Mini Travel Guides

Dublin is known to be a haunted city with a great history of supernatural occurrences. The Dublin Ghost Bus Tour is one of my Europe travel tips as it takes brave visitors on a tour of the darker side of Dublin. Riders on the bus will learn the legends about how Dracula came to be, they will visit the infamous haunted steps and have an opportunity to stand in the middle of Dublin’s most haunted graveyard as they learn about the art of body snatching. The tour lasts a little over two hours and costs 25 Euros per person. Tours can be booked online or up to an hour before departure.

There are many beautiful and interesting places to see in Dublin, such as the Guinness Brewery Tour and even plenty of free Dublin attractions but if you’re one for spooks then this will be one of your Dublin favourites.

In my opinion, the spooks offered on the Dublin Ghost Bus Tour are more cheesy rather than scary. My girlfriends and I took the tour and had ourselves a hoot. The hokey ghost stories and the live storyteller made us laugh which made our experience quite pleasurable. The highlight of the tour takes place in a cemetery where the storyteller shares tales of body snatching and robbery. While the tour may seem a bit silly, it was a great way to learn the history of Dublin from a different perspective. The legends shared are ones that have been shared among the Irish for centuries. And the information about Bram Stoker, the author of Dracula, is completely factual and quite interesting.

If you’re only in Dublin for a few days, I wouldn’t worry yourself with trying to get on the Ghost Bus Tour. However, if you’re in town for longer and are looking for a fun evening activity then I would suggest hitching a ride on Dublin’s only haunted tour bus.

I had seen the New Europe Tour guides playing the Pied Piper in Berlin in the spring of 2009.  Actually, I just wandered by as the tour guide was making a final pitch for tips.  When I saw the company was offering tours in Dublin, I was intrigued.  Mostly because they bill the walking tours as free and historical.  And if there’s one thing I love while traveling it is free history.

The tours start every day at 11 and 13 and meets at City Hall.  No matter the weather the tour must go on.  We tested this theory on the icy streets of Dublin, and while the city itself was running out of grit, the 20-25 of us in the group managed to trek through town with no broken limbs.

The walking tour of Dublin focuses on the main attractions such as Dublin Castle and Trinity College.  It is a cursory glance at the sights themselves, but the stories and history told give a great overview of the city, everything from the Viking history of the 800s to the 1916 Easter Rising.

Our guide, Christopher, did an excellent job of mixing the history of Dublin (and Ireland) with a healthy dose of pride in the city he grew up in.  In the end, they stay true to their word, and the tour is free.  Of course, tips (as mentioned above) are greatly appreciated and after a nearly three hour tour of the city, I was more than happy to give a few Euros.

The tour gave a great introduction to the city and helped to focus the remainder of the trip.  Plus, having never been to the city before before, the tour was a great way to get comfortable with the streets of Dublin and which sights were worth revisiting.

In Ireland, a nation known for rebelliousness, Cork is known as the rebellious county. The Blarney Stone is located  in the area (8km from the Cork City), and according to legend, those who kiss the stone are afforded the ability to deliver eloquent, empty flattery. Thus, not only are Corkonians prone to shaking a fist at authority, but they’ll give speeches as they do it.

Cork is the largest of Ireland’s counties and is also the most southwestern — which means that the tip of Cork County, Mizen Head, is the closest Ireland ever gets to the continental United States. Cork City is the third (or second, depending on how you look at it) largest city in Ireland after Dublin and Belfast. The city is built on an island in the River Lee and spreads out across several hills. The people are known for their humor, rebellious nature and ability to suck down good beer. It is a fun place to spend a few days or a few weeks. Like most cities in the British Isles, Cork was founded by a monk in the early centuries after the death of Christ. His name (St. Finbarr) and his flock survived the Vikings, the English, famine and mass migrations to stand, today, as a great place to go pub crawling and sight-seeing, lick the Blarney Stone, or do some cliff hopping in one of the smaller towns near the coast, like Goleen or Skibbereen.

