Train From Dublin to Cork

Dgriff

Can anyone tell me how much a same day return ticket is from Dublin to Cork if I buy it in the station? I cant buy it online (no money in the account but I have cash). It's €66 online. Is it much more expensive buying the ticket at the station? Thanks.

n97 mini

http://www.railusers.ie/passenger_info/fare_calc_2013.php?station_from=HSTON&station_to=CORK&stage1=Submit

Hilly Bill

Dgriff wrote: »

Can anyone tell me how much a same day return ticket is from Dublin to Cork if I buy it in the station? I cant buy it online (no money in the account but I have cash). It's €66 online. Is it much more expensive buying the ticket at the station? Thanks.

Its in around €75

_Kaiser_

Hilly Bill wrote: »

Its in around €75

Slightly O/T but that's just crazy money.. I can do the trip in about 2 hours from Dublin and it costs me roughly €30/40 in diesel + tolls.

LeftBlank

Kaiser2000 wrote: »

Slightly O/T but that's just crazy money.. I can do the trip in about 2 hours from Dublin and it costs me roughly €30/40 in diesel + tolls.

That assumes you own a car and have a license.

_Kaiser_

LeftBlank wrote: »

That assumes you own a car and have a license.

Yes but there can't be any justification for almost double that for the rail option other than inefficiency and stupidity/greed.

OP I'd get the bus rather than the train if that's the price they want. Same journey time (more or less) and there's a lot of good feedback here on the coach options.

Losty Dublin

Kaiser2000 wrote: »

Slightly O/T but that's just crazy money.. I can do the trip in about 2 hours from Dublin and it costs me roughly €30/40 in diesel + tolls.

In that case why don't you give him a lift?

_Kaiser_

Losty Dublin wrote: »

In that case why don't you give him a lift?

That assumes we were travelling at the same time, plus the risk of having a random stranger in the car for 2 hours!!

Plus I have a very wide taste in music that not everyone might enjoy - everything from 80s pop to classic rock to current-ish chart and some dance stuff.

Losty Dublin

Kaiser2000 wrote: »

That assumes we were travelling at the same time, plus the risk of having a random stranger in the car for 2 hours!!

Plus I have a very wide taste in music that not everyone might enjoy - everything from 80s pop to classic rock to current-ish chart and some dance stuff.

I'm sure you can do him a good turn and both can have a sing song as a compromise

foggy_lad

Dgriff wrote: »

Can anyone tell me how much a same day return ticket is from Dublin to Cork if I buy it in the station? I cant buy it online (no money in the account but I have cash). It's €66 online. Is it much more expensive buying the ticket at the station? Thanks.

Luxury coach between dublin and cork is a good alternative to the train. Only 3hours each way. It's also much cheaper at about €22 return for GoBé from busaras and tickets are available from the ticket machines in the bus station.

Baneblade

the closer the time to the departure the dearer the ticket. more then a week in advance and its €20 each way

Richard Logue

foggy_lad wrote: »

Luxury coach between dublin and cork is a good alternative to the train. Only 3hours each way. It's also much cheaper at about €22 return for GoBé from busaras and tickets are available from the ticket machines in the bus station.

The term "luxury" is subjective. Can't bring a hot drink on board and you better not need the toilet if the bus doesn't provide one on board.

bk

Richard Logue wrote: »

The term "luxury" is subjective. Can't bring a hot drink on board and you better not need the toilet if the bus doesn't provide one on board.

Well Foggy mentioned GoBE, all of which provide a toilet and there is nothing stopping you brining a hot drink onboard. The GoBE coaches even have flip down tables with a cut out for a coffee cup holder.

Paying 4 times more for the train with pretty much the same journey time is madness IMO

Btw the train is actually €43 return (don't forget to include the online booking fees) if booked 7 days in advance. Still over double the cheapest bus ticket of €18 if booked one day in advance.

Con Logue

bk wrote: »

Well Foggy mentioned GoBE, all of which provide a toilet and there is nothing stopping you brining a hot drink onboard. The GoBE coaches even have flip down tables with a cut out for a coffee cup holder.

Paying 4 times more for the train with pretty much the same journey time is madness IMO

Btw the train is actually €43 return (don't forget to include the online booking fees) if booked 7 days in advance. Still over double the cheapest bus ticket of €18 if booked one day in advance.

