Rip off clare

munstergirl

Went to cliffs last week, good afternoon out, thought if the car park had been less i might have spent € on coffee, lunch.
Car park isn't even in good condition.
Did have nice lunch in lahinch €21 for fish + chips + irish stew, 2 cokes felt like i got a bargain paying normal prices. Was lovely think place was called spinmaker near beach.

matt007

Luap, love your points.
Rip of Clare.
How much syphoned off the Ennis Info age. And we still have ****e broadband to this day.
Look at the new buildings CCC have built themselves as well.
I would not be allowed to build a small flat roof extention to my home as it would not be "in keeping" with it's surroundings, but "is that the Lynchs" with a huge oriental dome affair near the showgrounds.
I'm sure it's a lovely house, but my gosh it's far from "in keeping"
And to those of you who say "high horse", why not read the title of the thread for goodness sake, isn't that the point.. duh!
Oh and I've had more impressive stallectites of snot from my nose than that All-Wee Cave.
Mind you. I would ride that "sofa of death" ride up at Father Teds again. Well worth a quid.

Here's a thought, charge everyone entry into Clare, "all inclusive" like Benidorm.. "Help yourselves kids.. it's all Free!"

Run_to_da_hills

beargrisley wrote: »

speaking of the cliffs.......perhaps this has been mentioned but i was there 3 weeks ago and what i saw beats it all.

do ya know the telescopic viewers they have set up? towards the left hand side of the cliffs??? well anyway,it says on the viewer 1euro is required to use it......and as you read on further it says for 2 euro you will get an extended view!!! now i thought so WTF do you actually get for the 1euro?? eh:eek:.....like am i missing something here or what??
i saw one of the viewers wrapped up,someone may have broken it in fraustration when it stopped working....
the country is a joke!

For 5 euro you get an xxx.view

goat2

finbarrk wrote: »

Ah What are ye ranting about the Cliffs of Moher for? It's only €8 for a car. That could be less than €2 each. FFS if ye consider that expensive ye shouldn't step outside the door.

i have been to the cliffs of moher this weekend, paid 8 euro for car and two of us, we loved it there, loved the whole coastline of clare, spent last 3 days travellling clare, great campsites, i should think best in this country, i saw many of them, they are fantastic, everywhere we ate the food was great, bed and breakfast acommodation was wonderful, greeted by the owners of the b and bs all very friendly interested in helping us, know the areas well as they reside there all irish ladies, great welcome by all, and prices brilliant, breakfasts were fantastic, well fed for the day ahead, i will be back again

geem

Clare is beautiful, great place for walks. Haven't been ripped off much although I didn't appreciate the rolls from the deli in Fanore. Supposed to be ham, cheese and salad. Dry bread, no butter, no dressing, a couple of lettuce stalks, tiny bit of tomato, see through cheese and see through ham (literally) - over eleven euro and a 15 minute wait for them as well.

dermothickey

Over 11 euro for a sandwich :eek:

anthony4335

And you actually handover 11 euro, for a roll. No wonder they charge these prices, when no one complains they must think that it is fine. I didn't even pay that for a roll and coke in geneva airport, although the makers of the roll may have gone to the same school, no butter, light on ham etc...

dermothickey

Hungry or not I would of handed it back to them and bought a loaf of bread, ham, butter, cheese and a bag o taytos

geem

anthony4335 wrote: »

And you actually handover 11 euro, for a roll. No wonder they charge these prices, when no one complains they must think that it is fine. I didn't even pay that for a roll and coke in geneva airport, although the makers of the roll may have gone to the same school, no butter, light on ham etc...

2 rolls actually, the price was pretty average for these baquette type- it was the contents I am complaining about. We didn't discover the poor contents until we were many miles away.

CptSternn

dermothickey wrote: »

Over 11 euro for a sandwich :eek:

Thats Platform 5 prices!

Sandwiches there at the Limerick Station also are like a tenner and have little to no content for that price.

luap_42

geem wrote: »

2 rolls actually, the price was pretty average for these baquette type- it was the contents I am complaining about. We didn't discover the poor contents until we were many miles away.

That's still €6.50 per baguette. I can get a massive meal sized tuna-spice baguette for €4.25 at one our local petrol stations or tuna salad and the works in whatever you like at our local bakery for about €4. And it's damn tasty too. Just drive down to Miltown Malbay.

