This service was perfect for my relatively short (10-day) trip to Ireland and the limited use I knew I would have for a telephone. While many now own phones with international calling capability, I don't incur that expense on a routine basis, nor did the individuals with whom I was traveling or meeting in Ireland, so the Rentaphone was the answer. The Rentatphone allowed the members of my group to stay in touch, find each other in the crowd and make quick plans using just this phone. Since the phone has an Irish number, the members of my group were able to call me from local businesses and, in one case, with the loan of a personal cell phone from a friendly Irishman (aren't they all?) without either the business or the lender incurring any cost. The Rentaphone provided an extra feeling of security driving throughout the countryside, knowing I could call if assistance had been required and no state SOS phone was in sight, and that I could be reached directly by anyone in the States if the need had arisen. I did place a return call to the US and it went through quickly and with no difficulty. The phone number arrived via email three days before I traveled, as promised, and the phone was waiting for me at my bed and breakfast, also as promised. The phone held the charge well and easily recharged. I will be a repeat customer and recommend this service to other other occasional travelers. read more

Rentaphone Ireland provided me with an excellent small phone, which found signals almost everywhere I went in Ireland, including Seefin Mtn in the Galtees. It was a very dependable phone that was easy to top off. Rentaphone made it simple to pick up the phone, use it, and return. I have a few quibbles, however. First and foremost, the 70 Euro price for a week's use was awfully high. I was told may almost everyone I met that you can purchase a simple contract Vodaphone for 20 EU and get the identical service. Therefore a 50 EU premium on Rentaphone's use seems excessive. Although the directions on leading an airline traveler to Dublin airport to the phone pick up location were very detailed, they were confusing in the end, and I had to ask several people (many who didn't know) where the Greencaps booth was. Once I found it, I it prompted me to think that the directions provided could stand a rewriting so that Greencaps could be found more easily. I ordered a wall charger, which provided the most simple recharging solution for me. However, the fact that the airport postal drops do not accomodate the wall charger, and the renter must go to a post office to post the charger and phone return is a big inconvenience. Why can't the phone and charger simply be returned to Greencaps at the airport? Or Federal Express provided? Surely the 70 EU price could accomodate that. read more

We used Rentaphone for a 17 day trip in Ireland in May-June 2011 which included both the Republic and North Ireland in our travels. We were very satisfied with the phone itself, ease of use, the coverage we received. My highest compliments to the customer service we rec'd when we telephone the company number during our travels needing assistance on a call and also the organized and efficient emials and instructions that provide about use of the phone and mailing. Their instructions are precise and accurate. Very impressed with the organization and high quality of custome service from this company - which is not something you often see in Ireland and Great Britain. The only criticism I have is that the company's policies do not permit refund of any money on unused minutes. So, when we turned in the phone at the conclusion of our 17 days, we had over 25 euros of minutes remaining on the phone which was not refunded to us as per policy. If it were not for this item, I would give them 5 stars. If you are going to Ireland, this is the best way to have a cell phone - just try to purchase only the minutes you think you will use or make sure to use them up before you turn in the phone! Donna @ Destin, Florida USA read more

On my recent trip to Ireland, with friends who had internationally enabled mobile phones, I was in need of an easy way to text/call, at the least expense. Rentaphone Ireland fit the bill to a tee. The phone, while not a "smartphone", (which took getting used to the older technology) was perfect for texting and quick calls to my friends to coordinate outings. I was pleased that they were able to drop it off at my hotel, and provided a mailing envelope so I could mail back right from my hotel as well. I even had to call them at 5am with a question on the day I was leaving, and I could tell I had just woken someone up, but they were still friendly and helpful. I would definately recommend this service to others, if you are looking for an emergency phone, or to text, or make quick calls. The flat fee was less than I ever would have paid if I tried to get my phone enabled, and paid roaming fees, etc. My only suggestion would be to perhaps offer smartphones as well, so folks could access the internet easily while traveling. While more expensive, I'm sure folks like me would have paid the premium for it. Thanks for a great service! read more

Excellent basic cell phone rental service for US visitors to Ireland and UK. Especially for those, like me, who are unfamiliar with the SIM card system, topping up and international calling. I have rented from this service twice, in 2005 and July 2011. Niall is very responsive to email (within 24 hours during business week). His instructions on using the phone, including all possible permutations, warnings and pitfalls, are clear and complete, which was essential for me. I used the phone every day in London and throughout Ireland. Vodaphone service was great. Call quality and volume excellent. Never a dropped call. Battery life lasted for days, longer than my US cell phone. Call rates to US were excellent, less than 20 cents Euro per minute calling direct from Ireland, using access code from London. You have to add funds periodically (topping up), which is very easy. Niall mailed the phone to my London hotel, where I was starting my trip, which I appreciate. I would use this service again on future trips. Ed, from Oakland, California. read more

