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Things to do

Things to do around Dublin

Temple Bar

Formerly known as “Temple Barr” (a Barr is a raised estuary sandbank often used to walk on), many centuries ago this area was disused and it was not a safe area at all. In fact, during the 18th century, it was the place to go if you were looking for a "lady friend" after a night of drunken depravity.
As the years went by, the area got worse and worse. The only good news is that this resulted in bargain rents for homes, boutiques and bars.
That’s why the area became quickly a hub of Irish bohemian peculiarity – like in SoHo in London or Brooklyn in New-York. The locals started to like this and it became a trendy neighbourhood. Because of the increasing popularity of Temple Bar, the Irish government decided to modernise and rejuvenate the entire area in 1991, which made it even more popular.
Temple Bar is now promoted as Dublin’s cultural quarter, and thanks to its bustling nightlife it has become famous with tourists around the world.

The Jeanie Johnston Famine Ship

The Jeanie Johnston is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Dublin.
Over 1 million people left Ireland during the 1840s, fleeing starvation and hoping for a new life in America. This mass emigration created a huge diaspora of people with Irish ancestry in the Americas, and later in Australia.
The life-size figures in the museum below deck are all modelled on actual passengers who made the journey to North America on the ship. The original Jeanie Johnston made 16 emigrant journeys to North America between 1847 and 1865, carrying over 2,500 people with no loss of life. The current ship is an authentic replica, built in Tralee, Co. Kerry. It has sailed to North America and to various ports in Europe. It is docked at Custom House Quay in the centre of Dublin.

Other Unique Experiences

Viking Splash Tour

Roar your way through Dublin City in a unique Land and Water experience provided by one of Ireland’s most unique sightseeing experiences. Let Viking Splash Tours take you around Dublin on one of our WW2 amphibious DUKWs. Our guides provide a fun, informative and unforgettable experience for all ages and groups taking in our cathedrals, Georgian Dublin and much more before splashing into the Grand Canal basin for a short cruise by the iconic U2 studios. Voted as one of Dublin’s best tours, this is an experience you won’t want to miss.

Visit the Crypt of the "Crusader"

St. Michan's Church is a Church of Ireland church located in Church Street, Dublin, Ireland. The first Christian chapel on this site dated from 1095, and operated as a Catholic church until the Reformation. The current church dates from 1686, and has served Church of Ireland parishioners in Dublin for more than 300 years. The church is known for its vaults, which contain a number of 'mummified' remains. One of these Mummies is an 800 year old corpse referred to as "The Crusader".

A Dublin Literary Pub Crawl

Every single night, as the city empties of office workers, Colm Quilligan and a partner put on the Dublin Literary Pub Crawl. Beginning in The Duke pub, it is an engaging piece of street theatre with nods to many of our city’s literary heroes. The night Dublin.ie attends, Quilligan is joined by television and theatre actor Frank Smith. About fifteen tourists are here too, mainly from the US and the UK, butterfly-sipping from glasses of stout. A pub crawl it may be, but drinking is somewhat beside the point. This is a rapid-fire journey through the literary history of Dublin.

The Book of Kells

One of the greatest treasures of its kind, the Book of Kells is an illuminated religious manuscript from the medieval period. Written in Latin, it contains the four Gospels of the New Testament and would have been crafted by the Celtic monks in the Columban monastery on Iona, circa 800. You can view the Book of Kells only in Trinity College Dublin.