Parts of Clare are going the way of those fecking horse & trap bar stewards in certain parts of Kerry. Maybe they all got jobs in CCC.

penexpers

Just back from a week in Clare and my two biggest rip-offs were

Sonas cafe in Doolin : 5 euro for a bap with a tiny amount of ham and cheese in it, 3 euro for a coffee and 2.50 euro for a coke.

Seaworld in Lahinch : 25 euro for 2 adults + 1 child and we were finished in 10 minutes.

Mr. G

penexpers wrote: »

Just back from a week in Clare and my two biggest rip-offs were

Sonas cafe in Doolin : 5 euro for a bap with a tiny amount of ham and cheese in it, 3 euro for a coffee and 2.50 euro for a coke.

Seaworld in Lahinch : 25 euro for 2 adults + 1 child and we were finished in 10 minutes.

Seaworld is honestly way too expensive, I hear ennis pool is cheaper..

dugganindeep

Nicely said. the west coast is well served by cliffs that were not built by Clare Co. Council.
There is a facebook page for fans of the Cliffs of Moher (As opposed to the visitor center page)

dugganindeep

The Telescopes are owned by a brother of an ex Shannon Development executive. need we say more. The center director is just back from a junket to america. Keep going to the cliffs, they need your money.
The fan page for real fans of the cliffs is on facebook.
Have your say.

beargrisley wrote: »

speaking of the cliffs.......perhaps this has been mentioned but i was there 3 weeks ago and what i saw beats it all.

do ya know the telescopic viewers they have set up? towards the left hand side of the cliffs??? well anyway,it says on the viewer 1euro is required to use it......and as you read on further it says for 2 euro you will get an extended view!!! now i thought so WTF do you actually get for the 1euro?? eh:eek:.....like am i missing something here or what??
i saw one of the viewers wrapped up,someone may have broken it in fraustration when it stopped working....
the country is a joke!

Palmach

Mr_Grumpy wrote: »

Seaworld is honestly way too expensive, I hear ennis pool is cheaper..

And yet it still loses money. As a poster said earlier they are caught in a bind. Drop the prices for even bigger loses or take your chances with prices as they are. The problem with these centres is the lack of Wow factor. Seaworld is pretty underwhelming. They could have made it 5 times the size and put in some exotic fish.

luap_42

Palmach wrote: »

And yet it still loses money. As a poster said earlier they are caught in a bind. Drop the prices for even bigger loses or take your chances with prices as they are. The problem with these centres is the lack of Wow factor. Seaworld is pretty underwhelming. They could have made it 5 times the size and put in some exotic fish.

When you say Seaworld. I presume you mean the Aquarium, since the pool/gym complex is also part of Seaworld.

To get good value for money in the pool/gym, you need to become a member.

CptSternn

As much as we complain about Co. Clare ripping us and the tourists off, for good reason, at least we don't have it as bad as Galway.

I was looking to go up for a weekend. Turns out, hotels are more than they are in Dublin. And don't get me started on the train prices to Galway - its almost as much as Dublin.

The Dagda

CptSternn wrote: »

As much as we complain about Co. Clare ripping us and the tourists off, for good reason, at least we don't have it as bad as Galway.

I was looking to go up for a weekend. Turns out, hotels are more than they are in Dublin. And don't get me started on the train prices to Galway - its almost as much as Dublin.

And the ridiculous "2 night minimum"!!!!!! :mad:

Mr. G

I think it is fair to point out that County Clare is a wonderful place to see and many people come to visit it for it's features that you can't find anywhere else in Europe (e.g. flowers, cliffs etc..).

In every county there is going to be a few expensive restaurants and hotels, but not every place in Clare is expensive, you can get some bargains in Clare, and I can tell you some of the food is really good!:)

fionav3

luap_42 wrote: »

Regarding the cliffs, there are a few different ways to circumvent the €8 parking charge, but if you have kids, pets or elderly visitors and the weather is bad, then not much use. I never pay the charge, unless there is a big gang of us in a people carrier to split the charge. Why they don't have scaled charges for off-season is beyond me. It surely drives away visitors outside of the high season. I can't see why a €4 charge isn't sufficient for whatever maintenance they have to do, especially with the numbers they get. Or are they just ripping people off because they have the council and therefore the law behind them?

Excellent point. I think the issue most people have with that carpark charge is that it's just ridiculously expensive. The vast majority of visitors to the cliffs are there for an hour or so to just take in the view. I don't think many visit that ridiculous centre which is just a complete eyesore! Most people I know (and I've heard several tourists comment on this) think there was no need for that centre and that the natural beauty and breathtaking views of the cliffs speak for themselves. Just because it's 'modern' doesn't neccessarily mean its better. So essentially, that €8 carpark fee means you are paying for the view. But I digress.

