Dublin, capital of Ireland and UNESCO City of Literature, is the perfect blend of cosmopolitan and traditional Irish culture. It is a city of extravagant nightclubs, cozy teahouses, ancient ruins and relics, and a collision of music, theater and experimental art.

Incredibly, travelers to the Emerald Isle oftentimes skip over Dublin in their eagerness to get to the picturesque countryside. And yes, the hills and the cliffs and the crumbling castles of the west coast should not be missed. But Dublin has enough character to merit a separate trip entirely. And while you probably have the staple sites such as the Guinness Storehouse and the Book of Kells on your itinerary, be sure to branch out your Dublin experience with a few of these off-the-beaten-track activities.

1) The National Leprechaun Museum

Don’t laugh. Dublin’s newest and most whimsical museum explores leprechauns and other fairies not as we know them from popular culture, but as the supernatural and often terrifying beings that influenced thousands of years of Irish culture and storytelling. An imaginative and surprising mix of folklore, theater and history, this is sure to delight the whole family. Come by after hours for their more adult-themed interactive theatrical production The Dark Land.

2) Rent a Bike

With a more or less flat landscape and mild, if rainy, weather, Dublin is simply begging to be explored by bicycle. Filled with Victorian-era parks, century-old churches and stately Tudor homes with multicolored doors, Dublin has plenty of trendy neighborhoods like Portobello and Ranelagh that are only a short bike ride away. Luckily, there are bike stations set up all across the city where you can swipe your credit card, grab a bicycle and go.

3) Visit the Oldest Bog Body In Europe

Dublin is a city that has many mummies preserved from all different eras of Irish history, and the three bog bodies at the National Archaeology Museum are a few of the oldest, dating back to the Iron Age.

Cashel Man, the oldest bog body in the entire continent of Europe at roughly 4,000 years, is thought to be a sacrificial victim and provides a fascinating look at the culture of prehistoric Ireland. The museum also has plenty of ancient weapons, jewelry, illuminated manuscripts and Celtic relics for a less macabre glimpse into Irish history.

4) Pay Homage To Irish Literature

For the diehard James Joyce fanatic, Dublin is the place to be to retrace the events of his novels and stories. Visit the very dapper bronze statue of the Modernist writer just off of O’Connell Street, and then follow a series of bronze plaques around the city that point out various pubs, cafes and other Dublin institutions that he mentioned in his signature novel, Ulysses.

At the end of the day, stop by Sweny’s Chemist, an antiquated chemist-cum-bookshop virtually unchanged since Joyce’s era, where a group of book lovers read aloud from Ulysses twice a week.

5) Grab a Cuppa at Grafton Street’s Historic Café

Located at the heart of Dublin and having featured in Joyce’s short story collection Dubliners, Bewley’s Café is the perfect place to sit out a morning rainstorm while enjoying a cup of tea or coffee. Take in the lavish turn-of-the-century décor in their main tearoom or enjoy a gourmet lunch and a free performance in their on-site theater. Afterwards, be sure to explore Grafton Street to get the full experience of Dublin’s buskers, flower vendors and street performers.

6) Go Vintage Shopping In Temple Bar

When it comes to grabbing a pint and listening to traditional music in an authentic Irish pub, Temple Bar on the south bank of the river is not your best bet, as it is kitschy and overpriced. However, it is worth strolling through on a weekend to people watch and to hit up their outdoor secondhand book and record market located in the miniature plaza at its center.

For the vintage lover, there are half a dozen shops in the less trafficked areas of Temple Bar that are filled with quirky jewelry, accessories and clothing styles ranging from Goth to Hipster and everything in between.

7) Take a Tour of Glasnevin Cemetery

Are you interested in Dublin’s history but not so much in the conventional museum experience? Head north to the Glasnevin Cemetery, a sprawling graveyard that holds the remains of some of Ireland’s most prominent figures dating back to the 1830’s, including Michael Collins, Éamon de Valera, Constance Markievicz and Luke Kelly of the folk band The Dubliners.

