For traditional culture, there’s nowhere better than Ireland’s capital Dublin

From the moment you land, there’s a whole world of things to discover. If you have already booked your flights to Dublin, you’ll want to start researching what you can do there. To start, Dublin is home to the famous Guinness Storehouse in St James Gate, just minutes by foot from the city centre. Here you can learn about how the traditional Irish pint is made, from growing the Barley, to the fermentation process and even how to pour the perfect pint of Guinness. At the end of your tour, you can try one for yourself for free at the

Gravity Bar atop the warehouse. From here, you can take advantage of the magnificent views across the city and out to the Irish Sea.

Next stop has to be Dublin Castle, although it looks very little like a castle. Established in 1204 by King John of England, the castle was built to help defend the city as well as being a place of justice administration and treasury. Two of the castles towers were used as prisons during the Tudor period and have had many other uses, however, in 1684 a terrible fire brought down much of the castle and a more stately home was built to replace the fortification. Since then, it’s use has been primarily for government purposes through the years and is now one of Dublin’s major tourist attractions.

Dublin - image courtesy of Etihad Airways

One place that you definitely have to experience is Temple Bar, one of Dublin’s livelier areas and more specifically home to Oliver St John Gogartys which should not be missed. Gogarty’s is home to some great traditional irish music, perfect to while away the afternoon in with a few pints of the dark stuff. The live music and entertainment can be found in the bar on the ground floor, a restaurant on the first and budget accommodation above that. It’s certainly a lively and fun experience to visit although it’s high popularity with both locals and tourists means it can get quite busy at peak times.

If you want to experience a bit of the countryside, then hiring a car and exploring outside of the city is a wonderful way to see more of the country. Vast green fields and beautiful scenery combined with many stately homes makes for a pleasant afternoon drive or even a short break if you are planning on staying in Ireland for a while.

Travelling from Australia, flights to Dublin go via the middle east with one stopover or via Asia with two. Accommodation in Dublin ranges from budget hostels to luxury five-star hotels and if you also want to treat yourself, spa hotels in the countryside around Dublin can also be found.