DublinTravel Guide
Dublin's reputation was built on pints and talk, but its table has caught up with its pubs: a generation of Irish chefs is reworking superb native produce — grass-fed beef and dairy, island oysters, wild seafood — while the city's Victorian bars pour on, largely unchanged. Eating and drinking here now means moving between both worlds, ideally in the same evening.
Is Dublin right for you?
May–September
Mid-range. Comfortable without planning around money, expensive if you stop counting.
No hour-by-hour route here yet — the guides below cover it by subject instead.
May–September
Mid-range
Typical cost profile for visitors
- Belfast, United Kingdom140 km
a short hop — comfortable overland · both good in May, June, September · a different price level (mixed)
- Galway190 km
a short hop — comfortable overland · both good in June, July, September
- Liverpool, United Kingdom220 km
a short hop — comfortable overland · both good in May, June, July
- Manchester, United Kingdom270 km
a short hop — comfortable overland · both good in May, June, September
Belfast
GalwayFinding Dublin
Reading Dublin
Dublin, place by place
Everything below is named in one of our own stories about Dublin. The line under each is the sentence that recommended it, and the link goes to the piece it came from.
Where to stay
The areas and addresses our writers put first
Barbora Dostálová
Temple Bar and the quays
On the Liffey's edge, The Clarence — bought in the 1990s by Bono and The Edge of U2 — brings rock-and-roll pedigree to a nineteenth-century shell.
St Stephen's Green
DublinThe Shelbourne has presided over Dublin's finest square since 1824, and no hotel is more woven into Irish history — the Irish Constitution was drafted in one of its rooms in 1922.
Grafton Street
DublinJust off the city's famous pedestrian shopping street, The Westbury puts you at the exact centre of the southside swirl — Trinity College, the Green and the pubs of the surrounding lanes all within a five-minute stroll.
O'Connell Street and the northside
DublinAcross the river, the Gresham has anchored Dublin's grand boulevard since the early nineteenth century, and the surrounding northside — the GPO, the Hugh Lane Gallery, the theatres — is rich in history and lighter on…
Where to eat
Tables worth crossing the city for
The Long Hall
DublinOn South Great George's Street, all Victorian mahogany, mirrors and red-shaded lamps, largely untouched for over a century.
Kehoe's
DublinJust off Grafton Street on South Anne Street, a warren of snugs and creaking staircases that fills nightly with an easy mix of locals and strays.
Mulligan's
DublinOn Poolbeg Street near the river, trading since the 18th century and long beloved of printers and journalists from the old newspaper district.
Leo Burdock
DublinDublin's most storied chipper has been frying on Werburgh Street, near Christ Church Cathedral, since 1913.
Gallagher's Boxty House
DublinIn Temple Bar, and a rare tourist-district address locals will still defend, built around boxty — the traditional Irish potato pancake — done a dozen ways.
Chapter One
DublinIn a basement on Parnell Square on the north side, this is the flagship of modern Irish fine dining — Michelin-starred, rooted in Irish producers, and run with real warmth rather than starch.
The Winding Stair
DublinAbove a beloved bookshop of the same name on Ormond Quay, looking across the Liffey to the Ha'penny Bridge.
What to see
The things that justify the trip
Stoneybatter and the park beyond
DublinNorth of the river, Stoneybatter has evolved into Dublin's favorite village-in-the-city: tiny brick cottages, proper old pubs, and an easy stroll to Phoenix Park — one of Europe's largest enclosed city parks, where wi…
Glasnevin's glasshouses
DublinThe National Botanic Gardens in Glasnevin pair restored Victorian glasshouses with riverside walks, and entry is typically free.
What we'd do in Dublin
See and do
- National Gallery of Ireland
Home to Caravaggio's The Taking of Christ — lost for centuries and rediscovered in a Dublin Jesuit house in the 1990s — plus Vermeer, Goya, and the swirling late canvases of Jack B.
Read: The Finest Museums and Galleries of Dublin - The library time forgot
A few steps from St Patrick's Cathedral, Marsh's Library has been lending atmosphere since the early 18th century — dark oak bookcases, ancient volumes, and famously few visitors.
Read: Dublin Beyond the Crowds - Daylight swing
from around 17 hours in midsummer to under 8 in midwinter
Read: Dublin in Every Season: When to Go and What Changes - National Museum of Ireland – Archaeology
Where Ireland keeps its treasure, literally: prehistoric gold hoards, the Ardagh Chalice, the Tara Brooch, and the haunting Iron Age bog bodies, preserved down to their fingernails.
Read: The Finest Museums and Galleries of Dublin - A world-class museum with no line
Inside the grounds of Dublin Castle, the Chester Beatty holds one of the finest collections of manuscripts, sacred texts, and Asian and Middle Eastern art in Europe — and entry is typically free.
Read: Dublin Beyond the Crowds
Eat and drink
- The Long Hall
On South Great George's Street, all Victorian mahogany, mirrors and red-shaded lamps, largely untouched for over a century.
Read: Dublin Eats: From Proper Pubs to the New Irish Table - Kehoe's
Just off Grafton Street on South Anne Street, a warren of snugs and creaking staircases that fills nightly with an easy mix of locals and strays.
Read: Dublin Eats: From Proper Pubs to the New Irish Table - Mulligan's
On Poolbeg Street near the river, trading since the 18th century and long beloved of printers and journalists from the old newspaper district.
Read: Dublin Eats: From Proper Pubs to the New Irish Table - Leo Burdock
Dublin's most storied chipper has been frying on Werburgh Street, near Christ Church Cathedral, since 1913.
Read: Dublin Eats: From Proper Pubs to the New Irish Table
Practical essentials for Ireland
Euro (EUR)
Irish and English are both official; English is the everyday language everywhere
Type G, 230V 50Hz
Intercity trains and Bus Eireann coaches link the cities; in Dublin, buses, the Luas tram and DART trains are all paid with a TFI Leap Card, and contactless bank cards are still not accepted.
Around 10-15% in sit-down restaurants, but read the bill first because many places add a service charge, and nobody tips for a drink at the bar.
Public mains water is safe to drink; occasional local boil-water notices affect smaller rural supplies.
Left-hand side; an EU or UK licence is accepted as it stands, with no International Driving Permit needed.
112 or 999 (both reach all services)
Country-level guidance, checked against official sources. Currency, fares and entry rules change — confirm anything time-critical before you travel.
Belgium
Netherlands