This is a very useful service for me as an American traveling in Ireland. I booked a B&B in advance for my first night's stay when I arrived, and Rentaphone shipped my phone to the B&B prior to my arrival. From then on I used the phone to contact B&Bs as I traveled, which allowed me to make plans on the fly. In more than one instance I literally pulled over at the side of the road and looked through my directory of B&Bs to call and book a room in some village up ahead. I did the same with restaurant reservations, calls for questions about tours, and in one unfortunate circumstance, even a call to protest a parking ticket! I have family in Ireland, and my phone allowed me to keep in touch with them to coordinate meetups and visits and the like. I traveled in both the south and the north, and had phone coverage wherever I went, including the far north coast of Antrim. At the end of my trip I simply dropped the preaddressed, postage-paid envelope with the phone, charger, and little instruction book at a post box to return it to Rentaphone. read more

My husband and I just made our first trip to Ireland. We knew that our phones from the US would not work in Ireland and were looking for some alternative. Rentaphone Ireland was listed in Ireland for Dummies. I booked our phone on their web site and it was very EASY and explained everything. A few days before our trip we received the confirmation email that had the phone number we would be assigned when we received our phone. That enabled us to get the number to family, pet sitters, etc., before we left home. Upon arrival at Dublin Airport we picked up the phone at an easy to find location. All the instructions were included along with the envelope to mail the phone back. We only had to use it once in contacting our first B&B, but it was comforting to know that we had one to use and could be reached in case of an emergency. When we arrived at Dublin Airport, we simply put it all in the pre-addressed/stamped envelope and put it in the post box. It could not have been simpler to use. This is the way to go! Jill-Colorado USA read more

Renting phones was a last minute idea for our family of 4 traveling to Ireland. We wanted to be able to contact each other even if we went different ways during our trip. We didn't want to pay international fees for the our American phones. We ordered 2 phones a week before leaving. The phones were waiting for us upon check in to our hotel room, fully charged and ready to turn on. As a second bonus, we were able to phone and text a family we knew in Dublin. It allowed us to let them know where we were visiting and find them when we met up again. It gave us the opportunity to speak to them and each other freely throughout our stay. Phone calls from our hotel room to the phones were only charged as local calls. This took a lot of stress out of communicating. When we used up the allotted time on the phones there are numerous places to "top off" the phones. They can be filled with 5 or more euros easily. Renting from Rentaphone was a really valuable help to us. read more

At the last minute Verizon informed my husband that his "Droid" phone would not work in Ireland so I scrambled to see what I could find out about renting a phone in Ireland. Must say info is limited and all the tourist web sites I used to plan my trip were useless. I happened upon RENTAPHONE IRELAND and called the number using my cell phone--Got a bad connection and being a "typical New Yorker" I was ready to be suspicious and give up so I hung up the phone. Less than a minute later a lovely Irish gentleman called my phone back and offered to help. He was able to provide me my number prior to leaving the states so I could give to family and phone was delivered in 2 days to my Galway Hotel. It was wonderful service, envelope provided to return phone with no hassle and we had piece of mind of having a phone while traveling over 1000 miles on some very interesting (but always beautiful) roads. LindaL -Monroe NY read more

Rented from Rentaphone Ireland for a two and a half week trip in Ireland and Scotland. Having the phone number in advance meant it could be shared with friends and family in case of emergency (which, as it turned out, happened!). Picked up the phone with little drama at the post office of the Irish town in which we were staying. The phone's earpiece was a bit grubby, and I had to clean it out with a swab. Otherwise the Nokia phone was easy to use, and Rentaphone's accompanying instructions proved excellent. While I used the phone mainly to receive calls (and hence used less than the allotted €5 in credit), it worked well in both Ireland and the UK. Had I wanted to do so Vodaphone credits are easily added at Tesco and other locations. In retrospect, I probably could have bought an Irish phone and a SIM card for much cheaper, but that would have been a pain in the ass. Suffice it to say, Rentaphone works. read more

