2 Days Holidays in Dublin

You may think that only 48 hours in Dublin is not very much time to get to see much of what the city has to offer, but we want to show you that it is.We have come up with some of the most important things to see in Dublin. Starting off day one with a visit to Kilmainham gaol, It is one of the largest unoccupied gaols in Europe, covering some of the most heroic and tragic events in Ireland's emergence as a modern nation from 1780s to the 1920s. Access to Kilmainham Gaol by Guided Tour Only. Duration: 60 minutes.

Only a short walk from Kilmainham Goal is the Irish Museum of Modern Art (IMMA). The grounds of this building are absolutely amazing. The Gardens on this estate are free to walk around and hold some beautiful views of the city.

Moving on towards the city, your next stop is of course the Guinness store house. This major tourist attraction is located at St. James's Gate Brewery in Dublin, Ireland. Since opening in November 2000, it has received over four million visitors The Storehouse is laid out over seven floors surrounding a glass atrium shaped in the form of a pint of Guinness. The ground floor introduces the beer's four ingredients (water, barley, hops and yeast), and the brewery's founder, Arthur Guinness. Other floors feature the history of Guinness advertising and include an interactive exhibit on responsible drinking. The seventh floor houses the Gravity Bar with its fabulous views of Dublin city and the Wicklow Mountains is where visitors may drink a pint of Guinness included in the price of admission.

In the heart of the Viking district of Dublin you will find Christchurch cathedral. Christ Church Cathedral is located in the former heart of medieval Dublin, next to Wood Quay at the end of Lord Edward Street. Christ Church is the only one of the three cathedrals or acting cathedrals which can be seen clearly from the River Liffey. Another well Known cathedral a short walk from Christ church is the St Patrick’s Cathedral. Founded in 1191, is the larger of Dublin's two Church of Ireland cathedrals, and the largest church in Ireland with a 43 metre (140 feet) spire.

After a long day being a tourist you will want to head for something really nice to eat. We recommend Roly’s Restaurant in ballsbridge, Dublin 4. Roly’s comes highly recommended. If you wish to book a table, be sure to speak with one of our desk agents, they will be happy to help you out. Day two will start in the city centre at the Spire of Dublin on O’Connell Street. The Spire of Dublin, officially titled the Monument of Light[1] is a large, stainless steel, pin-like monument 121.2 metres (398 ft) in height, located on the site of the former Nelson's Pillar on O'Connell Street in Dublin, Ireland.

Beside the spire if the General Post Office (GPO), During the Easter Rising of 1916, the GPO served as the headquarters of the uprising's leaders. The assault by the British forces extensively damaged the building and it was not repaired until the Irish Free State government took up the task some years later. The original columns outside are still pocked with bullet-marks. Walking down Henry Street and crossing over the Ha’penny Bridge you will walk into what is known as the Temple bar district. Unlike the areas surrounding it, Temple Bar has preserved its medieval street pattern, with many narrow cobbled streets. It is promoted as "Dublin's cultural quarter" and has a lively nightlife that is popular with tourists.

Once you have enjoyed the sites and sounds that temple bar has to offer you can walk on through and on the other, passing the well known Bank of Ireland Building where Barack Obama made his speech while on his visit to Ireland you will come across Trinity College, the home of the book of Kells. The Book of Kells takes its name from the Abbey of Kells that was its home for centuries. Today, it is on permanent display at the Trinity College Library, Dublin. The library usually displays two of the current four volumes at a time, one showing a major illustration and the other showing typical text pages. While doing all this sightseeing you need to make sure you are well rested and that you have a perfect base in the centre of the city, that’s why The Grand Canal Hotel is you perfect option. To make a Booking at the Grand Canal Hotel Call 01 646 1000 or go to www.grandcanalhotel.ie

Top five events in Dublin for 2013 from now until June!

With the Irish Gathering set to make 2013 a busy year for events all over Ireland, we at the Grand Canal Hotel wanted to give you a heads up on the big events that are happening in Dublin City this year. From the 14th to the 24th of February the Jameson Dublin International Film Festival will be presenting over 140 films from the four corners of the globe to the Irish Audience. Over that last number of years this festival has gained major momentum. This takes place in all of the Dublin City Centre Cinemas including Cineworld, The Savoy, Screen, Irish Film Institute and Light House Cinema in Smithfield. The majority of films shown at the Film Festival are Irish premieres, and for some of the films shown, the festival represents the only public screening that will take place in Ireland. For more information go to www.jdiff.com

