Cyclists or passengers intending to cycle Ireland's greenways will enter the country from either Dublin, Belfast, Cork, Shannon, Knock Airport. 

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The carriage of bikes on aircraft requires proper packing and partial dismantling to allow the bikes to be carried as sports equipment in the oversized luggage facility. 

 

Cyclists will require a place to remove packaging, refit their bikes and store the packaging for their return. I am endeavouring to find bike shops/ companies that could provide this service and I will update the website as I find possible options.

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Dublin Airport

There is no rail access to Dublin airport. With bikes well packaged it is possible to take a bus from the airport to your preferred location, see the Travel/ Road page here. Or take a large taxi from the airport to your desired location.​

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There is a bike storage area on Level 0 in the Short Term Car Park of Terminal One where one could unpack the bikes and make them roadworthy. The packaging can then be brought back to the Baggage Facility within the airport for storage for the duration of your trip. 

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See the YouTube video here of a cyclist providing very useful commentary on how to cycle to/ from Dublin Airport to the outskirts of the city centre. Visit the Rail page here for further details on the main train stations in Dublin. Take a look at the Dublin Port section of this website for some details about cycling to Dublin's train stations. 

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RetroVentures, a company based in Adare, Co. Limerick, provide a very useful and practical solution for cyclists wishing to cycle in Ireland with their own bikes and travelling by air through Shannon, Cork and Dublin airports. RetroVentures will pick you up from the airport and bring you to their premises in Adare Co. Limerick. From there your bikes can be unpacked, made road ready and the packaging stored for the duration of your trip. At the end of the trip you will return to Adare, have the bikes repackaged and transport you and your bikes back to the airport. You will need to contact RetroVentures to book this service in advance, discuss dates and prices. From Adare you will have close access to the Limerick Greenway, Tralee to Fenit Greenway and Killarney cycle routes.

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Belfast Airport

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There are two airports in Belfast: BHD (George Best Belfast City Airport), located just 3 miles from the city centre, primarily serves UK domestic and short-haul flights. BFS (Belfast International Airport), located about 20 miles away in Aldergrove, handles more international, charter, and low-cost flights.

There are no left luggage facilities at BHD or BFS. Stasher.com provide options for storage in Belfast at various locations.

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Cork Airport

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There is no baggage storage facility at Cork Airport and therefore quite difficult for cyclists to prep their bikes and store the boxes/ packaging.  A Limerick based company, RetroVentures, see above, provide an interesting service and resolution to this problem.

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Just googling, I found this entry on Trip Advisor. The Ashley Hotel in Cork were very helpful to cyclists who arrived to Cork Airport. The hotel stored the bike boxes of the reviewers during their stay in Ireland.

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Shannon Airport

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Shannon airport has a left luggage area and charge €20 per week to store a Bicycle Box, see here. 

There appears to be no obvious indoor area to unpack your bikes. It will probably be necessary to do this in one of the car parks. See RetroVentures above, a company in Adare Co. Limerick.

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Ireland West Airport (Knock)

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There is no baggage storage at Ireland West Airport. However Knock Airport Taxis will transport you with either a packed or unpacked bike to your desired location. Westport would be a good starting/ finishing point for your trip. This is the starting point of the Great Western Greenway. Please contact the bike hire companies in Westport for storage of your bike packing bags.

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Help required

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I would encourage cyclists who have come through any of these airports to share their experience with others. Coming to Ireland via airplane ought be straightforward in relation to access to areas to pack/unpack bikes, store packaging safely and also gain access to transport to easily get to train stations or preferred locations to start your trip. 

Also if there are any suppliers who can provide some or all of these services, please use the Contact/ Comment sections to provide information about what you can offer. I will be delighted to post your service here.