Hotel in Dublin.....?

Question

Hi,

We have just booked flights to Dublin for in 8 weeks time and now want to find a decent, but cheap, hotel/hostel/B & B in the centre of town. A 2/3 star hotel would be fine as we are only staying for 3 nights. We want to be within ten minutes of the Temple Bar area.

I have found one hotel which sounds o.k called the Parliament Hotel on Lord Edward Street (not sure if that's central or not?!), has anyone got any experience of this hotel? Or could you recommend a decent hotel that you have stayed in or have had recommended?

Also any tips for things that you really think we shouldn't miss while we are over there?

Any tips handy. Thanks.

Answer 1

"The Aisling Hotel" on Parkgate street is what your looking for.

Its right beside the luas (tram lines), a stones throw from several bus stops, 5 min walk to phoenix park, across the road from the guinness brewery which has a pretty good tour, 5 min tram journey or ten min walk to the ha'penny bridge/temple bar area. The hotel itself has friendly staff, good food, nice atmosphere and a pretty cosy bar...

Answer 2

That hotel is ok for a trip. Friends of mine stayed there and were happy enough. It is reasonably central as other people have said Dublin is a small city, at least the centre is.

I suppose people always say they want to see Temple Bar but it is really for tourists.  If you are there on a saturday there is a food market in Meeting House Square and some fashion and jewellery stalls (young designers hoping to make it big) on Cow Lane.  Drinking in this area is more expensive than elsewhere.

If you are interested in history then Kilmainham Jail is worth a visit. All our museums and art galleries are free and the Museum of Decorative Arts at Collins Barracks is worth a look. At the moment they have a restored Viking ship in the yard. It used to be an army barracks and there are some interesting exhibitions there. You can walk free through the grounds of Trinity College, well worth a visit but there is a small charge to see the Book of Kells.

The hop on hop off bus is good for a first day. Start early and your ticket lasts 24 hours so you can have a good look around.  

You can also get on the Dart (electric train) which goes all around the bay.  Howth and Malahide on the North side are on its route and are both interesting. Howth a fishing village with a nearby castle and walk up through its grounds to get a great view of Dublin Bay and see a Dolmen (ancient Irish grave of Aideen). Malahide has lots of shops and a few good pubs. Visit Gibneys, you never know who you would see in there.

Main shopping areas are Henry Street and Grafton St (more expensive). Nice parks are Stephens Green and Merrion Square. Also the Phoenix park to see the deer.

I agree Newgrange is worth a trip.  It is a bit out though so it depends on your time availability.

Enjoy your trip and welcome to Ireland

Answer 3

Lord Edward Street is central enough.  The fancier places will be (more central) on St. Stephens Green or Merrion Square, and Temple Bar.

Dublin is a small city, and there are lots of hotels in the city center, so you should find you have lots of options. B&B's are generally cheaper, and there are lots of them in Dublin. It's a good city to be a tourist in.

Stay away from hotels too far west, for example if they say they are near the Guiness Brewery or Kilmainham or Phoenix Park, then that's really starting to be a bit of a walk.

Some tourist tips: The tour busses are a good way to get feel for where things are, worth the money. While the Guiness Storehouse tour is not that great -  you DO get to have a Guiness while looking at one of the best views of the city. Really, don't miss having a Guinness on tap, it tastes different here. I also think a day trip to NewGrange is really worth it, an ancient site older than the pyramids, and you get to see some Irish countryside.

It's a great place to visit, people are really fun and chatty.

Answer 4

we stayed at cassidys hotel in november it was lovely. smack bang in the centre. would definitely recomend it.