Choose from various thematic tours of the grounds or wander by yourself along the antiquated Celtic crosses and ornate marble obelisks. Afterwards, drop by the neighboring pub known as Gravediggers for a pint.

8) Go To a Hurling Match

Uniquely Irish and one of the fastest and most hazardous field games in the world, hurling has been played in Ireland for over 3,000 years (almost as old as Cashel man). Similar to field hockey but faster and with lots more tackling, hurling is widely agreed to be one of the most exciting sports to watch live.

Head to Croke Park, the enormous GAA stadium to the north of the city center, and cheer for your favorite team.

9) Catch a Play

Ireland is renowned for its vibrant theater scene, which has included some of the past century’s greatest actors and playwrights. Dress up and go out to see a production at the world famous Abbey Theatre, which was the personal project of poet William Butler Yeats and his patroness Lady Gregory during the Irish Revival, or at the Gate Theatre, which has sponsored such great names as Samuel Beckett and Brian Friel.

Alternatively, if you’re in Dublin during the summer, be sure to check out various outdoor theater festivals and free plays that pop up in various parks around the city.

10) Find Some Craic Agus Ceol

No trip to Dublin would be complete without an experience of their second-to-none pub culture, and to fully appreciate that you have to listen to live music. Luckily, everyone and their grandmother has a band in Ireland, so chances are high that you’ll find one of them performing in a local pub at any given night.

If you’re looking for excellent Guinness, hearty pub fare and an energetic traditional session, head to The Stag’s Head pub. For a more contemporary scene with an enormous selection of craft beers, try The Porterhouse in Temple Bar.

[Ha’penny Bridge In Dublin by William Murphy/Flickr]

By Anna Snyder /

Anna Snyder is a freelance travel writer and blogger who has just published her first book, 24 Hours in Dublin, a fun, fast-paced guide to all sorts of different things you can do in Dublin over the stretch of 24 hours. She writes a travel blog at Knitting & Nomaderie and more of her writing can be found at The Savvy Explorer and Language Trainers.

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In honor of St. Patrick’s Day today, I thought I’d dust off an oldie but goodie: my Dublin travel video. In this video I basically roam around the Guiness Storehouse, but in Part Two, I head to the St. Patrick’s Cathedral in Dublin, an appropriate destination for today.

It’s been a while since I took a look at the comments section of the video from YouTube, and I decided to highlight a few for your reading pleasure.

This from 27stdboy: “Are there leprechauns in this country?”

The answer is “no,” or at least, I didn’t seen any while I was there. I did drink Absinthe one night in Temple Bar (a totally legal and available beverage here in the U.S. now I might add), and I did see some interesting things after that. But no leprechauns.

And from S4561230: “Your voice craic’s me? up. Brilliant hahaha”

Yes, at first I thought it was just one of those your-own-voice-sounds-weird-when-you-hear-it-on-tape, but it turns out most people share that sentiment.

And lastly, from kaylesemma: “did u enjoy ur stay in dublin? :] hope us dubliners treated u? well. loveee ur accent, hav u got any irish family? [sic]”

I did enjoy my stay there, and I recommend anyone who has a chance to spend at least a week exploring the city and its surrounding to do so. You Dubliners did treat me very well.

Thanks about the accent, it’s the product of intense training to master a generalized Midwestern accent. And I don’t have any direct family there, but my brother-in-law does, and I joined them for Easter dinner (very gracious of them). There were several varieties of potatoes involved and we spent the afternoon at the pub watching rugby.

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In Part Two of my travel guide to Dublin, Ireland, I head off the beaten path to get a better sense of the city. I begin by checking out an international graffiti festival featuring artists from around the world. Later, I take in some traditional Irish music at a private show in my hostel, then finish off by heading north to the town of Malahide to visit famed Malahide Castle and to see some incredible views of the Irish coastline.

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Dublin is one of the world’s most popular travel destinations, and a few days spent there shows why.

In Part One of my travel guide to Dublin, I tour the city’s number one attraction, the Guinness Storehouse, go in search of the bar that serves the best pint, visit prestigious Trinity College, and head out into the famed nightlife that is Dublin after dark.