In Cork City, some of the more famous sights are the Shandon Steeple, on the north side of town, and St. Fin Barre’s Cathedral, the massive triple-spired cathedral built on the site of St. Finbarr’s first monastic school. The Shandon Bells at the top of the steeple ring out across the city daily and it is supposedly possible for visitors to choose from a list of melodies and have them broadcast across the city. If anyone manages to do this, please write in and let us know.

At the mouth of the River Lee sits Blackrock Castle, a stout castle that was built for defense, but now is breached by legions of foreigners each and every day. The Cork Heritage Park at Blackrock is a good place to spend a day. Visit the Old Gaol to see what happened to those foreigners back when Blackrock Castle was doing its job; the Gaol has an audio tour describing all of the things guards and inmates did together during their stay.

One of the best things about Cork is getting out into the countryside. East of Cork are farmsteads and rolling hills, stretching all the way to Waterford (and north to Dublin). To the west is the coast and home to some of Ireland’s wildest coastland and fastest Irish speakers.

The West Coast of Ireland is a wild and rocky stretch covered in moss and scrub brush — a perfect place to watch the Atlantic begin its assault on Europe. The sandstone hills melt down into coastline bays and pirate coves and you can easily get lost in a “faerie” world if taking a hike through this area. There are several small one-pub towns along the coast that offer up bed and breakfast accommodations,– like Barelycove and Crookhaven.

Larger, more famous towns like Bantry and Kinsale should be on everyone’s itinerary in this part of the world. Bantry Bay is a beautiful little port that twice was the staging point for a French invasion force (both of which failed). The old Earls of Bantry lived a good life and their house is on display, as are the statues of Jame II and Wolfe Tone, the ill fated rebels who died fighting the English as they waited for the French.

Kinsale, farther down the coast, saw its fair share of rebellious behavior as well. But now it is a refuge for those who love yachting, gold, and gourmet restaurants. Gourmet food abounds in County Cork, from fresh “fruit of the sea” to stuffed, organic pigs from Cork City’s English Market. The county’s reputation for good food has elevated the game of all of the restaurants in the area and that is just good news for all of us visitors. Irish Pubs, naturally, need no introduction from me; they will always be perfect, somehow.

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Discussions of Irish beer usually begin and end with one word: Guinness. There is no doubt that Arthur Guiness’ great creation is the most famous beer in the world, let alone in Ireland. But there is much more to the beer scene on the Emerald Isle than just the meal-in-a-glass that draws all the headlines.

Of course one cannot simply ignore Guinness when dissecting Irish beer. In the Eighteenth Century, Arthur Guinness opened a brewery producing porter, a style borrowed from England. But to avoid a tax on malted barley, the Guiness brewery used unmalted barley, producing a drier variety, now known more commonly as stout. The stout is an important part of Irish history as it was the principal beverage for the ordinary citizen for many years.

Elsewhere in the United Kingdom, the advent of pale ales began to drive the market away from stouts and porters, but Ireland remained a stronghold. This bastion of dark, heavy brews was due to the enormous success of Guinness but also the emergence of Murphy’s (previously known as Lady’s Well until 1983) and Beamish as worthy domestic competitors in the smooth and creamy world of dry stouts. Both Beamish and Murphy’s come from County Cork, so there are regional preferences in stouts as Guinness is made in Dublin.

Irish stouts are very frequently served at or near room temperature. Americans, unused to warm beer, are frequently stunned by this practice upon visiting Ireland. For those unable to handle the lukewarm style of the Irish stout, Guinness does brew a version of its famous draft in an Extra Cold version. The temperature of the stout will be familiar to American tourists, though it does take a little away from the authentic experience of a Guinness Draught.

Like many other countries, the infiltration of pale ales eventually caught up with Ireland and now roughly 60% of beer sold in the country is of one pale variety or another. The most popular lager in Ireland is made by Harp, a very new entrant on the Irish beer scene. Having been brewed only since 1968 and in Dundalk, Harp represents a totally different type of beer drinking experience than its much older counterparts. But Harp does serve a deliciously crisp and clean lager and rivals any beer in the British Isles in quality.

