Dublin is proudly hosting the European Greens Congress in December 2024.
A number of people have been in touch about how to come to Dublin without flying. I previously did a guide on travelling between Ireland and the UK by ferry and train, so this post is a simple guide for people who want to do the same thing from the continent.
I’m writing it on the basis that the starting point is Brussels, but you can also take different Eurostar routes from Paris, Lille, Rotterdam, Amsterdam or Dusseldorf. For other locations, this site might be helpful.
The basic idea is that you get a Eurostar to London, and then a single ticket which covers your train to Holyhead, and then a ferry to Dublin Port.
For those who need to work, there is usually good WiFi on the train, and ok WiFi on the ferry.
It is generally easier to break up the journey by staying overnight in London, but you can do it in one day too – both options are below.
This isn’t a polished journey – unfortunately flying is much more common, so it’s not a perfect consumer experience! (Last update: 10/9/2024)
Option 1: Staying overnight in London
For day 1: book a Eurostar to London at any time of your choice. They go every two hours from Brussels, so there are plenty of options. They arrive in St. Pancras in central London.
For day 2: Book a “Sail Rail” ticket on thetrainline.com. This is a cheap ticket (around €70) which will cover your train and ferry journey together.
You will book the ticket from London to either “Dublin Ferryport” (Irish Ferries) or “Dublin Port – Stena”. This is the same port, but just with a different ferry company. Either one is fine – Stena have a newer ferry, but Irish Ferries are good too.
I strongly recommend booking the weekday 9:02 train from London Euston. It goes straight to the port in Holyhead and you don’t need to change trains. It means you get the train at 9:02, arrive in Holyhead at 12:52, and then get the ferry at either 14:10 (Irish Ferries) or 14:45 (Stena Line). Other trains are fine, but you have to change and it’s more hassle.
Once you have booked a ticket on TheTrailine, they will email you your ticket, or you can get a code to collect it from a ticket machine in any UK rail station.
The ferries arrive into Dublin Port at 17:25 (Irish Ferries) or 18:20 (Stena Line). There is a bus service from the ferry terminal to the city centre, but it’s not always reliable and if there is no bus I would recommend getting a taxi. Taxi apps like Uber and FreeNow work in Dublin.
Option 2: the full journey in one day
It is possible to make the full journey in one day from Brussels to Dublin. It’s nicer if you can stay over in London, but if you need to, this will work too.
Part 1: Book any Eurostar which arrives in London before 14:00. The latest train you could get from Brussels would be the 12:56 Eurostar, which arrives at 13:57. This brings you to St. Pancras Station. It is a ten minute walk to Euston station, or you can take the Northern line of the Underground one station over.
Part 2: Book a “Sail Rail” ticket on thetrainline.com. This is a cheap ticket which will cover your train and ferry journey together.
You will book the ticket from London to “Dublin Port – Stena”. (Not “Dublin Ferryport”, which is a different ferry company, with more awkward timings.)
The best train to book is the 15:02 from Euston to Holyhead. It goes straight to the port in Holyhead and you don’t need to change trains. It means you get the train at 15:02, arrive in Holyhead at 18:47, and then get the Stena Line ferry at 20:30.
Once you have booked a ticket on TheTrailine, they will email you your ticket, or you can get a code to collect it from a ticket machine in any UK rail station.
The ferry arrives in Dublin at 23:45. There is a bus service from the ferry terminal to the city centre, but it’s not always reliable and if there is no bus, I would recommend getting a taxi. Taxi apps like Uber and FreeNow work in Dublin.
Return journey
For the return journey, I would buy a Sail Rail ticket from either Stena Line or Irish Ferries directly, or via the Trailine website.
You can get either Irish Ferries (8:05) or Stena Line (8:15) in the morning to Holyhead, and then the 12:48 train from Holyhead to London (no changes). You’ll arrive in London at 16:37 and can get a Eurostar of your choice. Just remember to leave time for Eurostar check in and a few minutes to change stations.
You could get a later ferry from Dublin at 14:45, but you would arrive in London at 1:21am and have to make several changes, so I don’t recommend it.
Any issues, just get in touch: michael@pidgeon.ie or +353876279290