Short break. Why is Dublin so bad

[IfIShouldFallFromGraceWithGod]

I'm looking for a city break and Dublin was on my list. It scored highly on the worst holiday thread, can anyone tell me why

Dub here living in London ! So I may be biased - but Dublin is bloody amazing - I get back there as often as possible (every few months for a weekend) 2 weeks at Xmas - the night life is amazing - if you avoid tourist areas (temple bar etc) there's a lot more to it than the city centre as well (we have lovely beaches (go to howth on the dart or dun laoghaire)

Anyone moaning about it is just doing it wrong!

My only issue is that it's expensive - more expensive than London even these days!!

Hollyangel thanks for posting that bucket list - there are some fantastic things listed there, I know Dublin pretty well but have definitely added some new things for my 'to do' list for the next visit - thanks!

In that case Doyoureally your descriptions really baffle me.

Some while ago I almost lost my (virtual) temper with a poster who said Dublin was boring and there was nothing to do. I recall that she listed quite a few other cities that were "boring". I went to Dublin with 14-year-old dd and we had a great time.

BORING PEOPLE HAVE A BORING TIME.

Have a look at the DM site today, a couple were robbed at gunpoint in broad daylight just out side of the Guiness factory

Newsworthy because the use of a gun in a personal theft is pretty well unheard of here. Not sure if they cleared it up but the early reports weren't even sure if it was a genuine gun (none the less terrifying either way).

I don't think gun or knife crime is a valid reason for dissing Dublin in comparison with other cities. London's reputation has been massively damaged by the rise in knife crime, and it has been cited as a reason for leaving the city (on Mumsnet discussions).

@caperplips - great post about Temple Bar!

For anyone who does want to get out of the city to the coast my advice would be to go north, not south. The beaches from Malahide up to Donabate are lovely and far nicer than the beaches to the southside. Donabate beaches are generally really quiet as well if you want a bit of time-out. You can tie in Malahide Castle, Newbridge House, and Howth as well if you want the full north county Dublin experience.

I know it wasn't the OPs intention but I'm finding this thread great for "oh I haven't done that/been there in ages" ideas for the coming weekends.

Did someone mention Henrietta Street and the house that you can visit there? Really looking forward to that. We did a tenement house tour in NY which really helped bring history alive so hoping for the same. Kilmainham jail is another one on my winter to-do list. BTW anyone going to the jail book well in advance; and remember you can stroll across to IMMA (the Irish Museum of Modern Art) where there are both free galleries and extra exhibitions as well.

3timeslucky I mentioned 14 Henrietta St - the Tenement Museum. We were there at the weekend and it was fabulous! It has just opened (September I think). The tour is about 1hr 20mins and well worth the €9 ticket price.
It covers a lot of social history of Dublin from 1720's to the present day and the house itself it very emotive. They have not filled it with stuff, it's quite sparse but the narratives are really interesting. We loved it.

I have added the reading of Joyce at the Pharmacy for my next trip- never know about this and it sounds great, as well as EPIC (we ran out of time this trip)

Laughing so much about these responses. Especially those saying that it is boring and there is nothing to do. Ireland is full of culture in terms of theatre, music and history. Irish food is highly thought of world wide for the quality of the ingredients especially. If people had nothing to do it is because they couldn't be bothered to look into it like you should when you are going to any new city. This says more about them really!

The fact someone said the trip to Kilmainham jail is too complicated so they couldn't be bothered says it all really about the type of people who don't like it.

Yes it is expensive and temple bar is awful. No self respecting Irish person would go there. It is full of drunk stag parties from the UK who puke all over the place. Absolutely disgusting.

Many English people (specifically not referring to UK as I don't think the Welsh or Scottish have the same issues), especially on Mumsnet, love a chance to slate the Irish or anything to do with Ireland. It's quite pathetic really.

@Mathanxiety That makes me laugh. I have holidayed my entire life around the coasts of Ireland - the only coast I'm not familiar with is the south west (Kerry - been to w Cork).

I repeat the north Antrim coastline has spoiled me - others may find the Irish Sea coast pleasant enough.

There is generally a very unsafe and uneasy feeling when walking around.

Sorry, Doyoureally, but this is utter nonsense. Dublin comes well behind London, Manchester, Birmingham, Paris, Rome and Brussels in the crime statistics for 2019, and the vast majority of crimes against tourists are non-violent thefts. If you genuinely feel threatened walking around central Dublin then I’d be surprised if you feel safe in any urban environment.

I felt very safe walking around Dublin in December last year I have to say. Certainly no worse than walking around central London.

