Temple Bar, Dublin

This is where it's at if you are going to Dublin for a crazy drinking weekend. It's always packed and there's always something going on. But keep in mind that it's a rip off for tourists. Drinks and food are very expensive, you will find vomiting on the floor and it's way too crowded. There are better places to go, I think it's awful. It's still got a good pub or two though, but that's about it.

It's very hard to avoid Temple Bar, if you're staying in Downtown Dublin. At night it is mostly non-distinct dance clubs full of sharky men and drunk tourists. If you're looking for a low-key place to drink a pint and listen to some good music, try your luck outside of the Temple Bar District.

Unique Suggestions: If you cannot avoid Temple Bar, at least go in the daytime. It is a much more interesting mix of bookshops, boutiques and cafes. Toward the end of March, there was a great open air market with the most delicious, fresh goat cheese ever.

TEMPLE BAR AT NIGHT IS ONE BIG TOURIST TRAP WITH A FEW EXCEPTIONS. by day there are amazing things in temple bar - the irsih film centre, the food market, even arthouse occasionally interests but at night in turns into one massive tourist theme park where you're lucky to hear an irish accent. this ghetto vibe kinda suits the locals 'cos a lot of the tourists that go to temple bar just want to get pissed so they may as well all be in the same place. i feel us locals do get deprived of meeting a lot of interesting people because we would never head down there and a lot of tourists don't make it out of temple bar.
THERE ARE EXCEPTIONS TO THE TEMPLE BAR AT NIGHT RULE!
The Kitchen nightclub on East Essex St and The Clarance Bar above it, The Front Lounge on Parliament Street, The Temple Bar Music Centre on Curved Street and The Irish Film Centre Bar on Eustace St. Avoid the rest after nightfall and go see a much realer dublin for everyone's sake!
This picture is of my sister susan and her boyfriend dave. they look happy so they mustn't be in a such a bad place. Dave is one half of this DJ duo called the Red Settaz so if you are really eagle-eyed you may seem him scratching his way through a set somewhere - man! He's actually quite approcahable!

Nice area with plenty of shops, pubs and restaurants but definitely aimed at tourists & hence pretty expensive. Go & see it but if you want souvenirs, food or drink there's plenty of other places to choose from!!!

Fun Alternatives: The side streets between Grafton Street and George's Street offer main smaller shops and restaurants without the crowds of Temple Bar and normally for more reasonable prices.

Temple Bar is cool but it's not Ireland. So don't stop after Temple Bar, all tourists visit it but that doesn't mean there's no more to Dublin.

Personally I used to avoid Temple Bar as far as possible. It's generally more expensive and the Irish character either gets lost or gets perverted by tacky shops.

Unique Suggestions: The Temple Bar Food Market that you'll find in the Meeting House Square every Saturday from 10:00 through 17:00 is quite worth the trip to Temple Bar.

Temple Bar is home of some of the most expensive and false pubs in Dublin and the whole of Ireland. It's sole purpose is to fleece tourists - only stupid Dubliners go there.
Drink prices go up by the hour especially in the greatest rip-off of them all: The Oliver St.John Gogarty.

Unique Suggestions: Make sure and buy any drink at 10 minutes before the hour to avoid sudden price hikes.

Fun Alternatives: Go no further than The Palace!
Go to Camden Street instead.

These are good pubs to go if you want to meet 40 year old english tarts on a hen night. No Irish people go here. I made the mistake of going here one night of a monday, a night when prices are usually cheaper around dublin. It was 8 euro for a pint, which is very expensive, even for dublin. If you are young, however, I can recommend two pubs near here, both are brilliant. The first is the mezz (eustace street, temple bar), usually has the best live cover bands you will see in dublin (especially of a tuesday) until about 1am, then a dj after until about three. Cool bar. Cool people. The other is Doyles. This is a major haunt for university students, the city's major university is across the street from it. Sun-Wed not much happens, but the weekends, especially friday and saturady cant be missed, free in, cheap booze and dancing.

Unique Suggestions: Theres not much you can do. Do not go through the lanes of temple bar late at night or you WILL be violently mugged.

Fun Alternatives: these are good pubs to go if you want to meet 40 year old english tarts on a hen night. No Irish people go here. I made the mistake of going here one night of a monday, a night when prices are usually cheaper around dublin. It was 8 euro for a pint, which is very expensive, even for dublin. If you are young, however, I can recommend two pubs near here, both are brilliant. The first is the mezz (eustace street, temple bar), usually has the best live cover bands you will see in dublin (especially of a tuesday) until about 1am, then a dj after until about three. Cool bar. Cool people. The other is Doyles. This is a major haunt for university students, the city's major university is across the street from it. Sun-Wed not much happens, but the weekends, especially friday and saturady cant be missed, free in, cheap booze and dancing.

Crowded with tourists and expensive to the extreme ... not exactly the authentic irish pub experience.

Purely a personal opinion of course. The shaded area on the map is where all tourists are sent (Temple Bar), the remaining area on the map is where all tourists should go!

The whole of the 'Temple Bar' area is very expensive - try moving just a little outside, prices soon go down, quality up too...