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Notes on Dublin

May 18, 2024May 27, 2014 by Neil Turner

Following last year’s cultural observations about Paris, I’ve decided to do the same about Dublin. This isn’t about where we visited – that was yesterday – but all of the little things we saw or did.

Getting from the airport

Following advice from the guidebook, we took the 747 Airlink bus from Dublin airport into the city centre. It’s a bit pricey, at €6 one way, but the €10 return ticket is valid for over 12 months. It’s probably the best compromise between price, speed and comfort, as it uses the Dublin Tunnel to get into the city centre quickly. There are more expensive, but probably more comfortable coaches operated by First, as well as some slower but cheaper buses. A taxi will set you back at least €20 each way for up to four people, although if there are four of you that means it’s the same return price as the Airlink so may be worth bearing in mind. The airport isn’t connected to the local rail or tram networks, sadly.

Open top tour buses

There are two open top tour bus companies operating in Dublin – one operated by Dublin Bus (the municipal operator) and another is a CitySightseeing franchise. The latter is cheaper overall, as its €22 ticket is valid for two days, whereas the €19 ticket offered by Dublin Bus is for a single day. Both offer small discounts for some of the attractions.

Whilst they are a good way to see lots of attractions from the outside, be aware that most of the buses have an open top deck and it rains a lot in Ireland. And there are cheaper ways to get around the city, using regular buses or the trams. We therefore didn’t bother with the tour buses.

Dublin Pass

If you’re going to do a lot of attractions whilst visiting Dublin, then the Dublin Pass may be worth considering. Once you’ve bought the pass, you get free entry to all of the participating attractions for the duration of the card. However, personally I feel it’s a bit of a rip-off as you’ll need to visit at least three attractions in a day for it to worth the €39 cost. For some places, this may mean cutting visits short. We didn’t bother with the pass.

The Luas tram system

The aforementioned tram service is a quick and relatively cheap way of getting around the city – particularly to places like Dublin Zoo and Kilmainham Gaol which are some way out of the city (although you will still have quite a walk once you get off the tram in both cases). The trams are very frequent – as often as every three minutes – and the system only opened in 2004 so it’s modern and comfortable. There are two lines – the Red Line goes east-west to the north of the river, and the Green Line goes north-south to the south of the river. However, presently the two lines do not meet and so the north of the city isn’t served yet – a cross-city line is presently under construction.

Mobile phones

Ireland has three of the same mobile networks as the United Kingdom – O2, Three and Vodafone. There’s no EE but their fourth network is called Meteor, owned by the Irish national phone company Eircom. If, like me, you use Three then you’ll be pleased to know that Ireland is a ‘Feel at Home’ country, so you can use your inclusive minutes, texts and data allowance as you would in Britain at no extra cost. Vodafone charged £2 a day for internet roaming, by comparison.

I had a 3G signal everywhere in Dublin – in fact, it was better than some parts of Leeds or London – but no 4G on Three as yet, it seems.

Free Wi-fi

It seemed like just about everywhere offered free wifi (or at least a wifi service that was free for a short time). This included our hotel, most cafés and restaurants, and most of the tourist attractions too. It was certainly more prevalent than what I’m used to in Britain.

My theory is to do with Ireland’s mobile phone networks. They all use GSM and UMTS, like in Britain and most of Europe. But Verizon and Sprint in the USA don’t use GSM or UMTS and so phones on these networks won’t work in Ireland. Ireland receives a lot of tourism from America, hence the need to provide Wifi (AT&T phones should work fine, and T-Mobile phones may work).

In any case, Christine, who is on Vodafone in the UK, decided not to pay the £2 a day for internet, and just use the free wifi hotspots. And rely on me.

The weather

It rains a lot in Ireland. We Brits may think we get a lot of rain, but Ireland gets even more. Make sure that you pack a waterproof jacket, and/or an umbrella to take with you. Many shops in Dublin also sold plastic ponchos for days when it gets really bad.