The poor tourists held up by gunpoint the other day are few and far between.I know people from that area and they are sickened by what happened.

Has anyone been to the new Museum of Irish Literature?

Has anyone been to the new Museum of Irish Literature?

Yes, I posted about it somewhere above in the thread. I really liked it. But it is not a documentary about the history of Irish literature. Rather a set of snapshots. I'm hoping that they change the exhibitions over time so it has continued interest. The building is gorgeous and the space is lovely. I've got myself a family membership as I can see me taking refuge from the city in the garden behind in the summer months.

I'm surprised you stayed here for 20 years then, Doyoureallyneedtoask.

I think people have got used to European cities being cheaper. The reason Dublin seems so expensive is partially due to the dreadful state of Sterling when exchanged. I lived in Dublin for the student years and still love it. Spent 20 years in London but you can't compare such disparate cities. I too find many anti Irish tendencies on this thread. I remember s friend from London visiting and he was really surprised that "There were good shops and toilets in houses".

Thanks, @3timeslucky. Is it the usual suspects, or is it more diverse? Someone said somewhere that it was leading with a Kate O'Brien exhibition, so I thought it might move beyond Joyce, Beckett, Yeats, and the rest of the old Irish Writers poster.

AppropriateAdult

I have lived in other cities. None are like Dublin.
In other cities, there is a visible police presence that you don’t see in Dublin. Thieving from bags, bag snatching, constant annoyance from addicts and beggars means it is impossible to sit outside a cafe, and generally having people in your face ALL the time is intimidating. The board walk is simply off limits to anyone other than users. People can’t walk to their bus stop after 10pm at night without people asking for money or shouting things at you. So many parts of the city are awful.

I understand why people get defensive. But saying these things don’t happen all too frequently simply isn’t true.

@Brackish It is an eclectic mix. There's an explanation of the history of Newman House/UCD's roots, a room on Kate O'Brien, a small room with quotes from a wide variety of writers, readings from a selection of writers (so an audio section but with visuals also), a large area on Joyce (his life and history, Joyce's Dublin, an eye-opening (ear-opening) reading of part of Finnegan's Wake), a section of the emergence of the free state/war of independence/civil war/Dev years with a notable focus on censorship (I found it fascinating in an OMG kind of way), a small section of YA contemporary fiction, a section of audio from contemporary writers about writing, there's the first copy of Ulysses (which I think used to be in the National Library). So it is by no means a journey through our literary past or present. I've seen on-line incandescence at the omission of the likes of Casey for example. But the other side of it is (and it makes for good post visit discussion over an excellent coffee in The Commons cafe below) what is a museum of literature and how would you do it, what would you "expect" to be in it.

I wonder is all that enough for the "there's nothing uniquely Irish and cultural in Dublin" critics

I wonder is all that enough for the "there's nothing uniquely Irish and cultural in Dublin" critics

Probably not, because you'd have had to read some Irish writers in order to find it interesting, so it doesn't fit the Big Dumb Sight criterion of being (a) something indelibly associated with that city in the popular imagination and (b) requiring no knowledge whatsoever of the city's history or culture.

There is alsoa really good Seamus Heaney exhibitionin the Bank of Ire also free!
Also people can go to Phoenix Park which is a fab park which is well used and lots to see. And yes the weather is not fantasic;it has a simular climate to us!
Also it is well worth looking at the Post Office at O'Connell ST. It has not changed and on the outside you can look for the bullet holes from the 1916 rising, which I do understand thatthis will not appeal to some.

It's boring. The myth of the "craic" in misty windowed cosy pubs won't be found. The locals take themselves very seriously. Go to London.

In my experience it was disappointing, I've been twice and still enjoyed both trips but neither visit has left me desperate to return

Belfast, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Liverpool, London all have much more in terms of iconic buildings, parks, views, culture etc which is what I want in a city break

I'm quite sure there are plenty of hidden gems and I agree that the locals are super friendly but it wouldn't feature in my list of recommendations for a European City Break

The myth of the "craic" in misty windowed cosy pubs won't be found. The locals take themselves very seriously

Yeah, it's terrible when people don't laugh at your witty leprechaun jokes.

The locals take themselves very seriously. Go to London.

Because London locals don't take themselves seriously?

Ah sure I guess the Irish locals had to kick-back against the myth of it all being about the craic and we've clearly taken it too far.

I've just realised that part of the problem may be the belief that "craic" is something served up to you by the locals. "Craic" is in fact the fun that you create with the people you're with. If you're not having any "craic" don't be blaming us!