Answer 5

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Answer 6

Hi, I have stayed at Wynn's Hotel, it's right near the river only a few yards away from O'Connell St.  We had B & B for 2 nights it cost around 95 euros.  I came back from Dublin on Tuesday, we booked apartments they cost around 25 euros each per night the apartments were lovely but they were about 10 - 15 mins walk to O'Connell St. the area during the day was fine, but it just seemed a bit lonely at night. Have a look on Hotel Finders Dublin.(just be wary when booking hostels) We got on an Airlink bus at the airport it was 10 euros return.  A tour bus costs around 14 euros each (the bus drivers do you deals)  It's a hop on off bus all day to all the main tourist attractions.  Henry St. is fantastic for shopping it's right at the side of the Post Office on O'Connell St.Go into Cleary's (over the road from the Post Office) its the oldest department store in Dublin.  Have a great stay.

Answer 7

I stayed at the Best Western/Ashling Hotel in Dublin 8. c**p hole.... stay away from it. Not centralized and the staff are rude.

I hear Jurys Inn is a nice enough place. If you want a dead central spot, try Stauntons on the Green. Right across the street from St. Stephens Green and a quick walk from Temple Bar and downtown.

When down there, avoid the touristy bars like the Dubliner and Temple Bar itself. The Palace bar upstairs and a few other spots down there are unique and many offer live music.

Answer 8

hi , i live in dublin during the week for colleg, and every summer i go and stay in dublin for a weekend in hotels and genuinely you cannot beat the Bewleys hotels, they are actually the cheapest you can get in hotels (thats an actual fact) as they are priced by room rather than people. they are gorgeous hotels though also very clean and very nice and friendly staff. the one in leopardstown is right beside the luas line which brings you right into grafton street which is the best and most famous area for shopping.

The one in Ballsbridge has many lovely restaurants and bars nearby and is well serviced by local buses. also has a dart station nearby which can bring you right into connelly station which is near the main street of O Connell St (where the spire is).

try http://www.bewleyshotels.com

Answer 9

check out the holiday inn. every time people visit i recommend they stay there and use http://www.travelcusehotels.com to book their stay. the site is an aggregator which means it takes offers from various online sites and shows you the best deals. good luck

Answer 10

I've not actually stayed in the Parliament Hotel, though I have spent an evening in its bar having some pleasant conversation with friends! It can't be described as particularly "central" because Dublin has so many different foci, but it should be fine for your purposes - it's directly over the road (Dame Street) from Dublin City Hall and the main entrance to Dublin Castle, if you want to spend a little time on the city and country's history, and Lord Edward Street can be considered to be the western edge of Temple Bar - just down the street you will find The Porter House, which I can heartily recommend for all the different kinds of beer which are brewed on the premises (it must be one of the few pubs in Ireland where they DON'T sell Guinness - they brew a very good stout of their own).

Maybe 5-10 minutes to the east down Dame Street you'll find Trinity College, where you can find the Book of Kells in the library (they've built quite an impressive exhibition to show it off, in the last few years). Further west along Dame Street you'll find Christchurch Cathedral, the Dublinia Exhibition, a little bit off to one side St Patricks Pro-cathedral. while a bit further along is the Guinness brewery.

I think a good idea for your first day would be to take one of the hop-on hop-off round-Dublin sightseeing tour buses, which are a good way for you to get your bearings round the city and decide what you want to take a closer look at - I think there are still 2 different companies doing the tour, Bus Atha Cliath (Dublin Bus) and Irish City Tours, the only major difference being how far into the huge Phoenix Park they go! Both companies' buses run down Dame Street, and the tours notionally start and finish in or near O'Connell St on the north side of the river, but once you get there you just move to the next bus starting the tour, since your ticket is good for 24 hours.

Answer 11

Hi we stayed at the Lynams htl, it was clean, cheap and smack bang in the centre. On O'connell st.   2mins walk to the river and temple bar. It is opposite the Savoy. Breakfast was not  included but at least then you can get up when you want and there are loads of cafes that do all day breakfast nearby anyway. The Guinness storehouse brewery is a must see. the tour bus is the best way to get around, cheap and is hop on and off whenever you want. The old prison is interesting too. Dublin is a great place, i hope you enjoy your trip.

Oh buses go from outside the airport every 15 min right into O'Connell St, the fare is about £8 return, a lot cheaper than a cab.