Hi folks, I posted a couple of weeks ago about my intended trip to
Ireland (thread titled "Ireland"😉 and had lots of different
suggestions for areas to visit - I ended in the Burren region, near
the Cliffs of Moher and had a great time!
I did manage to get the sailrail tickets no problem, they took care of
all the bike reservations on the trains too - it cost £26 each way
from any UK station to Dublin (I bought separate tickets for the Irish
train the following day as it was such a long journey) and the bikes
didn't cost any extra. If anybody else is considering getting these
tickets it's worth knowing in advance which trains and ferries you
want to get as the people on the end of the phone don't always come up
with the best option for you - and also they don't seem clued up on
rush hour restrictions on bicycles, the person I spoke to initially
tried to put me and my loaded touring bike on a 7:30am Monday morning
South West Trains service into central London. The journey went well,
the only problem was finding out the ferry was cancelled when I got to
Holyhead, and having to wait ten hours for the next one!
Ireland was great anyway - very windy over there on the west coast but
also very beautiful and the roads are very empty. I took the train
from Dublin to Athenry and cycled down to Doolin from there, where I
stayed for two days. I got equal amounts of rain and sunshine, and
plenty of very strong winds (it was really nice being carried back up
to Athenry by a lovely tailwind) Had to pay 16euro return to take my
bike across the country on the Intercity train, and not all the trains
have room for bikes, but no problems once I got on there and there was
a nice big guards van. Apparently the buses out there also carry
bikes, although I guess that depends on luggage space.
I'd love to go back and probably will, although if I can find a way to
avoid cycling across Dublin I will - the traffic is absolute hell.
If anybody's interested I've written lots more about my trip to
Ireland here: http://bikehippies.blogspot.com/ and photographs here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/orangebrompton/sets/72157594582063260/
cheers all
Helen