The 9 Things You Simply Must Do on Your First Trip to Dublin

Visiting Ireland has long been on my bucket list, so when my daughter decided to study abroad there for a semester, it was the perfect opportunity to go. Her program is in Dublin, and she asked me to come with her a week early to give us enough time to get her set up in her off-campus apartment and do some sightseeing together.

Here are my recommendations for the things not to miss on a first trip to Dublin.

1. The Book of Kells Experience

Trinity College, in the heart of Dublin, is home to the Book of Kells, a medieval-era manuscript containing the first four books of the New Testament (the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John). It is thought that the book was created around 800 AD by Catholic monks in Ireland or Scotland. Handprinted on vellum in Latin, the book contains brilliant illustrations and images along with the text.

The Book of Kells Experience is a paid tour that allows visitors to view a page from the actual book (under very specific conditions), provides a close-up look at enlargements and recreations of some pages as part of an exhibit that explains how the book was made, and includes access to The Long Room in the Trinity College Old Library.

Learning About and Viewing The Book of Kells

I took my time wandering through the enlargements of the gorgeous illustrations and script while listening to the audio commentary that adds to the information already shown in the exhibit. You can do this over time to see more of the Book of Kells — each day a different page of the Book goes on display behind glass.

SheBuysTravel Tip: Photography and videography are not allowed in the Book room, so put your phone away and immerse yourself in the wonder of seeing this bit of history.

The Long Room

The Long Room is part of the Old Library at Trinity College. Built in the early 1700s, it’s more than 200 feet long and contains more than 200,000 of the oldest books in the college’s collection. The room is organized into alcoves, each with a ladder to reach the upper story (created when the roof was raised in 1860). The architecture of The Long Room is stunning, especially if you stand at one end and look toward the other.

The room contains historic artwork, documents and artifacts, most notably:

• More than 40 sculpted busts of notable writers, philosophers and benefactors of Trinity College. Until recently all were of men – four sculptures of women were added in 2023.
• One of the few remaining original copies of the 1922 Proclamation of the Republic of Ireland.
• A giant illuminated art installation called ‘Gaia’ by Luke Jerram. Gaia is a representation of the Earth, created with NASA satellite imagery. With a diameter of 23 feet, it feels huge, especially when you stand underneath.
• The Brian Boru harp, one of the three oldest remaining Gaelic harps (dating back to the 14th or 15th century). The harp was used as the basis for the Guinness logo as well as the Irish coat of arms.

In 2024, The Long Room is undergoing a restoration project to modernize its fire and environmental controls. As a result, most of the library’s books have been temporarily removed. There are still several alcoves at one end that are full of books so you can get a sense of what it looks and feels like when all of the shelves are full. There are also several videos showing the process of how the books were removed and protected.

The Pavilion

The third part of The Book of Kells Experience is located outside in a pavilion constructed specifically for the tour. This includes:

• Secret Life of the Collections – see several of the sculptures from The Long Room come to life to tell stories.
• Book of Kells 360 – an immersive journey into the history of the Book of Kells
• Long Room Reimagined – digital projections of the past and future

SheBuysTravel Tip: DO hang on to your Book of Kells Experience ticket as it is also required for entry to the Pavilion portion of the tour. I was carrying a couple of shopping bags and had consolidated items together, which resulted in my ticket being lost. As a result, I wasn’t able to experience this portion of the tour, which was disappointing.

2. Dublin Castle

A castle right in the midst of a bustling European city? Yes! Only a few blocks south of the Liffey River, you’ll find this historic site. The castle was built in the 13th century and over the centuries has undergone significant changes. It remains a thriving center of history and government that is available for the public to tour. This is a paid tour with both guided and self-guided options.

SheBuysTravel Tip: Although you can purchase tickets for the self-guided tour online up to 14 days in advance, the guided tour tickets are only available in-person the day of your visit. Guided tours are timed and available between 10am and 4pm every day. Self-guided tickets are limited, so mark your calendar to order them 14 days ahead of your planned visit.

The castle topped my daughter’s and my must-see list. We’re both fans of medieval history and Ireland is one of the top places to visit if castles are your thing. There are two ways to tour Dublin Castle. You can visit the (newer) state apartments on a self-guided tour and wander through the rooms on your own. Or you can take a guided tour that includes visiting the medieval section of the castle and the 19th-century Chapel Royal.

