How do I get there?
Depending on your starting point there are several options...planes, trains and automobiles, and ferries, of course...

Planes:
Aer Lingus is Ireland's national airline and has many routes from all over the world into Ireland, short haul and long haul.
RyanAir is an Irish owned company which offers several routes into Ireland. This was Ireland's first low-cost airline and still operates on a no-frills basis.
AerArann is another Irish owned company which is quickly gaining a strong foothold in the market. They offer many routes into Ireland and are competitive with Aer Lingus.

For other airlines that service Dublin Airport, Ireland's main airport, log into the Dublin Airport website where there's a full listing, including BMI Baby, British Airways, Delta Airlines, Continental and more.

Trains:
While you can't get to Ireland on the train, you can use a train to get to a ferry port or airport. In the UK, British Rail is the way to go, or National Rail.

Automobiles:
Check out our dedicated pages for car hire and rules of the road.

Ferries:
Stena Line between Holyhead and Dun Laoghaire and Dublin Port, both in County Dublin. Stena Line also travels between Fishguard and Rosslare Harbour in County Wexford. Stena Line offers two basic types of travel--the superferry, which take about 3.5 hours and the fastferry, which is about 99 minutes and usually only runs in the summer. The fastferry is a catamaran so it's often cancelled in bad weather and high winds. The superferry is a slower ferry, but there are many on-board amenities to help pass the time.
P&O Ferries also offers passage between Larne in County Antrim in Northern Ireland to Troon and Cairnryan, both in Scotland.
Irish Ferries offers passage between Dublin and Holyhead, and Rosslare Harbour and Pembroke, both in Wales. Also passage between Rosslare Harbour and Cherbourg and Roscoff, both in France.
Norfolk Line offers passage between Belfast and Dublin to Liverpool, both in England.

For other routes, check out Direct Ferries.

Can I book online?

The most popular option is to ask a travel agent who can book the airfare from his/her office. They can search rates on their computers, complete the transaction and issue tickets right from the desk.

But, it's certainly possible to book your own fares. The most important thing to remember is to allow yourself a minimum of 3 hours for connection times. Using the list of airlines and ferries above, you can use them to compare rates and book directly with the airlines.

Note: With today's upgraded security measures, be sure to book connections with airlines on a partnership scheme, as most airlines will NOT automatically connect your luggage. To get automatic connection between non-partnered airlines, all of your fares must be on the same ticket, which means you may be better off going through a travel agent. Speak with your local agent and get a quote on fares before booking. Compare them with the online fares. And be SURE to ask for any additional booking fees which may be added onto your total.

One option for booking through a travel agent is to look for a "consolidator". These are travel agents that book passage to Ireland, and other countries, on discounted tickets. Savings can be substantial, but there are stipulations, such as no air-mile claims and weekday travel, that must be discussed before booking. But be sure to ask your agent, and compare these rates with the online booking agents to find the best fares. Online booking services can also offer consolidated fares.

Research is the key!

What is the public transportation like?

Public transportation in Ireland can be as good as you make it. There are several forms of transportation.

In Dublin:
Dublin Bus is Dublin City's main bus service. These coaches are normally blue and yellow double-deckers and have routes are available all over the city center and the greater Dublin City area.

Dublin City Bus Tour is the city's original famous city tour and is operated by Dublin Bus. Other out-of-city tours are also operated through Dublin Bus, taking passengers up or down the coast.

The DART (Dublin Area Rapid Transit) is Dublin's original commuter train. It was styled on the rail service in San Francisco, the BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit). The DART travels from as far south as Greystones, County Wicklow north along the coast through several towns to Dublin City (three stops in the city) and along to Howth.

There is a DART spur from Connelly Station that now travels as far north along the coast as Malahide.

The LUAS is Dublin's light rail system. There are currently two lines: The Red Line travels from southwest of Dublin in Tallaght into Connelly Train Station in the city; The Green Line travels from southeast of Dublin into St Stephen's Green. Both lines have several stops along the route.

Down Country (everywhere outside of Dublin):
Iarnród Éireann, also known as Irish Rail, is Ireland's national crosscountry rail service. The train connects between most cities and major towns. The service and routes of Irish Rail in no way equal the service and routes of British Rail or other continental rail services so it's not a very good way to plan your holiday. But it will get you between most cities more timely than the bus.

Bus Eireann is Ireland's national crosscountry bus. The bus connects almost every town and village in the country so is your best form of public transport to get you deep into the countryside. Unfortunately, as widespread as the bus travels, it may not travel to every town and village every day. You may find there is only one or two journey's planned per week. If you opt to plan your journey based on public transportation by bus, be sure that your itinerary is flexible enough to justify using this form of transportation.

Córas Iompair Éireann (CIÉ) is the parent company for Bus Éireann, Iarnród Éireann and Dublin Bus. You can access their parent site at CIE Group. CIE offers many choices for tours around Ireland.

Northern Ireland:
Ulster Bus is Northern Ireland's national bus service. These coaches are normally light blue and white, and have routes all over Northern Ireland.

Goldline Bus is the inter-urban express coach services which give the Northern Ireland public greater choice and frequency on services which link together the main towns and cities across Northern Ireland.

The Metro is Belfast's city bus, with fares all over the greater Belfast area.

Northern Ireland Railways, also called New Inspired Rail Service, is Northern Ireland's national rail service, and has dozens of stops all over Northern Ireland.

The Enterprise is the flagship service jointly operated between NI Railways and Iarnród Éireann providing eight journeys in each direction Monday- Saturday and five journeys in each direction on Sundays.

Translink is Northern Ireland's national bus and rail company and operates all of the above services.