Dilemma: Cork or Galway

Amtmann

Hi Folks,

I've lucked out and been offered a dream job. The thing is, I can do it in either Galway or Cork. It's completely up to me.

It's a big decision - which city to move to. I lived in Cork for years, and it's old hat to me. I have some friends there, and it's a city I know well. But I can't help but feel that there's no more excitement to be had there; I've walked those streets a thousand times, and many of the people that made it such a great place for me to live are now gone.

As for Galway, I've never been there. Not once. Which (I know) is quite astonishing actually. And I know absolutely no one there.

I'm going to go to Galway some weekend to walk around and see what it's like. But I'd like to ask the folks here for their opinions, too.

The main thing that's putting me off Galway is that I don't know anyone in the city. However, I also see this as a plus - it's a fresh beginning and who knows what's in store if I relocate. However, what's it like culturally? Is it very cosmopolitan for its size, or is it quite homogeneous? I'm not into the pub scene at all; so what are the cinemas, cafes, wine bars and restaurants like? What's the traffic like?

If I move to Galway, I need to be quite close to Dangan. Is that far from the city? Is it a suburb or quite rural? And can someone recommend a nice area to rent in so that I don't spend more than twenty minutes in the car each way getting to and from work?

Thanks in advance for your replies

Das Kitty

On my phone so I'll answer one piece. Dangan is near the university, you can be in town on foot in 20-25 minutes. Plenty to rent on the west side of the city for decent value as well at the moment.

Mrs OBumble

Also on phone ...
Galway rocks. Fantastic culture.

But traffic is bad. Not many wine bars
... pubs are fantastic though, if anywhee can make you like em galway can.

Acoshla

I lived in both, go for Galway.

inisboffin

I love Galway, perhaps disproportionately in terms of work opportunity etc, but if I didn't love it so much I would live in Cork myself.

It really depends what you are into (arts, sports, music etc). Like people have said, Galway has amazing pub life, and is great craic and friendly. Cork, however, seems to have a better café culture, and stuff to do at night other than the pub.

Visit Galway, stay a weeknight and a weekend if you can. You may get d'owl spell put on ya, if you do, we'll see you here

El_Dangeroso

Come to Galway! I'm here!:D

Asmodean

I moved up here for college, from waterford, 6 years ago. Same situation as you op. Had never been here before, knew absolutely noone beforehand.
Finished my degree last year and needless to say im still here! Just fell in love with the place. Its got everything a bigger city has to offer but its kept a real sense of identity.
Dont worry about not knowing anybody either, ive found galwegians to be the friendliest and mental bunch around! Hope this helps.

Straight Talker

If you'd like a smaller town atmosphere pick Galway.If you wan't a mix of small town/big city atmosphere pick Cork both are nicer places than Dublin with friendlier people.In fairness you picked the wrong forum if you wanted unbiased responses.:D Galway is better for the nightlife but Cork has better shopping and cafes and the lovely english market.

KevR

You will have good rent options within walking distance of Dangan (I'm guessing your job is in the Dangan IDA Business Park or in that general area).

NUIG is beside Dangan and has a big gym + a 25 metre swimming pool.

Cinemas: Omniplex in the Galway Retail Park, Eye Cinema in Wellpark Retail Centre and another Omniplex in Oranmore Business Park.

Traffic is bad but it shouldn't really be too much of an issue for you. You are very lucky because there are lots of nice places to live on the same side of town as your job.

WesternNight

Galway is great (says me, biased as all hell)

But seriously, it's one of those cities that isn't really a city (which is a good thing in my book). It has pretty much everything, and it's all within walking distance of everything else.

Traffic is the one thing that can kill the place. But you'd soon figure out where's good and where's a no-go at particular times. Dangan is pretty ideal though for avoiding the worst of the traffic, I think.

I'm not into the pub scene either but there are loads of cafes around. The one thing Galway could do with is more than one late-opening coffee house. There's a pretty good choice of restaurants, though some of the best are a bit hidden away (but they are there!)

In the summer the place is inundated with foreign exchange students. You'll hear the Spanish ones a few miles away. Race week is mental.

If you're into theatre/musical theatre Galway has some pretty high quality societies. Cinemas have already been mentioned. There's also the Connacht Sportsground and the Greyhound racing track just on the edge of town as well if you're so inclined.

