North Wicklow's own Hotel California?

Now that the days of squeezing pennies out of the peasants has passed the descendants of the local landed gentry have to find new ways to pay for the upkeep on their large homes and estates. Killruddery House in North Wicklow is no exception.

There are concerts there during the summer, movie and television programs are filmed there (Angela's Ashes, The Tudors, Camelot are three you might know) and there is a regular stream of events for which the general public can pay into the estate. All very praise-worthy, much better than their plan to sell off more of the land for housing development.

All of which brings me to their new sign.

The other day after my trip away I was driving by Killruddery when I saw that they had a new sign outside the main gate. The sign is an attractive invitation to the passing public to drop in.

You can (pay to) visit the house, (pay to) visit the beautiful gardens, (pay to) walk the hills that make up much of the estate or (pay to) enjoy one of their many special events. The sign is a lure.

Nice sign, I thought, but then I saw what was written on it. Immediately I said to myself, "Sometimes phrasing and grammar matter."

Right there on their nice new sign beneath the name Killruddery was their new slogan: "A Place To Escape." Uggh.

Of course I knew what they meant, but my reaction was to laugh at them. "Sounds like Colditz or Alcatraz or, better yet, Hotel California."

You can check-out any time you like,
But you can never leave!

I'm know that's NOT the image Killruddery's owners have in mind. In fact, I'd be surprised if they weren't happy at the end of each day when the last of the riffraff leaves their grounds.

That's not what their sign says, however. According to the sign getting away from the place is the real joy. Time for Killruddery sign 2.0.

Don't follow the rainbow to Dublin's Leprechaun Museum

When I first heard that a Leprechaun Museum was opening in Dublin my first reaction was "oh no." I was sure it was going to be nothing more than a tacky attempt to con Americans and other tourists out of their money.

Then I thought about it and I figured that if they did this right it would provide some information on the legend of leprechauns, the people who told such tales and the world they lived in. And, I thought, if they do a great job it will be a magical experience for children and something special for adults.

As it turns out it's none of those, although at least the aspirations are more towards the informative/magical experience than to simply part Americans from their dollars.

There are many, many things wrong with the new museum, but basically there's nothing to it. It's simply not worth the time or the money - $14 per adult & $9.50 per child.

I went alone and spent about 30 minutes in the exhibit, but I could easily have been out of there in 15 or less. The exhibit consists of nine (maybe ten) sparsely decorated rooms. I'm sure if I was a designer or interior decorator or an art student I could use all sorts of explanations for the manner in which this museum is decorated, but I'm just an average Joe.

Sparse is the best word for it. Lifeless would suffice. Obtuse might also do, but that would be stretching my vocabulary. However, there were no leprechauns in the exhibit. None. Figurine or painted there wasn't one.

The best room was the one with the pot of gold. A pot of gold in the middle of a fairly big circle of hard wood. That was the best room.

The most interesting room - potentially - had a large relief map of Ireland which lit up as the history of ancient Ireland was told. The voice was too quiet to hear above the music, the names and the story were raced through so quickly that you left none-the wiser. Children lasted about 30 seconds in the map room, but you needed four minutes for the full audio clip.

A few of the other rooms were way too dark and the whole thing just left me wondering, "What was that?"

As I said, I went alone, but conversations at the end of the visit with adults and children told me I wasn't wrong. Some of them felt like they'd been duped out of their money.

Oh yeah, it's also about as easy to find the Leprechaun Museum as it is to find a Leprechaun's pot of gold. There was no sign or even a banner to let you know when you'd walked by it. I had an address and I still couldn't find it. It was only a chance glimpse of a woman in a green shirt that showed me the way.

I could go into endless detail on all sorts of other things that were wrong, but I'd rather finish with a few positives. First, I liked the fact that it was intended to attract Irish people as well as tourists. That was reassuring actually.

The best thing about the Leprechaun Museum, however, is the people who work there. They seem to love it.

From the girl who took my money to the woman who spoke to us by way of introduction - easily the best part of the exhibit - to the people we met at the end who wanted our views, everyone is enthusiastic. They also assured me that there would be a sign hanging out front by today. I hope so.

Most hopeful was a conversation our tour group had with the man behind the museum. We gave it to him with both barrels - waste of time, waste of money, incomprehensible, too dark, too much like the work of a designer, etc. - he didn't get all defensive.

He took notes on our criticisms and then our suggestions. He genuinely seemed keen to get this right. He promised he would change it and make it great. He took our contact details and asked us to come back again after he'd improved it. I told him I would.

Like I said at the top, with the right presentation it could provide the story adults want and the fantasy children require. With the right changes it could still provide all that. So we'll see. It may yet be a worthwhile experience for both Irish people and tourists.

Credit card choice is important for your Irish vacation

Back in May I advised any prospective visitors to Ireland that they should use their debit and credit cards rather than come with the traditional traveler's checks. That advice still stands, but it may have to be revised if the fears of NY Times columnist Ron Lieber are realized.

