Dublin

[Bruin Steve]

My wife and I are debating shore excursions for our July British Isles/Norwegian Fjords cruise (we are pretty much agreed to go on the ships' excursions unless something else blows us away as different and hard to pass on).

 

We've pretty much agreed so far on Cork (Lakes of Killarney/Muckross House) and on Belfast (Londonderry), but for Dublin, here's the controversy:

 

My thought was to go on the 4 hour Historic Jewish Dublin excursion - which goes to the Irish Jewish Museum and to the Jewish Cemetary at Ballybough, then spend the rest of the day wandering the city on our own. My wife was intrigued by the 9 hour "Panoramic Dublin, Irish Countryside & Glendalough" excursion which goes to the Avoca Woolen Mill, the Wicklow Hills and Glendalough.

 

Neither of us has been to Dublin before and we really have no clue as to what to do or what to expect. If anyone has been there - or been on any of these excursions, we sure would appreciated the help. Thanks.

[LHT28]

We were in Dublin last year ...we went into town then just got the Hop on Hop off bus around the city. Depends on what your interests are. You can walk around Dublin to a lot of the sites.

[cberge]

Neither of us has been to Dublin before and we really have no clue as to what to do or what to expect. If anyone has been there - or been on any of these excursions, we sure would appreciated the help..

 

I spent a week there after a cruise 2 years ago,and I could not get enough of Dublin itself.There is so much to see and do,and like the previous poster said the Hop/on Hop/off bus is a great way to see the city.A lot of the sights are within walking distance.You can get any of the buses right near Grafton Street which is the main street.If you find a tour that you really want to do,and aloows you to see the city than go that way.PLEASE have a Guinness for me...:D

[jhannah]

We'll be there in August and are wondering the same thing. From our research so far, it seems like we could just do our own thing in Dublin. It's not terribly spread out, and with the bus it should be easy to explore on our own. We've tentatively decided to not take a tour there. Maybe someone will come along and change my mind.

[kmabsd]

Hello All --

 

My husband and I are taking our first trip to Europe this Summer (Goldin Princess July 21 sailing) and we are wondering how to get information on transportation/distances to and from the port to the city. Specifically, with Dublin, we have a lot of time in port, and we want to be able to spend as much time in and around the City and then make sure we are back at the ship...but we don't want to depend on cruise-sponsored transportation.

 

Any research advice or recommendations would be appreciated!

[cberge]

Hello All --

 

My husband and I are taking our first trip to Europe this Summer (Goldin Princess July 21 sailing) and we are wondering how to get information on transportation/distances to and from the port to the city. Specifically, with Dublin, we have a lot of time in port, and we want to be able to spend as much time in and around the City and then make sure we are back at the ship...but we don't want to depend on cruise-sponsored transportation.

 

Any research advice or recommendations would be appreciated!

 

There should be cabs at the port..just get one and have them drop you by Grafton Street..from there you can get the hop/on bus,just walk around,shops are all around as well as the pubs,and many sights.The Temple Bar area is also within walking distance.Get a city map and just go.You can get a cab back to the port,but remember to allow for traffic in the afternoon re your time going back.It is about a 20 minute ride give or take.Enjoy Dublin..fine city,and people are really nice.At least we found it so.

[LHT28]

Hello All --

 

My husband and I are taking our first trip to Europe this Summer (Goldin Princess July 21 sailing) and we are wondering how to get information on transportation/distances to and from the port to the city. .

 

Any research advice or recommendations would be appreciated!

 

when we were there last year the cabs charged about 10Euros for up to 4 pax there were some minivans and I think people paid 3 euros just check the price first.

[Tania]

We did the Castle and Book of Kells tour which took us through the Georgian area before going to the Castle.

 

After the tour, we stayed in town and were given a ticket to return to the ship on the shuttle. Trinity College (Kells) is centrally located so we were able to return to the Georgian area and admire the archtecture on our own and see a famous home or two. Before getting there we walked around St Stephen's Green where local artists display their work for sale. Then we headed off to a genuine Irish Pub (overrun by locals not tourists) for a late lunch after which I put DH and child on the shuttle and I headed off to do some serious duty-free shopping. After the high prices in the UK, it was a breath of fresh air to use the euro and get the VAT removed directly at the till.

