Stand on the Ha'penny Bridge at dusk and you can watch the Liffey run between the two halves of the city, the cast-iron arch creaking faintly underfoot and the quays lighting up on either side. That crossing is as good a place as any to start working out how Dublin fits together.
This guide suits the traveller who wants the major sights without the padding: the museums and galleries, the Georgian streets, the bridges, and the story of a city that has been a capital, a port and a place people left from. It covers the sights north and south of the river, and it keeps to places you can actually plan a day around.
Tickets for the most popular attractions sell out in summer, so buy online in advance if you know what you want to see. The Dublin Pass gives free and fast-track entry to thirty-some attractions, but only the Hop-on Hop-off bus tour and the Jameson Distillery and Guinness tours charge over €25, so you may struggle to break even on it.
Top things to do in Dublin
1. Trinity College
Trinity College sits at College Green, south of the river, and is the anchor of the city's historic core. It was established in 1592 by Queen Elizabeth I as a solely Protestant university, and it remains the reference point from which the rest of the southside sights are easily reached.
Book ahead if you intend to see the Book of Kells, which is not included in the Dublin Pass and where even early arrivals may find all the day's slots are filled. Combine a visit with the walk south through the Georgian town towards Merrion Square and St Stephen's Green.
2. Ha'penny Bridge
The Ha'penny Bridge is the crossing on the picture postcards, a 43 m cast-iron arch spanning the river between Liffey St Lower and Wellington Quay. Officially the "Liffey Bridge" (Droichead na Life), it was built in 1816 to replace the cross-river ferries, with the right to charge a ha'penny toll for the next century.
Turnstiles stood at both ends until they were removed in 1919 after the toll ceased, and the bridge was extensively repaired in 2001. Do not add "love-locks" — a past clean-up removed 300 kg of them.
3. EPIC The Irish Emigration Museum
EPIC The Irish Emigration Museum occupies the CHQ building on Custom House Quay and tells the story of why people left Ireland, where they went and how they shaped the world. It is a natural pairing with the quayside memorials nearby.
It opens daily 10AM–5PM, and you can reach it by tram to George's Dock. Adult tickets are €21, with child, teen and senior rates available.
4. The Famine Memorial
The Famine Memorial on Custom House Quay depicts victims of the Great Famine (an Gorta Mór) of 1845–49, when a million died and another million fled the country. Five gaunt figures totter to the docks with their bundles as if to take ship and leave.
It stands on the same quay as EPIC and the Jeanie Johnston, so the three together make a coherent hour or two on the river's edge.
5. The Jeanie Johnston
The Jeanie Johnston is moored on Custom House Quay beside the EPIC museum. One million Irish people fled Ireland during the famine; 2,500 took a gruelling voyage aboard the original ship, and this is a replica.
The tour lasts about 50 minutes and takes you above and below deck. It runs daily April–October 10AM–4PM and November–March 11AM–3PM, with adult tickets at €15 and child tickets at €10.
6. Hugh Lane Gallery
The Hugh Lane Gallery occupies Charlemont House on Parnell Square North, built in 1763, with the gardens built over in 1929 to create the gallery. Sir Hugh Lane (1875–1915) was one of the first collectors of modern art and died in the sinking of Lusitania.
The permanent exhibitions are mostly contemporary Irish artists, plus Francis Bacon's studio, relocated from London in 2001. Entry is free, it is wheelchair accessible, and it opens Tuesday–Saturday 10AM–5PM and Sunday 11AM–5PM.
7. GPO Museum
The GPO Museum is inside the General Post Office on O'Connell St Lower, the headquarters of the Post Office in Ireland, built in Neo-Classical style between 1814 and 1818. In 1916 it was occupied by Irish rebels led by PH Pearse, who read the Proclamation of the Republic outside the front door.
The interior was burnt out by shelling from government forces, but the exterior survived; the building was restored and reopened in 1929 and remains a busy working post office. The museum is a multimedia exploration of the Easter Rising, open Monday–Saturday 10AM–5PM, adult €17.
8. Spire of Dublin
The Spire of Dublin is the 121-m pin that now stands next to the GPO, on the spot where Nelson's Column stood until it was destroyed by an IRA bombing in 1966. The James Joyce Statue is close by on North Earl Street.
Note that O'Connell Street is best avoided by day and especially by night, and most locals avoid it at all times. If you do pass through, keep the visit to the GPO and the Spire and move on.
9. St Mary's Pro-Cathedral
St Mary's Pro-Cathedral on Marlborough Place is Dublin's Catholic cathedral, built in 1825 in neo-Classical style. Catholicism was always the majority religion in Ireland, but its practice was forbidden until the 19th century.
