In The Loop Travel
  • Home
  • Destinations
    • The Americas
    • Caribbean
    • Mexico
    • Europe
    • Asia/Pacific
    • Africa
  • Fitness
  • Cruising
  • Travel Tips
  • Videos
  • Work With Us
  • My Work
  • About
  • Colorado Craft Brewery Guide
  • Media Kit
  • TBIN Influencer Network

We Loved Dublin But Not the Guinness Brewery Tour

3/18/2014

0 Comments

 
By John Roberts

My wife is a McDaniel, so it was high time we finally made it to Ireland.
Picture
The residents of Dublin seemed to always be smiling. I think they're on to something.
We decided to tack on a side trip to Dublin ahead of Colleen's work visit to London. It was a perfect opportunity to check out the capital of the Emerald Isle. St. Patrick's festival was under way, and it was my 47th birthday. However, we weren't sure what to expect. We usually do tons of planning before traveling to any place, but this was a last-minute decision, so we hoped to hit a few highlights and get familiar with Ireland while planning to return again someday (of course). 
Being there for just two days, we aimed to make the most of our time. 

The city has just over a half-million residents and is much smaller than I expected. We found the people to be especially friendly and helpful. Our Airbnb hosts were great and helped us plan our public transportation use and recommended spots we might like to see and bars we should check out. Taking the tram into the city center on our first day, a lady actually completed the transaction at the ticket kiosk for us when we asked what stop to get off. Dublin is very walkable, compact and with great public transportation options. 

So, during our limited time in town, we were able to cover all the highlights and actually passed by many of them several times. 

Picture
We were excited for the Guinness brewery tour. It was disappointing, however. In my estimation, it's nothing but a tourist trap -- expensive with massive lines everywhere. What you get for about 16 euros is a trip through a crowded, barely interesting museum, not a working brewery, and one pint of Guinness. I suppose we're used to the tours in the United States -- most let you in free and give you up to three beers (I'm looking lovingly at you Coors Brewery in Golden, Colorado).

Dublin's Luas tram system very efficient and easy to navigate. Our trip, which ran along almost a full length of the route cost 4.60 euro per person one way. Surprisingly, the city and bar scene shuts down early (last call at 11 p.m. on weeknights and midnight on weekends). Our favorite, the Temple Bar area, was loaded with pubs and was especially festive during the St. Patrick's Festival, which runs March 14-17. Live street music and dancing spread throughout the city, and the locals and tourists were filled with spirit and adorned in green.

We got to hit many of our top sights using the Dublin Bus hop-on hop-off city tour, which covers the complete area. We hit a museum, Trinity College, Dublin Castle and went past the zoo, war memorial. The cost is 16 euro per person and gives yours two days of bus use -- service runs 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Now that we know our way around, we are looking forward to visiting again and using Dublin as our home base while we take a couple day trips to the countryside.

Thanks for reading.

Happy travels, 

JR
Subscribe today to get the latest reviews, tips and tricks to help you have your best adventure ever.

0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    Archives

    July 2019
    May 2019
    May 2018
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    April 2013

    Categories

    All
    Airbnb
    Amadeus Cruises
    AmaWaterways
    American Cruise Lines
    American Queen Steamboat
    Amras Cruises
    Anthem Of The Seas
    Antigua
    Arnhem
    Australis
    Barbados
    Baseball Hall Of Fame
    Belize
    Bronx
    Cancun
    Carnival Corporation
    Carnival Cruise Line
    Carnival Cruise Lines
    Carnival Cruises
    Cartagena
    Celebrity Cruises
    Colombia
    Cooperstown
    Costa Concordia
    Costa Cruises
    Costa Rica
    Cozumel
    Craft Beer
    Croatia
    Cruise Shipping Miami
    Crystal Cruises
    Cunard
    Disney World
    Dominican Republic
    Dublin
    Dubrovnik
    Egypt
    Ellis Island
    England
    Ephesus
    Fathom Cruise
    Fitness
    Galveston
    Germany
    Global Entry Program
    Greece
    Haiti
    Harmony Of The Seas
    Holland America Line
    Honduras
    International Expeditions
    Ireland
    Key West
    Kusadasi
    London
    Lueftner Cruises
    Mexico
    MSC Cruises
    MSC Divina
    Navigator Of The Seas
    Netherlands
    New Jersey
    New-jersey
    New York
    Norfolk
    Norwegian Cruise Line
    Norwegian Epic
    Oceania Cruises
    Olympia
    Orlando
    Pennington
    Pennsylvania
    Princess Cruises
    Princeton
    Puerto Rico
    Quantum Of The Seas
    Regent-seven-seas
    Roatan
    Royal Caribbean
    San Juan
    Scenic Cruises
    Seabourn Cruise Line
    SeaDream Yacht Club
    Sirince
    Statue Of Liberty
    St. Lucia
    St. Maarten
    St. Martin
    St. Thomas
    Theme Cruises
    Tortola
    Travel Tips
    Tsa Precheck
    Turkey
    Un Cruise Adventures
    Viking Cruises
    Viking River Cruises
    Virgin Cruises
    Washington Crossing
    Windstar Cruises
    Yankee Stadium

    RSS Feed

Copyright © 2013 | All rights reserved | Ewing, New Jersey.
Contact | About | Media Kit