SHOPPING IN IRELAND

With regular direct fast-ferry services from Scotland to Belfast and Larne, Northern Ireland has firmly placed itself as a popular destination for shopping breaks, offering visitors from the Irish Republic, the UK and beyond an unrivalled shopping trip with more clothing and products available than elsewhere in the Ireland and other parts of the UK. Spend an entire day browsing through the trendy boutiques and continental deli’s of Belfast’s Lisburn Road or venture further afield to the towns of Ballymena and Coleraine where you will discover a host of designer labels at bargain prices. A visit to Belfast’s St George’s market is a must, selling a range of gourmet foods and cuisine in one section and discount clothing and merchandise in the aptly named ‘Variety Market’.

GRAFTON STREET IN DUBLIN

Like any other major European capital city, Dublin more than satisfies those seeking serious retail indulgence, offering the discerning shopper two somewhat distinctively different shopping districts, namely the Southside and the Northside, separated by the River Liffey. The more exclusive Southside abounds in fashionable stores such as Brown Thomas retailing a wide selection of local and international designer labels. The pedestrianized areas of Grafton Street and St Stephen’s Green is Dublin’s equivalent to London’s Oxford Street, offering the widest selection of High Street names and home to the world renowned Bewley’s Café. A venture over to the less commercialised Northside is worth exploring, particularly the outdoor food market on Moore Street where you pick up fresh produce and products at bargain prices.

A trip to Ireland’s regional centres in the South and West equally offer an exciting range of curiosities and unique shops worth exploring. Whether browsing through the bookshops in the cobbled lanes of Galway City or seeking to purchase special crafts and Celtic Art from local artisans and artists in rural communities of the Connemara or Ring of Kerry, you will find that Ireland has a host of retail treasures waiting to be discovered coupled with a level of customer service that is second to none.