Basically, there's plenty to do and it's a lovely city

Amtmann

Really appreciate the replies so far. Great to see KevR and El D advocating for Galway - two posters I've interacted with many times before on other forums

Would Rahoon be a good place to live, traffic-wise and in terms of walking distance to the centre?

KevR

Do you have any particular location in mind for Rahoon?

Some areas in Rahoon would be just within my limit (30 mins) for walking into town; there are other areas in Rahoon which could be a 35+ minute walk into the centre of Galway.

Traffic on the Seamus Quirke road (which leads to Rahoon) can be slow at times. Still though, it shouldn't take 20 mins to get to Dangan even in heavy traffic.

Mrs OBumble

inisboffin wrote: »

I love Galway, perhaps disproportionately in terms of work opportunity etc, ...

OP, just so you know, this is perhaps a very telling comment.

Fair or not, Galway does have a by-line "Graveyard of ambition". This means a variety of things (google it on site:boards.ie if you want to know).

If your new job stops, or you just fancy a change in the future, then (unless you're into medical devices) you may find that the selection of companies is small, and jobs are tightly-held.

Don't get me wrong, like I said before, Galway rocks. I came planning to stay for the one winter, four years later am still here.

But I think you need to hear both sides.

El_Dangeroso

Tremelo wrote: »

Really appreciate the replies so far. Great to see KevR and El D advocating for Galway - two posters I've interacted with many times before on other forums

Would Rahoon be a good place to live, traffic-wise and in terms of walking distance to the centre?

If you're going to move here I'd live closer to town, lived out in the 'burbs when I first got here and although I was living in a nice area, there's no comparison with living 10 minutes walk away. You can pop in for a drink in the city centre on a warm summers day without breaking the bank with taxis (which seem to be more expensive here than anywhere else).

In which case I'd recommend Newcastle (very close to Dangan and town), lower Saltihill or not too far out the headford Rd.

I'd come here for a few days to house hunt if I were you and walk around the town and environs getting a feel for walking distances to various areas.

Amtmann

KevR wrote: »

Do you have any particular location in mind for Rahoon?

Some areas in Rahoon would be just within my limit (30 mins) for walking into town; there are other areas in Rahoon which could be a 35+ minute walk into the centre of Galway.

Traffic on the Seamus Quirke road (which leads to Rahoon) can be slow at times. Still though, it shouldn't take 20 mins to get to Dangan even in heavy traffic.

Thanks Kev. I'm really just looking at labels on Google Maps or names that come up on Daft.ie. I thought that Rahoon would be analogous to Wilton or Bishopstown in Cork - i.e. a smallish residential area. From what you've said, it sounds quite expansive. Believe me when I say that I am clueless about Galway - the names of all the suburbs and streets are completely unfamiliar to me. I have had zero contact with the city in any capacity in the past.

JustMary wrote: »

OP, just so you know, this is perhaps a very telling comment.

Fair or not, Galway does have a by-line "Graveyard of ambition". This means a variety of things (google it on site:boards.ie if you want to know).

If your new job stops, or you just fancy a change in the future, then (unless you're into medical devices) you may find that the selection of companies is small, and jobs are tightly-held.

Don't get me wrong, like I said before, Galway rocks. I came planning to stay for the one winter, four years later am still here.

But I think you need to hear both sides.

Very interesting. The job is with one of the largest companies in the world; lots of remote teamwork involved, and plenty of opportunities to move within the company. So I'm not too worried about that at this point. However, you do make me realize that if I move to Galway, it'll quite possibly be very longterm; and heretofore I'd just been thinking of this move as a bit of an adventure, rather than something possibly lifelong.

beardybrewer

Galway is great, great vibe, and quite cosmopolitan for a town this size (note: not city like Cork but a town). Many people , myself included, have sacraficed better pay and convenience to live here so take the following with a grain of salt:

As someone above mentioned traffic is dire... it took many many years to overcome my rage at how it could come to this (top tip: avail of cycle2work at new job). Day-to-day shopping doesn't stack up (this sounded unimportant to me when I moved but grates over the years.. now i just order everything online). Due to lack of competition in such a small market there are plenty of boom time businesses refusing to let the bubble pop. But some few restaurants and shops woke up to the fact times are different.

