What to see? 1.5 days in Dublin with 12 and 14 year old

On arrival day spend the day acclimating to the time difference. Walk around and explore the neighborhoods at the very most. Arrival day is not a museum day after a night of no sleep.
If you take the HoHo bus do that after a good night’s sleep. This bus spends most of the day sitting in traffic so I say skip it. Do visit the Book of Kells.

So funny. My first response was “skip the Book of Kells” and then I read the post above telling you not to skip it. You are going to get conflicting opinions on this!

Here is why I say skip it. While it is an amazing artifact, it’s presentation and access to viewing the open page are quite limited. A group of people crowd around the display making viewing a bit challenging. I have to ask myself if people feel this is a must see because of the actual experience of visiting or because they have been told it is a “must see.” My feeling is that you get a better understanding of this artifact with a virtual visit then an in person visit, and it should be skipped if you have limited time.

I found the tour of Dublin Castle interesting.

Carol- I was debating about skipping the Book of Kells already. Not sure if it's worth our very limited time. (And since my husband and I have already been there, would the kids get the more out of seeing something else?)

MaryPat- I agree with you about not planning much for day 1, other than some food and a walk. So basically we have a single day. So much to see...so little time!

Do not miss 14 Henrietta Street. It’s a house museum that tells the history of Dublin over 300 yrs from 1720 to now. Amazingly well done.

I was in Dublin for 1.5 days a week ago.
We skipped Book of Kells for the reasons Carol mentions and time was short.

We did the Big Bus HoHo. There are 4 HoHo bus companies in Dublin and they seemed to all be the same. We chose Big Bus only because it was the 1st one that came to the stop they all stop at where we were waiting.

We stayed away from Temple Bar (every Dubliner we talked to said not to go there) and opted for a pub with great musicians playing Trad Music every evening. Two professional musicians we talked to at our hotel recommended The Cobblestone which we went to both nights and it was the highlight of our time in Dublin. Highly recommend. Kids are allowed in pubs.

Depending on your collective jet lag and time, I would definitely take them to the National Museum of Scotland (free, small but easily digestible for kids), Kilmainham Gaol (really good impactful tour) and the Jeanie Johnson ship (you need to get tickets a bit in advance of touring the ship) near the Epic Museum. This will give them a pretty good overview of Irish history. I liked the Epic Museum well enough but not enough to drag kids through.

Instead of the Book of Kells go to the Chester Beatty Library near the Dublin Castle. It has some beautiful illuminated manuscripts which you will get a much better view of then anything that might be on display at the Book of Kells. The only reason to go to the Book of Kells is to get to the Long Room. If the kids were into Harry Potter that might make the Book of Kells worth it. But I think it's closed for renovations/conservation. The Archaeology Museum will be of interest to both kids, (history, battles, illuminated manuscripts and bog mummies). And definitely book tickets for Kilmainham Gaol. I think tickets become available 28 days in advance. You might want to skip the HoHo bus since you'll spend more time in traffic than seeing anything. And you'll be staying in a central location from which everything but Kilmainham Gaol is within walking distance.

Susan- thanks for the recommendation for 14 Henrietta. I looked at their website and it was quite underwhelming. I looked again after your recommendation and it appears that they won European Museum of the Year, so there must be more going on there than their website is letting on! Also, I already had the Cobblestone saved for trad music. Glad to get another vote for it here! I read that they start music pretty early so, if true, might work well for us after an overseas flight.

Mary- I agree with you about the impactful tour at Kilmainham. I think it will be on our final list, if I can get tickets, they sell out FAST! Could you say more about why you'd recommend Jeanie Johnson ship vs the EPIC? Thanks!

Trotter- thank you! Chester Beatty Library is now on our list too. I like that its free and we can just pop in without scheduling a time. (Also that it likely will be uncrowded vs Book of Kells, and seeing the long room (whole family are huge HP fans) was a reason to go)) I think we might squeeze it and the National Museum of Archaeology in on the first day if we have energy to pop in during a walk to St Steven's Green. We might consider getting a leap card vs the HoHo. Are any of the public busses double deckers? The kids really want to ride on the top!

Yes, they have double-decker regular busses in Dublin.

14 Henrietta gave us an intimate understanding and connection to Dublin. It’s so well done, and an excellent learning experience for your kids.

St Stephen’s Green was very underwhelming. I was so looking forward to going there, but was disappointed. I’m used to beautiful parks in France and England, and this one isn’t, imo.

Funny you already had The Cobblestone on your list!

Hi Jen,

The EPIC Museum was fine. You progress through a lot of rooms that focus on one aspect on the Irish experience such as pubs. My thoughts are based on having a grandchild whose eyes would glaze over at a certain point in a museum. But perhaps your kids are different. The Jeanie Johnson is more of an experience where the guide takes you through an actual ship and talks about what life was like on the voyage across the Atlantic to the US and/or Canada. To me that brings things more to life than seeing a few artifacts and photos in a museum. The ship tour is also shorter than the EPIC museum. Talk to your kids and get their input as to what they would enjoy more.

I have The Cobblestone on our list for our last evening in Dublin for one final dose of trad music before we return home!

Would we also be able grab a bite of dinner there or could you recommend other places nearby for a light dinner before enjoying the music at The Cobblestone?

Hi Jen!

I'd second the recommendation for the Jeannie Johnson tour. It's somber, but impactful and is one of the best memories from Dublin for me. The Famine memorial is right beside it and EPIC is across the street. We did both and learned alot from each of them. If you have time, I'd do both.

PQ