13 Things to Do in Dublin if You Don't Like Drinking

But if you’ve dropped in with no interest in a single one of the roughly 751 pubs in the city (one for every 1,700 people), you might find the odd thing that still entertains. Here’s some other options that are good in an entirely non-boozy way…

The rest of us are still sobering up, but you’re painting on the glitter, sipping on a smoothie and looking all bright eyed and bushy tailed, hoping the odd local hero might somehow, magically decide it’s time to play a quick gig. You might as well just go raving on your own under the circumstances, right? Like that’s ever going to happen…

Lambay Island, just north of Dublin, is one of the spots that doesn’t have a pub (though it does have its links to whiskey, because, you know… Ireland). You can go and hang out with the wallabies, who are almost as at home as a non-drinker in the Emerald Isle. That said, they’ve settled in quite well here!

The Irish are more likely to head for a pub than a restaurant, but we don’t do badly for food. Some nice options include the chance to grab a world-class steak, drop in on some Michelin star restaurants and explore the fantastic seafood. You’ll even find oysters, fish and chips and coddle as classy pub grub.

GAA is good on TV, but absolutely fantastic live. It helps that there’s regularly passionate, packed crowds at the main 83,000 capacity stadium, which also features Europe’s largest bar. Gaelic football and hurling are branded ‘bog ball’ and ‘stick fighting’ by those who don’t quite dig them, but, well, they’re wrong: think hockey crossed with murder, and a rugby meets soccer without most of the rules. Three times European rugby champions Leinster might pass an hour or two, or you can try kitesurfing in Dublin Bay.

Phoenix Park is Europe’s largest walled inner-city park, where you’ll enjoy the deer that roam freely, the tours of the President’s House, the zoo, Farmleigh, the magazine fort and the soaring Papal Cross and obelisk. There might be pubs right outside almost every entry gate, but there’s a literal watering hole, too!

Dublin has a developing sense of fashion, interesting street corners, classy art and design, and lots of decent souvenirs. The St Stephen’s Green Shopping Centre, Jervis Centre, Ilac Centre, Dundrum Town Centre and uber-hip Powerscourt Centre are just all worth exploring. And don’t get us started on those shiny department stores…

Ireland is notoriously expensive at times, admittedly, but you’d be wrong to overlook the cheaper highlights. You’ll also find coffee shops with lush varieties where you can chill for an entire day, gorgeous walks, affordable meals out, historic monuments out in the open, and a deep love of art accessible through free-access galleries.

Done all those museums? Or through checking out that time the Vikings turned up and took over, or the Irish revolution, or the myths, glories and stories of everyone from Molly Malone to Michael Collins? Then there’s the old music which is revisited night after night, like the below. Though that’s often found in the pubs…

I mean, they’re really not easy to stay away from in Dublin. There’s literally only one route between the city-encircling canals that doesn’t pass a single pub. And while passing no pubs, that route takes you straight past the Guinness factory. If you fancy a look around…

If you’re not going to be bad, be really, really good, right? Dublin has two cathedrals and more churches than you’ll know what to do with. You can sit amongst the pews, discover the mummified cat in the Christchurch Cathedral basement, and learn about the origin of the phrase ‘Chance Your Arm’ at St Patrick’s Cathedral. Chance your arm, it might even be fun…

Hangovers are awful. Truly awful. Guinness hangovers are worse. Need a reminder of just why you’re missing all that fun? Get a glance at what those still stuck in bed might look like right now, with a gander at those leathery bog bodies in the Museum of History and Archaeology, or the mummies of St Michan’s Church.

I mean, if you’re going to eschew Irish drinking traditions, then why not try a different one? The Irish have been jumping in the Irish Sea for generations, sometimes nude, and sometimes in the dead of winter. Head for the Forty Foot and chuck yourself in, and you’ll get a slightly different kind of shock to the system!