Ireland: Top Car Renting Tips to Drive & Get Around (Safely)

Renting a car in Ireland is the best way to explore the country’s stunning landscapes, from the rugged Wild Atlantic Way to the charming streets of Dublin and beyond. But if you’re not familiar with local driving laws and rental policies, it can quickly turn into a frustrating experience.

That’s why I’ve compiled this must-read guide, packed with expert tips to help you navigate the process smoothly.

I’ve rented cars in Ireland multiple times, and I’ve learned firsthand that automatic transmissions are harder to find (and pricier) than manuals. Plus, if you’re not used to driving on the left, certain rural roads can be quite the challenge! Knowing about CDW insurance, one-way rentals, and potential hidden fees can save you from unnecessary expenses. And let’s talk about car rental companies—not all are created equal, so I’ll highlight the most reliable providers and budget-friendly options.

Before you book, you’ll want to understand road tolls, fuel policies, and whether you need an International Driving Permit (IDP). I’ll also reveal insider tricks to avoid common tourist mistakes, such as overpaying for GPS rentals or getting hit with surprise charges. If you're ready to make your Ireland car rental hassle-free, let’s dive in.

Driving in Ireland

One thing you'll quickly notice when you start driving on Irish roads is that the signs are written in both English and Gaelic , in an effort to give credit to the precious language of their ancestors. But there are many other aspects that you'll need to pay special attention to so that your trip doesn't turn into an odyssey. Starting with how to drive on the left!

✓ Where do people drive in Ireland?

There are aspects that separate Ireland from the UK, but one of them is not driving in the right place, e.g. The biggest difficulty you will face when driving in Ireland will be driving on the left , which brings with it a number of issues to consider, these are the most important ones:

The most tense moments will be at intersections and roundabouts , so pay special attention when approaching and especially when leaving, so as not to invade the opposite lane.
You may find it difficult to judge the spaces , I found it particularly difficult to understand how far I was from the left-hand shoulder.
The gear shifter is located in your left hand, but the gears are in the same order. The pedals do not shift.
The windshield wiper and light levers may be moved.

We assume that over the years there have been many tourists who have caused quite a bit of trouble, so you will constantly see arrows painted on the road indicating the direction of traffic, signs that say no , and even others that remind you that you must drive on the left. It all takes getting used to it and we are sure that you will end up getting the hang of it. It is also worth taking a couple of laps around the parking lot before setting off on your adventure.

⭐ You can find more tips like this in our articles on driving in the UK and driving in South Africa .

driving in ireland

✓ Roads in Ireland

The road conditions are generally excellent , especially if we stick to motorways. However, in certain more rural areas, the secondary roads can be narrow, winding and a bit dangerous if you don't drive carefully. This is the case, for example, on the Ring of Kerry, on the Dingle Peninsula (especially through the Conor Pass) or in the Burren, which offer the typical image of small roads bordered by stone walls .

In these cases, where the roads are so narrow that two cars cannot pass at the same time, special hard shoulders have been created from time to time where the other car can stop momentarily to let the other car pass.

There are three types of roads in the Republic of Ireland , marked with different colours:

Motorways or motorways , marked in blue and with the letter M. They can be paid or free.
Main and secondary roads, in green and with the letter N.
Local or regional roads, in white and with the letter R.

As for Northern Ireland , we found that its roads were in even better condition, even those rural roads for example in the area of the Giant's Causeway , where it is a real pleasure to drive. Also, there are no tolls at the moment 🙂

⭐ Here you can find more information about toll roads in Ireland .

map of toll roads in Ireland — *etol.ie*

✓ Tolls in Ireland and the M50 motorway

Some of the main roads in Ireland are toll roads. They are marked in blue and with the letter M for Motorway. However, you don't always have to pay to use these roads, but only when you pass through the so-called " toll plazas " located on certain stretches. These are normal toll plazas, with several lanes, some for those with an auto-toll machine and others for cash or card payments, operated by people. Crossing and paying is not difficult, but keep your card to hand.

