Tips for Driving in Ireland for Tourists
Are you planning on road tripping Ireland for the first time? Read our guide on everything you need to know about driving in Ireland before you go, including tips for driving in Northern Ireland.
Ireland is one of the best countries for a road trip in the world, and places such as Ring of Kerry, Dingle Peninsula, and Sally Gap offer top experiences.
However, driving in any country in the world a traveler visits for the first time can be at the beginning nerve-racking.
Especially if the perfect itinerary has been already planned and the whole journey basically depends on driving around by car.
See our Ireland road trip itinerary for more inspiration.
This was actually our case during our recent trip to Ireland. We knew there was so much to see and do that not renting a car was not an option.
Therefore, we had to mentally prepare ourselves for new road rules, driving habits, speed limits, etc.
Even though Ireland is a fellow European country, some things still caught us by surprise.
And if you're arriving in Ireland from other continents, there are plenty of things about driving in Ireland that every first-time traveler should know.
Some of them are pretty well-known, and some of them surprised us, no matter how thoroughly we prepared for the journey.
This is why we have decided to put together this travel guide full of tips for driving in Ireland.
Here you will find everything we believe you should know before traveling around Ireland by car.
If there is something you have found useful from your own experience we did not mention, feel free to share it with us in the comment section below.
Drive safely and keep on reading.
Renting a car
Well, there's no Ireland road trip without a car, so we'll start with this one.
And unless you decide to take a ferry and bring your own vehicle, we assume your adventure will start at the rental company or even earlier at home when searching for the best deals.
We'll keep it brief as we've already discussed renting a car in Ireland in a different blog post.
As usual, we booked the car last minute, so the selection was not somehow large but expensive. If you want to cut down on your expenses, make sure to book your car well in advance, especially in the peak season.
We chose a regular compact car with full CDW insurance and couldn't be happier with our choice.
While you might be tempted to rent a big SUV, we would recommend you to go with a smaller car this time. You will find out soon enough why.
Spoiler alert.
The roads in Ireland are narrow, and parking spaces are even narrower.
Don't forget that you need to mention during the reservation process that you will travel between Ireland and Northern Ireland if that's what you plan.
Here you will find the best deals on rental cars in Ireland.
Driving Requirements
For residents of the European Union, Canada, and the U.S., having a regular driving license is enough. Obviously, make sure it's valid before you go.
Otherwise, check with your rental company, but you probably should get an International Driving Permit.
Drivers aged 25 and under usually will pay an additional fee for a rental car.
Driving on the Left Side of the Road
So the answer to the most burning question every tourist has is what side of the road to drive in Ireland? In Ireland, they drive on the left side of the road.
If you're American or a tourist from Continental Europe like we are, this is probably the biggest difference you will come across when driving in Ireland.
For some, it takes time to get used to it, while others will need no time to adjust. Either way, always keep left.
Don't forget that the driver's seat will also be on the opposite side, and you will change gear with your left hand (if you select a car with manual transmission).
The whole experience mostly depends on your previous experiences. We lived in New Zealand for a while, so this was nothing new to us.
A general rule of thumb is that practice makes perfect, so don't rush things.
One of our best pieces of advice is to rent a car with automatic transmission so you can fully concentrate on driving and not changing gears.
Being said, changing gears and driving on the left side of the road has never been a problem for me, so we picked a car with a manual transmission as it was cheaper.
If you have never driven on the left side of the road, think about safety first and pay attention to your surroundings.
We picked up the car directly at the airport, and our first steps led us to a grocery store where we stocked up on food.
In your case, this short journey might be a good exercise to get familiar with the car and driving habits of locals.
Otherwise, you will immediately join M1 or M50, major highways where driving is easy.
For a novice, probably the trickiest situations will be roundabouts, especially if they are not common in your country.
Always remind yourself to stay left and drive through the roundabout in a clockwise direction.
To help you stay safe on the road, rental cars in Ireland have a sticker on a dashboard or windshield that will remind you to keep left.
Highways
Ireland's biggest cities are connected by a good highway network making the journey between places such as Dublin, Cork, Limerick, Galway, Dundalk, or Waterfront quick and pain-free.
Driving on a highway in Ireland is usually the fastest way to get from point A to point B.
There are currently 11 toll roads in Ireland - M1, M3, M4, N6, M7/8, N8, N25, East-Link Bridge, Dublin Tunnel, Limerick Tunnel, and M50.
Don't forget that some of the highways in Ireland have tolls.
As we made our way slowly toward the south coast of Ireland, we both realized how good and smooth the journey was every time we joined the highway (M8 and M9 in this case) or any national road.
It's not always been the case, but the major highways in Ireland are really good today.
However, the Emerald Isle is the most beautiful once you leave the busy network of these big roads and start exploring the countryside.
Road Tolls
As we mentioned above, there are 11 highways in Ireland. The good part is that only certain sections of these highways usually charge money.
Let's say you're driving from Dublin to Dundalk and want to visit Bru na Boinne. The toll section is between Gormanston and Monasterboice, which means that you can easily avoid this section.
Just set your route settings in the GPS navigation to avoid toll roads. Don't forget that the fees for using roads in Ireland are fairly cheap.