As someone who worked in the hotel industry for years, I can tell you that the big tourist draw counties (Clare, Kerry, Dublin, Galway etc), and indeed Ireland as a whole, need to cop on to what they are charging tourists. It's all very well to whine and say 'but tourism is falling and our tourist season is getting shorter so we need to charge more to make money.' However, tourism is falling BECAUSE this country is just too bloody expensive and visitors are tired of being ripped off. We need to drop our prices in every sense of the word if we have any hope of encouraging tourists back into the country. A hotel I worked in for years had an American couple that had been visiting Clare every year for the better part of ten years because they loved it and had family here. They had to stop because the cost of everything was just too much. Several more tourists were so disgusted at the price of everything that they said they wouldn't come back or reccomend the country. And one tourist who had been to Ireland a few years before thought it had changed for the worse; aside from how overpriced everything was, he said we were spoiling the natural beauty of the country, unique to Ireland, with eyesores because we were trying to cash in on them. He was right. We need to stop ripping tourists off and give them value for money (none of this aying through the nose for subpar food and basic accomodation) to entice them to return. We can cry about the recession and falling visitor numbers to the country till the cows come home but it won't change the fact that greed has put this country where it is today. The boom years saw several changes in Ireland but I'm not so sure how many of them have benefited us in the long run.

benix1

fionav3 wrote: »

Excellent point. I think the issue most people have with that carpark charge is that it's just ridiculously expensive. The vast majority of visitors to the cliffs are there for an hour or so to just take in the view. I don't think many visit that ridiculous centre which is just a complete eyesore! Most people I know (and I've heard several tourists comment on this) think there was no need for that centre and that the natural beauty and breathtaking views of the cliffs speak for themselves. Just because it's 'modern' doesn't neccessarily mean its better. So essentially, that €8 carpark fee means you are paying for the view. But I digress.

As someone who worked in the hotel industry for years, I can tell you that the big tourist draw counties (Clare, Kerry, Dublin, Galway etc), and indeed Ireland as a whole, need to cop on to what they are charging tourists. It's all very well to whine and say 'but tourism is falling and our tourist season is getting shorter so we need to charge more to make money.' However, tourism is falling BECAUSE this country is just too bloody expensive and visitors are tired of being ripped off. We need to drop our prices in every sense of the word if we have any hope of encouraging tourists back into the country. A hotel I worked in for years had an American couple that had been visiting Clare every year for the better part of ten years because they loved it and had family here. They had to stop because the cost of everything was just too much. Several more tourists were so disgusted at the price of everything that they said they wouldn't come back or reccomend the country. And one tourist who had been to Ireland a few years before thought it had changed for the worse; aside from how overpriced everything was, he said we were spoiling the natural beauty of the country, unique to Ireland, with eyesores because we were trying to cash in on them. He was right. We need to stop ripping tourists off and give them value for money (none of this aying through the nose for subpar food and basic accomodation) to entice them to return. We can cry about the recession and falling visitor numbers to the country till the cows come home but it won't change the fact that greed has put this country where it is today. The boom years saw several changes in Ireland but I'm not so sure how many of them have benefited us in the long run.

i aggree

CptSternn

I have relatives who for years came to Ireland and would stay in Clare and visit with us for a couple of weeks.

This year, they are going to Dublin and we are going to see them. It's cheaper for them to fly into Dublin and get a room for two weeks, which we all can stay in compared to coming to Clare.

The flights into Dublin are considerably less than the flights into Shannon. Thats odd as its a longer route to Dublin, but for some reason cheaper these days. Thats what you get when you have the DAA running Shannon airport and tacking on all these new charges and fees, at the same time dropping these fees in Dublin.

Five people in one room in Dublin is cheaper than two staying anywhere in Ennis. Pretty much every Dublin hotel has gone the way of the American hotels these days - its no longer per-person-sharing, but you pay for a room, and you can have X number of people in it, depending on the type of room you get.

We are getting one with two queen sized beds and a cot for our son - and its cheaper than any of the four places in/around Ennis by a large margin.

For one night in a hotel in Ennis it is between 120-200 euros for two people, depending on the day of the week. In Dublin you can get a room for about 70 euros a night and that room will hold five people. This is off-season we are talking about as well.