Should you have an auto-toll system in your car? If when you pick up your rental car you are offered to activate this service, which allows you to use the automatic toll lanes without having to stop, we would tell you to decline. Simply to avoid further confusion on the final rental bill, taking into account that manual payment is very easy and quick.

As for the price of tolls on the roads in Ireland , we found them to be cheap compared to other countries such as France, Italy and even Spain when they were available. On our route through Ireland and Northern Ireland we passed through several of these toll plazas and we did not pay more than €2.30 at each one. So tolls are not a compelling reason to take alternative routes on secondary roads, which will slow down your journey.

Exceptions are: the Dublin Port Tunnel toll , located between the M1 and the port area in the north of the city, which costs €12 (southbound 06:00–10:00 / northbound 16:00–19:00 Monday–Friday) or €3.50 (all other times); the East Link Toll Bridge in the Docklands area of Dublin with a fare of €2.20 ; and the Limerick Tunnel which costs €2.30.

Remember to get the Revolut card ( with a €10 promo ) to avoid commissions when paying and withdrawing money abroad

Paying for the M50 motorway

There is the Dublin ring road M50 which costs €3.70 and is not paid at toll booths, but works through a different electronic system. At one point on the motorway there are cameras that record the number plates of cars, if you have an auto-toll you don't have to do anything, but if not, you will have to make the payment using one of these methods:

At any gas station in the country that has the Payzone system , indicating the number of times you have used it and your license plate. The attendant will record the payment and give you a receipt. This is how we did it.
Online through the official website www.eflow.ie or with the 'M50 Quick Pay' application , although these methods were inoperative when we made the trip.
By phone calling 0818 50 10 50 / +353 1 461 0122 and paying by credit card.

Important : Normally these payments must be made no later than 8pm the following day, however rental cars have special permits and can be made at any time.

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tolls on ireland roads

✓ Parking in Ireland

In city centres in Ireland, the “pay and display” parking system is often used , limited to a certain number of hours, usually 3, and applicable only during the day (from 08:00 to 18:30 from Monday to Saturday, the rest of the hours are free). If you intend to leave your car for many hours, it is better to look for free park-and-ride parking far away, private car parks or, as a little trick, supermarket car parks for customers (buy an apple…).

These are general conditions, we recommend that you check in advance the system used by each city you visit. For example, in Cork there are no parking meters and you have to buy a "Parking Disc" at a convenience store and scratch it off with the day and time.

✓ Border crossing with Northern Ireland

Are you renting a car in Ireland, crossing the border into Northern Ireland, and you are not sure what to expect? You can breathe easy because there are no customs or border controls , you will simply cross between the two countries without realizing it. The only changes you will notice are these:

The side lines on the road will change from yellow to white .
Signs will be written in English only.
Speed limit signs will be in miles /hour and distances will be indicated in miles and not km. As your car will display the speed in km/h, it is best to memorize the equivalent. For example , the speed limit on airports is 70 m/h (112 km/h), in urban areas it is 30 m/h (48 km/h) and on secondary roads it is 60 m/h (96 km/h).

There is an extra fee you will have to pay to the rental car provider for driving in Northern Ireland. This is a standard fee around the world when visiting countries other than where you picked up the car, and in this case we were charged €34. Can you avoid it? We are not sure, but we did see cameras recording cars accessing the main roads in and out of Northern Ireland.

⭐ More about roads in Ireland .

crossing between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland by road

How to Rent a car in Ireland

Although it is not the only way to visit the country, and in fact it is possible to plan a trip by bus and train, or even by base in Dublin and from there take daily excursions , renting a car in Ireland seems to us to be the best alternative to explore all the charms of the country, in a free and flexible way. But how and where to book the rental car? What aspects should we take into account? Below we will clear up these doubts:

✓ Where to book a rental car?

