Bicycle
Dublin is relatively flat and compact, making it ideal cycling territory. You can zip from one side of the city to the other in double-quick time, and a bike makes the suburbs much more accessible. The city does have a growing network of cycle lanes, especially south of the Liffey, but getting around the centre itself can be a bit of an obstacle course as larger vehicles such as buses and trucks are forced to encroach on lanes nominally reserved for two wheels due to the narrowness of the streets.
There are plenty of spots to lock your bike throughout the city, but be sure to do so thoroughly as bike theft can be a problem – and never leave your bike on the street overnight as even the toughest lock can be broken. Dublin City Cycling (www.cycledublin.ie) is an excellent online resource.
Dublinbikes
One of the most popular ways to get around the city is with the blue bikes of Dublinbikes (www.dublinbikes.ie), a public bicycle-rental scheme with more than 100 stations spread across the city centre. Purchase a €10 smart card (as well as pay a credit-card deposit of €150) or a three-day card online or at any station before ‘freeing’ a bike for use, which is then free of charge for the first 30 minutes and €0.50 for each half-hour thereafter.
Bus
The Dublin Bus Office has free single-route timetables for all its services. Buses run from around 6am (some start at 5.30am) to about 11.30pm. Fares are calculated according to stops.
If you’re travelling within the College Green Bus Corridor (roughly between Parnell Sq to the north and St Stephen’s Green to the south) you can use the €0.50 special City Centre fare.
Nitelink
Nitelink late-night buses run from the College, Westmoreland and D’Olier Sts triangle. On Fridays and Saturdays, departures are at 12.30am, then every 20 minutes until 4.30am on the more popular routes, and until 3.30am on the less frequented ones; there are no services Sunday to Thursday. Fares are €6.50 (€5.20 with Leap card). See www.dublinbus.ie for route details.
Driving
Traffic in Dublin is a nightmare and parking is an expensive headache. There are no free spots to park anywhere in the city centre during business hours (7am to 7pm Monday to Saturday), but there is plenty of paid parking, priced according to zone: €2.90 per hour in the yellow (central) zone down to €0.60 in the blue (suburban). Supervised and sheltered car parks cost around €4 per hour, with most offering a low-cost evening flat rate. Clamping of illegally parked cars is thoroughly enforced, and there is an €80 charge for removal. Parking is free after 7pm Monday to Saturday, and all day Sunday, in most metered spots (unless indicated) and on single yellow lines.
Hire
All the main agencies are represented in Dublin. Book in advance for the best fares, especially at weekends and during summer months, when demand is highest. Motorbikes and mopeds are not available for rent. People aged under 21 are not allowed to hire a car; for the majority of rental companies you have to be at least 23 and have had a valid driving licence for a minimum of one year. Many rental agencies will not rent to people over 70 or 75.
Taxi
All taxi fares begin with a flagfall of €3.60 (€4 from 10pm to 8am), followed by €1.10 per kilometre thereafter (€1.40 from 10pm to 8am). In addition to these, there are a number of extra charges – €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.
Train
The Dublin Area Rapid Transport 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 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 more frequently, from around 6.30am to midnight Monday to Saturday. Services are less frequent on Sunday. A one-way DART ticket from Dublin to Dun Laoghaire or Howth costs €3.25. There are also suburban rail services north as far as Dundalk, inland to Mullingar and south past Bray to Arklow.
Tram
The Luas (www.luas.ie) light-rail system has two lines: the green line (running every five to 15 minutes) connects St Stephen’s Green with Sandyford in south Dublin via Ranelagh and Dundrum; the red line (every 20 minutes) runs from the Point Village to Tallaght via the north quays and Heuston Station. There are ticket machines at every stop or you can use a tap-on, tap-off Leap Card, which is available from most newsagents. A typical short-hop fare (around four stops) is €2.30. Services run from 5.30am to 12.30am Monday to Friday, from 6.30am to 12.30am Saturday and from 7am to 11.30pm Sunday.
