Ireland, an island of the Atlantic Ocean, is part of the British Isles. It comprises the Republic of Ireland and the British nation of Northern Ireland.
Despite being off the traditional tourist trail, Northern Ireland offers a colourful history, exceptional natural beauty, rapidly-developing cities and warmly welcoming inhabitants.
The Republic has a rich culture that, along with its people, has been exported around the world. It has an expansive and fascinating history, with a landscape that never ceases to astound.
Known as the "Emerald Isle", Ireland is the second-largest island of the British Isles, the third-largest in Europe, and the twentieth-largest on Earth. Ireland has two cultures: the historical Gaelic culture (including one of the oldest literatures in Western Europe) and the more recent English-speaking culture which largely replaced it.
The earliest evidence of human presence in Ireland goes back to 10,500 BCE. During the Iron Age (beginning c. 800 BCE) a Celtic language and culture emerged in Ireland. The island was Christianised from the 5th century onward. The Normans invaded in the early 12th century CE and set in place Ireland's uneasy position within England's sphere of influence. However, English rule did not extend over the whole island until the end of the Elizabethan period.
Irish society and culture were most severely disrupted during the Cromwellian period in the 17<sup>th</sup> century. With the Acts of Union in 1801, Ireland became a part of the Kingdom of Great Britain, which was renamed to the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.
A war of independence in the early 20th century was followed by the independence of 26 of Ireland's counties known as the Irish Free State; the remaining six counties remained part of the United Kingdom as Northern Ireland. In 1949 the Irish Free State became "Ireland", also known as the Republic of Ireland.
Ireland's history post-partition has been marked to some extent by violence. A period known as "The Troubles", generally regarded as beginning in the late 1960s, saw large scale confrontation between opposing paramilitary groups seeking to either keep Northern Ireland as part of the United Kingdom or bring it into the Republic. A peace settlement known as the Good Friday Agreement was finally approved in 1998 and is being implemented.
Almost everyone speak English as their first language. However, it may surprise visitors that in some areas English is not the first language used for local communication, and the second most widespread language of Ireland is Irish, natively called Gaeilge. There are traditional native speakers of Irish in remote (and usually scenic) rural areas known as Gaeltachtaí. Ulster Scots, an Anglic language developed from the Northumbrian dialect of Old English, is spoken mainly in Northern Ireland, although not as widely as Irish.
Visitors may find more useful information in the "Get in" sections of the specific region they wish to enter.
See also: Flying in Europe
The island of Ireland has five major international airports: Dublin (IATA: DUB), Shannon (IATA: SNN) in County Clare, Cork (IATA: ORK), Belfast City (IATA: BHD) and Belfast International (IATA: BFS).
Ireland's two major airlines are Aer Lingus and Ryanair.
Britain and Ireland are linked by a number of ferry routes, with the busiest and quickest crossing being Holyhead to Dublin, operated by Irish Ferries and Stena Line in competition. Ferries ply to Ireland from France and Spain as well.
The Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland maintain a common travel area, somewhat akin to the Schengen Area on continental Europe. Broadly speaking, crossing the borders is very simple compared with most other international borders.
Ireland and the United Kingdom have been separate countries for almost a century, but for the most part both have found it beneficial to maintain relatively open borders. However, because of the way it has developed over the years, the Common Travel Area arrangement is not as formalised as other similar arrangements (such as the Schengen Area), and so the exact rules can be quite complex for some third country nationals.
See also: Rail travel in Ireland
The Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland have nationalised systems, with just one company operating services in each and crossborder services jointly operated.
Bus is the predominant form of public transport across Ireland. Buses ply hourly between Belfast, Dublin Airport and Dublin Busáras the main bus station, taking about 3 hours. Other cross-border routes are between Dublin and Derry, Belfast and Monaghan, and Belfast and Enniskillen with connections to Sligo and Galway.
Apart from changes to the road surface and road signs, you probably won't notice much of a difference when actually crossing the convoluted and often obscure international boundary between the six counties of Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. One key difference, though, is that road signs in Northern Ireland are in miles and mph, while those in the Republic are in kilometres and km/h.
All road signs are written in English, either as the sole language or alongside a local language, except for the rural parts of Ireland, where signs are exclusively in Irish. You can drive your hire car from any Common Travel Area (see above) country to any other, although many hire companies charge an extra fee for doing so.
The currency in the Republic of Ireland is the euro and the currency in Northern Ireland, as part of the UK, is the pound sterling. So be sure to exchange your euro into pounds (or vice versa) before crossing the border.
There's a lot of cross-border trading in Ireland, and therefore many outlets in border areas and urban centres accept the euro. Most retailers will display whether they accept euros or not.
Dial 999 or 112 for all emergency services. On the whole, this is a very safe region of Europe, with few direct threats to visitors, but you should consult the Stay safe section of the areas you're visiting as most safety issues are localised.
Generally speaking, the people of Ireland are welcoming, friendly and well-humoured. Foreign nationals claiming they are ‘Irish’ just because of an ancestor will likely be met with amusement, although this may become annoyance or anger should they then express their views related to The Troubles.
Politically, the people of Ireland are divided into two groups: