Dún Laoghaire, Dún Laoghaire, Co. Dublin

Dún Laoghaire · Co. Dublin

Two granite piers, a Sunday market, and a DART. The east pier walk is what Dubliners do when they need air.

Dún Laoghaire is a harbour town, and everything radiates from the harbour. The twin granite piers - East and West - were built between 1817 and 1842 by engineer John Rennie, using stone quarried specifically for the project in nearby Dalkey and hauled up by tramway. The East Pier walk is a Dublin Sunday tradition in a way that has nothing to do with tourism: people bring dogs, children, elderly relatives, and thermoses of tea. The lighthouse at the end is the turning point. You walk back into the wind and feel like you've earned something.

The town itself has a full-scale dining scene, a remarkable new library on the waterfront - the Lexicon, opened 2014, five storeys, almost as many visitors per year as the National Library - and the National Maritime Museum in the old Mariners' Church on Haigh Terrace. Two kilometres north, at Sandycove, the Martello tower where James Joyce spent six days in 1904 is now a free museum. The first chapter of Ulysses is set on its roof. Joyce left after a revolver incident at midnight; the tower stayed.

A note on the ferry: Dún Laoghaire had a high-speed Stena Line service to Holyhead that was the romantic way to cross to Wales. It was discontinued. Ferries to Holyhead now leave from Dublin Port. The harbour is still working - yachts, the lifeboat, the occasional cargo - but the big ferry is gone. Plan accordingly if you need to cross.

Population

~25,000

Walk score

East Pier to West Pier is a full afternoon

Founded

Piers built 1817-1842

Coords

53.2942° N, 6.1358° W

01 / 07

At a glance.

Three things every local will eventually mention. Read these and you've already understood more than most day-trippers do.

01 The piers

Built 1817-1842. Still the reason people come.

The East Pier runs 1.3 km into the bay. The West Pier is nearly 1.5 km. Both are solid Dalkey granite - stone that came from the quarry there by tramway specifically for this project. At the time they were finished, Dún Laoghaire had the largest man-made harbour in the world.

Walks & outings → 02 The Joyce Tower

A Martello tower at Sandycove. The opening of Ulysses is set here.

Two kilometres north of the town centre, at Sandycove Point, a squat stone tower overlooks the sea. James Joyce stayed here for six days in September 1904. The opening of Ulysses is set on its roof. The museum inside is free and small and well worth thirty minutes.

Stories & lore → 03 Sunday market

People's Park, 10am to 4pm, fifty-plus vendors.

The Sunday market runs in People's Park and outside the Lexicon library - hot food, baked goods, artisan produce, art. It is a proper market, not a craft fair. Get there before noon for the better stock. Parking is a problem; take the DART.

Food & drink →

02 / 07

Where to eat.

Place	Type	€	Local note
Hartley's	Restaurant, Victorian railway building	€€€	In a former railway station on the seafront - high ceilings, harbour terrace, European menu. The terrace on a calm evening is one of the better seats in south Dublin.
Cala	Mediterranean-inspired restaurant	€€	Seasonal Irish produce treated with Mediterranean technique. The menu changes regularly. Less formal than Hartley's, just as good.
People's Park market	Sunday market	€	Fifty-plus vendors, Sundays 10am to 4pm. Hot food, brown bread, artisan products. The best version of a Dublin Sunday market. Get there early.

03 / 07

Stories & lore.

The reason to come back. The things every local will eventually tell you about, usually after the second pint.

Largest man-made harbour in the world, 1842

The piers

John Rennie designed the twin piers after an Act of Parliament in 1817. The East Pier's first stone was laid by the Lord Lieutenant, Earl Whitworth, that same year. The granite came from a purpose-built quarry in Dalkey, carried on tramlines specifically laid for the project. By 1842 both piers were complete, with a lighthouse on the East Pier and a gun saluting station - one of only a few ever built in Ireland. At that moment, Dún Laoghaire had the largest artificial harbour in the world.

Sandycove, 2 km north. Free entry.

The Joyce Tower

The Martello tower at Sandycove Point was built by the British in the early 19th century against the threat of Napoleonic invasion. In September 1904, James Joyce stayed there for six days as a guest of his university friend Oliver St John Gogarty, who had leased it from the War Office with a plan to 'Hellenise' Ireland. The stay ended after a midnight incident involving a loaded revolver. Joyce left; the tower stayed. His novel Ulysses opens on its roof, and the museum that has been there since 1962 holds his letters, his walking stick, and various other possessions. Admission is free. It is a short walk north from the town along the seafront.

Busiest public library in Ireland

The Lexicon

The dlr LexIcon opened on the waterfront in December 2014 - a five-storey building that won multiple awards on opening. It is now the busiest public library in Ireland by visitor numbers: four million people since it opened, more per year than most Dublin attractions that charge admission. The building sits directly opposite the National Maritime Museum in the old Mariners' Church. On a Sunday morning, between the market outside and the reading rooms inside, it is the best argument for public infrastructure you will find in this part of the city.

In the old Mariners' Church, Haigh Terrace

The National Maritime Museum

The National Maritime Museum of Ireland opened in 1978 inside the former Mariners' Church on Haigh Terrace - a 180-year-old building that has found a second purpose as good as its first. The collection covers Irish maritime history with maps, models, navigation equipment, and the stories of ships and the people who crewed them. Access is either from Georges Street Upper or from the seafront side via steps beside the Lexicon.

04 / 07

Things to do outside.

Wear waterproofs. Bring a sandwich. Tell someone where you're going if it's the mountain.

East Pier walk Out to the lighthouse at the end, back. Simple. Do it before the Sunday market - the light on the bay in the morning is better than the light in the afternoon. The wind is worse. Bring a layer.

2.6 km returndistance

45 min-1 hourtime

West Pier walk Less used than the East Pier. Quieter. The views back to the town and across to Howth are worth the walk. The pier surface is rougher and gets wetter in bad weather.

~3 km returndistance

50 mintime

Dún Laoghaire to Sandycove Walk north along the seafront from the town past the bathers at the Forty Foot (a famous open-sea swimming spot, year-round, all weathers) to Sandycove Point and the Joyce Tower. One of the best short walks in south Dublin.

2.5 km one waydistance

30 mintime

05 / 07

When to go.

There is no bad time. There are different times.

Spring

Mar-May

The pier walk in spring light is the whole thing. The market is up and running. The Forty Foot swimmers are undeterred by the temperature.

◉ Go

Summer

Jun-Aug

Busy on weekends. The market gets crowded. Book restaurants. But the long evenings on the pier are genuinely excellent.

◐ Mind yourself

Autumn

Sep-Oct

The locals' season. The crowds ease. The storms begin. The pier is best when there's some weather.

◉ Go

Winter

Nov-Feb

The pier walk in a January storm is an experience. The restaurants are still open. The Forty Foot swimmers are still at it. Dún Laoghaire does not shut down in winter.

◉ Go

06 / 07

What to skip.

Honestly? Don't bother.

If a local was sitting beside you, this is the bit where they'd lean in.

The ferry to Holyhead from here

The Dún Laoghaire to Holyhead Stena Line service has been discontinued. Ferries to Wales leave from Dublin Port now. Check before you plan around it.

Driving to the Sunday market

Parking in Dún Laoghaire on a Sunday morning is its own ordeal. Take the DART - fifteen minutes from Pearse or Tara Street station. Walk straight to the market from the station.

Skipping the West Pier because it's less famous

The East Pier gets the walkers. The West Pier gets the silence. They go to the same harbour from the same starting point. Walk one out, the other back.