Arriving in Dublin Jun 21 @ 5:30 AM from Boston. This is too early for hotel check-in. What is the best way to get a few hours sleep and freshen up? Will be in Dublin two nights.
Should I reserve a hotel room for three nights
(6-20, 6-21, and 6-22) or let hotel know that I want early check in like 7AM and I will pay 1/2 day for early check-in.

Comments please,
MadBax

Given your very early arrival time, I would probably go ahead and book the hotel for the night before so that its ready when you arrive and notify the hotel what your plans are. Usually I just drop my bags off and explore the town for awhile when I arrive in Europe, but nothing will be open and it will probably still be dark when you arrive in the city.

And while I personally don't think taking a nap when you first arrive is a very good idea, if you do take one make sure you pack and alarm clock and use it! On our first trip to Europe our little "nap" ended up lasting over 5 hours and screwed us up, timewise, for the duration of our trip.

Tracy

If the room is ready you can check in - if it isn't, paying 1/2 wouldn't help. If the room is not ready, you can leave your luggage and go out for a walk, cup of coffee, breakfast if the airline's food was inedible - and probably get into the room w/i a few hours.

But if you want to guarantee you have a room available at 0700 you'll need to book the night before.

was posting the same time as tcreath -- no matter your other issues, don't worry about it being dark. A 0530 in June it will be bright daylight . . . .

Like Tracy, I prefer to try to stay awake the 1st day. 5:30 AM is screaming early to arrive so you will have not gotten much sleep. Medical folks usually advise to try to stay awake the 1st day also. Since you will be on foot, that will be much easier.

The good news is that it will not me dark at 5:30 AM in Dublin. Since you are arriving on the longest day of the year, sunise is at 4:56 AM that day. Sunset will be at 10 PM. My guess is that you'll make it into Dublin between 7-7:30. You'll have to check with your particular hotel on what their policies are on early check in. You can certainly drop off your bags, but as Tracy says, very little will be open. Last time I was at the Dublin airport the coffee shop didn't open until 7.

Bill

I think it depends on how you react to jetlag. I don't agree with Tracy's comment about it not being a good idea to sleep on the first day. Everyone is different and needs to find the best way for them. I know that me and my husband cannot function without sleeping the first day after we arrive. After we get to the hotel, we take a shower and crash. Depending on what time we arrive, we might take a second nap that day (after eating and walking around a bit). For us, that's the best way to catch up on our jetlag and be ready to go the second day.

So in the end, if you think you'll need to sleep after arriving, book the hotel for the night before and let them know you're coming in on an early flight. You can always set the alarm and get up in the afternoon to go exploring.

MadBax,

Some nap and some don't. I take a couple of hours nap. It's really how you feel. If you want to be sure to be in a room early, book it for the night before.

Have a great trip, Joan

I just stay awake until evening. I just can't nap and especially when I'm very tired. If you go over about an hour, you start getting into a deeper sleep that's hard to wake up from. But as other's have said, everyone is different. I have either a late lunch or early dinner, get in my jammies and relax, and soon I'm asleep. I find I am up really early the next morning...again, it's the time change, but by the second day I'm usually OK.

crefloors, your thoughts mirror mine exactly. On our November trip to Croatia we started our trip with a night in London. We walked for hours and finally went back to our hotel around 4:00 pm to freshed up before dinner. We started to doze off so we set our alarm for 2 hours later and fell into a deep sleep. When the alarm went off and I pulled myself out of bed I felt so incredibly groggy it almost made me sick. So for me a nap has to be less than an hour. Anything over that and I'm just about done for. Usually I just stay awake the first night and get to bed early.

Of course these are just my opinions. Everyone functions differently.

Tracy

Any hotel should hold your bagfs so do not worry. Depending on where you stay you could go for breakfast and after dropping bags and getting sorted it could be 7:30 8. AT 8am i n Temple bar Elephant and Castle is open for breakfast. Some of the shops on Grafton street open at nine (m,anks and spenser do I think) and you can wander here and up to the Park in St Stephens green. I love early mornings before the hustle and bustle. If I wake early I go in and walk around and then go for coffee and a paper to relax.