For me, sitting in a bus contemplating Newlands Cross and points south is also madness, but hey, whatever cranks your shaft.

There's room for more than one mode of transport and this place shouldn't always be about a pis sing contest by bus enthuasiasts against the railway.

Steoob

And dont forgot the luas fair to and from Heuston. Aircoach drops you on bacholers walk, 22 euro return.

Con Logue

Steoob wrote: »

And dont forgot the luas fair to and from Heuston. Aircoach drops you on bacholers walk, 22 euro return.

All fine and dandy if cost is your main consideration. Thankfully we live in a country where right now Ryanair isn't the only airline, TV3 the only channel on television, Lidl isn't the only supermarket, Dutch Gold isn't the only beer and the bus is your only option for public transport.

bk

But Con, what do you get for your extra money?

I've been taking the train to Cork for 10 years, now I've switched to the bus.

Personally I find the bus actually more comfortable, much quieter, smoother ride, more comfortable leather seats that recline, lights turned off at night so you can sleep.

And of course I'm saving a fortune, about €1300 a year!!

Btw Ryanair is great, not fancy but will get you there cheap. Lidl is great too, you should try some of the master pieces some of my Polish and Spanish friends cook up with food bought in Lidl. Dutch Gold.... Yeah far enough

Con Logue

bk wrote: »

But Con, what do you get for your extra money?

I've been taking the train to Cork for 10 years, now I've switched to the bus.

Personally I find the bus actually more comfortable, much quieter, smoother ride, more comfortable leather seats that recline, lights turned off at night so you can sleep.

And of course I'm saving a fortune, about €1300 a year!!

Btw Ryanair is great, not fancy but will get you there cheap. Lidl is great too, you should try some of the master pieces some of my Polish and Spanish friends cook up with food bought in Lidl. Dutch Gold.... Yeah far enough

All valid points but I will never switch mode. I can tolerate the Aircoach from Dublin to the airport but not a four hour journey.

Did Ryanair for three years going over and back between Dublin and Bristol and after hours of my life queueing an hour and a half before a flight, unless my hand was really forced I would never do it again.

As for Lidl, I'm an Aldi man myself

bk

Con the Aircoach to Cork takes just 3 hours.

Hilly Bill

Im sure the Op only wanted to know the walk up fare. The argument over the train or the bus on the Cork route has been done to the death at this stage.

Hilly Bill

Kaiser2000 wrote: »

Slightly O/T but that's just crazy money.. I can do the trip in about 2 hours from Dublin and it costs me roughly €30/40 in diesel + tolls.

Thats the return fare. Can you do cork and back in 2 hours for 30 to 40 euros plus tolls?

foggy_lad

bk wrote: »

Con the Aircoach to Cork takes just 3 hours.

You are also far less likely to see dutch gold and those consuming it by the 6 cans for €5 pack on the bus! The bus is quieter and far more relaxed than a bustling noisy train with children screaming parents and others talking loudly on their phones and drunks falling around and into your lap.

Richard Logue

Hilly Bill wrote: »

Im sure the Op only wanted to know the walk up fare. The argument over the train or the bus on the Cork route has been done to the death at this stage.

I think you can guarantee that if anyone starts a thread about travelling to and from Cork by train one or two particular individuals will always try and derail* the thread by arguing that the O/P should travel by bus regardless of the fact that the argument over whether a bus or train is a *better* way of travelling between Dublin and Cork has indeed been done to death at this stage...

* Yes I know!

bk

In fairness if someone does ask about getting from Cork/Galway/Limerick/Belfast to Dublin, it is only fair to mention the bus as an option too. Perhaps they aren't aware of it, many of them are relatively new services.

In the end it will be up to the op to decide what best suits them, armed with all the relevant info.

Losty Dublin

bk wrote: »

In fairness if someone does ask about getting from Cork/Galway/Limerick/Belfast to Dublin, it is only fair to mention the bus as an option too. Perhaps they aren't aware of it, many of them are relatively new services.

In the end it will be up to the op to decide what best suits them, armed with all the relevant info.

Except they didn't ask for the bus price, they asked for the train price.

bk

So what you are saying Losty, is that it is better not to tell people of a way to potentially saving themselves €53

That is very kind of you!!

Losty Dublin

bk wrote: »

So what you are saying Losty, is that it is better not to tell people of a way to potentially saving themselves €53

That is very kind of you!!

