Getting to Galway

Galway is situated on the West Coast of the Republic of Ireland and may be reached by air, ferry, train, bus or car.  The following air links may be of assistance www.aerlingus.ie, www.ryanair.com, and www.aerarann.ie.

For international delegates we recommended the following arrangements, in order of decreasing preference:

2. Fly into Dublin Airport (www.dublinairport.com) and either fly from there to Galway Airport or take a coach from Dublin Airport to Galway city.  Connecting flights from Dublin Airport to Galway Airport are available through Aer Arann (www.aerarann.ie) who run flights from 9am through to 10:30pm.  The flight connection schedule from aerarann is available here, or as pdf download here.  Galway Airport is approximately 5km from Galway city centre, and both the University and hotels are close to the city centre. There are taxi services from Galway Airport to Galway city: there is no bus shuttle. Car hire is also available.

Dublin Airport has many international connections but is about 220km from Galway (3.5 hr drive). Good car hire facilities are available from Dublin Airport. 

Rather than flying from Dublin Airport to Galway Airport you could take a coach.  Independent operators run dependable hourly coach services from Dublin Airport to Galway city (www.citylink.ie, or www.nestorlink.ie), departing outside the Arrivals terminal.  These coach trips take about 3.5 hrs. 

3. Fly into Shannon Airport (www.shannonairport.com) and take a coach to Galway city.  Shannon Airport has direct international connections with the USA and elsewhere.  It is about 100km from Galway (1.5 to 2 hr drive).  Coaches  run hourly from Shannon Airport to Galway city (www.citylink.ie, or www.buseireann.ie).  A taxi/hackney service is available but would be quite expensive.  There are good car hire facilities.

There are other ways to get to Galway: some are outlined below.

Ireland West Airport Knock http://www.knockairport.com is 1.5 hrs drive from Galway: however there no coaches to Galway, and you would need to hire a car.

By Rail: There is a regular rail service between Dublin city and Galway city.  However you would need to shuttle from  Dublin Airport to Dublin city to catch a train to Galway, and  trains are infrequent after 6pm. Timetables, ticket prices and all other information regarding rail travel in Ireland can be found on the Irish Rail web site: www.irishrail.ie

By Sea: The are several car/passenger ferries from the UK and France (Cherbourg or Rosscoff). The following links may help with further information on sea travel: www.stenaline.ie, and/or www.irishferries.ie

Visas for Non-EU Citizens: Citizens of certain countries require a visa to enter the Republic of Ireland.  Please refer to the Irish Department of Foreign Affairs website for further details: http://foreignaffairs.gov.ie/home/index.aspx?id=8605. 

ECIS 2008 did not assist participants with their visa application process.  Participants requiring a visa were advised to allow sufficient time to complete the visa application process prior to the commencement of the conference.

Parking at the University

If delegates needed to park a car at the University during the conference, they were advised to download a parking permit and display it in the car.  Hard copies of this permit were available at the conference registration desk.

There was limited car parking for conference delegates on campus from 08.30 to 17.30.   Permits were organised to facilitate access to two car parks for conference delegates (car Parks J and K (highlighted on the parking permit's map).  Permits were available to registered delegates only and must be displayed at all times.

There were also a number of pay and display car parking areas on campus (highlighted on the permit's map).  Access was available to all car parks evenings (after 17.30) and weekends.

Delegates were advised that all illegally parked vehicles, including cars not displaying a permit would be clamped.

Currency Service

The Legal tender is the Euro (€). Currency exchange facilities were available at the airports, at the University campus banks and at all financial institutions in Galway city centre. ATMs were widely available. Traveller cheques and credit cards were accepted in most hotels restaurants and shops. For up to date currency conversion rates delegates were advised to visit www.xe.com

Voltage

The line voltage is 220 V and most electrical points take three-pinned plugs.

Weather

Overall, the month of May and the first few days in June were quite pleasant, with high temperatures around 22C and averaging around 17C.  There was very little rain other than on 04 June and some showers on June 05 and 06.  We advised that "weather for ECIS should be mild to warm, and mostly sunny skies", but that as there was a risk of rain we advised bringing appropriate clothing.  Current weather conditions were available on www.met.ie.  Overall, the weather for ECIS 2008 was pleasant: weather for the Sunday evening reception was mild and dry, and weather for Monday June 09 and Tuesday June 10 was a little overcast but again, mild and dry.  It rained a little Wednesday as the conference closed, but not many noticed!