Young, trendy, chic… Dublin? Oh yes. Dublin might look like the old grey town of Europe, but don’t be fooled – this is a city on the move. Its nightlife is famous, its museums are impressive, its restaurants creative and its shops well worth your time. And as for the Guinness…you’ll never taste better.
For partiers, the first stop is still Temple Bar, with its winding cobblestone streets and dozens of touristy bars. From there, it’s a short walk to Dame Street, which is lined with slightly more upmarket restaurants and pubs. This is also where you’ll find the towers of Dublin Castle (677 7129, http://www.dublincastle.ie), once the seat of English colonial power in Ireland. Today, along with a few government offices, the castle holds the amazing (and free) Chester Beatty Library (407 0750, http://www.cbl.ie, closed Mon Oct-Apr), which holds a collection of ancient art and hundreds of illuminated manuscripts.
Heading west, Dame Street becomes College Green, leading to Trinity College, alma mater to Oscar Wilde, Samuel Beckett and Jonathan Swift. Trinity’s 16th-century campus makes for a pleasant stroll, and its Old Library (608 1661, http://www.icd.ie/library) holds the most famous book in Ireland: a medieval illuminated gospel known as the Book of Kells. From here you are within striking distance of Grafton Street. Usually jammed with tourists, artists and buskers, it can be a joy or torture depending on your perspective.
The other end of Dame Street is the city’s church zone. First are the whitewashed walls of Christ Church Cathedral (Christchurch Place, 677 8099, http://www.cccdub.ie), founded in 600 by Strongbow, the first conqueror of Ireland. A few blocks away, St Patrick’s (St Patrick’s Close, 453 9371, http://www.stpatrickscathedral.ie) has a glorious nave.
Head further west and you’ll find the ‘Church of Guinness’ (Guinness Storehouse, St James’s Gate, 408 4800, http://www.guinness-storehouse.com), where a hefty €14 entry fee buys two hours of black-stuff madness and a trip to the Gravity Bar.
Across the river in the northern half of Dublin, make your way to busy O’Connell Street, and up to the city’s most political monument – the General Post Office. On Easter Day 1916 Patrick Pearse stood on its steps to read a proclamation declaring a free Irish Republic. You can still put your fingertips into the bullet holes that riddle the columns and the façade.
At the top of O’Connell Street, Parnell Square holds the absorbing Dublin Writers’ Museum (18 Parnell Square, 872 2077, http://www.writersmuseum.com), with letters, notes and personal items from the likes of Behan, Swift, Wilde and Joyce.
• Tourist information: St Andrew’s Church, Suffolk Street (605 7700, 0800 0397 000, http://www.visitdublin.com).

Seasonal Dublin

Unsurprisingly, the biggest event of the year in Dublin is St Patrick’s Day (676 3205, http://www.stpatricksfestival.ie, Mar), which actually stretches out over the better part of a week, with street theatre, bands, parades and plenty of boozing. In April the Dublin Film Festival (679 2937, http://www.dubliniff.com) shows the latest local and international flicks, while in July the Oxegen music festival (http://www.oxegen.ie, 8-9 July 2006) packs tens of thousands of music fans into Punchestown Race Track for several days of sounds.

Restaurants & bars

Dublin is a paradise for foodies – well, those with lots of ready cash. For everybody else, it can be hard to find something affordable. But you can get a good lunch of salad or soup for less than €8 at the Avoca Café (11-13 Suffolk Street, 672 6019, http://www.avoca.ie) inside the Avoca shop. For veggie food, try Nude (21 Suffolk Street, 672 5577) or, for the opposite (hearty meat pies), head to the Porterhouse pub (16-18 Parliament Street, 671 5715, http://www.porterhousebrewco.com).
For trendy nosh, visit Mermaid Café (68-70 Dame Street, 670 8236, http://www.mermaid.ie) and hope they’re serving the delectable Atlantic seafood casserole that night. For something little, delicious and diet-destroying, the Queen of Tarts teashop (4 Corkhill, Dame Street, 670 7499) is your stop.
Thirsty? Try Grafton Street and surrounds: McDaid’s (3 Harry Street, 679 4395), Neary’s (1 Chatham Street, 677 8596) or Kehoe’s (9 South Anne Street, 677 8312). The Market Bar (14 Fade Street, 613 9094) is a vast, stylish ‘superpub’, while the Octagon Bar (Clarence Hotel, see below) is good star-spotting territory.



Nightlife

Restless? Dance the night away at Lillie's Bordello (Adam Court, off Grafton Street, 679 9204, http://www.lilliesbordello.ie) amid the nude paintings, at trendy Ri Rá (1 Exchequer Street, 677 4835, http://www.rira.ie) or the popular Spy Club (Powerscourt Townhouse Centre, 6 William Street, 677 0014).

Hotels

U2’s stylish hotel, the Clarence (6-8 Wellington Quay, 407 0800, http://www.theclarence.ie, €340-€700), is the best hotel in the city, while the Clarion Hotel Dublin (in the International Financial Services Centre, North Wall Quay, 433 8800, http://www.clarionhotelifsc.com, €120-€265) has a great swimming pool.
For more affordable accommodation and a central location, the Eliza Lodge (23-24 Wellington Quay, 671 8044, http://www.dublinlodge.com, €130-€180) has spacious rooms overlooking the Liffey, while those on a budget can try the Avalon House (55 Aungier Street, 475 0001, http://www.avalon-house.ie, €56-€74), a good, laid-back hostel with doubles.


Nearby

For a breath of fresh air, take the DART north to Malahide, and visit its grand old castle. Alternatively, venture south to Dalkey, which has a couple of (much smaller) castles, and newer versions in the form of grand villas built above its pleasant, windswept beaches.