Fair play to you; now here's a medal :rolleyes: It's thoughtful of you to assume that he actually wants to travel on the bus in the first place. Not all of us likes or suits bus travel for many reasons so each to their own and let him be; he asked a question and he got his answer.

Richard Logue

Losty Dublin wrote: »

Fair play to you; now here's a medal :rolleyes: It's thoughtful of you to assume that he actually wants to travel on the bus in the first place. Not all of us likes or suits bus travel for many reasons so each to their own and let him be; he asked a question and he got his answer.

I know you love buses bk but you do come across as a hard core anti rail campaigner in some of your posts.

markpb

Richard Logue wrote: »

I know you love buses bk but you do come across as a hard core anti rail campaigner in some of your posts.

It's okay though because you, Con and Losty will always be guaranteed to come along and tell him why buses are horrible things and remind us that not everyone likes them. Foggy gave the OP a second option, the anti-bus crew rolled in to fix the problem and bk cane along to defend it. It's predictable as anything but bk is far from the only culprit.

Con Logue

markpb wrote: »

It's okay though because you, Richard and Losty will always be guaranteed to come along and tell him why buses are horrible things and remind us that not everyone likes them. Foggy gave the OP a second option, the anti-bus few rolled in to fix the problem and bk cane along to defend it. It's predictable as anything but bk is far from the only culprit.

How very dare they!

Richard Logue

markpb wrote: »

It's okay though because you, Richard and Losty will always be guaranteed to come along and tell him why buses are horrible things and remind us that not everyone likes them. Foggy gave the OP a second option, the anti-bus few rolled in to fix the problem and bk cane along to defend it. It's predictable as anything but bk is far from the only culprit.

It's a disgrace, Joe.

Victor

Con Logue wrote: »

For me, sitting in a bus contemplating Newlands Cross and points south is also madness, but hey, whatever cranks your shaft.

There's room for more than one mode of transport and this place shouldn't always be about a pis sing contest by bus enthuasiasts against the railway.

Decorum would be nice.

But you have a point. So folks, less of the 'county jersey' behaviour.

Moderator

Victor

bk wrote: »

Well Foggy mentioned GoBE, all of which provide a toilet and there is nothing stopping you brining a hot drink onboard. The GoBE coaches even have flip down tables with a cut out for a coffee cup holder.

I was on the 1630 GoBÉ Dublin-Cork yesterday.

Five minutes late leaving Busáras turned into 25 minutes late at Cork.

Only 35 passengers, which suggests not everyone is sold on the low price. Interesting that lot of people were showing up with Bus Éireann tickets.

BenShermin

Here's all the relevant Irish Rail "walk up" fare info for the OP:

http://www.irishrail.ie/index.jsp?p=118&n=197&a=266

As a matter of interest, how did you know the GoBÉ passengers were using BÉ tickets Victor? Any GoBÉ tickets bought on the day from the BÉ ticket office in BusAras would be printed on BÉ ticket roll.

foggy_lad

Victor wrote: »

I was on the 1630 GoBÉ Dublin-Cork yesterday.

Five minutes late leaving Busáras turned into 25 minutes late at Cork.

Only 35 passengers, which suggests not everyone is sold on the low price. Interesting that lot of people were showing up with Bus Éireann tickets.

Would you say that those with bus Éireann tickets had missed the 4pm bus or do you know if that 4pm bus was full? Were they allowed on the GoBé service?

From stories of posters here the aircoach service is rarely late.

BenShermin

Mixed opinions on timings from GoBÉ myself. However I understand it is road transport and I'm more forgiving then I would be with train delays. Yesterday's 1230 Dublin to Cork bus was delayed 10mins, however Monday's 1630 Cork to Dublin bus was 10 mins early.

In my overall experience clearing Dunkettle outbound and the North Quays in Dublin is quicker than the south quays and Dunkettle inbound. I think both Aircoach and GoBÉ should give themselves 3hrs 30mins on Friday evenings from Dublin.

Aircoach in my experience are woeful at keeping time. If the coach is toiletless then a 15 minute delay at Urlingford is almost inevitable. At least any delay to GoBÉ will be traffic related.

Hilly Bill

single to cork e62 day return e73.50 open return e79.50

Losty Dublin

Victor wrote: »

I was on the 1630 GoBÉ Dublin-Cork yesterday.

