Sea Transport to Ireland
In Ireland there are two routes into Ireland, Dublin Port and Rosslare in Co. Wexford in the south east of the country.
There is one route into Northern Ireland at Larne east of Belfast.
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Those travelling on sea transport will be either on foot with bikes or carrying bikes on a car or motorhome.
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Those with motor transport are free to drive to any of the greenways, cycling the greenway and returning to their vehicle. Those wishing to stay overnight should have panniers to bring enough belongings for an overnight stay. Be careful to park in a secure car park if leaving your vehicle overnight and do not leave valuable items in the vehicle.
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Dublin Port
Those travelling on foot with bikes through Dublin port will have to get through the city. You will likely be heading to Dublin Heuston Station if journeying to the south or west of the country, see the Rail section of the website. You will be heading to Dublin Connolly Station if heading north-west on the Sligo line or north if heading towards Northern Ireland.
In all cases book train tickets is advance and reserve bike spaces.
Cycling from the port to Connolly station is relatively straightforward as the distance is short, 4 Kms from Dublin Port and there are cycle lanes on most of the journey. Take the route on the North Wall Quay, see Google Maps.
Cycling from the port to Heuston station is more challenging. The distance is very far, about 6Kms but involves cycling through the very centre of the city. Many cyclists commute on these roads every day and there are cycle lanes but the quays in Dublin tend to be very busy with car, truck and bus traffic. Plan your journey carefully and know the route from Google Maps/ Streetview. Do not attempt it with children. Do not stop and leave your bikes unattended. Travel during daylight hours and off-peak if at all possible.
If you cannot cycle through the city and your bikes are not packed and folded then it is not very unlikely that taxis will carry the bikes. The best option is to hire a man with a van. There are many of these services in Dublin. They are generally used for those moving houses or to transport furniture. These require booking in advance. I would recommend booking the service in advance and contacting the service as you arrive in Dublin port. If you decide to use this service then you could ask the driver to take you to Leixlip to start your cycle on the Royal Canal Greenway.
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https://www.irish-delivery-services.ie/
https://www.manwithavandublin.ie/cheap-removals-dublin-man-and-van/
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There is public transport between Heuston and Connolly stations, the Luas Red Line tram, but bikes are not allowed on the trams.
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Rosslare
​The best mode of transport for those arriving on foot with or without bikes at Rosslare is to catch the train to Dublin. The train arrives in to Connolly station where it is possible to travel north on the Belfast line the Portadown to begin the Carlingford Portadown greenway. If using your own bikes it will be necessary to cycle back to Portadown to pick up the train again as there is no rail transport from Carlingford.
Also from Connolly station cyclists can take the train to cycle the Royal Canal. Bikes are not allowed on commuter trains during peak times and most intercity trains do not stop at Leixlip. It may be better to book an intercity train to Maynooth the start your journey.
Those wishing to travel west or south must make their way to Heuston station, see note above about crossing Dublin city.
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Larne
There is a train from Larne station to Belfast Grand Central Station and bikes can be carried on trains in Northern Ireland, see note from Translink. Cyclists can head to Portadown to cycle the Carlingford Portadown greenway.
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Carriage of bikes on trains
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Taking a car to any of the sea ports and carrying bikes or hiring bikes along the way provides the greatest flexibility to cycle Ireland's greenways. This is unfortunate but the restrictions on the carriage of bikes may be somewhat of a concern. Personally, I have never had a problem carrying bikes on trains in Ireland. But I have mostly travelled off-season and off-peak hours. I have always found the rail staff very helpful and I feel that tourists with bikes will be accommodated wherever possible. I asked a conductor, once, what would be the response if cyclists turned up without bookings or if someone else had taken their bike space. His answer was that they would usually be accommodated in the spaces between carriages. The problem basically is that not all trains have separate carriages for bikes and thus there are limited spaces. I will be very interested in hearing the experience of others. Please use the Comment or Contact form to provide feedback. This will be of great assistance to others.
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