UltimateCity Guide Dublin
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Stories from Dublin, Ireland

Every story, long read and guide in the ULTIMATE Dublin City Guide, in one place.

Areas

Dublin by area

From the Georgian squares to the piers of the bay, each part of Dublin has its own guide: the squares and grand hotels, Grafton Street and the Creative Quarter, the old city and the Liberties, Smithfield and the north side, the Docklands, Dublin 4, the canal villages, and Howth, Dalkey and Malahide by the sea.

Red, blue and yellow Georgian doors under fanlights on a brick terraceArea guideGeorgian DublinSquares and fanlightsThe mahogany staircase and crystal chandelier of the Powerscourt TownhouseArea guideGrafton Street & the Creative QuarterShops, buskers and barsChrist Church Cathedral’s grey stone tower and nave under a blue skyArea guideTemple Bar, the Old City & the LibertiesA thousand yearsThe cobbled expanse of Smithfield, with the old Jameson chimneyArea guideSmithfield & the North SideMusic and the parkGrand Canal Dock: the water, the pontoons and the old mill buildingsArea guideThe DocklandsThe new quarter

By DART

The DART runs the length of Dublin Bay, from Howth and Malahide in the north to Dún Laoghaire and Dalkey in the south: the coast is part of the city.

  1. Area guideBallsbridge & DonnybrookRed-brick Dublin 4
  2. Area guideRanelagh & PortobelloThe canal villages
  3. Area guideHowthHarbour and headland
  4. Area guideDalkey & Dún LaoghairePiers, the Forty Foot and Killiney Hill
  5. Area guideMalahideCastle by the sea

Practical

Plan your trip

What to know before you land: the coaches from the airport, the Leap Visitor Card, what is closed in late 2026, and itineraries for a first visit and a weekend.

The River Liffey running east through Dublin towards the Custom HouseBefore you goDublin essentialsEntry, money, seasons and emergenciesA Luas tram approaching Blackhorse stop on the Red LineGetting aroundBy Luas, DART and busFrom the airport to the bayThe Ha’penny Bridge spanning the Liffey under a summer sky, with the quays on either sideItineraryThree days in DublinThe classic first visitThe red-brick and stucco front of The Shelbourne on St Stephen’s GreenLuxury guideLUX LivingThe finest addressesThe Horseshoe Bar at The Shelbourne: red leather banquettes, brass-railed tables and pleated lamps against red wallsItineraryThe Gold weekendThe Shelbourne and afternoon tea
  1. ItineraryThe Platinum weekendThe Merrion and Patrick Guilbaud

Our advice

Book Trinity for the first slot

Entry to the Book of Kells Experience is timed and sells out: book the first slot of the morning online, then walk out through Front Square into the waking city. The Book of Kells Experience

Day trips

Beyond Dublin

Wicklow’s glens and gardens, the passage tombs of the Boyne Valley, the horses and great houses of Kildare, and Kilkenny’s castle, all within a day of Dublin.

The Upper Lake at Glendalough between the steep wooded sides of the glenBeyond DublinWicklowGlendalough and the great gardensThe white quartz wall of the Newgrange passage tombBeyond DublinThe Boyne ValleyNewgrange, Tara and TrimJapanese maples beside the lake at the Irish National Stud’s gardensBeyond DublinKildareHorses, gardens and great houses
  1. Beyond DublinKilkennyThe medieval city

Our advice

Give a fine day to the bay

When the sun comes out, take the DART: north to Howth for the cliff path and lunch by the harbour, or south to Dún Laoghaire for the piers and the walk to the Forty Foot. Howth

In depth

In depth: the stories behind Dublin

The city’s thousand years, its writers and players, its tables and grand hotels, the DART along the bay and how buying works: the stories behind Dublin.

The mahogany staircase and crystal chandelier of the Powerscourt TownhouseChristmas & New YearChristmas in DublinWild Lights, ice and a session before the holidaysTwo fallow bucks locking antlers during the rut in Phoenix ParkIn depth: nature & wildlifeWild DublinDeer, brent geese and the bayThe Samuel Beckett Bridge and Sir John Rogerson’s Quay reflected in the Liffey at duskFeatureDublin, the classic and the newGeorgian squares and the new docks

Closed for now

Dublin Castle reopens to visitors in January 2027 and the Chester Beatty after December 2026; the Book of Kells and the Long Room are open, though the Long Room’s books have been removed for conservation.

  1. The back storyWriters, painters and playersThe Abbey to MoLI
  2. The back storyEating in DublinThree two-star tables
  3. The back storyThe grand hotelsFrom The Shelbourne to The Marker

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