 

In 2002, there was a lot of construction in and around Dublin. The EC is investing a lot of money on infrastructure.

 

We thoroughly enjoyed our two days in Ireland (Cork), enough to plan to return someday soon. We found the Irish to be wonderful people.

[kmabsd]

Thank you all for your insight.....just one stupid question. What is a hop on/hop off bus?:D

[Sekhmet]

It's a bus which follows a circular route around the city, with multiple stops. You can get off at any of them, visit whatever you want close by, then get on the next one to arrive and drive on. The Dublin one is very good, with informative but quirky commentary from the driver, and you really should visit the old Guiness factory which is on the route - you finish the factory tour right at the top of the building with a complimentary pint of the black stuff, and 360 degree views of the whole of Dublin.

[cinnamon]

Can anyone tell me where the ship docks?

I know that Dublin has an excellent DART public transport system as my son was in Dublin for the rugby recently. We would prefer to just use local buses and trains if the dock is near them.

 

Thanks. Cinnamon

[ShamrockFL]

My wife was intrigued by the 9 hour "Panoramic Dublin, Irish Countryside & Glendalough" excursion which goes to the Avoca Woolen Mill, the Wicklow Hills and Glendalough.

 

Neither of us has been to Dublin before and we really have no clue as to what to do or what to expect. If anyone has been there - or been on any of these excursions, we sure would appreciated the help. Thanks.

 

Excellent choice - beautiful scenery -very relaxing. You will really enjoy Glendalough (Glen of two Lakes) and Wicklow area.

[Elaine0138]

The port is a bit of a way out of town in Dublin, I expect there may be a shuttle to take you to town. It is a fair walk.

 

There are several companies that operate hop on and off tours. All go to the Guiness factory, oh and of course they do take you to the other sites in town too, it is really good value and the commentary from the driver is excellent.

 

Avoca is the village where they made the TV series Ballykissangel there is not a lot there apart from the mill which is very small or it was the last time I was there

[jewelea]

Hi All

 

I am a dub

 

Yes there are lots of taxis (cabs) in Dublin most are very good value and trustworthy.

 

There are 2 types taxis and hackneys. Hackneys must be booked ie you cannot flag a hackney down. Taxis display their licence numbers on top.

 

The bus service in Dublin is very good however the traffic is horrendous

 

I am sorry but I know nothing of the jewish part of Dublin.

 

Any other questions feel free to email me

 

Julie

[cruisingmimi]

Hi everyone,

 

For all you cruisers that are going to Ireland, here's a website for you that will give you all the information you need.

 

http://www.irelandexpert.com

 

Pat Preston is an absolutely amazing person and has a wealth of information on Ireland. She has been traveling to Ireland for 30 years, has written books, and does organized tours to Ireland 3X a year. I found her website when we were planning our trip to Ireland last October. You can post questions on her board and she (or other board members) will provide you the information you need. She was invaluable to me when planning our tour last year.

 

If you go to her website, click on her Ireland Guide on the left side of the website, then go to the Dublin area. Pat has listed all the tours and sightseeing, prices, etc.

I am a frequent poster on her website. Pat has been very seriously ill and is just starting to return to answering questions. If you post a question & you don't get an answer right away, be patient. She (or someone else) may reply.

 

We didn't get to visit Cork and the Blarney Stone. I believe Cork is about a 1 1/2 hr. drive from Killarney. July will be very crowded and the roads are very narrow w/ lots of tour busses, etc.

 

We only toured the west and southwest areas of Ireland because there is so much to see and do. We spent 3 days in Killarney, toured the Dingle Peninsula (Ring of Kerry is similar), and also the Gap of Dunloe tour. I would have to say the Gap tour was the absolute highlight of our trip. It is a 7 mile horse and buggy ride through the mountains. The scenery is so spectacular. You will see sheep grazing on the top of the mountain, a church, school, B&B. There is a lovely restaurant (Kate Kearney's Cottage) where you can enjoy a nice meal. This is where the tour starts. The ride ends at a lake and you are transported via a motorized large rowboat over 3 lakes & docking at a castle adjoining the National Park. Muckross House is here also. You can also do a horse and buggy ride through the park area. The Gap tour is pretty much a full day tour.