Plus, eating out in Dublin not only offers more choices, but the food is about 30% less (check out Menupages.ie and see what restaurants are charging these days sure).

It's kinda sad.

luap_42

fionav3 wrote: »

As someone who worked in the hotel industry for years, I can tell you that the big tourist draw counties (Clare, Kerry, Dublin, Galway etc), and indeed Ireland as a whole, need to cop on to what they are charging tourists. It's all very well to whine and say 'but tourism is falling and our tourist season is getting shorter so we need to charge more to make money.' However, tourism is falling BECAUSE this country is just too bloody expensive and visitors are tired of being ripped off. We need to drop our prices in every sense of the word if we have any hope of encouraging tourists back into the country.

Excellent point, and for every hike in electricity, oil, gas, wages etc. there will be double that rate of increase by the tourism industry for their product.

If you factor in higher distribution costs, which seems to be always strangling this country, with distribution chains almost dictating prices to certain retailers. Even then, how can a cup of coffee cost almost €4, or a salad roll cost €7? Those are crazy prices charged by people who (as far as I'm concerned) should be well and truly out of business, and good riddance to them.

These businesses represent BAD value for money, therefore when times get tough they have nowhere to go because their strategy is based on charging inflated prices. Look at the supermarket sector, when the likes of ALDI and LIDL are going in the other direction, they clearly have a superior supply chain, and all the others are trying hard to keep up.

We could do with some decent competition in the tourist sector in a bad way. Instead of the looking at how to charge €x, they should be looking at how to reduce costs so that they can charge €x/2... Cups of coffee should not cost more than about €2 and rolls more than about €4 (as they are in non-tourist places) unless they are somthing special.

dr.fuzzenstein

luap_42 wrote: »

Excellent point, and for every hike in electricity, oil, gas, wages etc. there will be double that rate of increase by the tourism industry for their product.

If you factor in higher distribution costs, which seems to be always strangling this country, with distribution chains almost dictating prices to certain retailers. Even then, how can a cup of coffee cost almost €4, or a salad roll cost €7? Those are crazy prices charged by people who (as far as I'm concerned) should be well and truly out of business, and good riddance to them.

These businesses represent BAD value for money, therefore when times get tough they have nowhere to go because their strategy is based on charging inflated prices. Look at the supermarket sector, when the likes of ALDI and LIDL are going in the other direction, they clearly have a superior supply chain, and all the others are trying hhttp://uk.biz.yahoo.com/21092010/389/watch-new-computer-scam.htmlard to keep up.

We could do with some decent competition in the tourist sector in a bad way. Instead of the looking at how to charge €x, they should be looking at how to reduce costs so that they can charge €x/2... Cups of coffee should not cost more than about €2 and rolls more than about €4 (as they are in non-tourist places) unless they are somthing special.

Ah yes, but you're forgetting:



































Wait for it!





































This will explain everything!











































Really!



















































Ireland is different!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
(Bwahahahahahahahahaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)
Yes it is different, it's a gombeen run hellhole that soon will be broke and run by the IMF because it ruined itself through greed and stupidity and the tourist sector, who still has time to learn from the mistakes the government made, refuses to learn and adopts a course that it KNOWS will fail and can only fail!
Thankyou, goodnight, you've been a great audience, I'm outta here, putting my house on the market and moving to a civilised country while I still get more than a fiver for my house.

/edit
And Shannon Airport can be laid to rest in the same mass grave, I guess we simply have to accept that Clare is a housing estate for Galway and Limerick with negligible native industry besides a few B&B's.

User Friendly

Can you edit that post???????

golfball37

Does Rip off Ireland really exist?

The Guinness test says it all. Every pint of Guinness for all markets is brewed at St James gate in Dublin.

Why [taking into account transport & distribution costs, excise etc] does a pint of Guinness cost more in Ireland than it does anywhere else in the world on average?

User Friendly

golfball37 wrote: »

Does Rip off Ireland really exist?

The Guinness test says it all. Every pint of Guinness for all markets is brewed at St James gate in Dublin.

Why [taking into account transport & distribution costs, excise etc] does a pint of Guinness cost more in Ireland than it does anywhere else in the world on average?

In a word........Tax

Balagan

You have found "a civilized country to move to" Dr. Fuzzenstein?

Where, pray tell?

mitresize5

I'm trying to think was I ever more ripped off than I was yesterday in Fanore.

The cafe/deli longside the shop with the post office in it ... Le Toca or something along those lines

€17 for two teas and two slices of cake

still a bit shocked to be honest