Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Be aware of the potential drawbacks of flying on the cheap: nonrefundable and non-
changeable tickets, minimal or nonexistent customer service, treks to airports far outside
town, and stingy baggage allowances with steep overage fees. If you're traveling with lots
of luggage, a cheap flight can quickly become a bad deal. To avoid unpleasant surprises,
read the small print before you book.
Airports
All direct flights from the US land in either Dublin, Shannon, or Belfast. Cork has become
a handy arrival point as well (via connecting flights from London). If you're offered a
choice and have no interest in sightseeing in busy, congested Dublin, you'll find Shannon
Airport to be a far less stressful entry or exit point into or out of Ireland. Drivers will es-
pecially appreciate getting used to the “other side of the road” around rural Shannon, as
compared to urban Dublin. Be aware that smaller regional airports may have fewer car-
rental offices.
Rick Steves' Ireland 2014
is one of many books in my series on European travel, which
includes country guidebooks (such as
Rick Steves' Great Britain
, covering nearby Wales,
Scotland, and England), city guidebooks (London, Rome, Florence, Paris, etc.), Snapshot
guides(excerptedchaptersfrommycountryguides),PocketGuides(full-colorlittlebooks
on big cities), and my budget-travel skills handbook,
Rick Steves' Europe Through the
Back Door
.Mostofmytitles are available asebooks.Myphrase books—forFrench, Itali-
an, German, Spanish, and Portuguese—are practical and budget-oriented. My other books
include
Europe 101
(a crash course on art and history designed for travelers);
Mediter-
ranean Cruise Ports
and
Northern European Cruise Ports
(how to make the most of your
time in port); and
Travel as a Political Act
(a travelogue sprinkled with tips for bringing
home a global perspective). A more complete list of my titles appears near the end of this
book.