Moving to Blessington

Splums

My husband and I will be moving to Blessington from Brittany in France in the next month or so.

We have three children (2,4 and 7) and are a bit out of our depth on finding out stuff to do with the kids, meeting people and transport around the area.

Anyone local to the area who can give me some insight into living there?

I'm going to be learning to drive and the house we've been looking at is by the lakes, I've been getting really confused on buses around there - do any of them have stops along the lake specificically near Humpreystown?

Appreciate any advice!

Thanks

Sara

fussyonion

I lived in Blessington for ten years and what I will say is it's a strong community.

Everyone knows each other (in a nice way) and they all stop and say hello when you're out and about.
It's a really close-knit community, yet welcoming to tourists and blow-ins.

You've got plenty of pubs in the town-I won't name them all, but the West Wicklow House is a real family orientated pub with lovely food, live music and a good atmosphere. They even organise fun days too, especially for Patrick's Day and for the annual Hillbilly Tractor Run (event where modern and vintage tractors drive through the town).
They do Sunday lunch which is busy with families but they're very friendly in there; I reckon you'll like it.

A lot of the pubs organise events to include the locals; be it quiz nights or traditional music...a night out in a Blessington pub is really lovely.

You've got Aldi and Dunnes, SuperValu, Centra and plenty of other shops...cafe, a few hairdressers, hardware, churches, schools, chemist etc.

I would consider it a lovely place to live, but the bus which runs through, the 65, is not very frequent; it's every hour on a Sunday, which might not be an issue for you, but for someone used to a bus every ten-fifteen minutes, waiting an hour is a nuisance.

I'm not familiar with Humphreystown, but the 65 goes through Blessington and Ballymore Eustace too.
Living by the lakes will be wonderful for you.

There's Avon Ri, a leisure resort, which also does food and has live music.
You can take your children there if they fancy orienteering, canoeing, abseiling, etc.

I can 100% recommend Veronica Kilmartin of Orchard School of Motoring if you're going to be learning to drive.

She was my instructor and she was the most patient, most friendly, kindest funniest woman I'd ever met.
She made driving a pleasure and she was so reassuring.

She's had 98% pass rates and she's always busy. She even came with me to my driving test, free of charge, which was beyond the call of duty, and I passed my test first time.

All in all, it's a really nice place to live.

If there's anything else you need to ask, feel free, but I'm only au fait with Blessington-not Humphreystown or Dunlavin or anything.

convert

With regards to public transport: I just took a look at the map as to the rough area of where Humphreystown is. If googlemaps is to be believed, the closest that a bus would go to the area is the Tougher Petrol Station, near Poulaphuca. It's about 4km from Humphreystown. Not every 65 bus goes to Ballymore, it's every second or third bus, which means it's not very frequent, and you'd also have to have a means of getting from the house to the petrol station.

Ash.J.Williams

i believe the 65 bus does one run to ballyknocken (serving humphreystown) in the morning for school and workers and one in the evening....a car is vital.

kuro_man

Blessington is a cycling mecca, so an alternative way to meet people and see the local environment (and coffee shops!) is www.reservoircogs.ie

LXFlyer

The only bus that serves the lake by Humphreystown is the Dublin Bus route 65 to/from Ballyknockan which is exceptionally limited, operating on Monday to Friday only - no service at weekends.

Buses from town: 05:30 and 17:30
Buses from Ballyknockan: 07:00 and 19:30

Other route 65 buses operate between Dublin and Blessington, and those denoted with a "b" in the timetable are extended south along the N81 and turn right before Poulaphouca to serve Ballymore Eustace. However, I would stress that they both are a substantial distance from Humphreystown.

Full timetable is here: http://dublinbus.ie/en/Your-Journey1/Timetables/All-Timetables/65/

Splums

Thanks so much for the info.

Am definitely planning to sort out my driving licence asap, as I think relying on public transport is a bit out of the question.

kuro_man, I'm a very keen cyclist so will have to get in touch with the club when we arrive. How safe is it to cycle with kids around there? I have two bike seats for my kids which I usually use (2 year old front and 4 year old back) but I was thinking that a trailer would be better there - mainly because of the chance of rain and ease of use?

homeOwner

We are considering relocating to Blessington this summer and we are wondering about Primary (and Seconday) schools in the area.