Falling somewhere in between stouts and lagers are Irish Reds. These beers are named as such because of their reddish color derived from roasted barley, rather than with caramel coloring like American reds. The largest brewer of these reds is Smithwick’s, based in Kilkenny . It is the oldest operating brewery in Ireland, going strong since 1710. Smithwick’s has a wonderful red hue and a smooth finish, much like a stout. There is much more of a complex taste involved in an Irish Red than with either a stout or a lager. MacArdle’s Ale and Messrs. Maguire’s Rusty Ale are other reds that are not hard to find in Ireland but would cause a longer search back in the States.

As is the case with Scottish beer, Irish brews are best enjoyed in the company of locals at a pub. Many American tourists have been to St. James’s Gate , the Guinness brewery in Dublin , and many more will follow. But to truly get the most out of the beer experience while in Ireland, head for a pub, ask for a pint and enjoy any of the brews native to the island.

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Update 16 November 2009: The lucky winner is Lucy Whittington author of Lucy Loves Australia. Also found on Twitter as @LucyWhittington. Lucy was the only entrant to correctly name the location of my Twitter background photo as the Zone Pyramids, near Marone, Italy (close to my favourite Italian lake, Iseo). However here’s her answer to the tiebreaker question, What most appeals to you about visiting Dublin?, “Admiring the architecture, a proper pint of Guinness, and the chance to jump on the DART to Howth for some sea air (OK and the shops appeal too!).”

Lucy will enjoy two nights accommodation on a B&B basis in the Arlington Temple Bar Hotel in Dublin with Irish Show and meal on one night and a 30 euro credit at one of the tables with its own beer tap. Two x 2 day Dublin passes courtesy of Visit Dublin. A 3 course evening meal with a bottle of house wine at the Gallery Restaurant at the The Church.

However there’s another chance to win a weekend in Dublin in the Pour Your Own Pint online game. Any player who can score 100 will be entered into the draw to take place at the end of November, to win the prize of spending St Patrick’s Weekend 2010 in Dublin.

Competition:

The Europe a la Carte Blog Twitter competition (4) launches today. To win you have to correctly identify the location in the background photo of my @karenbryan Twitter page. I’ll be giving clues on Twitter during the competition to help you work out the background photo location. You’ll also need to answer the tiebreaker question.

The destination displayed on the Twitter page background has been written about in the Europe a la Carte Blog. You must leave your answer as a comment on this blog post, also answering the tiebreaker question. The tiebreaker kicks in if either no-one gets the destination correctly or if more than one person gets the correct destination. The tiebreaker enables me to choose a winner by judging the most entertaining and/or insightful answer.

The Prize:

The short break to Dublin comprising of three parts:

Part 1: Two nights accommodation on a B&B basis in the Arlington Temple Bar Hotel in Dublin with Irish Show and meal on one night. The Arlington Temple Bar is part of the Louis Fitzgerald group on Twitter as @LouisFitzgerald.

You can arrange your stay at any time up to 30 December 2010, subject to availability. The winner of the Europe a la Carte Twitter Competition (4) will also receive 30 euro credit at one of the tables with its own beer tap. You can start practising for your stay by playing the Pour Your Own Pint online game. Everyone should try their hand at the game, as any player who can score 100 will be entered into the draw to take place at the end of November, to win the prize of spending St Patrick’s Weekend 2010 in Dublin.

Pull you own pint table at Arlington Temple Bar

Part 2: Two x 2 day Dublin passes courtesy of Visit Dublin. Dublin Passes includ free entry to over 30 top attractions such as Dublin Castle, Dublin Writers Museum and the Guinness Storehouse. It also covers transfer from Dublin Airport to the city centre on Aircoach.

Dublin Castle Gardens

Part 3: A 3 course evening meal with a bottle of house wine at the Gallery Restaurant at the The Church. I had lunch at The Church when I was in Dublin in October 2009, the food’s great and it’s an amazing building. You can follow @thechurch_ie on Twitter.

