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Day in Dublin-tips on castle hotel,transport from airport,activities

Posted by (Cleveland, OH, USA) on

Hi,

I'm going to London in May for a week,and will have two friends join me for the last 5 days.We have planned most of our London activities,and are taking an overnight trip to Paris.We have recently decided,based on seeing Ryanair flights at 25 pounds RT,to spend the last day/night in Dublin. My ?'s are:

1.We are looking at various hotels,but the two castles caught our eye-the Fitzpatrick Castle and the Clontarf Castle.Does anyone have any recommendations for one over the other?

2.We dont plan on renting a car-what is reasonable public transport to either of the above hotels and to/from the main city/tourist attractions?

3.For a day trip,what would be the main things "not to miss"? We are interested in some nearby historical sights/castles,and perhaps an area with pubs in the evening? Interesting musuems would be a possibility too...anything else you would suggest? We are three women,ages 24-31.

Finally,any recommendation for how to avoid difficulties traveling on Ryanair? We plan to bring a standard carryon apiece,mine is a 21 inch wheeled carryon for example.

Thanks!

Posted by
1014 posts

On Ryanair -Be sure to check the weight of the luggage also. I THINK their maximum is 10K or 22 lbs. Look at the website to be sure. It might have changed since last year. Also, be there when they say. They will close the doors and leave you if you are a minute late. They require only 1 piece of luggage. No piece of luggage and a purse is allowed.

Last year, there was a bus that you could buy a ticket on at the airport and you could get to Dublin center and hop off and on and do a Dublin day tour. That might interest you. On the castle trip, someone else will have to chime in.

Posted by
33 posts

You can get some great information on the castles and other attractions at this site: http://www.visitdublin.com/

They have a lot of excellent advice, pictures, costs of everything, times they are open, concessions available, etc. - it is an excellent website!

Posted by
408 posts

On RyanAir you need to print your boarding pass before you get to the airport ("checkin" online up to 15 days prior to departure). If you arrive without it, it will be another 40 euro (or 40 Pound-sterling) for each boarding pass.

Posted by
319 posts

Stacey,

You won't need to rent a car if you'll be staying in Dublin.

Some of the top sights include Dublin castle (headquarters of the ruling British in Ireland), the Book of Kells at Trinity College, the National Museum (cultural treasures incl. the Tara Brooch), and Kilmainhaim Gaol (jail that played a major role in Irish struggle for independence).

As you might expect, you can find a pub on just about every block in Dublin. The major area for pubs is Temple Bar. I found the vibe to be a bit more touristy/frat house than I prefer, but it can be fun and is very centrally located.

Posted by
34 posts

Stacey,

You are going to LOVE Dublin. It's an amazing city with very warm and welcoming people. I was there last July, and loved it so much that I'm returning back again this July (after spending a few days in London as well.)

1- I'm not sure about staying in castles, but you also might want to check out bewleyshotels.com

2- Dublin is very much a walking city. The things you'd like to see are all a reasonable walk from each other, with the exception of the Guinness factory. What I would recommend is taking a bus tour, you can get tickets from the bus drivers, and you can hop on and off at the sites you'd like to see. Also the LUAS rail system they have is very safe and easy to figure out, but it does shut down I think around 10, or 11 at night, so you'll probably have to take a taxi back to your hotel if you're going to be out late.

3- Temple Bar is interesting, and cool to look at, but it is extremely touristy. You'll have a good time there, but I found another bar off OConnell street called Murrays which I fell in love with. You're going to meet more locals there.

Have a good trip,
SLAINTE!

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