Lieber says that bank charges on foreign credit card transactions could rise following a change in American law that has restricted credit cards from charging/raising other fees. Lieber says that 2009 Credit Card Act, which only came into effect last month, stops banks from charging a fee when customers exceed their credit limit. The new law also restricts any application or annual fees the banks levy on customers with "poor credit histories."

One area untouched by the new rules is foreign currency exchanges. Currently these charges can be as high as 3% on top of every foreign purchase, but, Lieber says, there is no reason that banks couldn't raise those charges even further.

Lieber recommends (as do I) that customers should shop around for a credit card before they travel. Some big banks - Capital One, for example - and many smaller banks and credit unions are only adding the 1% Visa/MasterCard charge on foreign purchases.

I don't know if or how this new law might affect debit/bank card withdrawals. Depending on how much money you need and what your bank charges for ATM withdrawals that is probably still the best way to change your money in Ireland. Irish banks don't charge people with American bank cards for using their ATMs.

Of course, there's one more consideration before you choose that credit card for your trip to Ireland. If you're planning to rent a car, you should look for a card that covers the insurance on your rental car.

That's easier said than done because very few cards will cover renting a car in Ireland. However, the cost of the insurance can be astronomical - around $20-25 per day - which makes spending a bit of time researching worthwhile if you can find a card that allows you to waive the rental company's CDW.

So, shop around. Get a good card for your car rental. Get a good card for all your other foreign currency transactions. Use your debit card. There is no good reason to make your Irish vacation more expensive than it has to be.

Don't let hotels and restaurants charge you in dollars

Posted by TheYank at 10/5/2009 1:33 PM EDT

It's time for more free travel advice.

Back in May I offered the opinion that the travler's checks of years past are no longer necessary. I recommended that you use your ATM card to get cash (depends on the charge for using your ATM) and your credit card wherever you could. That's still true, but after Saturday night's experience I want to amend my credit card advice.

On Saturday night my wife and I went out for a meal. All was fine right up to the moment it came time to pay. I decided to use my Capital One US$ credit card rather than my local euros credit card. Why? I don't know, every so often I wonder what it's like to behave like an American tourist.

Using the American credit card puts two issues in play and I wanted to see how this establishment handled them. The first is that lack of a chip on the American cards. Over here the credit cards have a small microchip that adds layers of security to our credit/debit cards (so we're told) and requires a PIN in order to use it. We don't sign for credit card purchases these days, but rather enter a PIN at the checkout.


The gold 'chip' can be seen on the left hand side above the card number.
I've heard of a few retailers who won't accept the American style, chipless cards, but I had no trouble on Saturday night. I doubt any retailer that deals in American visitors would refuse a chipless card. That would include hotels, restaurants, visitor attractions, car rental companies, etc.

The other issue is more odious because it's a semi-hidden extra charge that some hotels and restaurants are adding to Americans' bills. On Saturday when I presented my card the waitress took it away and came back a few minutes later with a slip for me to sign. Only the price of my meal had changed from euros to dollars. I wasn't asked if I wanted this done so I was surprised when I saw the change to dollars.

This is really annoying because the exchange rate that the hotels and restaurants are using is - in my experience - much worse than you'll get if you just let the credit card company handle the currency exchange. Now, for my meal it wasn't a huge deal - maybe $3 or so - but if you're spending a week or two at a hotel that difference would be huge. And, even if it's only $5 on a meal, why should you pay it?

The key is to NOT let them charge you in dollars. (And this goes for car rental companies too, although I'm not sure if they do this sort of thing or not.) At a minimum they should ask you if you'd like the final total in dollars. If they ask, say 'No'. If they don't ask and they present you with a bill in dollars ask them to refund the purchase and redo the sale in euros, although you may lose money on the purchase and refund*.

* Your credit card company may use two different rates for the purchase & refund, which would mean you'd lose out on the refund. I'm not sure how you might get that lost money back, but I'd have no problem asking the hotel/restaurant to refund that difference when you've established what that is.

Free travel advice

Posted by TheYank at 7/14/2009 3:32 PM EDT

This is a full service blog.

I just found something today that I'd never seen before. Maybe it's all the rage among those who travel here from America, but for me - and I'd bet for just about everyone who lives here - you can get some decent discounts on Irish tourist attractions if you get your Discount Pass from IrelandVisitorDiscounts.com.

Some of the deals are 10% or even 20% off and others are two for one deals. Great savings for any couple or family that might take in sights such as the Book of Kells & Guinness Storehouse in Dublin, Blarney Castle down in Cork, Lisadell House in Sligo or even the Somme Heritage Centre in Newtonards.

I haven't tried it yet, but I probably will later this week or next. Maybe it's not as good as it sounds right now and if not, I'll let you know. But if it works there's the price of a lunch in some of those savings.