Lastly, I've saved the most important bit for last. If you have friends and family in Cork do not underestimate this. Having started afresh multiple times I can tell you first hand... if you are working hard at new job don't expect people to comes knocking on your door as you sit enhausted in your livingroom. There is a great music and pub scene if you get out there and hopefully your officemates are young enough to go for a pint. If this last point matters depends completely on you.

KevR

newkie wrote: »

Lastly, I've saved the most important bit for last. If you have friends and family in Cork do not underestimate this. Having started afresh multiple times I can tell you first hand... if you are working hard at new job don't expect people to comes knocking on your door as you sit enhausted in your livingroom.

I didn't know a single person in Athlone when I moved here (lived in Galway my whole entire life). I'm here 7 months and I have a better social life than I ever did in my 22 years in Galway.

In saying that though, I work for a big company (nearly 1,000 people onsite here) and made new friends through work. If you are working for a small comapany it could well be that there aren't many people your own age working there or not many people with the same interests as you.

inisboffin

JustMary wrote: »

OP, just so you know, this is perhaps a very telling comment.

Fair or not, Galway does have a by-line "Graveyard of ambition". This means a variety of things (google it on site:boards.ie if you want to know).

If your new job stops, or you just fancy a change in the future, then (unless you're into medical devices) you may find that the selection of companies is small, and jobs are tightly-held.

Don't get me wrong, like I said before, Galway rocks. I came planning to stay for the one winter, four years later am still here.

But I think you need to hear both sides.

Yep. Most of what I do is freelance, and yes, I am up and down the M6 in a car or Gobus more often than not. I made this choice though, as I love Galway itself. But a lot of people I know who would find themselves in a similar situation ended up burned out or moving away. It takes a bit of discipline to make it work sometimes. The party never stops here, and that can be a good AND bad thing.

Re social life, quality may depend a bit on your age and size of your new job. You'll have no problem meeting people in your 20s and 30s and if you have a big company, but if you are less pub inclined, and older, it may be harder.

Balancing where to live is tricky, Rahoon is great, and most parts very walkable to town, but further up the hill, while lovely, is a trek in the rain. Rahoon has good community for the most part though.

Shantalla would be a bit closer if you plan on going out more and still want to be not in the thick of town.

snubbleste

As if a thread in the Galway forum would advocate Cork..

WesternNight

snubbleste wrote: »

As if a thread in the Galway forum would advocate Cork..

Shhhhhhh!

hats199

Hello,

I think it depends how long you would be in Cork or Galway for with the new job. I saw this because a town gets smaller the longer you live in it (as you describe walking Cork's streets a thousand times). Unfortunately, Galway is so small that after a few years its painfully tiny.

Galway for me (I'm from Cork) was good for a couple of years, as it was nice to have change of scenery from Cork.

Unfortunately Galway is seriously lacking in anything to do. If you don't like the pub then especially so.Things you took for granted in Cork are non existent here. There are rarely any decent gigs on. There are very few art galleries to visit. There is no art house cinema here, so anything even remotely arty doesn't come to Galway. I've found evening classes to be very poor here, there is hardly any choice. Shopping wise, if you are after anything niche you wont find it here, there's a very limited number of shops.

One of the most unfortunate things about Galway is the weather. Don't underestimate how much it rains here! It pretty much rains every ten minutes for most of the winter. Worse than that, as Galway is right on the coast there is a continuous onshore breeze. So even on a sunny summers day it's really windy and not very pleasant to sit out in.

It's really a tourist city, lots of atmosphere in the summer but pretty ghost townish during the winter.

Of course Galway has it's good points, its very laidback etc, but I think if you feel Cork is limited than Galway would be an out of the frying pan into the fire scenario. I never thought I'd see the day that I'd be looking forward to going to Cork for the weather and shopping and arts!

Best of luck with your job either way.

mikom

hats199 wrote: »

so anything even remotely arty doesn't come to Galway.

Yep.
Not forgetting that Galway has one of the highest percentage of theatre goers in the whole country.

inkwell

Cork is the most ugly and upleasent city I've ever been to. Sorry all Cork people, but that was my experience-awful!

hats199

The arts festival is great, but in fairness there are another 11 months in the year.

