-day unlimited travel on both bus and Luas.
Family (Bus & Rail) Short Hop (€15.60) Valid for travel for unlimited one-day travel for a family of two adults and four children aged under 16 on all bus and rail services except for Nitelink, Airlink, ferry services and tours.
Rambler Pass (1/3/5 days €6/13.30/20) Valid for unlimited travel on all Dublin Bus and Airlink services, but not Nitelink.
Taxi
From 8am to 10pm, taxi fares begin with a flagfall of €4.10, followed by around €1 per kilometre thereafter; from 10pm to 8am, it’s €4.45 flagfall and €1.35 per km. Extra charges include €1 for each extra passenger and €2 for telephone bookings; there is no charge for luggage.
Taxis can be hailed on the street and found at taxi ranks around the city, including O’Connell St, College Green (in front of Trinity College) and St Stephen’s Green at the end of Grafton St. There are numerous taxi companies that will dispatch taxis by radio. Some options:
City Cabs ( 872 2688)
National Radio Cabs ( 677 2222)
Phone the Garda Carriage Office ( 475 5888) if you have any complaints about taxis or queries regarding lost property.
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