Dublin

Two Days In Dublin Itinerary

Darragh

13 Jul 2025 — 11 min read

Two days in Dublin lets you see both the famous sights and the Dublin that locals love. You can see the city on day one and then spend day 2 out in some of Dublin's beautiful coastal villages and even take cruise across Dublin Bay. At night you'll see two different areas where Dubliners go.

Day 1

Morning

We'll start at Trinity College which is the centre point for Dublin and a landmark you can use so you'll always know where you are.

After exploring the Trinity campus, walk out the main gate and the street in front of you is Dame Street. This street will bring you close to many of the most popular tourist attractions in Dublin. Temple Bar, Dublin Castle, Christchurch Cathedral, Dublinia, Teeling Whiskey and Guinness Storehouse.

95% of visitors go to Guinness and it has a fantastic view all over Dublin from its Gravity Bar. Dublinia is good for history buffs and a rainy day. I like the underrated Pearse Lyons Whiskey Distillery too.

This page has more details on the route.

Lunch

When I'm sightseeing, I just want a quick lunch. I don't want to linger and lose time, so that's reflected in my choices.

Rosie's Cafe Across from Christchurch, this is a local family run cafe with good sandwiches. You don't have to wait long and isn't expensive. I used to live close by and ate here a lot. You'll pass this on the walk back to town from Guinness.

Fallon & Byrne Foodhall Restaurant quality food served from counter. Very popular with nearby workers. Chat to locals at the communal table. This is near the start point of your afternoon tour, as is Sprout below.

Sprout Exchequer Street Think Moe's but with salads that are grown on the family farm near Dublin.

Walking Tours

I lead private guided walks in Dublin. From a Jetlag tour for the morning you land to all the coastal areas in this 2 day Dublin itinerary. It's better with a local showing you the way.

Afternoon

Now we leave the tourist trail behind and go to more local Dublin, where Dublin itself is the attraction. So put your wallet away, there's no entrance fees needed here.

You'll explore Dublin Creative Quarter with its independent Irish shops, arcades, coffee shops and restaurants.

Then relax in some of our best parks and get further away from the centre of the city to where Dubliners hang out at night (not Temple Bar).

Grafton Street is our street to follow and this page has all the details of what to do.

Evening

You're going to spend the evening in Portobello & Camden Street. It's at the end of the afternoon's route. This is where Dubliners go at night rather than Temple Bar. We call it the Camden Mile even though it's only about half a mile long, but every door is either a bar or a restaurant.

Portobello is a residential area behind Camden Street. Much quieter with quality neighborhood restaurants supported by loyal locals.

Dinner

Camden Kitchen: Book ahead for this tiny but delicious restaurant. You'll be touching elbows with your neighbor but it just adds to the atmosphere. Love it!
Richmond Restaurant: Michelin Bib Gourmand tells you all you need to know. A minimalistic menu which I love, less decisions, more eating.
Mister S: Meat & more meat cooked over fire. When it's cold outside, eat here.

Drinks

The beauty of the Camden Mile is that you just walk into any bar that you like the look of. There's always another next door. Here are some of my regulars.

Cassidy's on Camden is a classic Dublin pub. On Wednesday nights they have trad music. Not playing for tourists, but for themselves.
The Bleeding Horse has been here for a few hundred years, at least they claim. I've enjoyed my few decades of pints in there.
Devitt's has a lovely bar with a strong whiskey collection. Can be very busy and usually has music. Sometimes a younger crowd, always friendly.

Hotel

The Green is one of my favorite Dublin hotels and is central to all of today's tours. It's located where you could easily pop home for a freshen up and not have to retrace your steps. Fantastic hotel. Here are all my Dublin hotel recommendations

Day 2

Today is about getting out of the city and seeing my favorite part of Dublin, by the sea. It's the nicer part of Dublin for me and a side many visitors skip.

Howth

Howth is a fishing village 18kms from the city centre. It's famous for the Howth Cliff Walk. which has the most gorgeous views in all of Dublin. It's hard to believe you're in a capital city when all you hear is sea birds as you walk along the narrow cliff paths.

Start early and take the Number 6 bus or H3 to the Howth Summit. From here it's a downhill walk back the fishing harbour. It's takes about 90 minutes but there's no rush. Take in the scenery in front of you.

My Howth guide gives you a lot more details.

