On our most recent trip to Ireland, we had heard rave reviews of the western coast. Our airline, however, only flies into Dublin. Wanting to enjoy the scenery and wildlife the west has to offer, we decided to find a way to get ourselves there. Ryanair proved to be an affordable and convenient method for our trip.

At first, we looked into driving. This was not recommended, as driving in Dublin is a bit chaotic for a foreigner. Then we looked into taking a train. With this solution we would have spent 5 hours traveling. We would have also needed a transfer to a bus before driving yet another hour to our final destination.

Not wanting to spend so much of our precious time off en route, we looked at flights. To our surprise, there was a round trip flight to Kerry from Dublin for just around $100 each through Ryanair. Comparable to the cost of the train option and for far less time, we sprung on it.

Bags and Fees

I had to pay a little extra for a carry on bag, as I had both a purse and a backpack. Make sure to pack light on trips, it ensures the utmost flexibility if plans change.

The flight wasn’t glamorous, but for a short hop, it was more than tolerable. Download the airline’s app to avoid an additional charge for a printed boarding pass. If you understand the rules and read all the fine print to know what you’re getting into, Ryanair can be a real budget-saver.

They had two boarding groups: one for those with a carry-on bag and one for basic tickets. Everyone was quickly scanned through and waited at the steps for the incoming passengers to deplane. We boarded via staircases and were assigned to either the front or back of the plane. One interesting feature of the Ryanair plane was that the stairs and doors auto-close after boarding. This was neat to watch.

Auto-Assign

As standby passengers, we’re used to the occasional middle seat. What we are not used to, however, is being split up and each getting a middle seat on a nearly-empty plane. Be aware that the Ryanair system will assign you to a middle seat automatically unless you purchase seat selection. This turned out to be a non-issue for us, as we each had an entire row both ways.

Overall, I would choose this method of transportation as an expedient and affordable way to make a quick jaunt to a more specific location. It was worth it for us to get out of the city and see more of what Ireland has to offer. I would consider doing a similar thing to see multiple islands in Hawaii or to reach destinations our parent airline doesn’t serve.

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