The lucky green land, here is my Ireland Guide that includes everything! Where to stay according to the season/time of the year, tons of fun things to do: museums, activities, tours, and more. Where to eat: A list of my top restaurants and pubs, and how to navigate the country.
I want to start the post apologizing for getting delayed in loading all the pictures, I did highlight on my instagram page all the spots in Ireland, with tons of pictures to compensate the technical issues on my website while I try to figure it out why is my system not letting me load all the pictures that I have for every item listed.
Public Transportation:
Bus: It works with coins. Absolutely no card needed. The bus system is good and frequent, even late at night. The stops are not that spread out at least in the city, they can be found every few blocks. To visit other places in Ireland there are long distance buses and even private vehicles, and private tours. The local buses are 1.5 euros and the long distance buses are 15 Euros average, here there is a link to all the buses in Ireland:
Bikes: The bikes are a good exercise and perfect to navigate the city as you please. You need an app called Dublin Bikes. The first 30 min are for free.
Taxis: Taxis are usually requested through the Uber app... There is no Uber here, but if you use the Uber app a taxi will show up. That's why is hard to just stop them in the street.
How to navigate the city of Dublin:
Dublin has a northern part and a southern part, South Dublin and North Dublin are separated by the River Liffey, both sides are pretty cool, interesting and worth visiting, everything is walkable distance.
It is very safe to travel solo to Ireland! A week in Ireland should be enough to do highlights at a normal and relaxed pace.
Where to stay in Dublin:
I stayed in the North of Dublin, in an hotel called The Dublin One, it was very nice and the breakfast and brunch options were delicious and affordable. The location is not ideal to be honest, but since it was St Patrick's weekend, it was extremely hard to get an affordable hotel in the Dublin area for those dates, and this one was perfect for the celebration. Also, the heart of Dublin was chaotic for St Patrick's, the streets are crowded and it turns very noisy.
Breakfast at The Dublin One Hotel
So where to stay depends on the time of the year, if is not for St Paddy's, I would recommend somewhere close to the city but not in the centric area, otherwise it is nice to stay somewhere in the area of Trinity Collage.
The public bus takes 45 min from/to the airport.
Driving from/to the airport takes 20 min.
What to do in Dublin, Ireland
Trinity Collage Library
This collage has one of the top rated libraries in the world, and as you walk the main hallway there is the original harp, popular logo of Ireland, that is so famous: the Brian Boru Harp
The visit takes about 40 min since prior entering to the library there is a museum. The library is open from 9:30 am to 4:30 pm and the tickets are €15
Here is the link to purchase tickets (I know is long, promise it's not spam)
Christ Church Cathedral :
Beautiful Cathedral, I think it deserves the same kind of Attention that is given to St. Patricks Cathedral. If you don't want to get in, at least walk by it because it is very beautiful. This is also a perfect spot during the Parade if you visit for St Patrick's Day.
National Museum of Ireland :
Free admission. This is the kind of museum that takes a few hours, and it not only displays art in a sociological-historical way, the also have natural history and archeology, according to your the area you desire to explore, there are different locations. To see the locations click on the link below.
Anne’s Lane:
Anne's Lane (bottom right image) is an alley located in a pedestrian zone. It was very cloudy and it rained just upon arrival, so the picture looks very dark. As the sun peeked through the clouds, everything looked brighter. This is very easy to find and is nice just to walk by and see.
The Little Museum of Dublin:
This visit is quick but enriching. As soon as the entire group is in the main room, upstairs, the "show" begins, and the guide of this visit introduce you in a theatrical way to Irish history in 30 min. This is fun, affordable, and doesn't consume three hours of your limited time traveling abroad (or being a local who likes to play tourist).
https://www.littlemuseum.ie
Tickets are 15€, The Little Museum is open from 10 am to 5 pm.
St Patrick's Cathedral
Open from 9:30 am to 5 pm Tickets are €8
The Cathedral is beautiful and they display in chronological order all the history about it and about who Saint Patrick was, I think that this is a necessary stop if you are looking to learn and understand the culture. It get's very crowded since is one of the main places to visit in Dublin. Especially for St Patrick's weekend.
Dublin Castle
The Viceroy of Ireland lived in this castle, representing the British crown in Ireland. This is also another slice of Dublin's history and it helps to put all the pieces of the puzzle together.
Tickets are €8, the castle is open from 9:45am to 5:45 pm. The self guided tour takes about 30 min.
Kylemore Abbey Estate
The estate is located in Galway, not very close to Dublin, it's more of the country side of the nation. very beautiful to escape from the city, and enjoy nature.
Guinness Experience
The Guinness Connoisseur Bar
Open from 10 am to 5 pm
Visiting The Guinness factory on Saint Patrick's day was one of the best decisions I've ever made. They have a special show going on and tastings. This factory has seven floors, the top floor has floor to ceiling windows and a panoramic view of the city.
Jameson Tasting
Jameson offers different tours, with different experiences. The one I took was 45 min long, and included brief history of Jameson, Irish history, background, and a taste of three different whiskeys.
Jameson is open from 12 to 5:30 pm.
https://www.jamesonwhiskey.com/en-ie/visit-our-distilleries/jameson-bow-street-distillery-tour/
Matt Talbot Bridge:
This bridge is good to have a panoramic view of the city and to enjoy a sunset. It crosses Liffey River and it's a little bit farther east.
St Patrick's Day in Dublin:
Saint Patrick's day is a big date in Ireland, people from all over the world gather in the heart of the city, mostly where Temple Bar is -it's crowded everywhere. Approximately between 750.000 and 1 million people visit the city for this special date. Everyone is in a good mood and getting ready for the festivities. Saint Patrick's is a holiday in Ireland, on march 17th absolutely no one works (except for bars). Not even banks.