Security and crime

Crime levels in Dublin are, apparently, similar to any other large city. Sadly, Christine almost got pickpocketed by someone on O’Connoll Street, not far from our hotel. A young bloke sneaked up behind her and tried to open her handbag; thankfully, she felt the tug and very quickly had the miscreant pinned up against some railings and on the receiving end of a large amount of angry shouting. He didn’t manage to take anything but he did run off very quickly afterwards. After that, we put our passports, which had been in her handbag, into the hotel safe, just in case.

We also noticed that there were a lot of rough sleepers and beggars in the city, especially in the area around Trinity College.

Language and signage

The official language of Ireland is Irish Gaelic, with English as the second language. This means that on most signs, you’ll see both languages, with the Gaelic text in italics and the English text in capitals. That being said, in our experience I don’t think anyone used Gaelic conversationally and so you’re highly unlikely to find anyone who doesn’t speak English.

Road signs are somewhat different to British and Europeans ones, and they more closely resemble American designs. However, the font is the same.

Prices

Dublin has a reputation of being an expensive city and this was partly true in our experience. In other words, there are many ways that you can spend lots of money unnecessarily, as I’ve mentioned above. Drinks in particular were often on the pricey side, with a pint of beer coming in at around €5 – £4, or almost double what I’d expect to pay in my local pubs here in Yorkshire. But there were cheaper places – for lunch, I can recommend KC Peaches on Nassau Street, opposite Trinity College, where you can fill a plate from a buffet and get a drink for less than €10.

Familiar brands like Subway are everywhere in Dublin, with many Londis franchises having a Subway concession inside, but they are slightly more expensive than Britain. The £3 Subway and drink deal is €4 for example. Also remember that shops in Ireland have to charge you extra for plastic carrier bags – 22¢ I think.

One potential way to save money is to book tickets for attractions in advance online. We didn’t do this because our British debit and credit cards charge extra for non-Sterling transactions, so any potential savings would be wiped out. But if you have an overseas spending credit card then you may be able to save 10-15% off entry for attractions this way.

The things we did in Dublin

May 18, 2024May 26, 2014 by Neil Turner

This is the first of at least two posts about what Christine and I got up to last week whilst we were in Dublin – the focus of this one being about the attractions we visited, in no particular order.

Guinness Storehouse

Allegedly the most-visited attraction in Ireland, the Guinness Storehouse tells the history of Guinness, which is probably the most well-known brand of stout in the world. Although Guinness is still brewed in Dublin, on a huge site just outside the city centre, the Storehouse is across the road and not part of the main brewery site. Consequently everything inside is simulated or are static models, rather than actual, in-use brewing equipment like you would see on a tour of a microbrewery.

It’s one of Dublin’s more expensive attractions, however we spent a few hours here so it was somewhat worth it. Except that neither me or Christine particularly like Guinness – Christine hates beer altogether, and although I like stout and porter from time to time, I’ve never enjoyed Guinness in the past. And, sadly, our visit was to be the same – despite being shown how to pour my own pint, I still didn’t like it. The restaurants inside are very good though, with an above average food selection and many menu items using Guinness as an ingredient. For beer-haters, there is some interesting displays about Guinness’ advertising and how beer is made.

The Old Jameson Distillery

If Guinness is Ireland’s best known beer, then Jameson is its best known whiskey. Like the Guinness Storehouse, the Old Jameson Distillery is no longer an active distillery. Production was moved to the southern Irish city of Cork in the 1970s, although here some of the displays were active. It’s a guided tour, taking about an hour, with eight volunteers being picked for a whiskey test at the end. You should definitely volunteer if asked, as you get to try shots of Jameson’s whiskey, Jack Daniels’ bourbon, and a blended Scotch whiskey, to compare the three styles. Christine was chosen – I didn’t volunteer because I don’t like neat whiskey, but enjoyed a Jameson and ginger beer drink at the end, and a really nice Irish coffee in the bar. Again, a pricier attraction but we enjoyed this more than Guinness.

