On the 12th of March I went on the Hop-on Hop-off Bus Tour of Dublin City with a friend of mine.
We had done simular bus tours of Edinburgh, Barcelona and Budapest and found them a great way of getting to know a city. Even as a local it was brilliant craic exploring the history and culture of Dublin. The buses came every 10 to 15 minutes and the tour usually lasts around 1hr 30mins if you just stay on the bus. It can take a bit longer if you are hoping on and off at different destinations. Two Day Tickets are €18 or €16 for seniors and students but doesn’t cover the cost of admission to any exhibits. They run from 9am to 6.30pm and you can hop on at any of the 24 stops. They have both a “live” English speaking tour and multilingual pre-recorded tour and both use the same route.
We set off from Cathal Brugha Street. On Abbey Street Corner the driver gave us the history of the Spike and the GPO before we moved on to Trinity College where we got to see the Book of Kells. From there it was on to Nassau Street and the National Gallery, Leinster House and the Dead Zoo. After St. Stephen’s Green and Grafton Street we turned into Temple Bar and Dame Street and drove on to see Dublin Castle, Cork Hill and Christ Church/Dublinia. This was followed by a great tour of St. Patrick’s Cathedral.
We got off for some light refreshments at the Guinness Storehouse St. James’s Gate before getting back on the bus for the Museum of Modern Art, Kilmainham Gaol and the Royal Hospital.
We went to Dublin Zoo in the Phoenix Park, the 3rd oldest Zoo in the world after Paris and London before pushing on to Ryan’s Victorian Bar on Parkgate Street where Bill Clinton is known to drink in when he is in Ireland. The National Museum and Collins Barrack were next followed by our final hop off, the Old Jameson Distillery in Smithfield, where we tried out the best Whiskey in the world.
We headed back towards the City centre passing the Four Courts, Ormond Quay and Bachelors Walk and ended up once again on Upper O’Connell Street with a better view of the spike from a southern perspective and a little more history on the GPO before finally going to the Writers Museum on Parnell Square North, the final stop.
A great day out I would recommend to all on a sunny day.
By Jason Mc Donnell
