Before I leave for Canada, I will say goodbye to my friends. What better way to celebrate this new adventure than a weekend with my girlfriends? So I headed for Dublin, the Irish capital! In this article, I will tell you how we spent three days visiting Dublin.
Table of Contents
Day 0: Arrival in Dublin
February 4, 2022 | Temperature: 2/6°C | Weather: Cloudy
9 pm, take-off from Charles-de-Gaulle, direction Dublin. The girls’ weekend can begin! After a 2-hour flight, we land in Dublin at 11 pm. We take an Uber to the St. George by Nina Hotel. Check-in is smooth, the hotel is well located, and the room is exactly as shown in the photos. No big splurges this evening, we stay and chat in the hotel before falling asleep.
Day 1: Discover Dublin
February 5, 2022 | Temperature: 5/10°C | Weather: Rain
First day in Dublin. Because we can’t start the day on an empty stomach, we head for Bread 41. This bakery/café is trendy. Indeed, we had to wait outside for ten minutes before we could order and find a place to sit down. Nevertheless, we didn’t regret it! The setting is really nice and the pastries and hot drinks are delicious
St. Stephen’s Green
With our bellies full, we meet up with Manon, a friend of Flo’s who has been living in Dublin for a few months, and who will be our guide for the weekend. We walk to Stephen’s Green Shopping Centre, which looks like a converted factory. It’s a gorgeous place to be. However, I wasn’t too keen on the stores.
The mall is next to Saint Stephen’s Green Park, so it’s only natural that we take a stroll there.
Temple Bar
Changing moods, we now head for the Temple Bar district. We pass the famous Molly Malone Statue, representing a fictional fishmonger mentioned in a popular Irish song. The “tradition” is to touch her breasts. Of course, we didn’t. There are many pubs in this area of cobbled streets, including the very famous The Temple Bar Pub. It was packed.
We took the hidden Wall of Love alley to Fitzgerald’s Bar. This cozy pub is the perfect place to try Irish beers and ciders. We take the opportunity to order some food. It’s pub food: simple and effective.
With the rain coming down (yes, we’re in Ireland), we decided to change pubs and spend the evening at Bad Bobs Temple Bar. This pub/club is huge and spread over several floors. The decor is typically Irish. The live music is incredible. The drinks (beers/ciders) are good. We had a great time! A word of advice: if you want a table and seats, get there early!
Day 2: Excursion around Dublin
February 6, 2022 | Temperature: 5/8°C | Weather: Cloudy, light rain
Today we’re off to explore Dublin’s surroundings. We take the DART train to Bray, a coastal town in County Wicklow. Armed with our tickets purchased directly from the kiosks in the station, we waited patiently for our train. With a train every 10 minutes, we don’t have long to wait! After a 40-minute journey, we arrive in Bray.
We stroll along the ocean before heading to Dockyard No.8 for a competitive brunch. With our bellies full, we can begin our Bray to Greystones Cliff Walk (12.1 km – 276 m elevation gain). This trail links Bray to Greystones and takes you along the coastline with breathtaking ocean views. During this hike, we got to know the Irish weather a little better: sunshine, rain, sunshine again, light rain, ending up with beautiful sunshine. And all in the space of 2 hours!
We decide to take the Greystones DART back to Dublin. As a reward, we stop at The Hot Donut. The donuts are incredible! We rest at our hotel before heading out for the evening at The Church Café Bar. This former church has been completely renovated as a restaurant. The decor is truly sublime. The food is classic pub fare. We were tempted by a fish and chips which wasn’t too bad!
Day 3: Exploring Irish culture
February 7, 2022 | Temperature: 4/12°C | Weather: Cloudy
On our last day in Dublin, we check out at our hotel. However, they offer to store our luggage for the day, which is very convenient!
So we decided to start our last day with a visit to Dublin Castle. I have to admit that I’m not a big fan of visiting monuments, but I did find it rather nice to be able to wander around the castle. We went there for the opening (10 am) and were lucky not to encounter too many people as we explored the various rooms.
Before heading for the airport, we went for brunch at the Lemon Jelly café. They serve hearty Irish breakfasts!
To get to the airport, we took a Bolt for practical reasons.
What we spent in three days in Dublin
To give you an idea, here’s a table summarizing our expenses for our 3-day visit to Dublin. Prices are for one person.
| Expenses | Amount for 1 person (taxes included) | Comments |
|---|---|---|
| Accommodation | 190.63€ | Price for 3 nights divided by 3 people – 190.63€ per night |
| Flight Paris – Dublin | 95.83€ | |
| Uber Airport-Hotel / Hotel-Airport | 16.47€ | |
| DART Dublin-Bray | 4.15€ | |
| Dublin Castle | 8.00€ | Admission: 8€ per person |
| Restaurants / Bars | 106.12€ | |
| Total for 1 | 421.20€ | |
| Total per day per person | 140.40€ |
Final Word and Feedback on Dublin
These three days in Dublin with my girlfriends is coming to an end. I really enjoyed this city, which is full of charm. Unsurprisingly, the food is everything you’d expect from Anglo-Saxon food, but the cider and beer make up for that! Have you ever visited Dublin?
La Bise,
0 Comments