NEVER MIND groups of death, the group of debt for soccer fans planning to support the Irish team on their adventures in Poland and/or Ukraine next summer will be centred on the Ukrainian city of Donetsk, 600km (373 miles) from the capital Kiev.
While Ukraine is undoubtedly cheaper than neighbouring Poland, it will be more expensive for Irish fans to get to if they choose the DIY route as flights will be hard to come by and train journeys long and complicated to arrange.
All told, a trip east could easily cost more than €2,000, depending on where the boys in green end up and how far they progress in the tournament, which kicks off on June 8th next year.
Ireland is well served by flights to Poland with Ryanair offering flights from Dublin to nine Polish cities including three of the cities where matches in groups A and C are scheduled to take place – Poznan, Gdansk and Wroclaw. The fourth Polish host city, capital Warsaw, is served by Aer Lingus, which also flies to Krakow.
At present return flights to any of the cities cost less than €100. Prices for the opening weekend of the tournament are more than twice that and will spike as demand intensifies but they are still likely to be cheaper than travelling further east.
Fans will have to fly to Frankfurt, Amsterdam or London before making a connection to take them to Ukraine. Flights from any of these cities to Kiev for the opening weekend currently stand at well over €200 and prices are likely to take off once the draw is confirmed.
Hotels in Poland cost anywhere from €40 to €120 and beyond while camping will cost less than €10 a night with sites available near all the host cities. Hotels in Ukraine, meanwhile, are cheaper and could cost as little as €20 a night, while a night on a campsite will cost less than €4.
Abbey Travel is the official travel agent for the FAI and will be flying the team, officials, the media and a large number of fans to the tournament. While it is unlikely to have any packages ready to sell until close to Christmas, a spokesman said the cost of a 10-day trip, covering flights, accommodation and match tickets, could be more than €1,500.
One advantage of going down the tour-operator route will be the guarantee of tickets. With Ireland the lowest seeds in the competition, they are likely to face at least one of Europe’s footballing superpowers and the demand for tickets will be fierce when they go on sale to the 16 nations involved after the draw on December 2nd.
The competing nations are set to get 450,000 tickets between them with 320,000 to be given to sponsors and corporate hospitality. Prices will vary from €30 for a seat behind one of the goals for a group match rising to €600 for the main stand at the final. If the Republic makes it that far, there are few fans who would not consider that excellent value.
