Recently, my sister visited me for 10 days. She’s starting Physical Therapy school soon, so we treated her second trip to Europe (she’s only been to Prague prior), as a last summer hurrah before buckling down for studies. 

In 10 days, we managed to do and see a lot- visiting London (of course), Amsterdam, Paris and Dublin. 

Even though the flight from London to Dublin is under an hour, I hadn’t found the time to head to Ireland since moving to the UK in January. 

With so much on the trip agenda, we only had time to spend a day in Dublin, but loved every moment. 

Dublin is one of those cities that’s perfect for a day trip or weekend break. As Ireland’s capital, it’s a town filled with culture, beauty and history. Even though it’s quite big, we had no problem getting around by foot and only took a taxi once to help get across the city quicker. 

I’m looking forward to returning to Dublin soon for another visit, hopefully as part of a road trip around Ireland.

One Day in Dublin

Fresh off the plane, we headed to the Guinness Storehouse– something my sister was adamant we allot time for. Covering 50 acres, the factory is a massive part of Dublin’s history.

We enjoyed walking through the tour rooms to learn more about how Guinness is made, and its history in the city. At the end of the tour, you choose between pouring your own pint of Guinness or heading to the 360 rooftop bar and having a bartender pour for you. Since it was such a beautiful day, we chose the rooftop bar and took in city views while sipping our pints.

Post-Guinness, we hopped in a taxi to Trinity College to see the Book of Kells and Old Library. When we got to the library, the line to get inside was massive. A quick Google search showed we could order digital tickets and skip the line, so we did just that.

The main attraction here is the Book of Kells, a 9th century gospel manuscript. And while it was incredible to see the book, I came to meander the Old Library, preserved from the 18th century. It’s absoluetly incredible.

Next, we decided to wander for a bit before having lunch and walked all over downtown Dublin.

Notable stops were O’Neill’s (super cute pub), Keoghs (great muffins), Bewleys (awesome espresso), and Queen of Tarts (delicious scones and tarts).

Hungry, we headed over to Fleet Street to Elephant & Castle for chips & sandwiches (the veggie sandwich is delish), and The Temple Bar for Irish coffee and live music.

Ready for more exploring, we wandered up and down Fleet Street, admiring pubs with hanging flowers, and cute cafes.

In search of a snack, we crossed the famed Ha’Penny Bridge, which is over 200 years old to the other side of the Liffey. The bridge’s name is thought to originate from the price of the original toll to cross, designed to match the ferry toll it replaced when built.

On the other side of the Liffey, we headed to the Rolling Donut to gawk at the donuts.

With an hour to go till we needed to leave for the airport, we headed back across the Liffey, and through downtown to Zozimus bar, a cocktail bar with a cool umbrella art installation in the alleyway.

And, just like that, it was time to head back to London. We were going to Paris in the morning, so I’d booked an early (7 pm) flight home. We took the Airport Shuttle bus both from/to the airport for €14 each- can’t recommend it enough! Quick, easy and cheap.

Have you ever been to Dublin or Ireland? What should I see on my next trip to Dublin?

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