Dublin Zoo

Christine and I love visiting zoos so we spent most of last Monday at Dublin Zoo, as many other attractions in the city are closed on Mondays. It’s quite a big zoo, and whilst it has fewer animals than some others it does have some big enclosures. It was quite quiet when we went but it was a weekday and not especially nice weather, so at other times it will probably be busier. We were also wisely advised to take a packed lunch, as the food offerings there are not great. It’s home to two species of tiger (both very endangered), red pandas (my favourite animal), otters, lions, various apes, penguins and many others. The entry price is in line with other zoos over here in Britain.

Natural History Museum

After you’ve visited the zoo, have a look at the ‘dead zoo’ – yes, it’s really known as that. Though significantly smaller than its London namesake, and less interactive, the Natural History Museum has an extensive collection of stuffed animals. The ground floor is set aside for species native to or resident in Ireland, with everything else upstairs. The two balcony floors are currently out of bounds due to a lack of fire exits but most of the exhibits are viewable. Some of the specimens are very old, and were stuffed at a time when people were less familiar with exotic animals, so there are some slightly dodgy examples of taxidermy on show. Entry is free, although it is shut on Sunday mornings and all day Monday. Set aside a little over an hour for a visit.

Temple Bar

The Temple Bar is a district of Dublin which is home to many pubs and restaurants – the above pub gets its name from the area, rather than the other way around. It’s nice for a stroll through but livens up on an evening.

General Post Office

I’ve already briefly mentioned this one, but it’s worth a look. As well as being the main post office for the city, there is a small museum inside, which tells the history of Ireland’s postal service. In particular, there is quite a bit about its role in the Easter Rising of 1916, which set in motion various events over the next decade which ultimately led to Ireland’s independence from the United Kingdom. It’s only €2 to get in, and kept us occupied for up to an hour. You can also post letters and postcards into the oldest postbox in the country, and any mail collected from it will get a unique cancellation stamp.

Dublin Castle

We decided not to do the guided tour of Dublin Castle, which costs money, but there were plenty of bits to walk around for free. Follow the signs to the tearooms, and you will go past several boards with information about the history of the castle, and its wider role in Irish history. You can also cross a bridge into Dubh Linn Gardens, at the back of the castle, which are nice to walk around.

Kilmainham Gaol

Another historical attraction worth visiting is Kilmainham Gaol. Though it’s been many years since prisoners were interned there, it forms an important part of the history of the nation. The population exploded during a crime wave brought on by the potato famine – as the potato crop failed for several years running, those without food had to steal to survive, and many were caught. But in the early twentieth century many of those involved in campaigning for Irish independence, and those that opposed the Irish Free State in the Irish Civil War, were imprisoned and executed here. There’s both a small museum, and a guided tour of the main jail.

The jail isn’t in the centre of Dublin and is a good 20 minute walk from the Guinness Storehouse, itself away from the city centre. If you’re not up for a long walk, you may wish to catch the bus out here. It’s worth the long trip though.

Back from Dublin

May 18, 2024May 23, 2014 by Neil Turner

We’re back from Dublin. Actually we got back on Wednesday – yesterday’s post was pre-recorded and I had foreseen having time to edit my photos and start writing some blog posts about it. Alas, that hasn’t happened so this is just a quick apology.

We had a good time though. The weather is best described as ‘Irish’ – i.e. it rained most of the time we were there. We did a number of the museums and tourist attractions, as well as Dublin Zoo. I’ll be writing up some notes about where we went and what we did over the weekend, and sorting out over 200 photos that I took whilst there.

For now, the above photo is the General Post Office on O’Connell Street – not far from our hotel. It’s still the main post office for the city, but also contains a museum with the history of the Irish postal system, and of the building itself. It was the scene of the 1916 Easter Uprising and played a major part in Ireland’s campaign for independence from the United Kingdom.