Pls advise me on a Dublin trip

[RestorativeTravel]

I'm thinking of visiting Dublin and anywhere reasonably accessible from Dublin on a day trip.

I have had some really difficult and sad times recently so this is a fresh start sort of trip. I am looking for a bit of a luxury splurge - 5 star hotel would be nice but only if it is worth it. No real budget as like I said this is a present for me.

Looking for advice about anything and everything - best places to go and what to do. Happy to travel out of Dublin if it can be done in a day or anywhere unmissiable close by. Will be travelling alone if that makes a difference.

What would you suggest?

Recommended hotels? Unmissable experiences? Things to avoid? Tourist traps?

Thought I would start here as likely to get more expert advice but if you think I should ask for this to be moved to travel, pls let me know.

I agree with this. My office is near Parnell st and more than once I have seen males take a shit on the street. I saw a scrote with an unleashed XL bully dog outside Penneys. A migrant male made a throat slash gesture at me near the Aldi on Parnell st. A Roma male tried to grab at me on Capel st. A teenage scrote got on the Dominic Luas with a joint, eyeballing everyone malevolently. That's only since Christmas. There's also passed out street-drinkers and junkies all over the place, not to mention the anti-social little shits on scooters. I'm streetwise and I used to love Dublin but it's a dangerous melting-pot now.

I should like to draw your attention to the man outside of the newsagent in the link in my earlier post for the top of Grafton Street. It does look like he may be taking a crap outside but he is in fact putting his newspaper in his backpack before he heads off about his business.

I should like to draw your attention to the man outside of the newsagent in the link in my earlier post for the top of Grafton Street. It does look like he may be taking a crap outside but he is in fact putting his newspaper in his backpack before he heads off about his business.

I wouldn't have even noticed this but I went back especially to admire the non-crapping man.

I would never have thought he was crapping in the first place because the non-hoiked up position of his coat would mean he'd get crap all over it. Mind you, someone who is crapping in the street in broad daylight outside a newsagent may not be that bothered about the state of their coat...

With respect, any article written by the Daily Mail is going to be clickbait sensationalism. Murderous immigrants on every corner. Horrible site.

I've just come back from a few days in Dublin with my early teen kids. I live in the UK but went to uni in Dublin and from a small town about an hour away. We stayed out of town with extended family and drove in to do stuff. Used a car park just off the Northside quays. Bit smelly but not uncommon in public carparks.

I certainly didn't feel unsafe and spent a fair bit of time in effect training the kids to navigate around so they could be let loose on a future visit as my patience for H&M and other teen fashion destinations is limited. They are not savvy City kids but I would not be concerned for their safety beyond the usual don't wave your phone around and watch your wallet instructions they'd get on a day out in London.

The nice thing about Dublin is the "things to do" are concentrated for the most part within a square mile. You could [at a trot] do all the sites you're interested in, in a day

I would recommend
Museum of Modern Art
National Gallery - no need to book, just wander right in. Around the corner from Trinity
Kilkenny Store - Nassau st right beside Trinity. Some lovely things.
Trinity College obviously. Book tickets for the Book of Kells in advance
National Museum of Ireland - Kildare St location in the city centre for the Gold [Or] exhibition. The other site is more later Irish history which is interesting but I didn't think would grab the kids in the same way.
Did the Viking exhibition with the kids years ago. The most memorable thing about it was the smell [very realistic] and the lovely old building but then before people take offence, I was herding two small children.

Didn't bother with the Guinness storehouse or the Jameson whiskey place on the north bank as well, kids in tow and driving.
Can't recommend hotels as haven't stayed in one in 20 yrs.
Dart is basically a commuter train along the coast. Only reason to use it that I can imagine is if you'd like to go to Howth or Killiney for a Sunday lunch on a weekend away and maybe walk the pier at Dunlaoghaire for a bit of fresh air.

Things I would have done with a few more days. Driven or taken the train from Dublin to Belfast for a day trip. The Titanic museum is really, really good.
Gone to a GAA match at Croke Park, preferably hurling. Amazing atmosphere, unique experience

Go horse racing. There's usually a race on somewhere. Punchestown festival is coming up but there is horse racing on everywhere.
The EPIC museum.

With access to a car and not a lot of time - I'd get out of Dublin - head to Glendalough which is simply gorgeous.
Russborough House is also quite special and not a golf course in sight
https://www.russborough.ie/explore-learn/the-house-its-history/

With time I'd head for the West or the South West and spend little time in Dublin as it is lovely but ultimately a small city with limited things to do in comparison with London, Paris, NY, DC etc.

Things I would never do but might be of interest - cold sea swimming at Forty Foot made famous by Bad Sisters.

if you are doing a day trip out of Dublin I would highly recommend the Giants Causeway. Its pretty breathtaking and unusual, although I have been told there are a couple of similar rock formations elsewhere in the world.

You can do it in a day but it would be easier to stay overnight, perhaps combine with Belfast.

If the weather is nice, the DART north from the city centre to Howth, or south to Bray is a great way of seeing the Dublin Bay area by local commuter rail, as TreadSoftly says.

Howth is still a working fishing village.
In the opposite direction, the Promenade in Bray runs alongside a pebble beach, with several nice cafés.
Sunshine is the X factor for these outings, so stick to the museums and galleries and shops if it's not sunny!

I recently had conversations with two lots of visitors, one from overseas and the other from another part of Ireland. They really enjoyed their stays in Dublin, they did not find it dangerous or threatening, the well-travelled foreign visitors found it more friendly than other big cities they know. None of them thought that 'Dublin is a scary dangerous kip', and suggested that maybe people who say that don't have enough experience of other cities.
It was nice to hear such good things about Dublin for a change, and from objective visitors too!

Resurrecting this thread as I walked the length of Grafton Street today with my smartwatch and it recorded a grand total of a …… <drum roll>…

7 metre elevation from start to finish 😀

Love your dedication to the cause! I have to say I’ve never noticed the incline but then I’m usually in and out of the shops.

@AlphaApple well done #teamgraftonstisactuallyahill

I'm always in and out of the shops too. But back in the day I had to wrangle two small children up and down too.

And I vividly remember sitting in captain americas and looking DOWN grafton st.

See, this is where it gets messy. I’m English and call College Green the top of Grafton Street because it’s north. Dublin husband (and everyone else) calls Stephen’s Green as the top of Grafton Street.

Yes, but Dublin streets seem to routinely have the Upper part further south then the lower part.

See Rathmines Road Lower/upper and Clanbrassil St.

See also everyone going ‘up to Dublin’ regardless of which direction they’re coming from!

Upper Baggot Street is another one - it’s further south than Lower Baggot Street

https://www.dylan.ie/

the dylan hotel is gorgeous, smallish , lovely staff who can arrange stuff for you and a nice walk to the top of Grafton Street and St Stephen’s Green past some lovely pubs . no need to venture to the north inner city.

Shame, most of us having not notied a 7m difference is less amusing us not realizing there was a 66m incline 🤣.

Spent our whole lives not copping on the cans of the collapsed drunks rolled down grafton street causing daily delays to the Luas before they got cleared off the tracks.

I came on to say I was terrified reading this thread as we had a long weekend booked in Dublin and I thought about cancelling it due to the threat of imminent death from walking the streets. We had a great time, never felt unsafe, walked down many of the 'no-go' streets on this thread and it felt a lot cleaner than my own city. Can't wait to go back!

There aren't any no go streets in Dublin!

Well try telling some of the posters here who named particular streets.

Delighted you enjoyed your trip @argyllherewecome

Pretty sure that's who I was telling...