I think we are going to be near Lacken, and I see there is a primary school there, is it any good?

I can't find any reference to secondary schools in the town, except for the community college.

Any info really appreciated.

Ash.J.Williams

homeOwner wrote: »

We are considering relocating to Blessington this summer and we are wondering about Primary (and Seconday) schools in the area.

I think we are going to be near Lacken, and I see there is a primary school there, is it any good?

I can't find any reference to secondary schools in the town, except for the community college.

Any info really appreciated.

yes i believe it's a good school, beautiful area, i would love to live there.

Ash.J.Williams

Splums wrote: »

Thanks so much for the info.

Am definitely planning to sort out my driving licence asap, as I think relying on public transport is a bit out of the question.

kuro_man, I'm a very keen cyclist so will have to get in touch with the club when we arrive. How safe is it to cycle with kids around there? I have two bike seats for my kids which I usually use (2 year old front and 4 year old back) but I was thinking that a trailer would be better there - mainly because of the chance of rain and ease of use?

i'm not a member of the club but it really seems to be growing and growing!

homeOwner

Ash.J.Williams wrote: »

yes i believe it's a good school, beautiful area, i would love to live there.

We are taking a trip to the town this weekend to have a look around. I see there is a cycle club there, my husband will be delighted!

I am used to "city living" :P a bit daunted about the propect of moving outside Dublin (silly I know). The kids would love it with the lake and all.

Is the town safe in the evening/night?

Ash.J.Williams

homeOwner wrote: »

We are taking a trip to the town this weekend to have a look around. I see there is a cycle club there, my husband will be delighted!

I am used to "city living" :P a bit daunted about the propect of moving outside Dublin (silly I know). The kids would love it with the lake and all.

Is the town safe in the evening/night?

unfortunately you can only look at the lake, unless you avail of the hotel facilities in blessington...it's the most dangerous lake in the country, i wouldn't even dip my toe in it!

homeOwner

Ash.J.Williams wrote: »

unfortunately you can only look at the lake, unless you avail of the hotel facilities in blessington...it's the most dangerous lake in the country, i wouldn't even dip my toe in it!

You mean polluted?

Ash.J.Williams

No it's clean as a whistle, fresh liffey water runs through it, it's a flooded farmland, so all the little potholes and hedges, bridges and trees are still under there, also the odd building and chimney top, wire and fencing. Fair few drownings. The locals stay well away. As i mentioned the hotel provide watersports, and provide safety equipment and supervision.

homeOwner

Ash.J.Williams wrote: »

No it's clean as a whistle, fresh liffey water runs through it, it's a flooded farmland, so all the little potholes and hedges, bridges and trees are still under there, also the odd building and chimney top, wire and fencing. Fair few drownings. The locals stay well away. As i mentioned the hotel provide watersports, and provide safety equipment and supervision.

Just saw this thread :eek:
http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2056036243&page=3

Ash.J.Williams

homeOwner wrote: »

Just saw this thread :eek:
http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2056036243&page=3

yeah i lost a friend in there....tis creepy for the locals alright. Just stay out of it and enjoy the walks and view!!

homeOwner

Ash.J.Williams wrote: »

yeah i lost a friend in there....tis creepy for the locals alright. Just stay out of it and enjoy the walks and view!!

Sorry about your friend.

There goes my ideas of a daily swim before breakfast!

Ash.J.Williams

homeOwner wrote: »

Sorry about your friend.

There goes my ideas of a daily swim before breakfast!

looks nice though!!

the avon ri have a full range of lake activities, canoes kyacks etc

kuro_man

Splums wrote: »

Thanks so much for the info.

Am definitely planning to sort out my driving licence asap, as I think relying on public transport is a bit out of the question.

kuro_man, I'm a very keen cyclist so will have to get in touch with the club when we arrive. How safe is it to cycle with kids around there? I have two bike seats for my kids which I usually use (2 year old front and 4 year old back) but I was thinking that a trailer would be better there - mainly because of the chance of rain and ease of use?

The club run 2-3 road groups of varying ability every Sunday morning, with a emphasis on inclusiveness and participation rather than competition/performance. We also have a mountain bike group. Check out the facebook page (search Reservoir Cogs) for more details.

You'd probably ok on the smaller local roads with the usual precautions, but I personally would avoid the busy N81 (main road to Tallaght) with a trailer.