Both my husband and I have Irish ancestry so when my husband traveled to Dublin, Ireland for work, we decided it was a great time to take a family vacation.
What to Do
Ireland is a great place to take a first international family vacation. Our kids were 10 and 12 at the time so we were still able to enjoy the Dublin Zoo, National Leprechaun Museum, and the Natural History Museum (or as Dubliners call it “the dead zoo”) as well as drive into the countryside of Glendalough, the harbor town of Howth, and explore several of the historic churches like Christ Church Cathedral.
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Always check the websites of the places you are interested in going to. We wanted to see the Book of Kells at Trinity College but the line was way too long, and I hadn’t purchased tickets ahead of time, so we had to skip that one. There are also some unique Irish holidays in which places are closed or have reduced hours.
While dad was working, the kids and I spent a lot of time simply walking the streets of Dublin and stumbling across fun places like the Ha’penny Bridge, taking a horse and carriage ride around St. Stephen’s Green, and grabbing lunch in Temple Bar. We were there in the summertime when the days are even longer (the sun doesn’t set until almost 10:00pm) so we took advantage of those long days to pack in as much as we could (including a Manchester United soccer game!). It also allowed us to come back to our apartment in the middle of the day to rest (mom’s naptime and kid’s game time).
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Where to Stay
How to Dress
Where to Eat
- The Quays Irish Restaurant (traditional Irish fare) in Temple Bar
- The Gotham Café (pizza and salads) in the South Inner City
- The Shack Restaurant (traditional Irish fare) in Temple Bar
- Leo Burdock (fast food fish and chips) all over the city
- The Farm – best shepherds pie and vegetarian/vegan fare in the South Inner City
Our kids are always bringing up our trip to Dublin and how much fun they had. All four of us agree that if we were given the opportunity to move there, we would. If relocating doesn’t pan out, we look forward to going back again and again and spending more time in the beautiful Irish countryside.
