Top ten mistakes tourists make in Ireland

I absolutely love Ireland and its people. Going back for the 13th time in Dec. and can't wait. I fly into Shannon, and have gone to Clare, Galway (Clifden area), Kerry, and Donegal. I criss-cossed into No. Ireland and saw some beautiful villages. Ireland had a day of mourning where everything was closed after 9/11. Our own country didn't have that. Shame!

I always tip a bartender in Ireland even though its not expected.

There are alot of American tourists that give all the rest of us a bad name, we're not all like that. I have to admit that I left tips in the pub though.

Be very careful of Cars for Hire of Rent-a-cars. They add on hundreds of Euros if you are not careful. And they are usually franchises, so there is no joy in calling Hertz or Avis,etc.

You don't really have to preface a county name by saying the word county....People get that if you say Mayo or Clare or Donegal you mean the counties. Saying 'County' is always a dead give away to me.

I learned the hard way about the weather. Wasn't suppose to be but one day of VERY high winds and cold rain/one day of it being cold like winter. And driving.....there aren't house numbers and street signs. And driving through the country side....signs are often turned by the kids as the Irish warned us. But still a most beautiful country to visit.

My biggest mistake as a tourist in Ireland? Coming Home!

Bank of Ireland has many crazy rules. Best to avoid whenever possible. Not just 100 dollar bills, but also travelers cheques. There is usually an optional bank to choose from. Graydon is correct about Crossmaglen, not to be missed. Stop in at Murtaghs off the square.

Don't tip the bartender? Hmmm.

@ GeorgeDillon --- Dublin is good. It's cosmopolitan, has great museums, music, history, all that. But you have to get out of Dublin. Go west. County Donegal. Ennis in County Clare. The Dingle peninsula. The west of County Cork. So much more, too. And, like JBeePhotography says, the north of Ireland is lovely, from Derry to the northeastern coast of County Antrim down to Crossmaglen. Not to be missed.

@ MotherIrish --- "both Irelands"??? Did you mean Dublin and the West? Surely you didn't mean the north of Ireland and the Republic. While what eiregirl and Nicoletta say is correct, there nonetheless is a strong (albeit complicated) sentiment favoring the reunification of Ireland. English government is alright, but it belongs in England.

I was in Ireland last year. Drove from Dublin to Letterkenny. Used my IPad for navigating. Worked great. Just take snapshot of each section of the trip & store on IPad.

JimmyM - same goes for Cokes & for heavens sake, don't ask for iced tea. Just is not going to happen unless you get a large glass of ice only and a pot of tea and make your own. Change about 100 Euros at an airport ATM to get you around the first day then ATM from then on. Have a Credit Union in the States that uses Cirrus and you get really cheap fees on the ATM. We found lots of then around. Same for Pounds Sterling. Folks in both Irelands were really neat folks but I have to agree the N.I.'s were nicer and a lot fewer 'foreigners'. Holiday Inn Express in Dublin near airport was ALL Europeans and Asians - not one local did we meet there. Trust the Garmin GPS. May seem like you are going in circles but it is the lay of the land not the GPS. What ever you do, take the low road and not the high road. In other words, stay off the main freeways and take the byways. We found so many great things on the 'low' road. And enjoy!!!

Many parts of the North feel more Irish do do many parts of the South. Plus they've had a pretty normal rate of immigration there, not like the South where there are often more foreigners than Irish. Downtown Dublin is now maybe four to one foreign migrants over Irish.

Don't know if its still valid, but I took $100 bills to the Bank of Ireland to exchange and they refused to take them (they wouldn't accept anything larger than a $50). Wound up having to exchange them at the hotel desk and they would only take two per day.