Dublin, Isle of Islay & Galway

Dublin

Where To Stay (Dublin)

Temple Bar Hotel : If you’re going to Dublin to party and want to be right in the middle of the action/night life, stay at Temple Bar Hotel. For an equivalent in Chicago it would be like staying on Clark Street in Wrigleyville (but closer to sight seeing) or the middle of Hubbard Street or near Faneuil Hall in Boston. If I were to go back, I wouldn’t stay right on Fleet street in Temple Bar, I’d probably opt to be either closer Fade Street or in Ballsbridge instead. I absolutely loved the Ballsbridge area. That said, if it’s your first time in Dublin, Temple Bar Hotel is central to EVERYTHING and was super affordable.

Where to Eat (Dublin)

Boxty House ♡* : Boxy House was great for dinner and right in Temple Bar. Traditional Irish food with a little bit of a trendy vibe. Irish food isn’t necessarily the *best* food in the world but, this was really good. Great service as well with a friendly staff.

Farmer Browns ♡♡ : This place is perfect for brunch or lunch. Food was awesome. It’s worth taking a detour out to Ballsbridge neighborhood for an awesome lunch or brunch here. Be prepared to wait a bit. There is a great little pub across the street you can grab a beer at called Slattery's Pub . 

Brother Hubbard : Awesome breakfast spot on the north side of River Liffey. There is also one near Stephen’s Green.

Ciao Bella : Irish food can be quite heavy and gets old quick in my opinion! Our last night in Dublin, we went out for Italian at Ciao Bella. It was really good- we got seafood pasta and a pizza nd it was a great change from fish & chips, shepherds pie & stews!

Things to Do (Dublin)

St. Patrick's Cathedral : Beautiful old church (1191) worth stopping in to see. St. Patrick’s Cathedral the largest in Ireland and is the National Church of Ireland.

St. Stephen's Green : Nice park for walking around in the middle of the city. This park is near St. Patrick’s Cathedral and are easy to pair together in an afternoon.

Guinness Storehouse : The Guinness Storehouse/Brewery was fun and cool to go to the bar at the top (Gravity Bar).  You learn how to pour your own Guinness which is really fun of course. You can bring your beer up to the Gravity Bar which looks over the entire city. There is also a tasting room where they teach you how to properly sip, breathe and taste Guinness. Just an FYI, Its not a true brewery tour, its more of like a..... self guided 7 story museum. It felt much more commercial and high-tech than I wanted it to be but we still had a great time. I recommend getting tickets ahead.

Night Life/Bars:

• Brazen Head ♡ : oldest pub in Ireland (since 1198!!) Definitely worth checking out for a beer. People say its touristy; I didn’t think so, I thought it was super cool.

• Slattery's Pub ♡ : Traditional Irish Pub in Ballsbridge. It has great character in there and also a cool patio with heat lamps.

• Exchequer (Fade Street) : Excellent spot for cocktails. Get the smoky old fashion! This is pretty central to the other bars and restaurants on Fade Street.

• Hogan's : Nicer Irish Pub off Fade Street.  

• Temple bar is like going down Clark street in Wrigleyville, fun shit show for a night but there were actually cooler bars in other parts of Dublin that are more "worth" going to. 

Day Trips:

• Malahide : A friend suggested we stop in Malahide on our way up to Northern Ireland/Belfast (20-30 minutes outside of Dublin). Malahide is an adorable little fishing town on the water. We stopped at That's Amore for lunch and then walked the waterfront. There is also one of the oldest castles in Ireland there (Malahide Castle).  There's a coastal walk if you get off in Bray as well.

• Belfast : We went to Belfast on a rainy , cold Monday, after a night out in Temple Bar so, I unfortunately don’t have the best reviews and not sure I suggest stopping here? It’s about 1.5-2 hours from Dublin. You can do a Game of Thrones Tour and see Winterfell which is pretty sweet (we didn’t get up in there in time). There is also the Titanic Museum and the Belfast Castle. We went to the Belfast Castle, it was ok, not the most impressive.

Isle of Islay/Ballycastle

Where To Stay (Northern Ireland)

Carnately Lodge : We stayed in Ballycastle at the Carnately Lodge so we could go the Isle of Islay (Scotland) for single malt scotch tastings. Carnately was a really nice bed & breakfast with a really friendly staff. Breakfast was actually pretty delicious and hearty each morning! Great location and only about 15-20 minute drive from Giants Causeway and Carrick-A-Redge Rope Bridge and 5 minute drive from the Kintyre Express to get to the Isle of Islay.

