1

. can you rent a car in Belfast and take it into the south without a problem
Yep

. are car rental prices pretty much the same whether you rent from Belfast or Dublin
Not a lot in it to be honest as far as I can see

. are we better off making the reservation from home (Canada) or when we get there
Advance reservations almost always attract a discount, so do it in advance

. do rentals usually have "unlimited kilometeres/miles" as part of the package
Almost always, yes.

. we won't need a car in Belfast while we are there and if we rent from Dublin, we'll then have to get ourselves there and won't need a car until we leave Dublin
Definitely agree. Take the bus between the 2. Highly efficient service. See http://www.buseireann.ie/inner.php?id=246 or http://www.translink.co.uk/Services/Goldline/Routes--Timetables/All-Timetables/

. is there anything important than I haven't asked -- other than, any good local hire companies
Yeah, a few bonus pointers.

1) Fuel prices. Current price of a litre of gas in Toronto is $1.159, which is 0.73 GBP or 0.90 EUR (Ireland uses the Euro, UK does British Pounds, denoted as GBP). Such prices would make your average European dribble, a lot, because we pay considerably more. Current prices in Belfast are £1.319 a litre (so as near as makes no difference double - source: http://www.consumercouncil.org.uk/cost-of-living-consumer-tips/fuel-price-watch/#th4_belfast) whilst in Dublin it's around €1.559 a litre - again, roughly double).

2) Most people drive stick. If you're used to automatics, book your car in advance to make sure you get an automatic car.

3) Drink driving is even more rigidly enforced in the UK and IE than it is in Canada - be careful, even if it's the morning after the night before.

4) Distances are miles in the UK, kilometres in Ireland.

5) If using the M50 motorway near Dublin, barrier free tolling now applies. Your number plate will be recorded and you have to pay before 8pm the following day to avoid a fine. See http://www.eflow.ie/ for more info.

6) Hiring a UK plated car and dehiring it in Ireland is possible but would likely attract a penalty; another good reason for dumping one car in Belfast and picking up another once you've finished touring Dublin.

For hire car co's, consider Avis, Europcar, National, Hertz, Budget. All are legit big companies, and helpfully all of them have desks at Belfast international airport if it helps at all.

2

Thanks, Fwoggie, for all the great info. The only thing that has me a little confused is about the "replating" thing. If we rent a car from Belfast will it not be readily accepted when re cross in southern Ireland. Do we need to do separate car rentals for north and south? Sorry -- I think i missed something there.

3

It will be accepted - you can dehire it anywhere - in Greece if you wanted, but you're likely to attract a penalty charge because you're dehiring it in a different country. It would be built into the initial quote on the website though, so all above board and up front.

To see what I mean, try getting some quotes for both hiring in N Ireland and dehiring car #1 in N ireland (plus the same again down south in the Republic for a separate car #2), then get a quote for hiring in N Ireland and dehiring in Dublin (because you could tour (South) Ireland first before finishing in Dublin for a few days there right at the end) and see what the difference is. Chances are it would be more expensive, but you're going to have to do a spot of research to check, that's just my gut feeling from experience :-)

NB: Don't call the Republic of Ireland South Ireland (unless in the South region of Ireland and explicitly referring to that particular area), they get offended, just call it Ireland.

4

Thanks again -- we call it a "one-way rental" so I clued into that once you gave me the example. My experience has always been that "one-ways" are quite pricey and not usually worth it. I will check rentals from both Belfast and Dublin and make that decision. Someone also mentioned to me a "local" (Dublin -- I think but it could have been both) car rental company but the name escapes me. Any reason you didn't mention any local rentals?

5

No reason, I'm just not familiar with them. Been 11 years since I lived in Waterford and travelled around the whole place.

6

'Someone also mentioned to me a "local" (Dublin -- I think but it could have been both) car rental company but the name escapes me.'

Just Google 'Cheap car hire Ireland' and that'll give you the best deals in seconds. Otherwise, brilliantly covered by @#1, @#3 and @#5.

7

You may also find that you will need to pay a "cross-border" insurance supplement if taking the vehicle out of NI into the Republic. Allow say £25. It is paid locally usually and may not be easily seen in the T&Cs.

Usually you are better booking in advance and particularly during peak periods.

Also check on supplements for second drivers if that may be your wish.

R

.

8

'You may also find that you will need to pay a "cross-border" insurance supplement'

Not doubting your post at all, but I have hired cars in both Belfast and Dublin and crossed the borders in both directions. i have never had to pay any insurance supplements for doing so.

9

Thanks to all for all the great info. I'll be making other posts and hope they are as informative.

10

#8 - I am afraid it is very common certainly if booking in NI. It was often absorbed by the companies but recently in order to get the cheapest ratings on comparison sites such as Holiday Autos and Argus for instance these are now locally paid supplements. Our experience is regular trips via Belfast when we will undoubtedly be visiting the border areas of Fermanagh.

R