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In pretty much every city in the world, you’re going to run into people that will swear on their mother’s grave that this particular bar is the best in the world, and that you should not let anyone tell you otherwise. This is ever so true in Dublin, the mecca of fine pubery (yes, I made that word up, it’s now part of TheExpeditioner.com lexicon).

SMH has a run down of their 14 favorite pubs in different categories, from the pub with the best music (Whelan’s — see above — which I found to be true myself when I was there, just be ready for a bit of a hike), to the pub with the best view (Gravity Bar, which is also one of the most touristy given its location on top of the Guinness Storehouse, but it does offer unparalleled views of the city), and finally, to the city’s best literary bar (McDaids, name-dropped by Joyce and a favorite haunt for local writers).

To add my two cents to this list, for a chance to experience an authentic Dublin pub with zero chance of seeing any tourists, try the Ardee House, a tip I got from a local while wandering the streets on a Saturday afternoon there. Naturally, he told me it was the best in the world.

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The NYT is all about Dublin right now. After being mentioned in their article about dirt-cheap flights to Europe (Dublin is singled out for its $312 ticket from Newark — the same one I snagged last month), they also went ahead and published an article highlighting the up-and-coming Dublin neighborhood of Smithfield, just a short walk northeast of the city center.

I have to hand it to David Farley (remember him from this video?), I didn’t even know this was a neighborhood when I was here (I walked through it after seeing the Old Jameson Distillery, but it looked more like an empty street with exceptionally clean cobblestones).

But, apparently if I had stuck around a little longer, I would’ve discovered some of its “shabby-chic” bars, the Light House Cinema (one of Dublin’s few indie movie theaters), or its monthly horse market held on the first Sunday of the month where horses go for as little as 200 euros (perfect souvenir!). It’s worth checking out, but I’m not sure you’re going to need too much time seeing most of this ‘hood. My recommendation is still to head south to Wexford Street if you’re looking for a little more liveliness (it’s Dublin, isn’t that why you’re here?).

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Here are some highlights of my trip to Ireland in April of 2009.

1.     St. Patrick’s Cathedral: Dublin. Reputedly the site of a well that St. Patrick himself used to baptize newly converted Christians, the well has since been filled in by the British and the exact location is unknown (as was told to me by a local passerby who saw me filming).

2.     Front Gate/West Front of Trinity College: Dublin. Ireland’s most prestigious university, this entrance to the university grounds is probably Dublin’s second most popular meeting spot (next to the “Tart with the Cart”: the Molly Malone statue).

3.     Full Moon: Dublin. After exploring the grounds of Trinity College, I found myself at the corner of Nassau and Dawson Streets with this amazing view of a full moon. It’s funny those little things that you appreciate when you’re traveling.

4.     Malahide Castle: Malahide. Just a short trip north from Dublin is Malahide Castle, an actual residence from 1185 up to 1976. The castle is surrounded by beautifully green grounds and is close to some spectacular views on the coast.

5.     View Near Malahide. Many tours will take you to the castle then drive along the coast to offer you some incredible views. This is looking south towards Dublin and to the area where both Bono and The Edge have homes. We tried ringing them but they weren’t home.

6.     Temple Bar: Nighttime. Temple Bar is not actually a bar (well it is but that’s not related to the origin of the name), but in this case “Bar” refers to the term for an area near a river, and Temple being the name of the original landowner. Now this area is ground zero for Dublin’s touristy nightlife (for a little more authentic experience head south along St. Great George’s Street).

7.     Graffiti Festival: Car Park on Francis Street. In a symbol of Dublin’s diverse and creative culture, the city plays host to a number of graffiti festivals during the summer where artists from around the world come to paint and to be treated like rock stars from adorning pre-teens clutching autograph books.

8.     Guinness Storehouse: Old Gate. The Guinness Storehouse is by far Dublin’s #1 attraction, attracting over 4 million visitors since opening in 2000. From this giant gate on the east end of the complex you can still see the old train tracks in the road where trains used to depart carrying loads of this classic porter.

