Having never traveled to Dublin before, I was exited to plan a quick trip to soak up the culture, have a few drinks and catch a Taylor Swift concert. I booked Aer Lingus to experience the much admired carrier and was pleased to find their tickets were quite a bit less than booking on Delta or United. Alas, it turns out we made a mistake since Aer Lingus decided to go on strike the very day we were set to fly. Luckily our outbound flight was not affected, but our flight back to NY was cancelled causing a scramble to get home, but I am getting ahead of myself.
The Business Class cabin on Aer Lingus was quite pleasant, and the bed pretty comfy. I did not avail myself of the food service as I wanted to go right to sleep, but the crew members were very friendly and solicitous. One major drawback; check in and security at JFK’s Terminal 7 is chaotic and downright unpleasant, so much so that I would try to fly another airline to avoid it.
There are several luxury hotels in Dublin, and I entrusted myself to my travel agent to find me a suite at either the Merrion or the Westbury which are the two classics. After some wrangling he was able to secure the Westbury as much of the city was completely sold out (the Taylor effect). The Westbury enjoys a terrific location on Grafton street smack in the middle of the action, but in my opinion I wouldn’t categorize it as a truly luxury hotel, more on that later.
Our room wasn’t ready when we arrived at the hotel mid-morning so we dropped our bags and headed out to explore. One major issue we were dealing with, Verizon was suffering a service interruption all over the UK which meant that from the minute we landed we were totally out of touch. This was annoying and complicated our plans as we are so reliant on GPS feature when exploring a new city. Fortunately Dublin is tiny and very well marked, so we managed just fine, especially after a infusion of chocolate and coffee (from Butler’s which has locations all over the city).
I am definitely not a whiskey fan, and my husband favors bourbon, but we knew we had to tour a distillery while in Dublin, and non-scientifically (and without GPS to guide us) we decided to visit Teeling which happened to be the first one we came upon. We booked a tour which included a bit of history and some samples as well. The operation was impressive and we learned a lot, most importantly that even in Ireland I still don’t enjoy whiskey. Seriously though, it was enjoyable and a good introduction to Dublin.
Dublin has a reputation of not being a destination for “foodies” but we did our research and ate some truly satisfying meals, with one of the best being at the very popular (and tiny) Fish Shop which specializes in the freshest of fish fried to perfection. Most importantly they offer a gluten free option which was truly delicious and made me very happy. The chips were not an afterthought, they were stars in their own right. Fish Shop also has an excellent assortment of wines which compliment the fried fish.
Following lunch we set out for one of the most iconic bars in the world, the Temple Bar located in the Temple Bar district which can prove to be a little confusing. When walking in the Temple Bar district you need to ignore all the other “posers” which want you to believe they are the Temple bar, but in fact there is only one original. There is always a crowd there drinking Guinness (among other drinks), as well as continuous live music all day, everyday which makes for a great scene.
Following music and beer it seemed the right time for some ice cream from the justifiably world-renowned Murphy’s. Although the weather was not at all summery (we experienced highs in the low 60’s during out end of June stay) there was a consistent line of ice cream aficionados waiting for a taste. I opted for chocolate whiskey and honeycomb caramel and both flavors were rich and fantastic.
Finally we made our way back to the hotel (though we never received notification from the hotel that our room was ready) at around 5 pm. We were given our keys and sent up to the 6th floor to check out our accommodation. Although the suite was one of the recently renovated rooms I found that the decor and finishes were more on par with a slightly fancier Hilton Garden Inn. The bed was comfortable, and the bathroom spacious but the towels were paper thin and well worn, the bathtub felt as though it was made of plastic and to cap it off our orchid was suffering a slow death. It was all fine but nothing special.
Interestingly as we got off the elevator on our floor we found a velvet curtain dividing the 6th floor in half, with a revolving crew of security guards constantly monitoring the activity. Ultimately we discovered that Taylor and her entourage were inhabiting half the rooms and suites on the 6th floor, but alas we never ran into one another. I am guessing that the Westbury offers an ideal situation for a security detail and easy entrance and exit to avoid the crowds because the hotel itself really isn’t that remarkable.
We had packed a lot into our first day in Dublin, but there was still dinner to look forward to at Library Street which is known for its casual atmosphere and sharable dishes. Luckily we were dining with friends so we were able to sample a good portion of the menu. The service was friendly and accommodating, and the food was really tasty, with the standouts being the chargrilled cabbage and kimchi, the sourdough bread served with unbelievable butter, and the lamb. Library Street is proud of their use of dried floral displays, but I was not impressed with the visual of the dried flowers adorning my cocktail, it was a bit off-putting.
By the time we got back to the hotel we felt satisfied that we had taken advantage of every moment during our first day in Dublin. Once we got past the security in the lobby (only hotel guests were allowed in) we went up to our room and went right to sleep.
Breakfast was included in our rate so when morning came we went downstairs to see what was available. The dining room was quite pleasant and the cappuccino was very good, but the servers seemed a bit discombobulated, though in a friendly way. The buffet’s offering were quite sparse and not overly appealing aside from the Guinness bread which seemed to be very popular. My server recommended the goat cheese omelet which was pretty good although overcooked.
The highlight of our day was meant to be the Guinness Factory tour, but based on a recommendation from a friend we made a stop at Epic, an interactive museum dedicated to Irish Emigration which proved to be fascinating. The exhibits allow you to follow the lives of those who left Ireland over the past centuries and see their influence all over the world. I would definitely recommend a visit. If you are of Irish heritage there is an opportunity to trace your ancestors at the Irish Family History Centre.
