Dublin

Dublin was originally founded as a Viking settlement and is situated at the mouth of the River Liffey mid-way up the east coast of Ireland and is the capital city. Dublin celebrated its' millenium as a city in 1988.

Dublin has enjoyed unprecedented growth with the surge of the Celtic Tiger. The baby boom of the seventies is maturing and unlike the previous generations they all have jobs and plenty of money. The Irish as a whole have a love affair with the ownership of property and this has caused a massive urban sprawl, therefore when people in Dublin talk about Dublin it means the city and its rapidly increasing suburbs to the north, west and south. They just can't build the houses fast enough and it is causing a political nightmare as the houses are flying up without the necessary infrastructure always being in place. Workers commuting for several hours is no longer a rarity.

The population of the greater Dublin region is about 1.6 million, more than one third of the entire population of the Republic of Ireland. The residents of Dublin are known as Dubliners, Dubs or as "Jackeens" to the non-Dublin Irish community, this is in reference to Dublin being the base to the British administration until the time that they left and their flag, the Union Jack, flying over the city until their departure.

Dublin enjoys having over four million visitors every year and is now the third most visited capital city in Europe after Paris and London.

Dublin Airport is located to the north of the city in County Dublin. It is about 15km (9 miles) from the centre of the city and is accessible via taxis or one of the many buses that travel the route. Traffic is an ongoing nightmare in Dublin so the journey time varies greatly depending on the time of day (30-60 minutes) although Quality Bus Corridors that take only buses and taxis has greatly improved journey times. An underground Metro has been sanctioned by the government and the Airport-City line is the first to be built. This will probably be finished around 2011 and will ensure a journey time to St. Stephen's Green in the heart of the city of about 18 minutes.

Dublin Transport
If you are staying in Dublin City Centre and plan to loaf around the main sites in the city then walking will be your number one method of transport. There are also countless buses run by Dublin Bus and the more recent tram system called the LUAS that are suitable for short journeys in and around the city. The DART is an electric train service that runs along the Eastern side of Dublin from Howth and Malahide in the north of the county to Bray and Greystones in the south. The DART has several city centre stops and is great for a day out to the suburbs where there are beaches, walks and activities aplenty. In addition to public transport there has never been more taxi cabs in Dublin with over 12,000 official taxis and 1,200 hackneys serving all areas of Dublin. Basically Dublin is an easy enough place to get around, but we would recommend avoiding journeys during rush hour where possible as it can be a nightmare!