7 Days in Ireland - Dublin or not?
 

I posted earlier about our April 6-13 trip to Ireland. We fly in and out of Dublin. I received some nice input about destinations for our self drive. My wife, 9 year old son and I are traveling. There were so many great places listed that I am considering the possibility of bypassing Dublin altogether to afford more sightseeing in the country. Is this a mistake? I love the cities of Eurpoe that I have seen, but I am feeling the pull of the countryside. Thoughts? Am I nuts, or does this sound reasonable?

Dublin did not do it for me, but we really liked the small towns on Dublin Bay ( Howth and others - all the way south)

It could depend on how you're traveling. Dublin wasn't primary on my list last year but when we flew into Dublin, we took the bus into town to the train station and went straight out to Galway. We saw a bit of the city and ended up spending our last night in Dublin before our flight out. Gave us the chance to stroll Grafton Street and have a nice dinner. It definitely has alot to offer, but I loved the countryside so much more too.

Thanks for those replies. When we traveled to Italy, for example, it was a given that we would see Rome, Florence and Venice. For some reason, I don't feel compelled to spend a lot of time in Dublin. I mean no offense to those who love Dublin, because I am sure that one could spend days there and enjoy it thoroughly. We are leaning more to the idea of renting the car on Tuesday AM and heading to the Wicklow Mountains and then further west. I think that we will likely return to Dublin on Easter Sunday, late afternoon / early evening to return the rental car, check in at our hotel and prepare for our 9:00 AM flight out. Is it a safe bet that there are no pub crawling possibilities in Dublin on Easter Sunday?

gravysandwich wrote: "Is it a safe bet that there are no pub crawling possibilities in Dublin on Easter Sunday?"

Yes.

The pubs will be so full that if you get in, you would be foolish to leave before your night is finished.

Unless there's something specific you're interested in, there's never a good reason to visit Dublin.

If you're based in the British Isles and want a cracking good night out with your chums, Dublin's the second best choice: far better than York, more compact than London and almost up to the partying standards of Liverpool. If you've an interest in very early Christian manuscripts, the Chester Beatty library is outstanding - well ahead of anywhere else on earth. And so on, for specialist interests like theatre, Irish ancestor research, Victorian pubs, relics of pointless wars of "independence" or James Joyce trails.

But as a city to see, it's not just on a different planet from Rome or Venice (or Vienna, or Paris, or even horrible Thessalonica): it's practically in a different - and, to be honest, grubbier, more crowded and uglier - universe.

Which is simply not true of much of rural Ireland, especially in the West or SW. Unless you're a James Joyce addict or whatever, spending time in Dublin or its suburbs that could otherwise be spent in Connemara or West Cork is simply doolally.

Do a morning bus tour of Dublin just to get a sense of this great city. I was not expecting much from Dublin and instead I truly enjoyed it. I loved to learn about its history and remains one place in Ireland I want to go back to.

Thanks to all the above responders. I know that Dublin is certainly deserving of a day (if not many more). My guess is that we will probably arrive in the city on Saturday, April 11. Easter Sunday is the next day. We would like to attend Easter worship in Dublin. After that, we could devote the day to sightseeing.

There seem to be many people who go to Ireland and never see Dublin - and I don;t get it.

Granted the countryside is pretty - but not dramatic like Switzerland - and to me Dublin is a must see.

If nothing else:

Book of Kells at Trinity
Dublin Castle
National Museum

And theater - preferably a local like Shaw or Wilde if possible.

You can easily spend 3 days there and not be bored - but there's no way I would miss the above.