Walk to Winterfell, Drink the Guinness and Meet a Leprechaun

After being invited to a wedding in Dublin as a plus one I decided to not waste the opportunity and spend a few days living the tourist lifestyle. I don’t think anyone could leave Dublin without a tour of the famous Guinness Factory, experience the wonderful world of Game of Thrones and meet a leprechaun.

So my trip didn’t quite begin the way I had hoped-after sleeping through my alarm and waking up my flatmate to drive me to the airport, I finally got there with only a few minutes to spare. I went from sleeping to flying in less than an hour the luck of the Irish must have been with me. Thankfully after arriving I had plenty of time to get ready for the wedding which was set in such a beautiful chapel followed by an amazing stay in a fancy golf resort. The day certainly ended much more relaxed than it began.

The next day we were all feeling a little rough so it was an easy day eating lunch and travelling to Dublin City centre to check in to our hotel for the new few days. We were staying in the Russell Court hotel and in hindsight we should have read the reviews as upon arrival we were shocked to discover the nightclub in the basement. Two nights of no sleep for us then! Can’t say I will return to that hotel. However, we had amazing activities planned for the next two days and it didn’t darken my spirits for too long.

The next stop for us was Winterfell. Yes, that’s right, Winterfell! Available from Dublin is a tour bus taking you up North to visit some of the places the amazing Game of Thrones was set. Included in the tour is a beautiful walk through Tollymore Forest where you can visit the area where the Starks found the dead dire wolf, the wilding pit and the exact tree stumps Jon Sno and Tyrion sat talking on their way to the wall. From here the bus takes you to Castle Ward which is Winterfell itself. Walking around you can see why it was chosen. From here you can walk to the field where Rob Stark’s army camped and more. The tour does not end here. The tour then takes you to Inch Abby where you can dress up in robes and sword fight at the place where Rob Stark was named King of the North. We also got to meet a few dire wolves. The tour was amazing despite the rain! It is Ireland after all so I suggest good boots and a waterproof jacket if you ever go. And I recommend that any GoT fan goes!

As I said you can’t visit Dublin and not try Guinness so we went to the Guinness factory to learn all about the ‘national drink’. The unguided tour lets you make your way up the world’s largest pint glass at your own pace as you learn how the drink is made, the history of the drink and of course taste the drink. There is even the opportunity to pour your own pint which was included in the price of the ticket. From there you can take your pint up to the Gravity bar-a sky bar at the very top of the pint glass giving you the best and non-obstructed views of Dublin. Thankfully the weather was amazing and the views spectacular! This was far my favourite part of the tour! The scientist in me of course loved learning how the factory worked.

Ireland is absorbed in folklore and mythology so to learn all about this I wanted to visit the National Leprechaun Museum. Here you can learn all about leprechauns, fairies and hear some of the myths told for thousands of years over Ireland. With a room full of giant furniture, you can really live the life of a leprechaun. The museum is perfect for families and brings out the inner child of any adult! It really is a magical museum full of rainbows, gold and stories told by wells in the moonlight. I can’t stress how much I loved it! So glad we went!

We of course loved just walking around the city seeing and absorbing all we could including the National Bank of Ireland and Trinity College. And I couldn’t call myself a gin lover if I didn’t try some Irish gin-when I say try I mean buy a full bottle!

So please if you get the chance to visit Dublin, seize it!

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