5 of the Best Travel Experiences in Dublin

Keep this list handy for your next trip to the charming Irish capital.

Drink

From quizzes to cocktails at MVP
Everything uncool is trendy at this pub: a weekly chess competition, a regular quiz centred on cult TV hit The Office, and a St Patrick’s Day event – the Guilty Paddies Party – celebrating your favourite terrible songs from bands like Boyzone and U2. In short, everything you need for a fun night out. There’s a good selection of beer, wine and whiskey, while the MPV Originals cocktail list has such intriguing concoctions as the “Kentiki Derby”: whiskey, vermouth, amaretto, port, lemon, bitters and banana. For dinner, order a Spudbox: a baked potato with a range of fillings, from simple melted cheese to the more creative Mediterranean mix of aubergine, peppers, red onion and cheddar.
29 Upper Clanbrassil Street, Dublin 8

Do

Cycle through the city
Riding a bike is fast becoming the best way to explore a new destination. You can stop and start your journey whenever you spot an interesting detour and cover far more ground than on your own two feet, all while keeping your fitness tracker happy. Dublin has almost 200 kilometres of cycling routes. A good place to start is the short and flat Canal Way Cycle Route, which rolls past some of the city’s best cafés and down to the docks. If your leg muscles are up to it, hire a mountain bike and hit the nearby Ticknock mountain-biking trails for sweeping views over Dublin Bay.

Tour the Jameson Whiskey Distillery
Drinking a glass of aged whiskey straight from the barrel is a must-do for any hardcore whiskey fan. This is the grand finale of two new tours at the soon-to-reopen Jameson’s Bow Street Distillery: Whiskey Makers, an exploration through the history of Jameson; and Whiskey Shakers, a guide to the history and ingredients used in recently developed Jameson-based cocktails. The distillery will open its doors again after a refurbishment this March, just in time for a St Patrick’s Day celebration. You can also join the Bow Street Experience every 10 minutes – a 40-minute tasting tour of the golden brew.
Bow Street, Smithfield, Dublin 7

Eat

Find a feed at Fade Street Social
No matter what you’re in the mood for, you’ll find it here. Developed by chef and restaurateur Dylan McGrath, the sprawling complex includes a restaurant, tapas bar and a New York-style cocktail lounge – stop by for a quick meal, or kick on with drinks after dinner. Irish produce stars on restaurant menu: expect such traditional dishes as Irish lamb stew with spiced cream, braised rabbit leg with white wine, and wild boar. The tapas bar features morsels with worldwide influences: think Chinese pork belly with peanut brittle, or parmesan-sprinkled pumpkin macaroni with spring onion.
4-6 Fade Street, Dublin 2

See

Lunchtime culture at Bewley's Café Theatre
If the last play you saw was bad high-school Shakespeare, you need to check out this Dublin institution. For almost 20 years, players have entertained patrons during the lunch hour with fresh comedies, classic stories and new works. Doors open at 12.50pm and the show’s over by 2pm so you can get your culture hit (and leave committing to seeing more plays) and be free to explore Dublin’s streets that afternoon and evening. Tickets are €8 (about $11), or splash out an extra €4 (about $5.50) for a lunch of soup and a bread roll (perfect on a blustery day).
Powerscourt Theatre, Top Floor, Powerscourt Townhouse, South William Street, Dublin 2