How to enter:

1 Click through to @karenbryan Twitter page.

2 Decide on the location of the background photo. It’s in Lombardy in Italy. Follow me on Twitter @karenbryan for some more clues during the week. To follow me you need to click on the Follow button just under the small photo of me at the top left of my Twitter page.

3 Return to this blog post and write a comment with the name of the location in the Twitter background photo and the answer to the question, “What most appeals to you about visiting Dublin?”

Exclusions:

Members of the Europe a la Carte blogging team can’t enter the competition (as they can read the comments in blog admin).

Closing date:

Competition entries by blog comment must be made by midnight GMT on Sunday 15 November 2009.

Good luck and look out for some more great prizes in future Europe a la Carte Twitter competitions.

There are many great free attractions in the Irish capital of Dublin. It’s easy to get to Dublin from most of Europe and there are generally plenty of flight deals.  If you plan to visit several paid for attractions, you should investigate the Dublin Pass.

I visited three of the free attractions in October 2009 which I’ve described at the start of the post. Then I’ve listed some other free Dublin attractions with links.

Free Dublin attractions I visited

City Hall Rotunda

City Hall was constructed in the late 18th century as the Dublin Stock Exchange. It was purchased by the City Corporation in the 1850s. Entrance to the Rotunda is free of charge, downstairs in the vaults there is a multi media exhibition about History of Dublin with an admission fee.

Dublin City Gallery, The Hugh Lane

Dublin City Gallery, The Hugh Lane houses a collection of modern and contemporary art. The main building itself Charlemont House is a work of art with beautiful glass ceilings. My favourite paintings were “Un Matin” by Monet and “Aloe” by William Leech.

A Francis Bacon exhibition, which will run until March 2010,was being set up during my visit, so part of the Gallery was closed.

Chester Beatty Library

Chester Beatty Library is an absolutely amazing place that I’d highly recommend. It’s situated in Dublin Castle Gardens. The focus is on religion and culture with displays of paintings and manuscripts. I particularly liked the Japanese picture books.

When I visited in October 2009, the temporary exhibition, MANI: The Lost Religion of Light, was running. It was fascinating to find out about this religion which almost supplanted Christianity as it spread east and west from Persia.

Chester Beatty Library ground floor water feature

Other free Dublin attractions

National Botanical Gardens

Irish Museum of Modern Art

National Museum of Ireland – Archaeology & History and Decorative Arts & History

National Photographic Archive

If you’ve visited any of these free Dublin attractions, I’d love to hear your opinion of them. Or, if you know of any other great free attractions in Dublin, please let me know and I’ll add them to the post.

Dublin is full of wonderful statues and sculptures. Here is a photo tour of my favourites from my trip to Dublin in October 2009.

Phil Lynott’s statue was unveiled in 2005 in Harry Street, just off Grafton Street. I remember Phil Lynott of Thin Lizzie performing on the TV music show “Top of the Pops”. The singer/bass player died in 1986 at the age of 36.

Phil Lynott statue, Harry St, Dublin

Just up from the entrance to St Stephen’s Green, opposite the Stephen’s Green Shopping Centre, is what I nicknamed the Tap Sculpture or maybe that should be Pigeon’s Bath.

Sculpture in St Stephen’s Green, Dublin

In Lower Liffey Street, close to Ha’Penny Bridge is the sculpture affectionately know as “The Hags with the Bags”. The women really do like they are engrossed in a good gossip after a shopping expedition.

The Hags with the Bags, Lower Liffey St, Dublin

At the entrance to one of Dublin’s ugliest buildings, The Central Bank, lies the Money Tree sculpture. It made me think of the phrase “money makes the world go around” and thought it appropriate that part of the globe was in the sun and the remainder dark.

The Money Tree, Central Bank, Dublin

I christened the sculpture in the pond at Dublin Castle Gardens, “The Water Prancers”.