On the 17th of March, as part of ‘The Gathering Ireland 2013’ for the first time ever, St. Patrick’s Festival is inviting up to 8,000 people around the world to march in the St. Patrick’s Day Parade in Dublin. The parade will march through the streets of Dublin, passing historic landmarks along the way including the GPO, Trinity College, Dublin Castle and City Hall. The route is 2.5 km long. For more information go to www.stpatricksfestival.ie

The 2013 Heineken Cup final on the 18th of May takes place AVIVA Stadium, Lansdowne Road, Dublin 4 not far from the Grand Canal Hotel. The Heineken Cup Final kicks off in the Aviva Stadium at 5pm. Nearby at the RDS the Amlin Challenge Cup final on Friday, 17 May kicks off at 8pm. With the two finals being played side-by side, it’s hoped that up to 70,000 supporters will converge on the city for this un-missable weekend of European cup rugby. For more information go to www.ercrugby.com

For 30 year the Flora Mini Marathon has seen thousands of participants swarm to Dublin to raise money for charity. 2013 will be no different! On June 3rd the 31st annual Flora Mini Marathon will see 40,000 ladies raise money for around 600 different charities. For more information go to www.florawomensminimarathon.ie

Finally, Dublin Pride Festival takes place on the 21st of June and runs until June 30th in Dublin’s City Centre. This festival is a celebration of three important historical events, the 40th Anniversary of the creation of the Irish Gay Movement, the 30th Anniversary of the Dublin Pride Parade and the 20th Anniversary of the decriminalisation of homosexuality in Ireland. This year’s pride festival is hoped to be the biggest yet.

These are only five of the bigger events that are taking place in Dublin for the first half of the year. All five of these events are set to attract a large number of visitors to the city so be sure to make you hotel booking well in advance. For more information or for accommodation go to www.grandcanalhotel.com or call 01 646 1000!

TALL SHIPS RACE COMES TO DUBLIN

This year Dublin City will have the pleasure of welcoming the the International Tall Ships Races for the first time since 1998. The River Liffey will host over 5000 participants and the city is throwing a four day party to mark their arrival. The hosts are expecting 100 plus Tall Ships to arrive in the capita from the 23rd till the 26th of August. Ships from Chile, Mexico, Argentina, the US, Italy and Norway will chart their course to Dublin.The event will end on the 26th August with a regatta setting off towards Liverpool. Unique elements of the event will include the Crew Parade – where up to 3000 crew will parade through the city, to their prize giving ceremony and the Parade of Sail, where all ships will leave port together –a spectacular finale to the festival as all ships leave Port together and hoist their magnificent sails. There will be opportunities to jump aboard the ships, in addition to free street entertainment, live music, parades, funfairs, treasure hunts, water sport activities and lots more. Day 1 Free Festival -Fleet Arrival -Opening Ceremony -Captain's Dinner at the Mansion House Day 2 Free Festival -Crew Parase at Custom House -Prize Giving -Crew Party Day 3 Free Festival -Crew Activites Day 4 Free Festival -Parade of Sail -Regatta from Dublin to Liverpool Book early on www.grandcanalhotel.com to avoid disappointment.

DUBLIN'S SKYLINE GETS A NEW FEATURE

If you're afraid of heights then stop reading this and move on...it will have little interest to you. Croke Park, the home of the GAA, has launched a sky walkway high above the hallowed turf of the famous venue. Offering super views of Dublin City, the Skyline will be an interesting addition to the attractions that are already on offer in the sunny (well it was at the time of writing) capital. Skyline makes Croke Park a must from visitors to Dublin. The GAA museum and just the chance to see this fantastic stadium were already reason enough to venture beyond Mountjoy Square. For those reasons put plenty of time aside for the visit to Croke Park. Before you ever set foot on the walkway, you spend around 15 minutes in a dressing room below, a place normally occupied by the Dublin footballers mid to late September :), where you are required to put a safety harness on and are shown how to clip the harness to the steel wire running alongside the walkway. Not that this would make a great vantage point for watching a football or hurling match. At 44 meters you would hardly be able to distinguish between the two teams jerseys. And I'm speaking from experience. I managed to get myself and a couple of friends tickets to see U2 in the venue a couple of years back but ended up at the back of the top tier of the Cusack Stand. I could see more detail on planet Venus on the night than I could of the band. There are plans to add a zipline from the Cusack Stand to Hill 16 and they are also considering permitting abseiling off the 44 metre-high platform on to the pitchside. Hmm that may be a bridge too far:) Skyline Facts: * The platform for the roof top tour is 33 meters or 17 storeys above the ground. * It took 100 tonnes of painted galvanised steel, turning into 132 support trusses spanning the steel roof, to make the 0.6km walkway manufactured in Portarlington. * The suspended walkway extends six metres out over the pitch. * The visitor attraction, which created 10 jobs, cost €1.4m to build. * Among the landmarks that can be spotted from the Skyline tour are Glasnevin Cemetery, Guinness Brewery, Dublin Mountains, Poolbeg Lightghouse, Mountjoy Prison, the Spire and the glasshouses at the Botanic Gardens. * The two-hour tour will be available in six languages. * Visitors must measure in at 1.2 metres in height to take in the tour. * It opens to the public from Friday June 1 and closes at 6pm each day. * Tickets are priced at €25 for adults, €15 for children and €65 for families. Discounted tickets for the GAA Museum will be available for those taking the Skywalk. Ollie.

