Sightseeing OverviewDublin might not be one of Europe’s most visually stunning cities, but what it lacks in
aesthetics it more than makes up for with its many
attractions. Most of the sights are located south of the River Liffey, in a district of gracious
Georgian
mansions and leafy
avenues around Grafton
Street and elegant
St Stephen’s Green. The main landmarks here include
Trinity College, the
National Museum,
Leinster House (the home of the Irish Parliament) and the
National Gallery
of Ireland.
Nearby,
The Temple Bar district, once the site of Viking Dublin, has completely reinvented itself. After its promising 1980s resurrection, Temple Bar suffered under the weight of countless British stag and hen nights, scaring off locals and tourists alike. The tourist board and local publicans have since worked hard to deter the worst ravages of the pre-nuptial
hordes.
West of Temple Bar, the historic
cathedrals,
Christ Church and
St Patrick’s (both vestiges of Anglo-Norman Dublin) are architecturally impressive. The
Norman city walls are on view from neighboring Cook Street.
Dublin Castle, the symbol of the Anglo-Irish Ascendancy, stands proud on Dame Street.
The district of the
Liberties lies to the west of St Patrick’s Cathedral and is home to the
Guinness Storehouse and
brewery,
The Irish Museum of Modern Art and
Kilmainham Gaol - now a museum recounting the struggle for independence.
The city is bisected by the
River Liffey, which flows west to east and is crossed by a number of bridges. These include the famous
Ha’Penny Bridge and its newest neighbor, the
Millennium Bridge, which joins Ormond Quay Lower on the north bank of the Liffey with Wellington Quay on the south bank.
North of the River Liffey the crowds of tourists dissipate in a rougher, grittier
area, which Roddy Doyle generously summed up as having more ’soul’
than
sights. It contains the General
Post
Office (GPO), which has a facade pitted with gunfire from the Easter Rising of April 1916; the
Dublin Writers Museum, The
James Joyce Center and the
Hugh Lane Municipal Gallery of Modern Art. The
Custom House and
Four Courts rival the Georgian mansions of the south in grandeur, although the Georgian
architecture of
Merrion Square, Fitzwilliam Square and
St Stephen’s Green is well worth admiring.
Other noteworthy sights include
Phoenix Park to the west,
Collin’s Barracks and the sights located along the
Grand Canal (the
Shaw Birthplace, Irish Jewish Museum and
National Print Museum), which loops around the south of the center.
Tourist InformationDublin Tourism Center Suffolk Street
Tel: (01) 605 7700.
Website:
www.visitdublin.comOpening hours: Mon-Sat 0900-1900, Sun 1030-1700 (Jul-Aug); Mon-Sat 0900-1900, Sun 1030-1500 (Jun and Sep); Mon-Sat 0900-1730, Sun 1030-1500 (rest of year); bank holidays 1030-1500. Closed 25-26 Dec, 1 Jan.
There are additional tourist information offices located at Dublin Airport (tel: (01) 605 7700), open daily 0800 to 2200, Baggot Street Bridge (tel: (01) 605 7700), open Monday to Friday 0930 to 1700, Dún Laoghaire Harbour (tel: (01) 605 7700), open Monday to Saturday 1000 to 1245 and 1400 to 1800, and 14 Upper O’Connell Street (tel: (01) 605 7700), open Monday to Saturday 0900 to 1700.
PassesThe
Dublin Pass provides free, fast-track entry to over 30 attractions, a comprehensive guidebook and many special shopping, service and restaurant offers in one complete package, including transport from Dublin airport. It is available as a one-, two-, three- or six-day pass and can be purchased online at
www.dublinpass.ie or at any of the city’s tourist information offices.
Key Attractions:Trinity College Visitors can drift through the college among the numerous artistic ghosts in one of the world’s most famous centers of learning. Jonathan Swift, Bram Stoker, Oscar Wilde, Samuel Beckett and many other seminal thinkers and writers studied at Ireland’s oldest university, which was founded in 1592. With its cobbled squares, gardens and grand buildings, Trinity College retains an aura of peace, despite its central location. Its main attraction is the
Book of Kells, an illuminated manuscript dating from around AD800, which is displayed in the magnificent Old Library.
College Street
Tel: (01) 608 2320.
Website:
www.tcd.ie Opening hours Old Library/Book of Kells: Mon-Sat 0930-1700, Sun 0930-1630 (May-Sep); Mon-Sat 0930-1700, Sun 1200-1630 (Oct-Apr).
Admission charge.
National Museum of Ireland Among this rich collection of Irish antiquities, dating from 7000BC to the modern day, are the eighth-century Ardagh Chalice and Tara Brooch and the 12th-century Cross of Cong.
