Duty-free stores are an enticing perk of international travel. These retail businesses sell merchandise that is exempt from duties and taxes with the understanding that they'll be taken out of the country for use. You get a discount because you are transporting the goods vs. having them exported by air or shipping container. Many popular duty-free items found in airport shops include liquor, chocolate, and perfume.

There are amazing duty free shops at the Dublin Airport (DUB). You'll find all sorts of world famous brands. When you are leaving Ireland from DUB, you'll go through Immigration and Customs pre-clearance at the gate area AFTER you go through the first main security area to get into the departure lounges.

FUN FACT:  Chuck Feeney, an Irish-British-American businessman and philanthropist made billions in the duty free business as the co-founder of the Duty Free Shoppers Group(DFS). Feeney and his college classmate Robert Miller started selling duty-free liquor to American servicemen in Asia in the 1950’s and later expanded to selling cars and tobacco. In the 1980’s Feeney formed The Atlantic Philanthropies, secretly giving away his fortune for many years, some of which was donated back to Irish colleges, including my alma mater University of Limerick, and other worldly charities. In 1996, Feeney and a partner sold their shares in the DFS to the French luxury conglomerate, Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessy. All be told, Feeney has given away more than $8 Billion to charity.

MY PERSONAL TIP LEARNED THE HARD WAY: When you get booze make sure they put it in a  sealed customs bag when you pick it up if you are on a connecting flight. Otherwise you will need to go back out and check your booze if you have it as carry on -  which you will; as you have given your checked luggage to the airline before you cleared security. I learned this the hard way. And no, I hadn’t been drinking.

I learned early on, before I had opened Biddy Murphy, that when you travel to Ireland and your mates learn about your trip, they will inevitably ask you to bring something back. “Hey Ward, can you pick me up one of those fine Irish caps I see you wearing?...Or “I sure loved that Irish wrap I saw Mary wearing, can you get me one of those as a gift for my wife?”...Or, “I wish I could find one of those fine Irish wool blankets. Any chance you could grab me one of those?” And the next thing you know, I was traveling like a pack mule. In fact, that was part of my inspiration for starting Biddy Murphy. I knew that I could import unique, high quality goods from the Motherland. Don’t worry about packing yourself with goods and gifts when you travel back from Ireland. You can get the real deal at www.BiddyMurphy.com where everything we carry is authentic Irish.

So you can see, I don’t have all of the answers but I do have experiences that I love to share with you. How about you? What is your favorite item to purchase at the Duty Free Shops when you are traveling abroad? Leave a comment on our Facebook page or send me an email at ward@biddymurphy.com. I’d love to hear from you.

Slainte!

Ward