The homeland of Guinness, James Joyce, and U2. The location for filming “Braveheart” and “Game of Thrones”. This is Ireland. LinguaTrip.com will help you to choose the best language school to learn English and find out more about the country.

You have three options of lodging to choose from: a host family, a school residence or independent lodging.

Host family.You will stay with a local family with breakfast and dinner included. Be ready to follow certain house rules, e.g. eating at a particular time, no guests allowed.

School residence.A student residence is a single or shared room. This is the cheapest option and will best suit those who want to interact a lot with international students at parties, events, etc.

Independent lodging.This option is the most expensive but the most private. You can rent accommodation in any part of the city.

Visit the famous Dublin Castle with over 800 years of Irish memories encapsulated within its walls and take a sip of Guinness in the Guinness Storehouse. Shop around one of the world's oldest municipal markets in Cork and explore the atmospheric and historic City Gaol (local prison). Climb up the eastern spur of the Wicklow Mountains in Bray and enjoy the view of the highest waterfall in Ireland, in the Powerscourt Estate. Go to Ireland’s west coast to uncover MV Plassy, a wreck dumped on a Galway beach, then have a long walk in the Connemara National Park. If you are an art connoisseur, visit the Hunt Museum in Limerick and enjoy a 2,000 show-piece collection.

We don’t recommend to leave the country without trying these food gems:

Irish stew — mutton, onions and potatoes, and sometimes carrots. However, these days, you’re more likely to find Irish stew made with lamb and herbs, such as thyme, parsley and bay leaves.

Colcannon and champ — mashed potatoes, cabbage (or kale) and butter (or cream), flavored with spring onions.

Black and white puddings. Black pudding — pork meat, fat and blood mixed with barley, suet, and oatmeal in an intensely flavored sausage. White pudding has the same recipe minus blood. Black pudding is likely to be served in posh Irish restaurants, nowadays.

Barmbrack is a tea loaf with raisins, candied peel (sometimes steeped overnight in black tea and whiskey) and mixed spices.

An average meal for 1 person in a pub or cafe will cost €15. A three-course meal in a mid-range restaurant will cost €60.

All of the country's public transport is overground (buses, trams, trains, ferries, and boats).

A single bus ticket will cost you ‎€2.15 in cash. If you are in Dublin, we recommend you to use a Leap Card to save money. It is a prepaid pass for 1, 3, or 7 days that allow you to travel on buses, trains, and trams. Fares: 1 day — €10.00, 3 days — €19.50, 7 days — €40.00.

Most of Ireland’s islands can be reached by ferry with numerous ferry companies providing local services. Keep an eye on local weather reports via Met Éireann (Republic of Ireland) and the Met Office (Northern Ireland). In some cases, ferry companies will only operate seasonally, normally peak season (June to August, approximately).

All the schools will provide you with a high-speed Internet connection, but you may not always have it outside the classroom, so it’s better to buy a local SIM card to stay connected all the time. Top Irish mobile connection providers are Vodafone, O2, and Three. On average, calling abroad will cost €2 per min. Data download — €6.15 per MB.

Irish climate is mild and moist. The average summer temperature is 16 °C. In winter — 5 °C. However, you may well expect occasional below-zero winters and +30 °C summers, as well.

For two weeks in Dublin, have with you around €450 to spend on food and lodging and €400 for excursions and shopping. If you’re staying in a smaller town, €600 will be enough for all that. Also, don’t forget that you’ll need a tourist visa (€60) and insurance (around €20).