New Year’s Eve 2026 in Dublin

By the ULTIMATE Dublin Editorial Team

The New Year’s Festival: the Countdown Concert at Dublin Castle

NYF Dublin, the city’s official New Year’s Festival, returns from Wednesday 30 December 2026 to Friday 1 January 2027 to ring in 2027, with concerts at Dublin Castle and Meeting House Square in Temple Bar and a music trail through the city’s venues. Some events are ticketed; many are not.

The heart of it is the Countdown Concert in the Upper Castle Yard on New Year’s Eve, from 8pm to 12.30am: Aaron Rowe headlines, with The Academic, THEATRE, KK Lewis and DJ Shelly Gray, ending in the festival’s Midnight Moment. It is strictly for over-18s; early-bird tickets were €44.90, plus Ticketmaster charges.

For families, the Countdown Concert Matinee runs from 4pm to 6.30pm with The Academic, THEATRE, KK Lewis and DJ Shelly Gray, and an early countdown of its own. Tickets are €9.90, or €24.90 for a family of two adults and two children; under-16s must be with an adult.

The day before, on Wednesday 30 December, the free Echoes of Ireland concerts fill Dublin Castle from 3.30pm to 8pm, with Jamie McIntyre, Dylan Flynn and the Dead Poets, Sorcha Richardson and RuntheRed, and the Guinness NYF Music Trail brings new bands to Whelan’s, the Workman’s Club and other venues from 5pm.

Our advice: the concerts go ahead in all weather and umbrellas are not allowed, so dress for rain. Bring only a small bag, and arrive early: there is no re-entry.

NYF Dublin: schedule →   NYF Dublin: full programme →   NYF Dublin: FAQ →   Visit Dublin: NYF Dublin →

New Year’s Eve at the National Concert Hall

For a seat rather than a standing crowd, the RTÉ Concert Orchestra and its conductor Guy Barker see the year out at the National Concert Hall on Earlsfort Terrace with The Soul of New York on New Year’s Eve, with special guest vocalists, from 10pm. Tickets run from €34.50 to €69.50.

Our advice: the late start leaves time for an early dinner nearby, around St Stephen’s Green, and the concert ends close to midnight.

Visit Dublin: RTÉ CO, The Soul of New York →

Dinner and a room: The Shelbourne and the InterContinental

The Shelbourne on St Stephen’s Green celebrates the arrival of 2027 with a New Year’s Eve stay that includes dinner for two in The Saddle Room, breakfast there the next morning and valet parking for one car; quote EVE when booking. The hotel does not print the price.

In Ballsbridge, the InterContinental Dublin serves a four-course New Year’s Eve menu in Simmons with a Champagne toast, at two sittings: 6.30pm (€135 per person) and 9.15pm (€160 per person). It also sells a New Year’s Eve stay with breakfast, the Wellness Area and a 2pm check-out.

South of the city, the Talbot Hotel Stillorgan holds A Night in Old Hollywood, a ball from 7pm with a cocktail on arrival, four courses, Bobby Mc & The Dukes, a DJ and a toast at midnight (€99 per person, over-18s; €410 for two with a room and breakfast).

Our advice: hotel dinners on New Year’s Eve sell out weeks ahead; book now, and take the room, as taxis are scarce after midnight.

The Shelbourne: Christmas and New Year →   InterContinental Dublin: New Year’s Eve →   Talbot Hotel Stillorgan: New Year’s Eve Ball →

New Year’s Day: free concerts and a Viennese gala

On Friday 1 January 2027 the festival ends with free, unticketed concerts from 1pm to 5pm. At Dublin Castle, Sharon Shannon’s Big Band plays with Jerry Fish, Camille O’Sullivan and Grainne Duffy, with The Frank and Walters as special guests; at Meeting House Square in Temple Bar, Absolute Lilt, Conleth Mc Geary, Heron Red and the Shamrock Showband. The festival also lists a street procession, its time and route still to be published.

At 3.30pm the National Symphony Orchestra Ireland gives its New Year’s Day Gala at the National Concert Hall: Gavin Maloney conducts, with the soprano Ailish Tynan and the tenor Gavan Ring, in waltzes and polkas by the Strauss family and arias from Lehár. Tickets are €15 to €49.

Visit Dublin notes that many Dubliners greet the year with a swim at the Forty Foot in Sandycove, or a walk on the Howth Head cliff path. Our advice: the DART takes you to both in about half an hour.

NYF Dublin: New Year’s Day concerts →   National Concert Hall: NSOI New Year’s Day Gala →   Visit Dublin: New Year guide →

Getting there, fireworks and what is still to come

The festival’s travel page points to the DART stations at Connolly, Pearse and Tara Street, both Luas lines for the city centre, and Nitelink buses after the countdown. The festival box office is at the 3Olympia Theatre on Dame Street on show days.

When we checked, the 2026 programme did not yet list harbour fireworks, and The Merrion, The Westbury, The Marker, The Dylan, Café en Seine and The Ivy had not published New Year’s Eve 2026 events; we will add them as they are confirmed.

Our advice: Christmas and New Year transport timetables are published in December. Check Transport for Ireland before you set out, and book a taxi home in advance.

NYF Dublin: getting here →   Christmas in Dublin →

Questions and answers