Mairnealach
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Posts posted by Mairnealach
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Hi,
Dublin port is an industrial area and there is no public transport to the city centre. You can either take the shuttle bus which most cruise companies seem to organise or else a taxi. Dublin has a glut of taxis and there will be plenty of them looking for business at the cruise terminal, so there will be no queuing.The journey time to the city centre is approximately ten minutes and a taxi should cost around €10-12.
If you insist on walking, then it would take you about an hour to get to O'Connell Bridge. You will be walking through an unattractive, industrial area with articulated vehicles speeding to and from the port as your only company.
Dermot
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Hi Carolyn,
I called into Kilmainham Gaol today to find out how easy, or difficult, it would be to get a place on one of the tours on a Friday afternoon in August. The prospect does not appear that promising, I am afraid. Tours can only be booked on the day by going to the Gaol in person. As it states on their website, 'Tickets are sold on a first come first served basis and cannot be booked in advance'.
http://www.heritageireland.ie/en/dublin/kilmainhamgaol/
The staff member at reception said your best chance would be to arrive early, before midday at the latest. When I explained this was impossible due to your arrival time in Dublin, she could only suggest you phone the Gaol as soon as the ship berths to find out if there were any places still available. But even if there were, there is no guarantee that by the time you reached Kilmainham they had not been filled. The phone number of Kilmainham Gaol is: 00 3531 4535984. The Dublin Pass does not confer any priority entrance.
There is no problem visiting the Guinness Storehouse as people go round the centre on their own. The Old Jameson Distillery is also organised into tours which, especially in August, should best be booked in advance. If you have the Dublin Pass this does not appear possible. The Pass website states, 'Dublin Pass holders must queue for the next available tour.' If you intend to visit the Old Jameson Distillery, I would advise you to book your tickets, and reserve a specific time slot, via their website.
http://www.tours.jamesonwhiskey.com/Home/The-Old-Jameson-Distillery-Dublin.aspx
Please let me know if you need further assistance.
Dermot
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Hi Dermot, We will be in your city Aug 9 on the Infinity (noon to 10pm) and I have made notes from your previous posts--they have been very helpful. I would like to know how far the Kilmainham Gaol is from the Trinity College area? And do you advise buying the one day Dublin Pass to save time in lines? I think, with the exception of the Trinity tour, all the entry fees for the sights we want to see are included with it. We do want to visit the Guinness Storehouse and Jameson Distillery. Overall, how many miles are we looking at here:)..If we don't purchase the one day pass is it a good idea to purchase the tour tickets on line? And if we decide there would be too much walking (we are not young) is it wise to get the HoHo pass?
You have probably answered these questions before and if so, sorry for the repeat.
Carolyn
Hi Carolyn,
The best option to visit the three sites you mention, Guinness Storehouse, Kilmainham Gaol and Old Jameson Distillery, is to take the HoHo bus which calls at them in that order. Kilmainham is three miles from Trinity College and it takes me 40-45 minutes to do the walk. The Storehouse and Distillery are mid-distance between the two locations on different sides of the river Liffey.
Please note the closing times of the three locations. The last admission to the Gaol is at 5pm, the last Distillery tour starts at 5.15pm and the last admission to the Guinness Storehouse is at 7pm. Visiting all three sites would, I feel, make for a very full day and would not allow much time to see the city centre or relax over a meal and a few drinks. Are you, perhaps, trying to fit too much into the time at your disposal? Only you can decide that.
As you would not have time to visit any of the other sites that are included in the Dublin Pass, I do not think it confers much benefit other then having an admission ticket for Kilmainham Gaol. Tickets for the HoHo bus, Storehouse and Old Distillery can all be booked online with discounts. I will try and find out how long the queue for admission to Kilmainham Gaol is likely to be on a Friday afternoon in August and revert.
Dermot
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Hi Nicki and Nigel,
To get in a relaxed mood for your visit, you can listen to the Dublin Saunter, sung by Noel Purcell.
When you disembark in Dublin port take either the cruise company's shuttle bus or a taxi to Trinity College. A taxi should cost around €10-12. From outside the college you can take the HoHo bus tour or else explore the city by yourself. Dublin city centre, where most of the tourist sights are located, is compact. The National Museum, National Gallery and St Stephen's Green park are within ten minutes walking distance of Trinity College. The HoHo bus will bring you to the Guinness Storehouse visitor centre and after that it goes to the Phoenix Park. A pint of Guinness in the Gravity bar is included in the cost of admission to the Storehouse.