Five minutes late leaving Busáras turned into 25 minutes late at Cork.

Only 35 passengers, which suggests not everyone is sold on the low price. Interesting that lot of people were showing up with Bus Éireann tickets.

Ah Shure Victor, it was the fault of us, ahem, anti bus posters. Yes, I let the air out of the tyres on the bus, Richard stood in front of the bus several times en route to slow it down while Steamengine tampered with the odometer.

I'm sure the full catering facilities on the bus was of some solace to the passengers on board

Hilly Bill

bk wrote: »

So what you are saying Losty, is that it is better not to tell people of a way to potentially saving themselves €53

That is very kind of you!!

that would only true if the op had asked what the best option was but they didnt.

Fred Swanson

This post has been deleted.

BenShermin

Losty Dublin wrote: »

I'm sure the full catering facilities on the bus was of some solace to the passengers on board

I'd fully agree with you if the catering was of any value on the railway. Since Network Catering stopped operations both value and quality took a nosedive IMO.

markpb

Hilly Bill wrote: »

that would only true if the op had asked what the best option was but they didnt.

How about letting the OP decide what is relevant to them?

Richard Logue

markpb wrote: »

How about letting the OP decide what is relevant to them?

This thread is turning into an amateur dramatic clubs interpretation of "Entertaining Mr. Sloane"

bk

Victor I'm surprised the GoBE arrived in so late. I've never been on either an Aircoach or GoBE that arrived in more then 20 minutes late and that includes Aircoach with their Urlingford toilet break stop and I normally take peak time services ex-Dublin.

Most have been pretty much on time within 5 minutes give or take.

The number of passengers on GoBE I think is more of an indication that for some reason people still aren't choosing it over Aircoach. The 4pm Aircoach two weeks ago was totally full (and it wasn't a special weekend for any reason). I don't know why, maybe lack of awareness of GoBE or the slightly higher price or perhaps the out of way location at Busaras. I think it might be the location.

You know I find it amusing that people call me a hardcore bus supporter!!

Up till about two years ago I was a big fan of rail (and still am), I only ever took the train to Cork as I thought that the bus was too slow and uncomfortable, which it was.

Then I once took the Citylink bus to Galway for a weekend away and it was an epiphany! I saw how great a very modern comfortable bus on a smooth motorway with a direct, non stop service could be.

And now I have a similar service to Cork and as a regular commuter to Cork, it has been a revolution for me. I can now travel to Cork regularly for a fraction of the cost of the train and at times that suit me (I often take the late night buses back from Cork).

It has had a significant positive impact on my life. I now get to see my family and friends far more frequently. I can pop down to Cork pretty much on an hours notice if I hear there is something interesting going on. It really has been the best thing to happen to intercity public transport in years.

The ironic thing is I'm still a big fan of rail, I think it is absolutely vital for city mass transit and commuter services. I've been a major fan of Dart Underground and Metro North for years as my posting history on this board will show.

The funny thing is that in some ways I've been pushed into coming across as being a hardcore bus fan by the many hardcore rail fans on here. I have seen so much fear, uncertainty and doubt being spread by rail fans on here, claiming that the bus is far less comfortable or slower then it actually is, that I feel like I have to defend it against such attacks.

I wonder if any of these rail fans have actually ever taken any of these new modern coach services as the claims they make about it are no way reflected in the experience I've had with it over the last year. I wonder if they attack it so much as it is such a danger to the thing they love or perhaps the company they work for.

To be honest I wonder if many even ever commute to Cork,Galway,etc. on the train, never mind the bus. I rarely see many of them ever mentioning been on these trains or give feedback on the services and some of the issues they have. I often wonder if they are just fans or employees of rail, but don't actually use these services. Much like the WRC.

I'm not a fan of bus or train. What I am is a fan of is public transport. I see the bigger picture, I don't care if it is a tin box riding on metal or a tin box riding on tarmac. I want to see more people use public transport, I want to see public transport be affordable and frequent and meet the needs of the people.

Dgriff

Thanks for all the replies, even though a lot of them weren't directly replying to my opening post. Actually, there were 3 of us travelling. Me, my wife and our 6 year old daughter. I got a family return for €99. I thought that was a good deal. Our final destination was Cobh. I asked the same guy who gave me the ticket if I could buy the Cork - Cobh trip from him. He said "gimme that ticket back" and printed another ticket making Cobh the final destination, no extra charge.

becost

Kaiser2000 wrote: »

That assumes we were travelling at the same time, plus the risk of having a random stranger in the car for 2 hours!!