Ór (Ireland’s gold) features the finest collection of prehistoric gold artifacts in Europe. There are also major exhibitions on prehistoric Ireland, Viking Ireland, medieval Ireland and Irish history from 1900 to 1921. This is just one of three venues for the National Museum, with further collections on view at Collins Barracks (Decorative Art and History) and Merrion Street (Natural History).
Kildare Street
Tel: (01) 677 7444.
Website:
www.museum.ieOpening hours: Tues-Sat 1000-1700, Sun 1400-1700.
Free admission.
National Gallery of Ireland This impressive collection incorporates some 2,500 paintings, as well as watercolors, drawings, prints and sculpture. Although Irish painting holds pride of place, all major European schools of painting are well represented. A major renovation of the museum was completed in 1996 and the award-winning Millennium Wing, a modern architectural masterpiece, showcases Irish art in the first half of the 20th century and houses a sculpture gallery and temporary exhibitions.
Merrion Square West and Clare Street
Tel: (01) 661 5133.
Website:
www.nationalgallery.ieOpening hours: Mon-Sat 0930-1730 (until 2030 Thurs), Sun 1200-1730.
Free admission.
Christ Church Cathedral Richard de Clare ’Strongbow’ (the Earl of Pembroke) founded Christ Church
Cathedral on the site of a Viking church in 1172. Highlights include the ’leaning wall of Dublin’, the north nave wall, which has leaned 46cm (18 inches) since 1562 (when the roof collapsed), a mummified cat and mouse found in an organ pipe, the heart of St Laurence, the patron saint of Dublin, and a large crypt full of unusual relics.
Christchurch Place
Tel: (01) 677 8099.
Website:
www.cccdub.ieOpening hours: Daily 0900-1800 (Jun-Aug); 0945-1700 or 1800 (Sep-May).
Admission charge.
Dublin Writers Museum First editions, letters, portraits and memorabilia of Swift, Sheridan, Shaw, Wilde, Yeats, Joyce, Beckett and Behan fill this fascinating museum, set in a spectacular Georgian mansion. There is also a room devoted to children’s literature.
18-19 Parnell Square North
Tel: (01) 872 2077.
Website:
www.writersmuseum.comOpening hours: Mon-Sat 1000-1700, Sun 1100-1700.
Admission charge.
Dublin Castle Dating from Norman times, the palatial Dublin Castle was originally built on the orders of King John, in 1204. The largest visible remaining fragment of the original 13th-century castle is the Record Tower. It stands beside the 19th-century gothic revival
Chapel Royal. Recently uncovered excavations of Viking fortifications can be viewed at the undercroft. Most of the castle was largely rebuilt in the 18th century, including the gilded State Apartments - once the residence of English viceroys. Admission is by guided tour only. Tours run every 20 to 30 minutes. Large groups need to book in advance.
Dame Street
Tel: (01) 645 8813.
Website:
www.dublincastle.ieOpening hours: Mon-Fri 1000-1645, Sat and Sun 1400-1645.
Admission charge.
Further Distractions:Phoenix Park Europe’s biggest city park boasts more than 707 hectares (1,752 acres) of wilderness and landscaped gardens. Phoenix Park, Dublin’s most famed park, is located on the western edge of the city and originally served as a royal deer park in the 17th century. Today, the Irish president and the US ambassador to Ireland have residences within it. Dubliners enjoy its 12 hectares (30 acres) of landscaped gardens with ornamental lakes, nature trails and grassland. The old duelling ground, Fifteen Acres, is now a popular venue for sport while Nine Acres is home to the Irish Polo Club. The park also houses
Dublin Zoo - home to over 700 animals and tropical birds.
Dublin Zoo Phoenix Park
Tel: (01) 474 8900.
Website:
www.dublinzoo.ieOpening hours: Mon-Sat 0930-1800, Sun 1030-1800 (summer); Mon-Sat 0930-1600, Sun 1030-1600 (winter).
Admission charge.
Guinness Storehouse The world’s largest single beer-exporting company began in 1759, when Arthur Guinness brewed the first
Guinness. The brewery itself is not open to visitors but a visit to this state-of-the-art museum, housed in a converted warehouse and shaped like a mighty pint glass, tells the visitor everything they ever wanted to know about the famous stout. The tour culminates, of course, with a free pint of the legendary black stuff.
St James’s Gate
Tel: (01) 408 4800.
Website:
www.guinness-storehouse.comOpening hours: Daily 0930-1700 (open until 1900 Jul and Aug).
Admission charge.
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