There are lots of famous Dublin pubs in the streets that adjoin Grafton Street where your husband can indulge further his taste for Guinness. Enjoy your visit to Dublin.
Dermot
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Hi,
At what time will the tour to Wicklow leave you back in Dublin? If you are not someone who is interested in visiting museums and galleries then, assuming you are back in the city by 5pm, this option will allow you to see something of the beautiful Irish countryside - Wicklow is known as the garden of Ireland -while still having a few hours to go on a mini pub crawl before returning to the ship. A taxi from the city centre to the cruise terminal will take around ten minutes.
Dermot
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We fly into Brussels for our 1st River cruise which departs from Antwerp.
Brussels to Antwerp...Is there a car/limo service to transfer us from Brussels to Antwerp? We don't wish to travel by bus or train.
I travel everywhere in Belgium by train, but the Brussels airport website mentions a company under 'chauffeured services'.
http://www.brusselsairport.be/en/passngr/to_from_brussels_airport/taxi/
Brussels...we are planning to stay here pre cruise and do "Day Trips" to other cities. Any suggestions for "tour guides or tour companies"?
Belgium is a compact country and the big three tourist cities outside Brussels, - Bruges, Ghent and Antwerp - are easily accessible by train. Sorry, I appreciate that I am not answering the question asked.
Brussels Airport to Brussels Hotel...taxi's at the airport?
See the airport website link given above.
Brussels Hotel...Any suggestions?
As you are considering hiring a limousine and tour guides, I am making the assumption that your hotel requirements are probably more luxurious than mine. In which case I cannot help you. All I want of a city hotel is somewhere that is quiet, clean, central and reasonably comfortable in which to sleep at night. The Ibis hotel, Rue du Marché aux Herbes, meets these needs. It is situated near Brussels Central railway staion, where I arrive from the airport, and is just off the Grand Place. But, it is a no frills, budget hotel.
Brussels Restaurants...Any suggestions? Nothing fancy but not MacDonald's. ;)
The Art Nouveau, Falstaff bar/restaurant is a safe choice for steak and frites washed down with a Belgian beer. It is situated beside the Bourse, just off the Grand Place.
http://www.lefalstaff.be/en/histoire1.htm
The Cirio café, again off the Grand Place, is good place to while away an hour while having a coffee, beer or light lunch. Or follow the locals and have a 'half and half'; a glass of half white and half sparkling wine.
If you manage to snag an upstairs window seat in Le Roy d'Espagne café, you have a fine view overlooking the Grand Place.
Dermot
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Hi Mike,
VMax1700, who lives in Cork, will be the best person to assist you. What time does the ship berth in Cobh and what is your departure time?
Dermot
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We've been on a cold weather cruise before in Alaska earlier in the year, and really enjoyed the scenic cruising in Glacier Bay, so I'm naturally inclined to think the Viking Saga is the better cruise for us, but do the different stops in the Norse Legends beat the additional scenic cruising in the Viking Sagas?
Hi Brian,
To make your decision even more difficult, in my opinion the Oslo fjord is not particularly scenic. Whereas the approach to Flam in the early morning is, weather permitting, spectacularly scenic. Decisions, decisions...:)
Dermot
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Yes, we did but I would recommend buying your tickets before hand either via Rail Europe or if you stop in another Norway port before Flam. The line to buy tickets on the day you stop can be very crazy.
Hi Kirk,
Our first port of call was in Oslo and I walked to the central railway station there to buy tickets for the Flam train. You can buy the tickets there, or at any rail station in Norway, but they will charge two single fares of 260 kroner; that is 520 kroner for a return ticket. The only way of getting the special return fare of 360 kroner, other than being part of a group booking, is to buy the tickets in Flam itself.
Dermot
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Is it possible to do the Flam Railway independently ?
Yes, I did this last week when on Holland America's MS Rotterdam. Luckily we were the only ship berthed in Flam that day, so tenders were not required and there were seats available on all trains. The following two websites will list the cruise ships in Flam on any particular and if seats are available on the train.
http://aurlandhavn.no/en/cruise/skipsanlop-2012/
http://www.flambooking.com/booking.aspx
The railway station in Flam is only 100 metres from the harbour and the booking office opens at 08:15. Our ship berthed at 07:45 and I was at the station at 08:00 to find twenty five people ahead of me. Within a few minutes the queue had doubled in length, so get there as early as possible. An adult return ticket from Flam to Myrdal costs 360 kroner. Myrdal is only a railway junction and we stayed on the train and returned to Flam on the next departure.