Plus I have a very wide taste in music that not everyone might enjoy - everything from 80s pop to classic rock to current-ish chart and some dance stuff.

Sounds like a right old hootrnanny. When are you going down next?

bk

Dgriff wrote: »

Thanks for all the replies, even though a lot of them weren't directly replying to my opening post. Actually, there were 3 of us travelling. Me, my wife and our 6 year old daughter. I got a family return for €99. I thought that was a good deal. Our final destination was Cobh. I asked the same guy who gave me the ticket if I could buy the Cork - Cobh trip from him. He said "gimme that ticket back" and printed another ticket making Cobh the final destination, no extra charge.

That was excellent value so. Specially as you were travelling with your family, being able to share a table was probably nice.

However I do have to question the craziness of Irish Rail, how on one hand it would cost one person €75, yet 4 people can travel for just €99!

foggy_lad

Dgriff wrote: »

Thanks for all the replies, even though a lot of them weren't directly replying to my opening post. Actually, there were 3 of us travelling. Me, my wife and our 6 year old daughter. I got a family return for €99. I thought that was a good deal. Our final destination was Cobh. I asked the same guy who gave me the ticket if I could buy the Cork - Cobh trip from him. He said "gimme that ticket back" and printed another ticket making Cobh the final destination, no extra charge.

That is good value. There is a promotion on at the moment where many family ticket prices are reduced to €99. The normal price of your family ticket would be over €140 to cobh and extra for the luas from the city centre.

Victor

BenShermin wrote: »

As a matter of interest, how did you know the GoBÉ passengers were using BÉ tickets Victor? Any GoBÉ tickets bought on the day from the BÉ ticket office in BusAras would be printed on BÉ ticket roll.

I was sitting in the second row on the coach and could overhear the conversations between the driver, passengers and BÉ inspector. Most of those presenting the wrong tickets appeared to be people who didn't have English as a first language, although one person had a wrong GoBÉ ticket

GoBÉ won't take BÉ tickets, but BÉ will refund people who have just bought a BÉ ticket, presented it to GoBé and show people how to get a GoBÉ ticket.

foggy_lad wrote: »

Would you say that those with bus Éireann tickets had missed the 4pm bus

I don't think so. These people seemed to be arriving in ones and twos after the bulk of people had boarded

foggy_lad wrote: »

do you know if that 4pm bus was full?

I don't know.

foggy_lad wrote: »

Were they allowed on the GoBé service?

Only when the inspector had swapped their tickets for GoBÉ ones

foggy_lad wrote: »

From stories of posters here the aircoach service is rarely late.

Unless it can fly over the traffic from the Red Cow to the M9 junction at Naas, I'm not sure if there are any guarantees on a Friday afternoon.

My experience has been that Aircoach have been 5-10 minutes late on each occassion.

bk wrote: »

Victor I'm surprised the GoBE arrived in so late. I've never been on either an Aircoach or GoBE that arrived in more then 20 minutes late and that includes Aircoach with their Urlingford toilet break stop and I normally take peak time services ex-Dublin.

Friday afternoon traffic with a large number of people who didn't know how to deal with queing traffic.

For example, here: http://binged.it/151t3Zi most drivers were going from the auxiliaary lane on the main carriageway to the right hand lane, whereas if they alternated beteen the two lanes, things would have gone much more smoothly. Then on the N7, lots of people were engaging in unnecessary lane changes and braking.

BenShermin

Victor wrote: »

GoBÉ won't take BÉ tickets, but BÉ will refund people who have just bought a BÉ ticket, presented it to GoBé and show people how to get a GoBÉ ticket.

The funny thing here is that the GoBÉ ticket would actually be cheaper than the BÉ ticket.

bk

Victor, on a Friday I normally get the 5 or 6 ex-Dublin, so maybe traffic is a bit quieter by then then the 4 or 4:30 and so less effected by it.

The slowest I've ever been on is 20 minutes late and the fastest is 15 minutes early. And that often included the Aircoach Urlingford stop, so I assumed GoBE who don't have this stop would be faster. It sounds like confusion over tickets and slower boarding lead to part of the delay.