THE KING AND I DUBLIN SHOWS

The King and I has a long and illustrious career on the international theatre circuit winning many awards since its debut in the 1950 and it is coming to Dublin for a short run. Based on the novel Anna and the King of Siam by Margaret Landon The King and is a hugely popular production and had played to millions of people the world over. The King and I stars Ramon Tikaram as the The King of Siam, whose West End credits include Bombay Dreams, Judas in Jesus Christ Superstar and TV’s This Life and Josefina Gabrielle as Anna whose musical highlights include The Witches of Eastwick, Sweet Charity and the lead in Oklahoma! at the National Theatre. The show runs in the Bord Gáis Energy Theatre from the 22nd of May till the 26th ad tickets are selling fast. The Grand Canal Hotel are offering a superb package including Pre-show Meal, Ticket to Show, Night's Accommodation and Full Irish Breakfast for just €109 per person sharing midweek and €129 per person sharing on Friday or Saturday. Book early to avoid disappointment. Click here to BOOK.

BAVARIA RACING

Racing enthusiasts are in for a real treat this summer as Bavaria City Racing arrives in the capital for the very fist time.

Over 100,000 people are expected to descend on Dublin City Centre on the 3rd of June 2012 to capture a glimpse of Superbikes, Super cars, Touring cars, Formula 2, WRC, Drifters, and the star attraction; demonstrations from internationally celebrated F1 cars and drivers.

Parts of Dublin City will be cordoned off to allow a demonstration of some of the world's most impressive racing machines. Started in Rotterdam in 2006, Bavaria City Racing has grown to a massive spectacle, attracting in the order of half a million people to see the event in the Dutch Port City.

Moscow has also played host to the event, but it is a real honour for Dublin to welcome the spectacle for 2012. Check out the event route here.

Tickets are selling fast for the event so book soon. Book your advance purchase rooms for the event on www.grandcanalhotel.com.

FLORA WOMEN'S MINI MARATHON

The Flora Women's Mini Marathon, the biggest all-women event of its kind in the world, takes place in Dublin on the 4th of June and the Grand Canal Hotel are as always at your service.

With over €14 million raised by participants since its inception in 1983, the annual event is one of the most popular in the country. The fun day has attracted over three quarters of a million women of all ages over the years and 2013 is expected to be one of the busiest.

The route of the marathon passes within meters of the Grand Canal Hotel, and we are offering guests who stay in the hotel the Sunday night complimentary car-parking for the day, showers after the race and luggage storage. Go to www.grandcanalhotel.com to book as rooms are selling fast!!!


Some interesting facts about the event:

It is the biggest all-women’s event of its kind in the world.

Since it was first run in 1983, there has been a total entry of nearly 780,000 women.

In 2007, 2008 2009 and 2011 the numbers taking part have exceeded 40,000 with a record number of 40,397 taking part in 2010.

Approximately 137 million euro has been raised for charity since its beginning in 1983

About 25 miles of specially designed ribbon is used for the medals

14 bands and dancers provide entertainment to add to the carnival atmosphere of the day.

Women of every age, every size and every walk of life take part -while the majority would be in the 25 to 45 age brackets,in the 2011 race there were 262 participants over 70 years of age!

The Mini Marathon idea has been copied in several European cities - Liverpool, Glasgow, London and Oslo now put on all-women events.

Every county in Ireland is represented in the race and most support a favourite charity or cause - just over half the entrants are from Dublin but all 32 counties are well represented.

The event is known worldwide - women from a number of countries have joined us (Spain, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Switzerland, Wales, Scotland, Belgium, Sweden, Denmark, France, England, Australia, New Zealand, United States, Canada, Saudi Arabia, Iran and Japan) have all joined in the fun.

Visit www.grandcanalhotel.com for best rates available.