Therefore, quite often does not make sense to save €2 on the toll as avoiding these sections requires time and money.
So, how do you pay for using a toll road in Ireland?
It's very simple, 10 of these roads have toll barriers meaning that you can either pay by cash or credit card.
M50
The only exception is the M50 that has an electronic toll system. Therefore, there will be no toll booths on this highway.
Instead, you will see purple toll signs marking the paid section of the road overhead.
Once again, the toll section stretches only between Junction 6 (N3 Blanchardstown) and Junction 7 (N4 Lucan).
By the way, M50 is a ring road around the city of Dublin, and it was the first highway we used in Ireland.
And how do you pay the M50 toll as a tourist? The easiest way to pay for the M50 is online through eFlow or in Payzone branded outlets.
For instance, we drove from Dublin Airport to the Wicklow Mountains National Park and Glendalough and stopped at the gas station near Enniskerry to fill up the tank and pay the M50 toll.
Keep in mind that you have to pay the M50 toll no longer than 8 PM the day after your journey. By the way, you can pay even before the trip.
Rural Roads
If you're a fan of driving, then you will have a blast in Ireland. I have to confess that driving on Ireland's rural roads was fun, maybe even more than I'm willing to admit.
However, there are several things you should know about this topic before you go.
As we already mentioned, rural roads in Ireland can be very narrow, so safe driving is essential, especially if you're used to driving mostly on wide highways.
Added to this, there are often stone walls around the road. Sometimes, it feels like driving in a stone tunnel with tons of greenery around you.
On top of that, many of these narrow roads have blind corners without shoulders or road verges.
And meeting a truck, bus, or rural machinery in these spots can be a pretty intense experience.
Some rural roads are super scenic, so it's definitely worth including them in your travel itinerary.
What were some of the best and most fun rural roads in Ireland?
Places such as Mizen Head, Beara Peninsula, or Sheep Head's were definitely among my favorite roads in Ireland.
The inland Priest's Leap road was incredibly scenic, and, for example, Slea Head and Skellig Ring were high on our list as well.
Driving in Towns
One of the most surprising things we found out about Ireland's roads was that they are narrow not only in the countryside but even in the towns and cities.
Therefore, you need to pay attention all the time, and urban areas are no exception.
One of the main factors behind this is that both centers and residential areas of many smaller towns face the same issues as their bigger counterparts. Lack of parking.
Therefore, many regular two-lane roads often have one of the lanes full of parking cars.
In some countries, this would be considered illegal parking, but that's not the case in Ireland (unless you would block the entire road, apparently).
This is not just an issue of smaller towns such as Cobh or Kinsale, but also the large ones.
It requires to have a lot of patience when navigating through these areas, especially during rush hours.
Remember that you must give way to oncoming traffic if cars block your lane.
Getting familiar with the width of your car will help you tremendously on your Ireland road trip.
Parking
Parking in large cities such as Dublin, Limerick, or Cork can be daunting at first. Don't worry. It's not. It's just very expensive.
That's not great news, especially if you're visiting Ireland on a budget.
For tourists, the easiest way to park a car in any city in Ireland is to find one of the designated parking garages.
While it's usually quite expensive, you will save time and potential fees on potential fines.
To make our lives easy, we used Q-Park parking in large cities whenever possible. Most of them had a great central location, and while they were far from cheap, we believe it was money well-spent.
These types of parking are usually safe, and finding them is time-efficient.
Mind you, the parking at Spire in Dublin cost us €37 per day (though we paid less as we received a discount at the hotel).
By the way, parking spaces are also very narrow so having a compact car is an advantage in these situations (or a car with a parking camera).
Street parking in Ireland's town centers' such as Cobh or Kinsale is regulated and is usually free only if you park outside indicated hours.
Otherwise, you have to pay for parking during the day. To pay for the parking, use a parking machine or an app.
If you decide to stay overnight in the city while having a car, booking a hotel with private parking will save you a lot of trouble.
Mind you, European hotels that are located in city centers are not afraid to charge you extra for the parking.
Once you leave the towns and cities, the situation will dramatically improve.
Still, some of Ireland's top attractions, such as Blarney Castle, Cliffs of Moher, or Rock of Cashel, have car parks that charge several euros for parking.
GPS Navigation
Regardless of whether we rent a car with GPS navigation or just use our smartphone to get around Ireland, we never leave without one.
Simply put, modern GPS navigation makes our road-tripping life easier.
Paper maps are not required as Ireland's road signage is very good, though it's better to have navigation that works in the offline mode if you want to visit some remote areas.
As rental companies often charge for navigation, it's better to use an app such as Google Maps, Apple Maps, or Waze you have on your smartphone for free.
Mind you, if you're traveling to Ireland from outside the European Union, you probably will need to get a local sim card with data.
Either way, you should bring a GPS navigation for a road trip.
Road Signs
Honestly, Ireland has very similar road signs to ours, so there wasn't anything that really surprised us in this regard.
Still, you might want to familiarize yourself with the local road signs as it's always better to be safe than sorry.