Dermot
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We will arrive in port (Alexandra Quay Pier) at 08:00 on Sept. 8 and sail at 23:00 on Sept. 9. We will have just 1 overnight away from the ship.
Hi Colleen,
Your plan to visit Powerscourt and Glendalough, presumably on the Saturday, seems fine. A useful resource for planning your journey, and assessing distance and travel time, is the Automobile Association (AA) Route Planner:
http://www2.aaireland.ie/routes_beta/
So that leaves Sunday to consider. One suggestion, which may be way off the mark, would be to attend a racehorse meeting. Horse racing attracts a wide cross section of Irish society and with its colour, noise and excitement would be in total contrast to the monasticism of Glendalough. There is a race meeting at the Curragh, in County Kildare just west of Dublin, on Sunday 9 September. It states on the Curragh's website 'Europe's top fillies compete for Group 1 glory in the 40th Moyglare Stud Stakes, while the Most Stylish ladies compete in the Newbridge Silverware Search for a Style Icon competition.'
Another possibility would be to visit the pleasant, small city of Kilkenny which is 71 miles from Glendalough: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kilkenny
Kilkenny Castle is one of its attractions: http://www.kilkennycastle.ie/en/
I offer these two suggestions for your consideration, Colleen. If neither is what you are after please let me know and I will put my thinking cap on again.
Dermot
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may I ask your advice for a 2 day driving trip from Dublin? We will have an overnight in Dublin giving us 2 days to explore the countryside. We have visited Ireland several times on independent driving tours and have booked a car. Could you recommend an itinerary? We are considering Powerscourt and Glendalough but what else might we see? We have been to Newgrange and found it fascinating. Our plan is to overnight at a B & B.
Hi O C M,
Sorry if I'm being dense, but could you kindly clarify how long you are staying here. Do you arrive and overnight in Dublin, and then have two full days, with two more nights in B & Bs, to explore the country? Or, after Dublin, are you only spending one more night here? This will determine how far from Dublin it will be practical for you to travel.
Dermot
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I want to see the countryside as well as experience the culture.
Hi Nancy,
Let's take the above as our starting point and work from there. Historic Glendalough, and the Wicklow countryside, is definitely worth seeing. Of course, what the weather will be like on the day you are here is in the lap of the gods.
Cruisetimetables.com lists the Grand Princess as being in Dublin on April 18 from 08.30 to 20.30. If this is correct, I am assuming that the coach tour will last from around 10.00 to 15.00. In that case your four hours in the city will be from 15.00 to 19.00. Please let me know if this is not the case.
Do you know where the coach drops you off in the city centre after the tour? Coming from Wicklow, I assume it will be in the St Stephen's Green area. So I would suggest that you go first to the National Museum of Ireland which is a five minute walk from Stephen's Green. Admission is free and it is much more interesting, in my opinion, than paying to see a page from the Book of Kells in Trinity College. The Museum closes at 5pm. This would give you time to pay a quick visit to the National Gallery, also free and just around the corner, and walk through its Irish collection rooms. The Gallery close at 5.30pm.
For your final hour in Dublin, I would suggest that you go to Duke Street, five minutes away and just off Grafton Street, and people watch while having a relaxing drink in the fashionable Bailey or Davy Byrne's pub. If you are lucky you may be able to snaffle an outside table on the pavement. Then get a taxi back to the ship.
Well, that's my two-penneth worth. Please let me know if you have any queries.
Dermot
Dublin Questions?
in British Isles/Western Europe
Posted
Hi,
The Celtic Whiskey Shop is located within an eight minute walk of the main entrance to Trinity College where most cruisers pick up the HoHo bus. You can either walk there directly or take the HoHo bus and get off at stop 7, St. Stephen's Green.
http://www.dublinsightseeing.ie/cityTourStop7.aspx
Dawson Street runs from the Trinity College library entrance, which is just around the corner from the main entrance, to St. Stephen's Green. The whiskey shop is situated at the St. Stephen's Green end of Dawson Street, across the road from the Mansion House, the official residence of the city's Lord Mayor. The HoHo bus goes down Dawson Street, and passes the shop, but the nearest stop is St. Stephen's Green. The bus driver will direct you where to go if you need assistance.
My normal Christmas present for my brother-in-law is a bottle of 12 year old Jameson Irish whiskey from the Celtic Whiskey Shop. As well as Irish whiskey, they also have a decent selection of Scotch whisky, Cognac and Armagnac.
Dermot