Information for those traveling to Northern Ireland

yesiree · Guru

Information for those traveling to Northern Ireland

Maggie117 · Guru

Thanks for posting. I'm taking a CIE tour next month which includes a visit to Northern Ireland. I'll keep an eye on this and if need be I'll leave the tour and rejoin them when they finish in Northern Ireland.

Thanks again.
Maggie

yesiree · Guru

Maggie,

I don't think you have much to worry about. The warnings were specifically for the marching season which was April through August, and they noted clashes between police and dissident groups... definitely not involving the average resident or tourist.

More importantly, CIE would not want you to experience anything less than excellent, and they would be swift to adjust the schedule if there were any signs of a problem.

Instead, I'd concentrate on all the great things you'll experience in Northern Ireland... and just check in on those travel warnings once in a while. Your guides and hosts tend to the be the best sources for local travel information... both the good stuff and the not so good stuff... so feel free to ask them questions.

Have a fantastic trip!

tony2phones · Guru

This is a typical knee jerk reaction to something which happened whilst there was nothing else to write about. The next will be that Dublin isn't safe because Tony Blare had shoes and tomatoes thrown at him by "Peace" protesters. No Do Not go watching the protests and stay away from the Bonfieres but tourists are seldom if ever involved on a 3rd party basis. Go and enjoy yourself and please dont believe all you read in the press.

Maggie117 · Guru

Thanks Corey and Tony2phones! And Corey I did think CIE would reroute us if needed...glad you confirmed that fact!!! :)

murphy · Guru

Tony,

I knew beyond a doubt that the United States press is, and has been bias and untruthful for a long time. Many say that if you want the REAL news, follow European news. It saddens me that now this is happening there too, esp Ireland. Dan

Michele Erdvig · Host

Corey,

Thanks for the info. I will listen to the program as soon as time permits. But I have been following the advisorys and news. If I thought it presented a problem for tourists I would have mentioned it here.

The marching season always brings out the hooligans and loonies. I've been traveling to No. Ireland for over 30 years without a scratch. All through the times when the British troops were in the streets with machine guns. Those days are long gone.

Tourists are not targets. You will find that police stations tend to be targets. That is why they are still heavily barricaded.

I am planning on being in No. Ireland myself this autumn for over a week. I have no concerns for my safety. I feel safer in NI than in downtown Atlanta at night.

Michele

Richard · Member

Please go and enjoy the north.A few years back my wife and I toured the north and it was a wonderful trip.After dining out we went for a walk in east Belfast and ended up viewing a "band competition" in one of the neighborhoods. When I realised it was probably a political statement I never once felt threatened, we just kept quiet, watched the parade and went on our way. We are usually very timid and would never been there if we had known what was going on but was happy for the experience to learn their was no threat to us.
Northern Ireland has some of the most beautiful scenery in the world as far as I am concerned and should not be missed
There would be NO threat on a guided tour, as stated earlier they would avoid any possible problem because any incident would devastate their business.Please go and enjoy.

Maggie117 · Guru

We will go and enjoy! :) Thanks for the note!

Naw · Member

Hello! I am currently in Ireland and we just left Northern Ireland. We stayed in Cushendall for one night, drove up the Antrim Coast, visited the Giant's Causeway and Dunluce Castle and stayed in Portstewart for two nights. We did not have any problems. There was no talk of violence while we were in the pubs and we felt safe walking around. Go and enjoy yourself! The area is just beautiful!!

Rich207 · Veteran Member

We're looking forward to our trip to Northern Ireland. I too have been following the news. From my perspective it is localized and not wide spread. I was interested in this article http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/travel/2010/0911/1224278605721.html in the Irish Times regarding turning the parades into tourist attractions. One of the attractions of this area for us is the history.