Following Epic we made our way to the Fumbally, a neighborhood café, bakery and grocer that is truly a crossroads and cozy gathering place. We were seated at a communal table after a short wait and enjoyed some people watching, particularly the numerous families who brought their young children in for a treat. I couldn’t resist the flourless chocolate cake and house made Kombucha for a well balanced lunch, while my husband enjoyed some beans on homemade toast topped with a fried egg. The Fumbally appears on many lists of where to go in Dublin and it is worth the trip, even with the inevitable wait to get a seat.
Believe it or not the Guinness Storehouse tour was voted the number one tourist attraction in the world in 2023, which is hard to believe, but judging from the crowds lined up every 15 minutes for their tours I suppose it is possible. While I would not put it at number one, it is a lot of fun, especially if you are a Guinness lover. If you do decide to visit I would absolutely recommend booking the Connoisseur Tour where you will learn the history of the iconic beer as well as sample several different variations and then ultimately learn how to properly pour your own pint. There is a lot of story telling and laughter (the copious amounts of beer didn’t hurt) and finally you receive a chit for another free pint at the rooftop bar which offers a great view of the city. Even if you think you don’t like beer, you just may find yourself a convert.
After the Guinness tour, where else to go than back to the Temple bar for a little more music and one more (half) pint.
After a quick change at the hotel it was time for dinner, and we decided on Italian which is always a crowd pleaser. Osteria Lucio is well regarded as one of the top choices for Italian in the city and while it was not spectacular it was tasty. The salad I chose was actually very good, though the pasta (substituted with gluten free spaghetti) was merely adequate. Would I go back? Probably not.
Our final full day in Dublin had lots more in store, after breakfast we took a cab to Windmill Lane recording studios, a truly unique destination that you must visit if you love music as some of the biggest acts from Ireland and the UK have recorded there. This tour was also recommended by my travel savvy friend and she was right on- we loved this private hour long experience and would highly recommend it.
I had mentioned we were experiencing some unseasonably cool temps, but we also had to endure some pretty relentless rain not only on the day of the concert, but also on the day on the massive Dublin Pride parade. I always try to be prepared with an appropriate outfit so I donned my rainbow pants and witnessed a mostly fabulous day of celebration up until the pro-Hamas protestors showed up, at which point we exited.
Leaving the parade (which completely disrupted traffic in the city) we walked towards a much anticipated lunch at Mr. Fox, a Michelin starred restaurant that came highly recommended. We arrived quite soggy, as did our friends, but we were ready for a delectable meal, and we were not disappointed. We made the reservation as late as we could (at 2 pm) since this would serve as a combination lupper (lunch and supper) before we were to head to the stadium at 6 pm for the concert.
You can see the menu below, and the staff was very amenable to adapt my dishes to be gluten-free and pescatarian, making substitutions where necessary ( for example instead of the lamb I received an outstanding Maitake mushroom steak as my main). The meal was fantastic, and as we opted for lunch rather than dinner it was a great value. We enjoyed some fabulous wine as well, as we had reached our fill of beer.
If you are heading to Dublin I would absolutely book a meal at Mr. Fox.
Miraculously as concert time approached the skies cleared which was a tremendous relief. A 3 1/2 hour show in a cold rainstorm would have been pretty miserable. We were able to take a taxi somewhat close to the stadium and then had to walk along with a zillion energetic young Swifties who were dressed for the show. We were fortunate to have amazing tickets on the floor which meant that we couldn’t help but get swept up in the collective excitement. My husband and I were not big fans before the concert, but wanted to witness the Taylor phenomenon in person. As it turns out the show was indeed incredible and we can totally understand what all the hysteria is all about!
As the concert let out we joined masses of tired yet elated concert goers and walked back to our hotel; one of the best aspects of Dublin being so small is that pretty much everything (including the stadium) was no more than a 30 minute walk from the center of town.
As I mentioned in the beginning of this article the Aer Lingus strike threw us a bit of a wrench as far as getting home. We ended up booking on Air Canada through Montreal as the only direct option on United was selling for about $8,000 per ticket. I like Air Canada, we have flown them to Japan, but they are notorious for cancelling the short hop from Montreal or Toronto to NY due to weather; and that is exactly what happened to us.
Upon arrival at the Montreal airport we proceeded to the gate to connect to LGA and then we were informed there were storms in NY. We waited through 4 delays until the flight was actually cancelled (to be fair all the flights into the NY area were cancelled as well). Air Canada rebooked us for the next day so we quickly booked a room at the Fairmont Queen Elizabeth located downtown and decided to make the best of it. The hotel was huge, and we were lucky to be given a room with a really super view.
We were starving and tired from a very long travel day so we decided to go the casual route and booked a table at Fiorellino which seemed popular with locals, it was packed when we arrived. The service was off and the food was fair, so if you are in Montreal you can skip it.
Montreal is a fun city with lots to see and do, but we were simply thinking about getting home.
At 4:30 am I awoke to a message from Air Canada that due to high winds at LGA our flight at 1:30 pm might be affected so we quickly motivated ourselves out of bed, got to the airport and managed to go standby to NY on the 7 am flight. Quite an ordeal that thankfully ended with us getting home in one piece.
I know there is much more to discover in Ireland, but if you only have a weekend Dublin is great for a quick trip, bonus points given for coordinating your visit with Taylor Swifts!