Bus Eireann goes just about everywhere

Last weekend I rented a car, but that was because driving was part of the experience.  This weekend I just wanted to get there. And Bus Eireann helped me with that.

Bus Eireann is everywhere–which is kind of handy for the person exploring Ireland.

And, especially if you aren’t traveling on a weekend there really aren’t all that many people on the bus.

Interestingly, while I was on the bus back from Waterford the driver was listening to a debate about which form of public transportation should get an increase in funding to increase the chance of going green (bus v. train).

Sounded like the bus was solidly winning in, at least, that debate.

The Red Bus v. The Green Bus

I didn’t rent a car, but I certainly wasn’t going to walk everywhere (it would severly limit the reach of my expansion).  So, I decided to take the bus.  I went with a hop on/hop off tour that allowed me to go at my own pace through 20+ areas of Dublin.

There are two buses in Dublin that offer similar service.  In one corner we have the Green contender, Dublin Bus Tour.  In the other corner we have the Red and Yellow contender, Dublin Tour.  They have similar name and similar routes (Dublin Tour has 26 stops, Dublin Bus Tour has 23) .  In fact most of their stops are right next to each other. But which one is better?

I decided to find out.

The first day in Dublin I hopped on the first bus I saw, the red one: Dublin Tour.  Dublin Tour includes all red and yellow buses (the red and yellow buses share most of the stops and then each have about 3 distinct stops that only the red or only the yellow bus goes to).  Though they said the bus would arrive every 10 minutes, I found it closer to 20 sometimes.  However, the guides were nice and I was often one of the only people on the bus.

My second day in Dublin I hopeed on the green bus: Dublin Bus Tour.  With Dublin Bus Tour I never waiting more than 10 minutes and a few times the bus had just arrived as I was getting out of a particular sight.  The green bus was much more crowded though.  That being said, I was always able to sit down–but if you want a bus to yourself you’ll want the red/yellow bus.

So who won in my book? On my third day in Dublin I took the Green Bus (if that tells you anything. ).