It is usually cheaper to use a car rental comparison site than to go through the different rental companies one by one. In our case, we used Auto Europe, which offers many alternatives and excellent rates. Cancellation is always free up to 48 hours before departure, although we advise you to read the conditions carefully.

The booking process is simple, just do a search with the dates and pick-up/drop-off location and from all the results, select the one that interests you the most and gives you confidence (it is important to read the reviews on Google Maps). You can also make filters , for example for automatic cars if you don't see yourself shifting with the left, unlimited kilometers, etc.

As for the type of car, if you are travelling as a couple, a medium or even an economy car would be fine , as they are smaller, which makes parking easier and they consume less. If you need more space in the boot, then you will have to choose other larger categories.

Important : rentals are not by the hour but by full days . This means that if you set the pick-up time to 2:00 p.m. and the drop-off time to 3:00 p.m., you will be charged for a full day for just one extra hour. Adjust your schedule to avoid this.

During the booking process you can include various extras and add extended insurance , which will refund the amount charged by the rental company in the event of an accident or damage (up to the limit of the deposit, of course). We always book car rentals with this insurance, as it is much cheaper than the one offered by the company itself and gives us more peace of mind.

Please note that this is a third-party insurance , so the car rental company will block the deposit amount on your credit card. If something happens, you will be charged for the repair costs, which will then be reimbursed by the insurance you have contracted.

car rental in Ireland

✓ Pick up your rental car at Dublin Airport

Most, if not all, rental companies at Dublin Airport are based in a car park just outside the airport , a 5-minute drive away. To get there, there are free shuttles run by the rental companies themselves, which leave from the same stop, as you exit the terminal on the right.

Some agencies have an office inside the terminal itself , where you can go through the paperwork. But it won't be until you get to the car park that you sign the contract and they give you the key. When you have the car, don't forget to check the exterior and interior condition , make a video and take photos of each defect and, if they are not indicated in the report, report it immediately. Do the same when you pick it up if it is with a key deposit without them checking it and giving you the go-ahead.

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To return the car, simply follow the signs for the car rental companies and look out for the signs advertising the company in question. It's worth pinging Google Maps when you pick up the car to find out exactly where to return it. From what we've read, there are companies that offer the possibility of leaving the car at the terminal itself, leaving the keys in a mailbox, for an additional fee.

✓ Can I drive in Ireland with a Spanish license?

If you are Spanish or European, you will only need your country's driving license (not an international license). Those who are from outside the European Union will have to check what agreements exist between both countries, since in some cases the driving license of origin is accepted.

You will also need to bring a credit card in the name of the reservation holder and main driver, with a high limit. This is important because in our case they asked for a deposit of €3,200 and the limit we had was lower. To change it, we had to speak to the bank and we didn't have time.

If this happens to you or you don't have a credit card, you can always take out the comprehensive insurance offered and therefore avoid having to pay a deposit on your card. In many cases, this insurance is even higher than the rental fee and this is where companies make money.

Coastal road in Ireland

More tips for driving in Ireland

Before you go, check out these last tips to help you understand how to drive in Ireland and make renting a car easier:

Don't wait until the last minute to book a rental car because prices can go up quite a bit. You can always cancel.
Gas stations are self-service and the pumps are unlocked. You park, fill up, get in, pay and leave.
The maximum permitted blood alcohol level in Ireland is 0.5 g/l (as in Spain) and in Northern Ireland it is 0.8 g/l.
We used Google Maps and had no problems, in fact in Northern Ireland it changed to miles automatically. But remember to bring a USB cable (not mini USB) so you can plug it into the car.

driving in ireland

Route through Ireland

On our first trip to Ireland we did a 10-day clockwise itinerary, leaving from Dublin and returning after visiting Northern Ireland. If you are interested in doing something similar, here is our 10-day itinerary through Ireland .

Do you now have a better idea of how to drive in Ireland ? Do you now want to rent a car to explore the Emerald Isle at your own pace? Have you already been there and want to tell us about your experience and contribute your grain of sand? Leave us a comment / message.

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