Bushmills : If I were to go back, I would probably stay in Bush Mills, one town over. It seemed to have more options for food & drinks, and the Bush Mills distillery is there!

Where to Eat (Northern Ireland)

Diamond Bar : This was one of the very few places in town to eat (in Ballycastle). Food was decent and near a few pubs and other restaurants.

Things to Do (Northern Ireland)

Single Malt Whiskey Tastings (Isle of Islay) ♡♡ : We took the Kintyre Express from Ballycastle to the Isle of Islay (Port Ellen) which takes about 1-1.5 hours. Isle of Islay technically part of Scotland is home to some of the most famous single malt scotches like Ardbeg Distillery , La Phroaig , Lagavulin and Bruichladdich distilleries. We bought a ticket that included our ride on the Kintyre Express, transport to and from Ardbeg, tasting at Ardbeg, lunch (at the Old Kiln Cafe) and our ferry ride back on the Kintyre Express to Ballycastle. It was an awesome day. Our only regret is not spending the night on Isle of Islay and checking out more distilleries. There were a ton of Bed & Breakfasts, hotels etc. All of the distilleries are 1-2 miles from each other, I wish we tried out more!

Giant's Causeway ♡♡ : Giant’s Causeway is an absolute must do if you in Northern Ireland. This large stretch of hexagonal-shaped rocks is the result of cooled lava from volcanic eruptions that took place over 65 million years ago. There are beautiful cliffs on the water and vibrant greenery as far as the eye can see. It is a UNESCO World Heritage site and definitely worth going to see!

Carrick-A-Rede Rope Bridge ♡: We walked the Carrick-A-Rede Rope Bridge after touring Giant’s Causeway. They’re only about 10-15 minutes from each other. It only takes about 20ish minute to walk from the parking to the bridge (and then have to wait in line to cross the bridge for another 15-20 minutes or so). It is a really beautiful part of Northern Ireland with tons of cliffs and beautiful scenery; I highly recommending seeing it!

Dunluce Castle : Along the coast of Northern Ireland (just a few minutes drive from Carrick A Rede & Giant’s Causeway) are the ruins of Dunluce Castle. In Game of Thrones, this was the filing location for the House of Greyjoy which is really cool! It doesn’t take long to walk around & tour but views are beautiful and is worth stopping by if you have time after Carrick A Rede & Giant’s Causeway.

Galway

Where To Stay (Galway)

Victoria Hotel : This hotel was pretty standard (nothing fancy, reasonable priced) & in Eyre Square. It was very centrally located and a 5 minute walk to the center of all the Galway happenings.

Where to Eat (Galway)

Cava Bodega ♡ : This Spanish tapa’s place in downtown Galway was honestly amazing. Irish food gets old quick, so definitely check this out for something delicious, fun and trendy. Great atmosphere and service as well!

Cupan Tae ♡♡ : If you love adorable cafes & teas, this is a must do in Galway. We got some pastries, quiche and tea for an afternoon snack break. It was almost like a fairytale in this place. Definitely stop in for either brunch or an afternoon snack!

Things to Do (Galway)

Galway is pretty small but filled with great pubs and live music! If you’re just walking around the downtown area, here are some spots to check out:

• Eyre Square

• Latin Quarter

• Quay Street (This is where most of the fun bars & night life is - tons of old character/stone buildings & streets. I wish I remembered the bars we went to, but there are a ton of fun options around this street)

• Spanish Arch & River Walk

Kylemore Abbey : Very cool stop (1-1.5 hours from Galway), gorgeous old Abbey (1800) which used to be home to Benedictine nuns. You can actually go inside to see the Abbey along with tour the famous gardens around it. The grounds/lake are beautiful to walk around & tour. This is near Connomera National Park and are easy to pair together in one day. We stopped at Veldon's for lunch between the Abbey & Connomera National Park.

Connomera National Park : Connomera National Park is right next to Kylemore Abbey (5 minute drive), which is a gorgeous stop/day trip (1-1.5 hrs from Galway) where you can do pretty decent but easy hikes with great views.  On the way there, we saw a lot of stray sheep and goats that walk right next to and in front of your car! If you’re looking for something to eat near by, we stopped at Veldon's for lunch which was pretty decent.

Cliffs Of Moher: the "biggest" thing to do in Ireland.  James and I didn’t go just because we did a lot of highly touristy"cliff" activities in Northern Ireland but its supposed to be gorgeous and worth doing. 

* ♡ = a favorite

♡♡ = a must do