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Dún Laoghaire itineraries

Dún Laoghaire Itineraries

Half a day or a full weekend. Here are the best ways to spend your time in Dún Laoghaire, planned step by step.

Whether you have a few hours off the DART or a full weekend to explore, these itineraries give you a local’s route through Dún Laoghaire. Each one links directly to the restaurants and activities along the way.

Piers and Forty Foot Morning·3-4 hoursLiterary Dún Laoghaire Half Day·3-4 hours

Piers and Forty Foot Morning

3-4 hoursYear-round

The classic Dún Laoghaire morning. East Pier walk first, coffee on Marine Road, then south along the Metals to Sandycove for the Forty Foot and the James Joyce Tower. Doable from any DART stop on the southern line and works year-round.

First time visitCouplesYear round
  1. 1
    09:30·45-60 min

    Walk out the East Pier

    Start at the end of Marine Road. Walk out the full granite pier to the bandstand and on to the lighthouse. 45 minutes return at an unhurried pace. The morning light at this end of the day catches the lighthouse cleanly.

    View East Pier Walk
  2. 2
    10:30·20 min

    Coffee on Marine Road

    Murphys Ice Cream does decent coffee on the way back into town, or any of the cafés on Marine Road. Buy something to take with you for the next leg.

  3. 3
    11:00·25 min

    Walk the Metals to Sandycove

    Follow the granite coastal path south from the seafront promenade. Twenty minutes to Sandycove Beach; another five to the Forty Foot. Pram and wheelchair friendly the whole way.

    View The Metals to Sandycove
  4. 4
    11:30·60-90 min

    Forty Foot and the Joyce Tower

    Watch the swimmers, or join them if you brought a towel. The James Joyce Tower next door opens at 10am; you can climb to the roof for a 360-degree view of Dublin Bay.

    View The Forty Foot
  5. 5
    13:00·60-90 min

    Lunch at Cavistons

    Two minutes from the Forty Foot, on Glasthule Road. The seafood menu changes twice a week with the daily catch. Walk in if you can; the dining room is small and weekend lunch books up. Closed Mon-Tue.

    View Cavistons

Literary Dún Laoghaire Half Day

3-4 hoursYear-round

A walk through the layered literary record of the town: the Joyce Tower at Sandycove, the LexIcon on the seafront, and the Pavilion Theatre at Marine Road. Works year-round; best on a Wednesday to Saturday when the Maritime Museum is also open.

Culture loversRainy daySolo travellers
  1. 1
    10:00·45 min

    Start at the James Joyce Tower

    DART to Sandycove & Glasthule (SCOVE) and walk five minutes to the Martello tower at the point. Climb to the roof for the view that opens Ulysses. Free, donations welcome.

    View James Joyce Tower & Museum
  2. 2
    11:00·25 min

    Walk the Metals back into town

    Twenty minutes north along the coastal granite path. The route is itself a literary backdrop; the path appears in Joyce's Dubliners and in dozens of more recent novels set on the south coast.

    View The Metals to Sandycove
  3. 3
    11:30·60-75 min

    National Maritime Museum

    Set in the converted Mariners' Church on Haigh Terrace. Worth the visit for the architecture as much as the maritime collection. Closed Mondays.

    View National Maritime Museum of Ireland
  4. 4
    13:00·45-60 min

    Reading hour at the LexIcon

    Walk five minutes to the dlr LexIcon. The top-floor reading room is free and looks across Dublin Bay; lower floors carry rotating exhibitions. The library is closed Sundays in winter.

    View dlr LexIcon

Ready to plan your visit?

Check tide times, live DART departures, and the weather forecast before you head out.

Planning Tips & Packing GuideGetting to Dún Laoghaire