9.     View From Gravity Bar: Guinness Storehouse. Though a little steep in price, the storehouse tour is well worth the price once you see the 360-degree view of Dulbin from the Gravity Bar atop the factory. Shaped like a glass of Guinness, from a distance the bar represents the head of the beer.

10.     Cork Seal: Cork. Cork is about a 4 1/2 hour bus ride from Dublin and is the country’s second largest city. Located in the southeast section of the island, Cork is also a great springboard to explore the scenic Western Coast.

11.     Downtown Cork. Downtown Cork is dominated by small alleys and pedestrian-only walkways, perfect for exploring when the sun makes it way out.

12.     River Lee: Cork. Like Dublin, the River Lee splits the city into two. It eventually leads to Cork Harbour and out into sea.

13.     St. Finbarre’s Cathedral: Cork. Named after Cork’s patron saint, St. Finbarre’s Cathedral is Cork’s Protestant cathedral and has been around since the 7th century.

14.     Cork Courthouse: Cork. I was told these steps were a popular hangout on St. Patrick’s Day.

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In preparation of my Ireland trip beginning next Tuesday, I decided to try to bone up on travel video making by watching a lot of Anthony Bourdain (I’m finishing up Season 1) as well as some old Michael Palin travel video (for you Netflix folks, you can stream his first two shows on your computer: Around the World in 80 Days and Polo to Pole).

Two things I’m realizing: 1) My videos would be a ton better if I had a cameraman to follow me along (kind of obvious, but more so now as I watch the likes of Bourdain and Palin); and 2) I need more on-air interviews/interactions. This was a little difficult in some of the places I’ve been because of the language barrier, but in my upcoming Ireland trip I’ve procured an interview with the Dublin Tourism Board along with a couple of young Dubliners who’ll be giving me some good insight into the city. Although, #1 presents quite a problem with #2, but I’ll figure that out.

The above clip is of Lonely Planet’s own Cahal McGroarty (guess where he’s from) sharing the highlights from his own country, from the wild, rugged outdoor in the “Kingdom of Kerry,” to Galway, which Cahal describes as one of his favorite places in Ireland.

He’s even able to work in some requisite shots of sheep crossing the road at 4:37, which, from what I can tell, no Ireland video is complete without. Let it be now known from this day forth, that I shall endeavor to, and shall achieve myself, the capturing of my very own sheep-crossing-the-street footage for my own Ireland video, or I shall deem the entire trip an utter failure. To be continued . . .

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I’ve always wanted to learn how to fly, and now I really want to learn how to fly while in Hawaii. Highlight: Check out Akaka Falls at 3:16. Probably amazing on the ground, but even more so from a thousand feet in the air.

Colin something-or-rather (his mic somewhat blows) over at HostelWorld.com brings you “Dublin: 10 Things You Need To Know,” just in time for St. Patrick’s Day or for those of you taking advantage of $300 flights to the Irish capital in April – ahem, more about that to come. Highlight: 2:59 — All the city’s national museums and galleries are free. You had me at free.

This Lonely Planet video on Hanoi kind of works as a bookend to Anthony Bourdain’s trip there this week on “No Reservations” (see my post earlier this week). Both highlight Vietnam’s amazing food, but only one involves a grown man salivating at the sight of a baguette (I’ll let you guess which one). Highlight: 0:36 — “The best way to cross the road is to step into traffic . . .” Okay sounds suspicious but keep going . . .

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Want to save money while traveling: avoid the tourists. It’s axiomatic, but its surprising how often travelers forget this simple little truth. And though Ireland’s been hit with some hard times recently — after years of staggering growth — Dublin still manages to be an all-to-easy destination to blow your travel budget, unless you know what you’re doing.

This article has a few tips for making the most with the least in Ireland’s capital, like taking the bus over a taxi (yeah — no-brainer), hanging out in pubs around lunch for the most authentic and cheapest food (ok, now we’re talking), and pick up a Dublin Pass to gain free entry to over 27 attractions like the Irish Museum of Modern Art, Dublin Castle, James Joyce Museum, and the Old Jameson Distillery where you can, I’m not making this up, “earn a much coveted personalized Whiskey Taster Certificate.” A must for every well-rounded resume.

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