Things to do in Dublin in the Morning

Nothing starts your Dublin day quite like a run through Phoenix Park, a vast expanse of parkland set on the edge of the city center. A royal hunting ground until the 18th Century, the park remains home to a large herd of wild fallow deer – the sight of these beautiful creatures emerging from the morning mist as you sprint, jog or stroll past is one you’re unlikely to forget. The park’s perimeter wall runs for 11 kilometers, enclosing some 1,750 acres of open space and making it one of the largest urban parks in Europe. In other words, there’s plenty to explore, from wandering woodland paths to a zoo, a fort, and several imposing monuments and statues.

Experts are divided on what makes an Irish breakfast truly Irish, which means that, depending on where you get yours, it may or may not contain Irish soda bread, potatoes and tomato, but should very definitely come with sausages, bacon, black and white pudding, and beans. Find your own favorite combination at some of Dublin’s best breakfast joints. Overlooking the Ha'penny Bridge and River Liffey, The Woollen Mills serves up a belly-busting modern take on the Irish breakfast, complete with local sausages and bacon, and sourdough toast that’s baked on site. The Keogh’s full Irish, starring West Cork black and white pudding, is served all day long, just around the corner from the famous Molly Malone Statue. Or go grand at beautiful Bewley’s on Grafton Street, where the sharing breakfast for two – presented on a tower and including granola and buttermilk pancakes *as well as* the full Irish may keep you going for the entire week.

Many of Dublin’s bucket-list attractions are up and running by 9AM and the early bird, as they say, will catch the worm. Which, in this case, means dodging lines and crowds at some of the Fair City’s most enduring tourist hotspots. You’ll have to be up early to nab that rare ‘alone on Ha’Penny Bridge’ selfie you’ve always coveted – get there before the commuter rush or it’s game over. Similarly, if you want peace and quiet to pay your respects to sweet Molly Malone, fictional star of the classic ‘Cockles and Mussels’ ballad, you’ll need to make the pilgrimage to her Suffolk Street statue at daybreak. Morning is also the best time to hit up popular paid attractions including Dublin Castle, the Jeanie Johnston Tallship, Dublin Zoo and the magical Book of Kells at Trinity College Library.

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There’s plenty to ogle on St Stephen’s Green at the southern end of Grafton Street, from Henry Moore sculptures and tranquil duckponds to an impressive James Joyce bust and an imposing statue of some guy called Arthur Guinness. But nothing really beats grabbing a coffee and pastry from a nearby bakery and watching the world go by from one of this pretty Victorian park’s many benches. 

Is 10AM too early for a Guinness? Heck no! Like most of Dublin’s top attractions, the Guinness Storehouse is best visited in the morning, before the tourists and day-trippers start to arrive by the (literal) coachload. So get there by 10AM, when you’ll still be able to check out all those cool vintage Guinness posters without having to crane your neck too much and when – crucially – lines are short in the 7th-floor Gravity Bar, where your pint of the legendary black stuff awaits, accompanied by epic 360-degree views of the city skyline.

Ok, so your willingness to brave Dublin’s beaches may depend on the time of year (and the weather), but the sweeping sandy expanses at Dollymount Strand and Portmarnock are as atmospheric on misty winter morns as they are relaxing on warm summer days. Strike out on a day trip to Howth, a pretty seaside village just out of town. The Big Bus Dublin Coastal Tour – included on the Dublin pass, natch – traverses wild emerald hills and dramatic cliffs en route to this historic place, with its rich Viking and Norman heritage. Once there, a guided tour of the headlands overlooking Dublin Bay is followed by free time to explore the pretty pier, spot puffins, gannets and seals, and to sample fresh local seafood (or classic fish and chips) at one of the many excellent seafront restaurants.

The beautiful gardens and cemetery in Glasnevin, north of Dublin city center, come close to rivaling the mighty Phoenix Park for their pure, simple beauty and tranquility. Budding botanists with be in clover (and many other plants and flowers to boot) at Ireland’s National Botanic Gardens. We’re talking immaculately restored Victorian glasshouses that pop with palms, succulents and other tropical varieties, a peaceful arboretum, intricate herbaceous borders, and a heaven-scent rose garden that dates back to 1795.

The adjacent Glasnevin Cemetery boasts some 1.5 million permanent residents, among them national heroes including Michael Collins, Brendan Behan and Constance Markievicz. Stroll this huge cemetery’s broad avenues to discover the people and events that shaped the nation and admire the grand Victorian crypts and monumental mausoleums that commemorate their lives. Don’t miss the chance to get a bird’s-eye view of it all from atop the 19th-century round tower, built in honor of Daniel O’Connell, beneath which ‘The Liberator’ is interred with his family.

Discover more things to do in Dublin in the morning, and save up to 50% on admission to top tours, activities and attractions with the Dublin pass. Click to find out more and choose the Dublin pass that’s right for you!