The road signs in Ireland's Irish-speaking areas that include a text are in English and Irish.
For example, one of the most common road signs you will see pretty much in every corner of Ireland is 'Slow.'
On top of that, this road sign will also include 'Go Mall,' which has the same meaning in Irish.
In many areas, the name of the towns will also be shown in Irish. For instance, Kilkenny is Cill Chainnigh, or Kinsale is Cionn tSaile.
Seeing a bilingual road sign before a roundabout with five or seven towns requires good eyes and reading skills, so it might be better to rely on GPS navigation in these situations.
Speed Limits
Ireland's speed limits are very similar to the rest of Europe. Unlike in Northern Ireland, the speed limits in Republic of Ireland are designated in kilometers per hour (km/h).
The speed limit in towns and cities is 50km/h but can be set even to 30km/h near schools or 60km/h in some urban areas.
Regional roads have a speed limit of 80km/h.
The speed limit on national roads is 100km/h, and the speed limit on highways (motorways) is 120km/h.
We don't have to mention that you should always adjust your speed to the current road and weather conditions to stay safe.
While this advice might seem obvious, it's always smart to stay safe when traveling abroad.
By the way, the locals who know their roads will usually drive much faster than you.
Weather
Most of the year, driving in Ireland is fine. The Emerald Isle has a mild climate, which is convenient for all drivers.
Obviously, Ireland's unpredictable weather can vary depending on when and where you go.
We visited Ireland in May - read our guide on the best time to visit Ireland - and the weather was almost perfect for road tripping.
We lucked out on the weather, but still, we experienced several rainy periods during our journey.
Driving through some of these local spring storms was not always the most fun thing to do, but slowing down did the trick.
In autumn, you should be prepared for some fog and frost (usually November).
Keep in mind that the roads might be icy in Ireland during the winter, and you should have at least some experience with driving in these conditions.
While the snow usually doesn't stick for too long, the low overnight temperatures can create slippery road conditions.
The winter road conditions on major highways and national roads will obviously be less dramatic than on the rural roads in the mountains.
A bit of good advice is to check if your rental car comes with winter tires during this period.
Also, always check the weather forecast, local road conditions, and warnings before you go.
Travel Insurance
We never leave home without travel insurance that was designed to cover our expenses if something goes wrong during the trip.
Travel insurance protects against theft, flight delays, injury, illness, cancellations, and much more.
World Nomads provides travel insurance for travelers to cover their trip essentials, including sports and adventure activities.
SafetyWing is affordable travel insurance for backpackers, long-term travelers, and digital nomads.
Travel smarter and safer!
Livestock on Roads
You've probably seen beautiful postcards featuring the rolling hills of Emerald Isle with herds of sheep grazing on its slopes.
No wonder why. There are about four million sheep in Ireland.
Seeing this picture-perfect scene from the window of our car was an incredible experience.
Meeting sheep (or livestock in general) on the road, not so much.
The remote peninsulas or inland highlands with some of the finest Ireland's scenic drives were also the places where we had to be on a constant look for sheep and other livestock.
Some remote areas, in counties such as Sligo and Mayo, are known for straying sheep on rural roads, and you should pay attention when driving there.
Gas Stations
Almost every town and village has a gas station (petrol stations in Ireland). Therefore, finding a petrol station is not difficult, especially on national and regional roads.
Some highways and N roads in Ireland don't have stations for long stretches, but you will always find one in adjacent towns along the way.
Simply put, we never had an issue finding a petrol station on our trip.
Still, it's better to fill up the gas tank regularly to avoid being stranded in the middle of nowhere.
Prices for petrol in Ireland vary, but the difference was, from our personal experience, marginal.
Looking for cheaper petrol in Ireland is not that important as you would lose time and burn fuel in doing so.
The stations are mostly self-service, which means that you have to fill up the gas tank yourself and pay later at the counter.
Whether you rent a petrol or diesel car, make sure to put the correct fuel in your vehicle.
Driving in Northern Ireland
If you've mastered driving in the Republic of Ireland, then you will have no problems in Northern Ireland whatsoever.
The rules of the road differs only slightly.
The main difference you will notice immediately is that the speed limits will be in miles per hour and kilometers.
Otherwise, you would probably not even notice that you crossed the borders if you didn't pay attention to your GPS navigation.
The speed limit in Northern Ireland is 30mph in the towns, 60mph on two-lane roads, and 70mps on highways.
Also, the distances on the road signs are shown in miles instead of kilometers.
Another big difference is that there are no toll roads in Northern Ireland.
Travel Resources
Here you can find links to all the travel resources we use and which you might find helpful when planning your next holiday.
Accommodation: When looking for accommodation, we usually search hotels via Booking.com or Hostelworld.
Tours: Although we love to travel independently, some places are better to visit with a guided tour.
We prefer GetYourGuide for its easy-to-use interface and solid reputation. Another great alternative is Viator.
Rental Cars: When going on a road trip, we always use Rentalcars.com, a reliable site for booking a rental car in advance.
Flight Tickets: When looking for flight tickets, you can search Skyscanner to find the best price.
Travel Insurance: World Nomads and SafetyWing cover against risks of travel.
