Driving in Dublin: My Self-Drive Car Rental Experience and Tips

I traveled through Ireland and the UK for a month in September and October 2023, taking frequent short trips. One weekend, a friend and I decided to rent a self-drive car in Ireland to visit Galway and the Cliffs of Moher from Dublin. Below I share my car rental experience in Ireland, which may be useful if you plan to rent a car in Ireland or elsewhere in Europe, as the processes are often similar.

A quick practical note: both the UK and Ireland drive on the left (driver on the right), the same side as in India. You can drive in Ireland with an Indian driving licence.

Amex Concierge

I asked the American Express Platinum travel concierge to check car rental options. In the past I’ve been satisfied with Amex Platinum concierge service, though recently I noticed a reduction in email support.

The concierge returned a reasonable offer through Hertz, leveraging the Hertz Gold membership benefit that comes with Amex Platinum. It was a fair price for a premium electric vehicle, but I preferred to delay booking until closer to the travel date.

Hertz Experience

As the trip approached I tried to book directly on Hertz’s website and found the search experience frustrating. It was difficult to check availability across multiple nearby locations, which made planning cumbersome.

Ultimately, two days before our trip there were few cars available. My friend reminded me that many Europeans take weekend trips, which explained the tight availability. I expanded my search to other aggregators and comparison sites, and eventually found a decent deal on Booking.com for a Ford Focus, since most other options were sold out.

Booking.com Experience

Booking.com offered a surprising deal: about €50 per day for the car plus €20 for basic insurance, totaling roughly €120 for two days—cheaper than other sites at that time. What stood out was Booking.com’s straightforward booking flow: it displayed full details without redirecting me elsewhere, making it easier to confirm exactly what I wanted.

At Dublin Airport

At Dublin Airport the car rental counters had long queues—around 20 people per counter. Europcar’s queue was similar to Hertz’s, but because we already had a reservation they directed us to the pickup center more quickly.

I also noticed a separate Hertz Gold line, which can save about an hour at busy airport counters. That benefit comes with Amex Platinum, as mentioned earlier.

EuropCar Experience

We arrived at Europcar’s pickup desk roughly an hour after our scheduled time. The agent was friendly and offered an upgraded insurance option at the desk: a “no excess” plan that eliminates liability for any damage. The on-the-spot options were:

• €20 prepay with a €1,600 hold on the card (the Booking.com plan)
• €80 prepay with no hold and no liability (Europcar’s no-excess plan)

For peace of mind we chose the €80 no-excess plan. While processing our paperwork the agent discovered the originally reserved car was not available. After checking alternatives and returning with keys, he announced an unexpected upgrade: an Audi A6 e-tron hybrid.

We were thrilled—and a little concerned about navigating narrow coastal roads along the Wild Atlantic Way with a larger car—but the Audi proved ideal for the journey.

The Audi A6 e-tron was smooth, stable and comfortable even at 120 km/h. Its dashboard displayed real-time energy usage from battery and engine, but in everyday driving it felt much like a conventional petrol car. Booking.com refunded the €20 insurance prepayment after I submitted the required documents; the refund posted to the card within a week.

Final Thoughts

Overall, the Europcar experience exceeded expectations and left a positive impression. Booking through Booking.com was convenient and, in this case, cost-effective. A few practical takeaways from our trip:

1. Book at least a week in advance to secure better availability.
2. Arriving late on a weekend can sometimes result in an upgrade, but it’s risky because popular cars can sell out.
3. Consider deciding on additional insurance at the counter rather than prepaying, since offers can differ at pickup.
4. Booking.com provided a smoother booking experience than some direct provider sites or other aggregators.

Individual experiences will vary, and upgrades like ours may be uncommon. If you’ve rented cars in Europe or the US, feel free to share your experiences and tips in the comments.