Dublin is by far the largest city in Ireland and one of the most exciting destinations in Ireland to visit. With so much to do, everyone you travel with probably has some idea about what they would like to do there. Keeping in mind that almost everything, except the pubs and restaurants, are closed by 6:00, it’s important to plan to visit the spots that matter most to you.

What’s on Your Sightseeing List?

On my recent trip to Ireland, my family and I made a list of what each of us wanted to see. For me, the two must-sees were the Old Library at Trinity College and the Guinness Storehouse. For my Dad, it was the statue of Thin Lizzy on Grafton Street, and for my Mom and Aunt was St. Patrick’s Cathedral and the Church on White Friar Street. We were able to check off all of these and much more!

The crowning moment of my entire Ireland trip was our visit to Trinity College Library. It’s the place that made me finally book our trip and stepping inside made my eyes well up. We scheduled our visit for the first scheduled time of the morning, which if you want good pictures inside, is a must! Even a half an hour later, the space was quickly filling up with visitors.

A few of my other Dublin favorites were pouring my own pint of Guinness at the Storehouse Experience and going to the Teeling Distillery for a whiskey tasting. While Guinness is known the world over, Teeling is a relatively new distillery, which first started producing whiskey in Dublin in 2015. Both are located in the St. James area of Dublin. These stops were just as informative as they were fun and had great souvenirs.

I brought home was a Guinness glass with my name engraved on it, which you can do at the Storehouse for a small fee, and bottles Teeling that are rarely shipped outside of Ireland, though for convenience, I bought them in the airport duty-free rather than at the distillery site.

Day Tours from Dublin

I’m always trying to make the most of my time traveling, so one of the things I was excited to add to our itinerary was a few day tours. The first of our day tours was to historic sites north of Dublin in an area known as Ireland’s Ancient East. The tour included a stop at Newgrange, a UNESCO World Heritage Site tomb that dates back over 5,000 years and served as a solar calendar and passage tomb for the ancient Celtic people. We also had the chance to see the Hill of Tara, Trim Castle, and some examples of Celtic high crosses.

And for a bit more of Ireland’s incredible views, we took a morning tour to the Wicklow Mountains and Glendalough. While this tour was quick, we lucked out with perfect weather. The mountain tops were still shining in the early morning sun. None of the photos I took really do this stunning scenery justice.

Why I Loved Ireland

For me, visiting Dublin and Ireland was about seeing places I’ve dreamed of and experiencing things that matter to me. The memories of tasty meals, pictures of stunning views, and meaningful souvenirs are what I invested in for this trip. It was also a joy for me to travel with my parents and aunt, none of whom had been to Europe before. Sharing this experience with them was an incredible opportunity, and they’re already talking about going back.

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