The parade starts 12:00 at Parnell Square North, going through O'Connell street and after crossing River Liffey keeps its march until it ends in Saint Patricks Cathedral at 2 pm. I highly recommend to be near the cathedral at 1:30 and enjoy 30 min of parade is more than enough, keep in mind that to cross to the other side you have to wait until enough people gather at the crossing points and the police will let you go through every 15 min or so. The crossing points are located every two blocks or so and are easy to recognize because there are signs attached to them that say "Crossing point."
Before the parade officially ends the wise thing to do is heading to eat before start drinking. Make reservations to have lunch that day, it's packed everywhere and without reservations it will be hard to get food that is not from a convenience store. The place I went for brunch that day was The Market Bar (more info below) They have a tapas menu and plenty of cocktails. This place is the place to be in Saint Patricks.
After eating the party continues on the streets. The police really controls the entrance to the streets where Temple Bar is located, you might have to walk extra blocks to find the access point. The festivities continue until late, popular and fancy bars only work with tickets this day like Farrier and Drapper for instance.
What to wear on Saint Patricks Day in Dublin: I remember researching this because I wasn't sure if there were some colors that were not permitted (who knows!) Obviously green is the color to go, and comfortable shoes, although I wore high heels ankle boots. The reason why is because everyone steps on me all the time, and since I am a little bit short I didn't want to miss the views. My sneakers are also soft and thin, so I picked something that made me taller, and with a thicker material. It is cold outdoors, so I got a green, thick jacket, orange top because inside the bars was very hot and I needed layers to be removed, and of course jeans.
you don't need tickets to see the parade unless you want seats on first row. I think that purchasing tickets is very unnecessary, unless you go there very year and you want to experience it in a different way this time. The tickets can be purchased here https://stpatricksfestival.ie/events/parade This is the official website where you can find information like which bands are playing at the parade and what events are being hosted that week.
Restaurants and bars in Dublin:
The Ivy:
Located a block away from Trinity collage and a block away from Anne’s lane, is the ideal brunch spot, the decoration creates the perfect atmosphere along with the dishes.
The Market Bar
This place was the accidentally one of the best decisions I made since most of the people from the parade landed in the same spot for a break to eat before going back out. The festivities continue while you eat surrounded by a green wave of shirts and hats.
Cafe en Seine:
Nice spot for dinner, it also has a night club late at night, I don't like nightclubs but if you are a clubby person this is your spot. It is very dark inside, it has style, decor, it is on my list, not one of my favorite to be honest, but I would give it another chance if I ever come back to Ireland.
Yamamori Izakaya Sake Bar
Loved this Sake Bar, every bite of this food takes you closer to paradise! Here is where the locals go, and this is good to avoid the tourist traps, yeah...it doesn't have typical Irish food, that's correct to say, but If you go to any pub, especially the ones in North Dublin, crossing River Liffey, you will find those typical dishes without having to spend too much.
Opium
This is a bar with 3 different floors, Thai and Vietnamese cocktails and they have a botanical garden story and a lounge.
Farrier and Drapper
This is a walk in situation, they don't accept reservations. this place has different rooms with different decor and seating. for soem special dates the only operate with a ticket purchase (St Patrick's Day, for instance)
The Gallery room is exquisite.
The Church Cafe:
They allow walk ins at all times, there is not such a thing as a reservation unless you need a dining table, but there is plenty of room, and if it's only for a drink, even easier to get in. This old Church was turned into a bar, and it is famous since very popular characters of Ireland got married here, Arthur Guinness, for example, is one of the biggest figures.
Bad Bob’s Temple Bar:
No reservation needed. My best advice: order a few appetizers, a beer, and you are all set. These bar has two floors, big screens upstairs to watch sports, small tv's downstairs.
The Temple Bar:
The Temple Bar is crowded at all times but St Patrick's is definitely a date in which everyone goes at least once to this bar. There is live music and outdoor seating as well.
The Brazen Head
This is the oldest pub in all Dublin!
And of course if you walk and get lost (that's always the most exciting part) just get into any pub that is not that close to the main area, you will experience an authentic Irish atmosphere, especially for a rugby game.
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is a different Country, so once you step here you can add another country to your list, if you are coming from Ireland you do not need a passport.
I booked a bus from http://getyourguide.com that drove us to the next sites:
Giant's Causeway
An incredible display of rocks naturally all piled on top of each other creating a geological beauty, considered Unesco World Heritage Site, free admission.
Dark Hedges
This path is well known for being The King's Road in the tv show Game of Thrones. the twisted trees on the sides form a type of tunnel, making it look somber and very unique.
Dunluce Castle
This is the famous castle located on the coast line, and that connects a very small Island to mainland through a wooden bridge.
Belfast
The city of Belfast tells a very interesting history, a battle of religions, a lot of violence, bombings and a town that is divided in two by a wall. Whilst some people assure is not that bad, some others whose family members have really suffered the violence stand that things are not good. it is advice not to walk with the colors of the Irish flags in Belfast (remember you are not in Ireland anymore, you are in Northern Ireland which is another country)
In Belfast I had two hours that I used to visit the City Hall, very investing to learn highlights of the history of this city, and of Northern Ireland. Afterwards I went to The Duke of York Bar, this is a key spot, a very popular place to go for a beer, you will find a lot of history in this bar as well, as is a very old establishment.
The bus for this tour leaves at 6:45 from Huge gallery, in Dublin and come backs between 7 and 8 pm to the same spot or close to the same spot.
Tours to visit the countryside and other parts of Ireland take the entire day minimum, and up to whatever number of days you would like to explore.
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