My advice: Spend the extra money on the guided tour. It’s well worth it to see just how much history this site encompasses and to actually stand in the area built in the 1200s.

Medieval Tower and Chapel Royal

There is one above-ground tower remaining from the original castle. Remains of a second tower and an embankment were discovered under the existing complex in the 1980s. Our tour guide was excellent and explained the history of the castle and why this section is now underground. After a fire in 1684 caused great damage to the structure, most of the castle was rebuilt in the style of a Georgian palace; that is the bulk of what remains today.

The Chapel Royal was built in the early 1800s as a Gothic Revival Anglican chapel for the Viceroy (the English/British position in charge of Ireland until it became a republic in 1922). Later it became a Catholic church and now is deconsecrated and used for secular purposes. The structure’s beautiful stained glass windows and galleries are spectacular to see in person.

State Apartments

This is the area that was rebuilt after the 17th-century fire, in Gothic Revival style. Originally used as the Viceroy’s residence and court, the State Apartments are now used for ceremonial functions and public tours. Our tour guide made sure to list the notable people who have walked up and down the same staircase we took to the second story. And yes, it is amazing to think about walking in the footsteps of kings, queens and several US presidents.

These rooms are gorgeous. Although this is the section of the castle that you can tour on your own, my daughter and I appreciated having the tour guide there to show us around and explain how the different rooms were used. The grandeur of the spaces is tempered by stories such as why there’s a small footstool in front of the Irish Throne – because Queen Victoria wasn’t tall enough for her feet to touch the ground when she sat in it, before Irish independence. As a short woman, I can sympathize! We also learned that the Irish Crown Jewels were stolen in 1907 – and have never been recovered.

St. Patrick’s Hall was originally built as the castle’s ballroom. From the beautiful paintings on the ceiling to the flags depicting the knights of the Order of St. Patrick, it’s absolutely gorgeous. This room is also where the Irish Presidents are inaugurated.

3. Ha’Penny Bridge

There are several bridges across the River Liffey, but probably the most recognizable is the Ha’Penny Bridge (officially called the Liffey Bridge), built in 1816. It’s certainly the most ornate bridge and you can’t help but get a sense of the area’s history when you walk across it. Before it was built, there were only ferries to cross the river. The name comes from the original toll charge for the first hundred years the bridge was in operation. Today there is no toll to cross. Until 1999, it was the only bridge across the river in Dublin.

The Ha’Penny Bridge is made of cast iron and painted off-white. It was renovated in 2001 to strengthen the structure.

4. Temple Bar

Featured on many postcards and other souvenirs of Dublin is a pub painted red with the name ‘Temple Bar’. What I discovered on my trip, however, is that Temple Bar is actually the name of a Dublin neighborhood on the south bank of the River Liffey. This is why you’ll see many restaurants and pubs that list ‘Temple Bar’ on their signs, which was originally very confusing to me.

In the past, the Temple Bar neighborhood was known for prostitution and urban decay. Since the 1990s it has become the cultural center of Dublin and attracts large numbers of tourists every year. At night, this area is a center of nightlife, with an electric atmosphere and live music coming from the various pubs.

I can’t speak to any of the bars or pubs as we didn’t visit any of them, but Temple Bar is also home to The National Wax Museum Plus, the Irish Film Institute, the Irish Photography Centre and other cultural spots. It’s a fun area to walk through, but the crowds can make it difficult to walk along the sidewalks at times, especially in the evenings.

5. Shopping in Dublin

From tiny shops to large shopping centers, Dublin has plenty of opportunities to browse and buy things. Even just wandering the streets like I did, you’ll stumble upon some hidden gems. Of course you’ll also find the usual touristy souvenir shops, but these are the places that stood out to me:

• Aran Sweater Market – whether you’re a knitter like me or not, you can’t help but appreciate the craftsmanship and beauty of these traditional-style Aran sweaters. Made with natural wool in Ireland, the different clan patterns were traditionally used so that fishermen could be identified if they were lost overboard and drowned. These sweaters are water-repellent, breathable and temperature-regulating. They are also beautiful! If you want a more budget-friendly option, check out the clan history displays, home goods and scarves. I have Irish heritage through my mother’s family, so I bought a Kelly display for myself (my grandmother’s maiden name) and a Robertson one for my brother (my great-grandmother’s maiden name and also his middle name).