Sculpture at Dublin Castle Gardens

What your favourite Dublin statue or sculpture?

Although I’m not your typical female shopaholic I really liked some of Dublin’s unique shopping venues.

Paul Kilduff introduced me to the The Powerscourt Centre which is constructed around an 18th century mansion. There’s a good selection of shops. The Powerscourt Gallery which opened in June 2009 is located in what was originally the ballroom of the mansion. The ceiling is one best examples of Georgian stucco in Ireland. I had lunch at the family run Al Vecchio Castello Restaurant on the first floor balcony. I had soup and pizza slices with salad which cost around 10 euro.

Stephen’s Green Shopping Centre is home to more than 100 shops. It’s like a giant conservatory so has plenty of natural light. I saw several signs advertising free wifi in the Stephen’s Green shopping centre but didn’t have my netbook with me to try it out. I remembered the Stephen’s Green Shopping Centre from my previous visit to Dublin when my husband and I enjoyed sitting in a cafe there.

The interior of Stephen’s Green Shopping Centre, Dublin

The Westbury Shopping Mall is an attractive small shopping arcade.

The Kilkenny store in Nassau Street, again recommended by Paul Kilduff, prides itself in promoting Irish design, stocksingmany Irish products such as ceramics, crystal, jewellery and items of clothing. There’s also a cafe on the first floor.

So even if, like me, you’re not really into shopping you can still enjoy some unique shopping venues in Dublin. If you are a shopaholic then you’ll be in seventh heaven.

I had lunch at Bewley’s Cafe and Restaurant in Grafton Street during my visit to Dublin in October 2009. I went to Bewley’s on a Sunday assuming it would be quieter than on a Saturday but that wasn’t the case. I was so impressed by the interior especially the lovely stained glass windows. At first I was shown to a table next to the open fire but it was so hot there that I had to ask for a cooler table.

The beautiful Harry Clarke windows at Bewley’s

I was offered a table upstairs in an alcove which felt like someone’s parlour. I reckon I had to wait around 20 minutes for my order to be taken and another 20 minutes for my food to arrive. The waitress was rushed off her feet by some rather demanding customers.

The alcove where I lunched at Bewley’s

I had the Goat’s Cheese and Pinenut Pizza which was delicious and a good size, in fact it was hanging off the sides of the plate.

The Goat’s Cheese & Pinenut Pizza at Bewley’s

Bewley’s are doing a fantastic evening set menu, served after 6.30pm with three courses and a tea or coffee for 15 euro. This is excellent value for money and I assume it’s much quieter there in the evenings.

I’d say that a visit to Bewley’s should be part of your Dublin itinerary as it’s such a unique and beautiful interior.

I went on the “Original Tour” by Historic Walking Tours of Dublin. I have to say it was one of the best tours I’ve experienced. I think a lot of this was due to our excellent guide Edward Madigan. In common with all the HIstoric Walking Tours of Dublin guides, Edward is history post-graduate of Trinity College Dublin, the starting point of the Walking Tour.

I knew a bit about Irish history prior to the Walking Tour but the Tour put it into context and filled in the gaps in my knowledge. The Tour encompasses Old Parliament House, Temple Bar, City Hall, Dublin Castle, Wood Quay, Christ Church Cathedral and Four Courts.

The weather is the one variable that could mar the Tour as most of it is outdoors except for a few minutes in the Rotunda of the City Hall. Fortunately I had a dry, if rather grey, cloudy day. Although you can book the Tour online or at Tourist Offices, you can turn up on the day and pay then. The price is 12 euro per adult, 10 euro for seniors and students. Also you are on your feet for the two hours which may not be suitable for everyone.

From May to September there are Walking Tours twice a day at 11:00 and 15:00. In April and October there is a Tour daily at 11:00. From November to March the Tours only operate on Friday, Saturday and Sunday at 11:00.

If you’re interested in Irish history I highly recommend that you go on the Historic Walking Tour of Dublin. Have you been on this Walking Tour, how would you rate it?