 

We traveled all over the west of Ireland via taxicabs and the busses. We didn't want to drive there so opted this route instead. The busses are fantastic & very reasonable. The taxicab drivers are a laugh a minute! They have more stories to tell you. They truly love the tourists.

 

Have fun planning your trip. I am sure that you will find everything you need on Pat's site! The Irish are very hospitable and will make you feel very welcome.

 

Mary

[Alan2504]

Steve,

 

I'd go along with previous posters with regard to the hop on hop off bus, but one of the essential elements of Dublin is its people and the "craic" ...don't miss the opportunity to get "lost" in a local hostelry for an hour or so (maybe over lunch) and soak up the atmosphere :) :) :)

 

 

Alan

[June Bug]

When I looked up the shore excursions on the Princess Website for Dublin...there is a footnote at the bottom about traffic in and out of town to the port....Is that a big problem there? When getting a cab back to the port, how much time should we allow? Just how far is the ship docked from the town center?

Thanks again!

June

[jewelea]

Hi June

 

Yes traffic is a HUGE problem in Dublin

 

Assuming your docking in Dublin Port

 

It's less then 2 miles from Dublin city center

 

So what SHOULD be a 5 minute drive took me an hour and a half one evening :mad:

 

Most offices and schools start at 9am

primary schools finish around 3pm ish secondary finish around 4pm ish

work finishes 5-6pm

Fridays the traffic starts earlier around 4pm

 

But even out of rush hour the traffic is terrible

 

Sunday should be okay once you stay out of shopping centre routes.

 

Traffic eases up after 6.30 7pm

 

Julie

[June Bug]

2 miles in an hour and a half! Now that is traffic! And I thought Houston traffic was terrible. Thanks for the information. Our itinerary shows we will be in Dublin from 3:30am! until 9:30pm...didn't realize we were in Dublin that long! We should be able to see what we want and get back to the ship in plenty of time with a tour on our own. Thanks again!

June

[dellas1000]

Hi Golden Princess called into Dublin last week and I was lucky to go on board for a few hours to a New Commer event. They laid on buses every 30 minutes from ship to drop off point right near Grafton Street which is main tourist area. You can always get a taxi back to the port for around 15-20 Euro . 1 USD = 0.75 Euro cent. Im not from Dublin but live here and still love the city!!! Everything is compact so easy to get around.

[kccrzr]

We were in Dublin last November for 4 days and had a great time. While there, we took a half day train/bus trip to Glendalogh and Avoca/Woolen Mill through Gray Line tours. In my opinion, Glendalough is not to be missed. The tower, buildings and cemetary are all fascinating and the scenery/walk is gorgeous. The countryside on the way is also beautiful. Avoca and the Woolen Mill were ok but the real draw was Glendalough. We did get a fabulous woolen throw at the Mill which now occupies a place of honor in our living room.

 

The Dublin hop on/off buses make getting to the major sites in town easy to do on your own. The following link has information on the two operators of the tour buses: http://dublinpass.com/dublinpass/transport/city_tours.asp If I were trying to plan a day I would try to get a half-day tour to Glendalough and then tour Dublin on my own. We thoroughly enjoyed Christ Church as well as both the Guinness and Old Jameson tours (hope that isn't sacrilegious) - and so did our children, ages 11 and 15. At the Jameson distillery I was chosen to participate in a taste testing involving quite large samples of several types of Irish Whiskeys as well as bourbon -- it was great fun!

 

If you like Thai food I highly recommend The Chili Club, which is two blocks east of Grafton (the main pedestrian Shopping area). We "discovered" it through a book about the best restaurants in Dublin. It is a small, intimate restaurant with excellent food and service at a reasonable price. For the most part we found the prices at the restaurants in the Temple Bar area overpriced for the quality of the food.