• Powerscourt Townhouse Centre – this doesn’t look like your traditional shopping mall. Located inside a Georgian-style townhouse built in the 18th century, you’ll find more than 40 shops and restaurants. My favorite was This Is Knit, a family-run local yarn store (LYS to yarn enthusiasts). I found plenty of souvenir yarn to bring home and even a pattern idea or two.
• Forbidden Planet – this UK-based chain appeals to gamers and geeks with collectibles of all kinds, manga and graphic novels, comic books and everything sci-fi and fantasy. My Dungeons & Dragons-loving daughter and I spent a lot of time in here exploring and buying gifts for her two siblings. We did find a couple of other gaming stores in Dublin but this was by far the biggest with the most diverse collection of items.
• The Irish Celtic Craftshop – while stores selling Irish gifts and souvenirs abound in Dublin, this shop is run by an Irish family. It sells hand-crafted and woven items.
• Weavers of Ireland – Along with Aran sweaters, Irish weaving is a traditional art form for hundreds (if not thousands) of years. Here you’ll find woven textiles by weavers from across the country, all under one roof, in patterns like herringbone and tweed tartans. We spent more than an hour in here wandering and browsing. My daughter bought a beautiful woven poncho and I bought a small tweed wallet and some Aran yarn.

6. Dun Laoghaire

Dun Laoghaire is a suburban town right on Dublin Bay, on Dublin’s southeast side. It’s about 40 minutes away from the Dublin City Centre by bus. The name means “fort of Laughaire,” and refers to a 5th century Irish king named Laoghaire Mac Neill. Dun Laoghaire is pronounced as “Dunleary”.

The town was a seaside resort during the Victorian era and traces of this are still evident today. There is a small carnival on the waterfront called the Dun Laoghaire Summer Family Funfair that operates during the summer months. There you’ll find “The Original Ferris Wheel from the Motion Picture Grease,” a small roller coaster and much more. This is the only summer fun fair in Dublin.

Dun Laoghaire’s harbor is one of Ireland’s largest. It has two granite piers built in the 1800s protect it from east and northwest winds. Both piers are walkable, but the East Pier is more popular – this is where you’ll find a bandstand and the East Pier Lighthouse. My daughter and I walked out to the end of the pier and back (about 3,500 feet). Because of the way the pier curves, you can actually see the sunset over the water, which we never expected on the east side of Ireland.

Dun Laoghaire is very walkable, with Georges Street being the main thoroughfare through town. The streets are lined with small shops and restaurants – everything from McDonalds and Burger King to higher end places serving Italian, Irish, and European cuisines. And plenty of Irish pubs, of course. There are also several pizza options, although the ones we tried didn’t have much on-site seating so were definitely better for takeout or delivery.

My daughter is on the picky side, so we ate pizza and burgers mostly, but we did have breakfast at Harry’s Cafe Bar – and learned that ice cream comes standard on waffles in Ireland (who knew?). We loved the burgers and fries from Nice Burger – there’s a definite difference in the quality of ground beef there versus in America. I still miss those burgers from Ireland!

For pizza takeout, we really liked Apache Pizza and Four Star Pizza. The employees at Four Star Pizza were really sweet and went above and beyond when I had credit card issues due to a fraud lock while trying to pay for our late-night order after a long day spent exploring Dublin. Many of the sit-down restaurants also serve pizza, but we didn’t have a chance to try any of those.

7. The Cliffs of Moher and Galway

Cliffs of Moher and Ferry Ride

While most of our time was spent in the Dublin area, we wanted to get out of the city and see some of the famed Irish landscape. We were thrilled to be hosted by Walks Tours for their “Small Group Cliffs of Moher & Galway Day Trip from Dublin with Boat Cruise” tour. The tour was a fun whirlwind that packed a lot into one day. Be prepared, it is a long day filled with beautiful sights, a fun city vibe and lots of camaraderie, but you also spend a lot of time on a bus crossing the Irish countryside.

Our tour guide, Niall, was amazing. He took advantage of the long bus ride over to the west side of the country to explain what we were going to see and do. He made sure we knew where to be when and told many stories about growing up in Ireland. He also took the time to make sure my daughter felt comfortable – it was a small group (5 of us plus Niall and our bus driver) but she was the youngest there.