Sponge Bob

Work social scenes are complex.

Many 30 something plus work groups have moved out of town once they had kids and now drink local out there bar 3 or 4 pissups in town per annum. So its not like they are bad crack but that getting out in Galway is hassle requiring careful preplanning nowadays. Friday nights are big because they can collect a car late on a saturday morning.

A younger crowd of 20 somethings will all be in Galway and you will be sick of going drinking with them all the time. Thursday nights are big with that group...as is Sunday.

A 20 something in a 30 something plus group is lost the poor thing

Amtmann

snubbleste wrote: »

As if a thread in the Galway forum would advocate Cork..

In fairness, the vast majority of replies have been very measured and, for me, highly insightful.

Mrs OBumble

inkwell wrote: »

Cork is the most ugly and upleasent city I've ever been to. Sorry all Cork people, but that was my experience-awful!

My experience was just the opposite.

I've loved it every time I visited, and would have stopped there for the winter except that a couple of friends from home who where on WHVs had stopped here.

Now I've stayed here from Mr justMary ... but would love to give Cork a go if I thought that moving him within the country was viable (he's self-employed with an established client base ... don't wanna be messing with that too often).

Straight Talker

inkwell wrote: »

Cork is the most ugly and upleasent city I've ever been to. Sorry all Cork people, but that was my experience-awful!

A lot of tourists i talk too like it a lot and there's some lovely views of the sunrises and sunsets from the bridges but different strokes for different folks i guess.Anyway back on topic.:)

xflyer

Never really spent much time in Cork so can't comment, except that it's well known they don't much rate Dubs, which is what I am.

I moved to Galway a few years ago, had no real illusions but was disappointed re the job situation and the traffic. But frankly there is little else to complain about.

At the moment I live in Salthill, I would seriously advice living around here somewhere. Salthill is a cool place to live. There's a village atmosphere yet a bit town vibe. Galway town is literally walking distance away but you don't have to leave Salthill to find a nice pub or restaurant on a summer evening overlooking the prom. You have the sea and the beach and all that. It can be expensive to rent though, but not too much. But it's easily the best suburb to live in.

Before you decide visit Salthill on a weekend and enjoy the atmosphere.

Morgoth

Hey. I grew up in Cork, left after college and have been in Galway for the last 5 years. I live out near the Dangan IDA park where you are looking - in Newcastle. There are some nice estates, and some potential for finding really nice one-off houses out the Moycullen/Oughterard road, even going out to Moycullen itself which is a lovely area to live IMHO and only 8km from Dangan. From Newcastle/Westside, there's an adequate bus service into Eyre sq, which from Newcastle road is 20-30 min walk depending where you are. Dangan is also synonymous with recreation - loads of playing pitches which double up as a park / dog-walking / running location.

I've really loved Galway for the time I've been here, and would consider settling here, but unless your job is rock solid long-term (and I don't know if anyone can guarantee that) it's a big decision settling down especially on the west side of the Corrib. There's very little industry that side of the city. There's quite a bit around Mervue/Ballybrit/Parkmore though (from east-central to east-south), and it's a small city - if you're prepared to cycle all year round, you can avoid the traffic, which is generally very bad from 5-7pm weekdays.

Personally I feel I have to leave, live somewhere else for a while, and perhaps then I'll realise how good Galway is. But I also think Cork has a lot going for it - bigger city centre (I get sick of walking down Shop st every Saturday, trying to find a cafe/restaurant I haven't been to 10 times already), more and better gig venues, the English Market... Also I'd suggest you really think about the friends/family link. I've made friends in Galway but for me the core of the college friends, and family, has always been missing and is hard to replace. Maybe you'd have better success in the new location, and probably depends on your age - e.g. and I'm thinking medium term here, retired parents make a cheap creche but not if they are 200km away.

I think the thing that'd kill me is, if I was in your scenario, and I picked Cork, I'd never know if I would have preferred Galway.

I'm from Galway (county) and living in Cork at the moment. Cork is a nice spot and I do like it but I would move back to Galway at the first opportunity, its a fantastic place and I couldn't see myself really settling down anywhere but Galway city or county.