The official cathedral is Christ Church, designated by the Pope in 1300 but taken over by the Protestants in the 16th century. St Mary's was built as a temporary or "pro"-cathedral until such time as the Pope decrees otherwise or the Protestants hand back Christ Church — neither of which appears imminent. It opens daily 9AM–5PM.
10. 14 Henrietta Street
14 Henrietta Street is a Georgian townhouse built in the 1740s, whose first occupant was Lord Viscount Molesworth and his family. The union with England in 1801 drained power and money to London and the neighbourhood went downhill; rural folk flocked to Dublin after the famine, and the building was broken up into tenements, with 100 living here.
From the 1930s the inner city drained out to new suburbs, and No 14 fell derelict in 1970 before being preserved. Visits are by guided tour, Wednesday–Sunday 10AM–4PM, adult €10.
11. Samuel Beckett Bridge
The Samuel Beckett Bridge, designed by Santiago Calatrava, is a harp-shaped cable-stay road bridge of 120 m. It spans the river between North Wall Quay and Sir John Rogerson's Quay, and the whole structure hinges through 90 degrees to let ships pass.
Daytime it is busy with traffic and is most scenic when floodlit at night. Calatrava also designed the James Joyce bridge upstream, so the two make a natural pair for a walk along the quays.
12. Garden of Remembrance
The Garden of Remembrance stands across the street from the Hugh Lane Gallery and museum on Parnell Square, and commemorates those who died in the struggle for Irish independence. It is open daily.
It is an easy addition to a Parnell Square stop, since the gallery and the Garden sit within a short walk of one another, with the James Joyce Centre a short distance away on North Great George's Street.
13. James Joyce Centre
The James Joyce Centre is a Georgian townhouse at 35 North Great George's St with an exhibition of Joyce's life and times. Joyce never lived here himself.
It opens Tuesday–Saturday 10:30AM–4:30PM, and you can reach it by tram to Parnell. Pair it with the Hugh Lane Gallery and the Garden of Remembrance, which are a short walk away on Parnell Square.
14. National Leprechaun Museum
The National Leprechaun Museum on Mary's Abbey is an immersive telling of the stories woven around the "little folk", who appeared in lore around 1300 AD but only flourished from the 19th-century Celtic revival. There is a daytime show and a darker night show.
It opens Sunday–Thursday 10AM–6:30PM and Friday–Saturday 10AM–8PM, and the tram to Jervis is the nearest stop. Day show adult tickets are €18.
15. Green on Red Gallery
The Green on Red Gallery on Park Lane, Spencer Dock, is a commercial gallery exhibiting Irish and international modern art. Entry is free and it opens Monday–Friday 10AM–6PM.
It sits in the Docklands, so combine it with a walk across the Samuel Beckett Bridge and along the quays.
If you only have one day
Morning. Start at Trinity College at College Green, and book ahead if you want to see the Book of Kells. From there, walk down to the river and cross the Ha'penny Bridge, then head east along the quays to Custom House Quay.
Afternoon. Spend the early afternoon at EPIC The Irish Emigration Museum, then step outside to The Famine Memorial and take the 50-minute tour of The Jeanie Johnston, moored alongside. If time allows, walk west to 14 Henrietta Street for a guided tour, or continue east across the Samuel Beckett Bridge into the Docklands and the Green on Red Gallery.
Evening. Return to the river to see the Samuel Beckett Bridge floodlit at night, then cross back towards the northside for the GPO Museum and the Spire of Dublin on O'Connell Street, keeping that stretch brief.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need to book Dublin's attractions in advance?
Dublin's top attractions sell out in summer, so buy tickets online in advance if you know you want to see something. This is especially true for the Book of Kells, where even early arrivals may find all the day's slots are filled.
Is the Dublin Pass worth buying?
The Dublin Pass gives free and fast-track entry to thirty-some attractions, with adult prices in 2024 of €79 for one day, €109 for two, €129 for three, €154 for four and €164 for five, and days must run consecutively. You may struggle to break even, as only the Hop-on Hop-off bus tour and the Jameson Distillery and Guinness tours charge over €25. The Pass does not include the National Museum sites, the Library and Book of Kells at Trinity College, or any public transport.
Is O'Connell Street safe to walk?
As of 2026 the street is best avoided by day and especially by night due to rampant and open drug-dealing and drug-taking leading to anti-social behaviour, even violence. Most locals avoid the street at all times.
How do I get around the sights north and south of the river?
Trams run up O'Connell Street northbound, and you should go a block east for the southbound track. Tram stops serve the Parnell area for the James Joyce Centre, Jervis for the National Leprechaun Museum, and George's Dock for EPIC The Irish Emigration Museum.
Pick the sights that matter most to you, book the ones that sell out, and start shaping your days around the river.