The Cliffs of Moher are mesmerizing and breathtaking. It was a lot more crowded than we had expected, which took a little bit away from the experience, but it was still incredible to see how sheer the rocky cliffs are. The day was sunny and bright (a first for Niall on this tour) but also just a bit hazy, so it was difficult to make out the cliff details. We only had about 90 minutes to explore, so couldn’t see everything, but we did walk up to O’Brien’s Tower to see the view from there, which Niall said is the best view of the cliffs in his opinion. We didn’t get a chance to visit Hag’s Head, which is a famous rock formation at the southern end of the cliffs but I would love to explore the whole area more again someday.

Our next stop was an hour-long ferry ride along the bottoms of the cliffs. This was a much better view than from up above – seeing the cliffs rising out of the water is a much different perspective. We also could see the sea stack, created when water eroded some of the rock, creating an archway that later collapsed, leaving just a stack of stones. This ferry ride is the only part of the tour that is tied to a timetable – everything up until this point is scheduled to make sure the group will make the ferry ride on time. Afterward, there’s no specific schedule so the timing is much more relaxed.

SheBuysTravel Tip: As the ferry heads out, the cliffs will be on the left side of the boat so sit on that side to have the best view. The boat then turns around and heads back, so those on the right side have the best view. If the boat’s not too crowded, try to start on the left side and then switch to the right when you turn in order to get a great view the whole time. Also, beware that in some seats you can get splashed if the water is a bit rough.

8. The Wild Atlantic Way

The Wild Atlantic Way is a coastal route, mostly along the west side of Ireland. This side of the country is much rockier. Since the coastline is also very jagged; the route winds along with many twists and curves. The entire route is 1,600 miles (2,600 km) but this tour covers just the area between the Cliffs of Moher and Galway (about 45 miles/75 km). This part of the tour takes about an hour by bus.

The route goes along the coastline so you have amazing views of the ocean while riding. The roads are very narrow and winding, so if you are prone to motion sickness it’s best to prepare with whatever remedy helps you best. My daughter made sure to take a Dramamine that morning since she does struggle with motion sickness in general, especially where there are a lot of curves.

One area where we stopped along the way is called The Burren (meaning ‘rocky place’ in Irish). This is a karst area that is mostly made up of exposed limestone, with very little soil and vegetation, mostly growing in the nooks and crannies. It’s a stark but beautiful area and if you look closely, you’ll find flowers growing between the rocks. We took a few minutes to explore and take photos before getting back on the road.

All along the Irish countryside here we spotted livestock (cows, horses, donkeys and sheep) and everywhere there were short stone walls. Niall explained that many of these were built during the Great Famine (1845-1852) by poor farmers in exchange for food from their landlords. The walls serve no practical purpose and many don’t even enclose anything. But they are nice to look at and add to the picturesque drive.

9. Galway

The last portion of the tour involved a stop in the small city of Galway. The vibe here is much different than in urban Dublin. There are street performers everywhere and tons of little shops and eateries. The city is known for hosting events and festivals and is also known as Ireland’s Cultural Heart. We wandered and shopped for about an hour before we had to meet back at the bus.

A few things of note in Galway:

• Galway is known for the Claddagh ring, which originated in a small fishing village near the city. Thomas Dillions Claddagh Gold has produced the rings since 1750 and each ring is an authentic original. The shop is on Quay Street.
• Shop Street is the pedestrian-only main shopping street. Here you’ll find everything from tourist shops to artisan shops and many pubs and restaurants.
• Lynch’s Castle is a fortified stone house built in the 16th century (parts of it are likely older than that). There’s a bank in it now, but you can go in during business hours and see exhibits about the building’s architecture and history.
• Murphy’s Ice Cream is a must-do according to our tour guide, Niall. (It’s the blue shop in the photo above.)
• As a huge Dungeons and Dragons fan, the Dungeons and Donuts shop was my daughter’s favorite. The many bookstores were all her second favorite.

Once we left Galway, the ride back across Ireland was fairly quiet. Overall, we really enjoyed this tour. It’s hard in a day trip to balance the time it takes to get to each destination with having plenty of time to spend at each place. We could have spent a full day at the Cliffs of Moher and in Galway, and exploring the other fun small towns we passed along the way, including Doolin, near the Cliffs of Moher and the port city of Kinvara.

But this was the perfect way to get out of Dublin to get a taste of the rest of Ireland without having to rent a car and navigate the narrow, windy streets ourselves — especially since the Irish drive on the left side of the road. We saw many cars whose drivers were not handling the curvy roads very well and holding up traffic. And having Niall there to explain everything to us and give us tips and advice along the way was priceless.