We recently visited Ireland for 2 weeks from the States. I researched the various options for renting a cellphone and decided that Rentaphone was best for our needs. We wanted to be able to call home to my wife's mom, who is 91, as well as having a phone for local calls and emergencies. The cost of the rental was 89 euro for the 2 weeks, and the cost of phoning home was 15c/minute, which was the lowest I could find on the internet. The phone was a Nokia, quite small and good, and it was waiting for us at Dublin Airport, so that was good. There were no problems with it and it was easy to replenish the minutes. We mailed it back as we left for home and that was also quite easy. All in all, an excellent experience and as we are planning on another trip, we will rent from them again. read more

The customer service was great. I gave them short notice and they still had my phone ready for me. The phone worked all over even in the mountains. It gave me peace of mind that my family was able to reach me during my entire trip, as we were changing hotels every night. The only reason I did not give 5 stars was the phone was outdated. I thought for the amount of money charged the phone should have been better equipped. Text messaging on it was very painful without a qwerty keyboard. I was very upset to find out I could have just bought a prepaid phone for 10 euro. But I am glad that it was waiting for me at the airport and everyone already had my number b4 i left. I would definitely recommend it to anyone that does not have a phone that works in Ireland. read more

Rentaphone Ireland was a great solution for someone coming from the U.S. wothout a global coverage cell phone. We were touring Ireland and needed an emergency cell phone in case someone needed to reach us from the states. I had service throughout Ireland. The service support from Niall Hughes was outstanding - but they do need *three days* advance notice to have the phone available at the airport. They were able on very short notice (36 hours) to have it sent to the small B&B where we stayed the first evening in Ireland. I WOULD USE THIS SERVICE AGAIN. They even make it very easy to drop tthe phone in the mailbox at the airport and responded that they had received it closing out the service. A very pleasant experience. read more

We rented an Irish phone to use for our week long vacation in Ireland last week. We needed to be able to communicate with our child who was staying home in the USA. Obtaining the phone was super easy at the Dublin airport. Using the phone to make phone calls was easy and sound quality was great. Using the phone to text our son back home was NOT intuitive and frequently frustrating. We would recommend using this company to our friends and we would use them again, just know that the phone was not completely "user friendly". Returning the phone to the rental company was super convenient with the prepaid envelope they provided. Overall, the experience was a positive one. read more

We rented a phone from Rentaphone Ireland, because our US phones would not work in Ireland (different network). It was very easy to order via internet website, and the phone was waiting for us when we got to our hotel. Also, all the information is very clear concerning how to use the phone and make calls in Ireland and to and from US. Topping up was very easy at gas station locations, and the receipt tells you exactly how to activate the new minutes. Also, returning the phone was a breeze, just put it into the prepaid envelope and put it in post box at airport......no problems, and would recommend to anyone visiting ireland. Thanks! read more

I did quite a bit of research before deciding to rent the phone and choosing Rentaphone Ireland as the best for that. I was not wrong! The service was terrific, even to having Niall call me at home when I could not reach him from my home phone. My phone was waiting for me at Dublin airport, complete with instruction and the return envelope. All I had to do was turn on the phone and I was ready to go, making and receiving calls with no problems. I especially liked it that my son-in-law could call us from the U.S. with no charge to us on the rental phone. Return was easy with postage paid! Who could ask for anything more! read more

this was a very easy and cheap way to stay in touch with my children back home in the US while we were in Ireland! It was easy to pick up at the airport, and easy to return. we were supposed to keep the prepaid envelope to send it back in and just drop it at the airport, but we accidentally threw it away, and we left on a sun. so the post offices werent open to get new packaging, so they let us come back to the USA and mail it back in a day or 2. they didnt charge us extra for the extra time we had it, which was very nice. The phone had great reception and was easy to use! I would definetely recomend this company to anyone! read more

I found renting a phone through RENTAPHONE IRELAND pretty easy through the computer. The only thing that threw me off was that I didn't realize that Dublin Airport now has TWO terminals....one of them was just completed. AerLingus arrived at Terminal 2 where AerLingus had just moved to and we had to search a bit until we found that the pick-up location (near Green Caps) was actually in the little building near the bus depots opposite Terminal 1. But in all honesty everything else was easy. They give you easy directions for return and we found the wall charger the easiest to pack and return. I would use them again. read more

I didn't even know you could rent a phone and I came across this ad. I went ahead and booked the phone for the week I was in Ireland. Had no idea who the company was or if they were trustworthy. They dropped the phone off at my hotel earlier then they said which was great. The phone lasted the week throughout Ireland and Northern Ireland. It is so easy to use and so clear to everyone back home. Best thing I have done and best company to do it with. They make it so easy to return it as well.....thanks so much for helping me keep in touch while on vacation. Great service, great quality, great price. read more