Lunch

This is a working fishing harbour and there's fish & chips everywhere. Here are my go-to spots.

Octopussy's Seafood Tapas has Irish seafood with a mediterranean twist.
Mamó is a step above a regular fish & chips restaurant. Only open Thursday to Monday. It's worth planning your day here around their availability.

Afternoon

Dublin Bay Cruise

You've earned a rest after the cliff walk so you're taking an hour long cruise to our next coastal village, Dún Laoghaire. It is right across Dublin Bay on the other side of the city. You could take the train, but this is a more scenic way of getting there.

You'll pass under the Howth Cliffs, see Dublin City from the sea and the Wicklow Mountains behind Dublin.

Check the boat schedule

Dún Laoghaire to Sandycove

Dún Laoghaire in a Victorian era seaside town. Walk along the sea front from Dún Laoghaire to Sandycove. It's an easy 45 minute walk along the promenade. You'll be joined by Dublin locals walking their dogs and getting their sea air steps in too.

The Happy Out cafe has the best view of any coffee shop in Dublin.

Sandycove is home to the Forty Foot swimming spot. Locals swim every day of the year here regardless of the weather and my walking tour guests say this one of their stops on the walk.

Walk there through the lovely Glasthule village to the Sandycove & Glasthule station where the Dart train will take you back to the city in just 20 minutes.

Here's more information on this walk. You're just doing the first part of it to Sandcove.

Timing

You should base your timing for the day on the boat schedule. It's usually at 2pm but check the boat schedule for your dates.

9:30am: Bus from city
10:30am: Arrive Howth Summit
12:30pm: Have lunch in Howth Harbor
1:30pm: Get an ice cream and walk the pier to find the boat
1:45pm: Board boat
2:00pm: Boat leaves Howth
3:00pm: Arrive Dún Laoghaire. Start walk
4:00pm: Forty Foot Swimming Spot
4:30pm: Take train to the city
5:00pm: Arrive back in the city

Trains go every 15 minutes so take your time. The boat is the only fixed time of the day.

Option to Stay in Howth

This day is busy. If you prefer a more relaxed day, you could stay in Howth & skip the Dún Laoghaire part and take the train home from Howth. There's a lot to do just in Howth.

If You're Here On A Weekend

Howth gets too busy on weekends. Skip it completely. Beautiful as it is, the cliff paths are narrow. If you're here on a weekend, do this instead:

Saturdays: Do this walk instead. It's amazing. I live here (and do walking tours of it). The farmers market in the park is full of delicious food, walk through the former Guinness family estate and then onto the beach where you have views to Howth.

Sundays: Go straight to Dún Laoghaire and do the full South Dublin coastal walk to Killiney. It's an absolutely gorgeous walk and there's a market in the park in Dun Laoghaire. Then do the Goat Boat tour of Dublin Bay. It's the most fun thing to do in Dublin!

What If It's Raining?

This is an outdoors type of day. It's Ireland and a sprinkle of rain is always possible so pack a good rain coat and you'll be ok. Our rain tends to be light mist rather than torrential downpour.

Here are some other things to do in Dublin on a rainy day.

Evening

Relax at the hotel before heading out for the evening. You've had a busy day so we're going to stay very central tonight. All of these restaurants are within 5 minutes walk of Trinity College.

Dinner

It's your last night in Dublin (for now), so let's go somewhere nice and relax after a busy two days

Trocadero. Long the home of the theatre patrons, it's been there so long, they are doing something right. Very central
Pichet: A French/Irish bistro with a Michelin Guide Bib Gourmand. Delightful.
Montys of Kathmandu. You're probably going somewhere else in Ireland so enjoy some excellent ethnic food that you won't find in smaller towns.

Drinks

We all know about Guinness, but let's go for a cocktail tonight.

9 Below is in a basement as all good cocktail bars should be. Dark & moodily lit.
The Sidecar at the Westbury. A hotel bar but don't let that fool you. Locals go here too for one of their 18 superb cocktails.

If you do want one last pint of Guinness, here are my favorite pubs in Dublin. A lifetime of research has gone into this.

Wrapping Up

In just two days, you'll have been all over Dublin City, both during the day and night and seen places even some locals haven't been to. You'll have cross Dublin Bay and visited four local villages. You might even go home with hint of a Dublin accent.