Laois: Mountmellick, Abbeyleix etc

r011ingthunder

Hello to all from Laois,
I'm thinking of moving to either the Mountmellick or Abbeyleix areas. Can anyone tell me anything (good or bad) about these towns, and the surrounding townlands? Unfortunately all you ever hear is the bad news (from RTE et al) or the good news (from the likes of www. laois .ie).
What about the real everyday issues?
I'd like to hear what you have to say, so just say it!!!
Thanks,
r011in

Danno

Durrow is nice, quiet and respectable (not saying that the others are not either)

If you have kids, then Mountmellick - the facilities that the MDA have built up for kids are excellent - a great community centre there. Well done to them!

r011ingthunder

Thanks Danno, it's feedback like that I was looking for as our young-fella is 13, and we'd hope he'd fit in well with the local lads.

*marie*

I'd say Portarlington would be best, I moved down here with my family 10 years ago. The town has really developed. It has a new top-class secondary school, a new shopping centre is being built at the mo, brand new playground, revamped tennis club etc. It's easy to get to and easy to get to other places from here. While it's the 2nd biggest town in Laois it still has a nice small-town feel to it.

r011ingthunder

Hi Marie,
Would Portarlington be a long commute to Dublin?
r011in

Danno

Portarlington - Dublin possibly under 1 hour I'd say.

Danno

PS: Get Autoroute or something

even a Map!!!

*marie*

No, it's about 50 mins drive if the traffic is OK. Or 40 mins by train.

TomTom

port would be one of the easies towns to get to dublin from due to its proximity to the motorway.

r011ingthunder

Danno wrote:

even a Map!!!

:rolleyes: Maps don't give route TIMES Danno :rolleyes:
r011in
PS But thanks anyway!

r011ingthunder

TomTom wrote:

port would be one of the easies towns to get to dublin from due to its proximity to the motorway.

Very true, but tbh it's away from the bigger towns I'm trying to get. That's why Mountmellick actually seemed to be so attractive - except for the great big eyesore of the scrapyard!?! Shouldn't he be made to keep the scrap below the level of the walls, and therefore out of public view? Or is he a cigar weilding fat cat who owns the town or something?
Also, on another thread, I saw some people slagging off Mountmellick, why is that? They were going on about smog (of all things)!! Anyone got an explanation?
r011in

TomTom

port is only about 15 - 20 min from tullamore.

Rovi

I'll just jump in here if I may.

When Laois people talk about 'Port,' they usually mean Portarlington, not Portlaoise.

Just in case there are crossed lines between TomTom and r011ingthunder.


My apologies if I've gotten the wrong end of the stick and this isn't a misunderstanding.

.

pclancy

Quite correct! Not sure why that happens but its always been like that! IMO Mountmellick isnt the best place in the world, feels very grey,dull and not the best for nightlife etc but to be honest i feel the same about Portarlington. Port is pretty big and would have better amenities i spose then mountmellick but i wouldnt live there personally cos i find it very dull. Abbeyleix is a lovely place but its only a village- one main st and pubs, cafes not much else. Nice quiet pace of life tho (cept the traffic) Commute times TO RED COW would be an hour from either with maybe half an hour ontop during bad times.

Dubs get welcomed nicely into our bogfilled society so dont worry about ur kids or urselves, i know a few dubs that have moved down and they're all happy living and working here. Just get used to not having KFC, DART, decent buses, big shopping centres but then again dublins only an hour away so what the hell, at least ur car probably wont be robbed down here!

Oh and if u do move to Portarlington, make sure and live on the Laois side. Biffos are insane.

IMO Abb

Rovi wrote:

I'll just jump in here if I may.

When Laois people talk about 'Port,' they usually mean Portarlington, not Portlaoise.

Just in case there are crossed lines between TomTom and r011ingthunder.


My apologies if I've gotten the wrong end of the stick and this isn't a misunderstanding.

.

r011ingthunder

Rovi wrote:

I'll just jump in here if I may.

When Laois people talk about 'Port,' they usually mean Portarlington, not Portlaoise.

Just in case there are crossed lines between TomTom and r011ingthunder.


My apologies if I've gotten the wrong end of the stick and this isn't a misunderstanding.

.

Thanks Rovi, in fact I was a bit confused well spotted! Tbh, what I'd heard about Portlaoise had put me off going anywhere near it, much the same as the stories of Athy in Kildare kept me from even considering it. Let's just say that I'd hardly want to leave Dublin only to move to more of the same problems!!!
r011in

r011ingthunder

pclancy wrote:

Quite correct! Not sure why that happens but its always been like that! IMO Mountmellick isnt the best place in the world, feels very grey,dull and not the best for nightlife etc but to be honest i feel the same about Portarlington. Port is pretty big and would have better amenities i spose then mountmellick but i wouldnt live there personally cos i find it very dull. Abbeyleix is a lovely place but its only a village- one main st and pubs, cafes not much else. Nice quiet pace of life tho (cept the traffic) Commute times TO RED COW would be an hour from either with maybe half an hour ontop during bad times.

Dubs get welcomed nicely into our bogfilled society so dont worry about ur kids or urselves, i know a few dubs that have moved down and they're all happy living and working here. Just get used to not having KFC, DART, decent buses, big shopping centres but then again dublins only an hour away so what the hell, at least ur car probably wont be robbed down here!

Oh and if u do move to Portarlington, make sure and live on the Laois side. Biffos are insane.

IMO Abb

Thanks pclancy, all this info is invaluable. And thanks again for the reassurances!
r011in

*marie*

pclancy wrote:

Oh and if u do move to Portarlington, make sure and live on the Laois side. Biffos are insane.

IMO Abb

Yes, definitely move to the Laois side, (the town is divided into Laois and Offaly by the River Barrow), although you'd probably figure that out for yourself if you drove through the town, there is nothing on the Offaly side, it's mostly all houses...well the school is up there, but....!

JackieChan

Mountmellick is sometimes referred to as MountMisery.
There are a lot of houses going up(Its actually got to the stage where planning permission is been refused due to the sewage treament plant at full capacity) but there isn't much else in it.
There are a boys and girls national school(right beside each other) and a coed primary school about a mile from the town on the Dublin side.
There is one coed secondary school(right in the centre of the town)Shopping in the town is crap. The nearest to a supermarket is CostCutter but that closes at 6-6:30 almost every day.
Saying that I do like Mountmellick.

There are a lot of Dubs living there(especially in the Silverglen/Ash Grove estates). The nicest estate IMHO is Brookview(2 mins walk from primary school).
It has its fair share of boy racers there too.
Personally I'd look to Tullamore,its an expanding town, really nice areas to live in and a good selection of shops(2 Dunnes, 24 hour Tesco,Atlantic DIY and McDonalds with a Burger King coming soon!!)
If I was sticking around Mountmellick, I would live out the Portarlington road, there are lots of nice one off houses here.
I get the train from Port each day and it takes between 45-60 mins depending on the stations it serves.

r011ingthunder

Thanks everyone. This is fantastic. TBH, it's looking more and more like it'll be Mountmellick. Not in the town but somewhere within say a 4 mile radius of the town. Will keep ye updated.
What are the pubs like in Mountmellick?
r011in

orangerooster

Mountmellick is alright-the pubs are good, I find it a good town for going out in in any case. As for the smog....you'll find out when you get here.....(joking!)

r011ingthunder

orangerooster wrote:

As for the smog....you'll find out when you get here.....(joking!)

Ah c'mon, what are you guys on about with "smog"????? It's away from that sorta thing we're tryin to get!!!!
r011in (aka r011in)