Hello, we are arriving in Dublin at 10 am Sept 9. We have three nights staying near St. Stephens Square. Some things we are interested in: Oscar Wilde, literature, Guiness storehouse, churches, castles, Trinity College, pubs, etc. We thought about taking a trip to Howth for a few hours. We are leaving Dublin for Dingle the morning on Sept. 12. We will also have part of a day on Sept 17 before we fly out on Sept 18. We are staying on O'Connell street on Sept 17 so I thought we could do the Rick Steves walk and/or maybe see the Emigration museum or Kilmainham Goal. We will be using all public transportation on this trip.
Any other things I'm missing and anyone have a suggestion on what to see and when? Thanks for your help with our Dublin itinerary!
Posted by
San Antonio Texas
38 posts
I was just in Dublin in October with my adult children. We loved EPIC (the Immigration museum), the GPO and Kilmainham. (we needed reservations for Kilmainham even then) We took a walking tour of Trinity College that was great, and included the Book of Kells. I think the new immersive experience (without seeing the actual book) might be even better.
Heading back that way with my sister in October. Can't wait!
Posted by
1583 posts
Have you looked into the Dublin Literary Pub Crawl? I haven't done it but I think it gets good reviews. https://www.dublinpubcrawl.com/. If Kilmainham Gaol is a priority you might want to book tickets as soon as they become available 28 days in advance. They sell out quickly. https://www.kilmainhamgaolmuseum.ie/. It sounds like your last night in Dublin is being spent on the north side of the River Liffey on Upper O'Connell St. Both the Emigration Museum and the GPO are on the north side of the river. Kilmainham Gaol is on the south side of the river.
Posted by
Seattle, WA & Bordeaux, France
319 posts
The EPIC museum is one of my favorite museums. The interactive nature of the museum, they way they lead you through the journey of the Irish people was captivating. Definitely worth your time on the 17th. Howth is super charming but may be a bit of an outlier for the amount of time you have (realistically you have 2 days in Dublin.) If your thought about Howth was to see the castle I will tell you the grounds are pretty but the castle was meh (and wasn't open when we were there) and it was a bit of a walk from castle to main town. Lovely village though! And great walking trails (and good restaurants.) There's so much to see in Dublin itself that I'd suggest using your time to see those items you listed before adding in Howth. Enjoy your trip!
Posted by
5 posts
There's lots of literary Dublin to see! The James Joyce Center is worth seeing, but their walking tours are where they really shine: https://jamesjoyce.ie/bookings/
The National Library of Ireland is also a great place to visit. Their Seamus Heaney Exhibit "Listen Now Again" is free and a short walk from the main library. In the library itself is a solid Yeats exhibit and they sometimes have other delights. Also free: https://www.nli.ie/exhibitions-events
The Joyce Museum is out in SandyCove, in the Martello Tower where the first episode of Ulysses is set: https://joycetower.ie/
The museum itself is small, but you can climb the tower for views, see the Forty Foot, walk along the sea, and enjoy a lovely ride along the coast on the DART
There's a delightfully weird Wilde statue near St. Stephen's Green: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oscar_Wilde_Memorial_Sculpture
Finally, everyone recommends plays at the Abbey, but the Gate also runs some great shows. I'd see what's on at both.