Meanwhile, our compatriots heading to this Western European country often have no idea what price levels and peculiarities of the goods market they will have to face. What to expect and how to manage their earnings in Ireland is perhaps one of the most important questions a Ukrainian auto mechanic, doctor, or programmer asks when planning to go to the Emerald Isle for a long-term work stint.
Overall price level for goods and services in Ireland is almost 17% lower than in England and 7% lower than in the USA. These numbers are certainly promising, but no statistics are ever complete or unambiguous. The economy of a country that long remained a British colony is still largely tied to its eastern neighbor. Along with left-hand traffic and various feet and yards, Ireland also adopted a similar currency system from Foggy Albion. By analogy with England, the national currency of the country is the Irish pound, divided into one hundred pence. Its exchange rate against the greenback is approximately 1 pound to 1.1 US dollars.
Meanwhile, the real purchasing power of the Irish pound is significantly lower than the stated exchange rate. In plain terms, this means that with one Irish pound in Ireland you can buy as many goods as with one US dollar in America. This partly explains why Ireland is on the list of "expensive" countries in the world. Inflation also exerts its influence, sparing neither Ireland nor other Western European countries at present. In Ireland, prices have recently risen by about 4-6 percent.
FIRST TRIP TO THE SUPERMARKET
When going to Ireland, it is essential to consider which region of the country you will be living in. In Dublin, for example, prices are about one and a half to two times higher than in any other major city in the republic. In other cases, price fluctuations are the same as everywhere else in the world: slightly more expensive in the city center, slightly cheaper on the outskirts.
You can dress yourself for summer weather for about 25-30 pounds. At the same time, a decent suit or dress will cost roughly 50-60 pounds. As for household items, it should be noted that furniture in Ireland is quite expensive. The price of a dining table with several chairs, a sofa, or a double bed can be 300-400 pounds. On the other hand, you will be able to find orthopedic mattresses or a corner sofa without any problem—the selection here is quite wide.
Those who have already worked in Ireland unanimously claim that food in the country is very expensive. On the other hand, anyone who has ever shopped at upscale Kyiv stores will quickly adapt to Irish prices: food prices in an average Irish town and in the center of the Ukrainian capital are quite comparable. Semi-finished products can be bought for 3 or 5 pounds. Fruit is cheaper. A liter carton of orange juice will cost 90 pence, i.e., almost the same as in Ukraine. Alcohol is much more expensive: a bottle of Smirnoff will cost about 12-15 pounds, while a decent whiskey may exceed 20 pounds.
Ireland mostly imports household appliances from other countries. A good camcorder costs about 350 pounds, a widescreen TV—almost 500. A music center can be bought for three hundred. Music itself in Ireland (as, indeed, in all of Europe) is licensed, and therefore expensive. The usual price of a recorded laser disc is 16-17 pounds. A mobile phone with a connection will cost 80-150 pounds depending on the operator and subscription terms.
If a person is going to Ireland seriously and for a long time, it would be worthwhile to get a car. A not-new car in excellent condition, manufactured in 1995, can be purchased for 6,000 pounds. Although a thoroughly worn-out 'horse' from twenty years ago can be bought for a thousand.
Of course, people do not live by work alone, and on weekends they want to relax. In Ireland, they understand this perfectly and therefore decorate the streets of their cities with charming pubs, restaurants, and other establishments. Prices are generally moderate: you can have a hearty lunch in a not-too-crowded eatery for about 10 pounds. A half-liter glass of the famous Guinness will cost 2-2.5 pounds, and a meat dish—4-5 pounds. As practice shows, if you plan to visit such places daily, you will spend more than a hundred pounds a week.
Those who enjoy cultural recreation will be interested to know that a ticket to an Irish cinema costs at least 3 pounds, and to a theater even more. For those who like to go out into nature or visit distant attractions, an overnight stay in an inexpensive hotel with breakfast will cost on average 25 Irish pounds.
STOCK UP ON ASPIRIN
Ireland's export and import system is perhaps one of the most unpleasant surprises one can encounter while living in the country. Goods that arrive on the island from outside the EU are subject to huge duties, value-added tax, and so on. As a result, overseas gadgets are sold in Ireland at literally exorbitant prices. This applies to both American jeans and Japanese electronics.
By the way: computers, computer peripherals, and software are also very disadvantageous to buy in Ireland. So if you cannot do without your favorite laptop on a trip, it is better to take it with you. For this, however, you need to prove that the computer has been in personal use for at least six months.
Despite the fact that Irish medicine is considered one of the best and highest quality in the world, the Green Isle is a country of paradoxically expensive medicines. Moreover, they are expensive not only by our standards, but even by American ones. If antibiotic prices can still be called acceptable, then, for example, the same allergy tablet costs 50 cents in the US, and in Ireland – no less than 4 Irish pounds. A pack (30 tablets) of ordinary aspirin costs 5 pounds. Medicines prescribed by doctors for long-term use are especially expensive. The same applies to contact lenses, the prices of which in Ireland are ten times higher than in Ukraine. The funniest thing is that Ireland is one of the largest producers of lenses for export, and abroad they are much cheaper.
People who are better off and going to Ireland for a long time would do well to take a credit card with them. There are several reasons for this. Firstly, with a credit card you can order goods via the Internet at lower prices than in a nearby store. Secondly, there is hardly another country in the world with such high bank card service fees as Ireland. The annual state levy on credit card holders is 15 pounds, while the banks themselves charge from 8 to 60 pounds per year for their services. By the way, the credit limit on Irish cards is limited to 600 pounds, instead of the 2-3 thousand dollars accepted in other European countries.
Some of our compatriots, when going abroad, still take jewelry and items made of precious metals 'just in case'. However, when going to Ireland, it is not recommended to take family silver spoons, or great-grandmother's earrings, or tsarist gold coins. Firstly, do not count on selling such items profitably. Secondly, a person trying to sell gold or silver items, to put it mildly, arouses suspicion. Therefore, both the item itself and its owner undergo such a thorough check that by the time it is completed, one might almost regret crossing the threshold of a jewelry store.
It is also almost impossible to sell a collection of stamps, coins, postcards, etc. in Ireland, no matter how unique it is. The reason is surprising and, at the same time, banal to the point of triviality: on the Emerald Isle, you will not find avid collectors even if you search high and low.