Last minute to Dublin this week-end - B&B or hotel recommends
 

It's my birthday this week-end. My husband's asked me what I'd like to do. We've never been to Ireland, and want to go. Know in the future we'll do it justice, but just for this week-end, I'd like to go to Dublin.

Hoping it would be a relatively 'easy' trip. We live near Heathrow, but because we both work full-time, couldn't leave until Sat morning and would have to return Sun night.

Does anyone here have a recommendation for a good, clean B&B or hotel located in a part of Dublin that would be interesting? We are a married couple in our 50s. Being a quick visit, would like to drink-in some atmosphere along with a Guinness or two. A good pub with Irish trad music would be a bonus.

Not more than £300 total for flights/hotel.

We know nothing about Dublin's neighbourhoods, etc., so are novices.

Thanks.

At our age Temple bar would be out for a weekend stay..Stag/hen central. So. maybe the Travelodge Stevens Green or we tend to stay in Smithfield The Maldron. couple of good pubs around but you might like the Brazen Head just over the river.

We are going to Ireland next year in February and I looked at some B and Bs near Dublin...we will have a car but everyone warned me not to take the car into Dublin itself so I have chosen a B and B in Back Road Malahide...a place called Castlelodge...it is near the castle apparently.

Everything is expensive it seems in Ireland.Just for one night in winter it was 105 euros for a triple room ( our daughter will be with us) but the good thing about this place is that it is close to the railway and not too far from the airport. We will check in after picking the car up from the airport and then head back in for the evening on the train.
We will stay only one night and then head off towards Newcastle and further up the coast.
It did get excellent reviews so you might want to check it out. I did call the lady directly by the way and she sounded most hospitable.
Enjoy your trip!

Hi Denise - for a weekend break I would not pick Malahide. You have one night in town so you would want to spend it in the city centre.

Some hotels that are well located are the O'Callaghan Hotels at the rear of trinity college - there's the Davenport, the Mont Clare and the Alexander. Sometimes they have good offers. There's a Jury's Inn near Christchurch which is central too. O'Neills on Pearse Street is a guesthouse that gets fairly good reviews here. Being a Dubliner myself I haven't stayed in any of them.

Hope you enjoy the weekend!

Jane

We stayed at the Belvedere Hotel off O'Connell Street for a very reasonable rate this summer. We walked to the Temple Bar District to enjoy the music and passed lots of pubs along the way as well.

These are all excellent suggestions, and I will check out all of them. Thanks so much everyone!

Oops, one more question - how long to get from Dublin airport into City Centre and approximate cost via taxi? public transport?

I'm looking at flights from LHR and they seem to be quite expensive - LGW a bit cheaper, but not by much. :-(

Have a look at Thomas Cook city breaks, although the Dublin city center hotels start at around £350 per person for two nights including airfare from London. www.thomascook.com

Not very many hotels in the center available for this weekend. Outside the center the prices drop way down.

Express bus from airport to city center is 6€, mulit-stop, 2€. Taxi is around 22-24€, from memory.

Consider other Irish locations, Shannon for Galway/Ennis/Limerick. Belfast. Cork. any may have cheaper flights and all will have lots to offer.

We loved Cassidy's hotel on O'Connel street - it is right on the bus route from the airport. Really great buffet breakfast and a nice location.

Buswells by St. Stephen Green, Trinity, Temple Bar, museums. few were there in April, everything is walkable, very atmospheric. We loved it.