A Literary Tour of Dublin

A quick trip over to Dublin and you’ll find a city thankfully not lacking in neither pubs nor literary prowess. With some of the most notable authors and poets of our time coming from this lively Irish city, it isn’t surprising that you can combine the two most wonderful things about Dublin to create one fantastic experience.

Yes, pubs and poetry make a pretty perfect pair. Join your experienced guides for an evening of Guinness, live music and performances from the works of Dublin’s most famous writers including the likes of James Joyce, Oscar Wilde, Samuel Beckett, Brendan Behan and many many more.

Ranked Number 4 in “The World’s 50 Best Walks’ by the Sunday Times, this is an award-winning stroll that combines street theatre with the ‘craic’ that makes Dublin’s pubs the liveliest in Europe. The literary pub crawl is an ingenious crash course in Irish literature, history and architecture and pub bonhomie. The tour is like a rough guide to the cultural, religious and political life of the city with stirring quotes from Irelands best authors thrown in for good measure. How many you will remember after you happen upon your eighth pub though remains to be seen!

The Toronto Star said “This is no ordinary tour…those who book it are transported away from the aridity of the tourist clichés to the richness of the language of Joyce, O’Casey, Yeats and Behan…sober or gently merry, following in the footsteps of the literary greats is a wonderful ramble along the cobbles of Dublin’s streets..”

You can even buy the Dublin Literary Pub Crawl Book which will ensure that whatever information you forgot the night before, you can replenish at your leisure. It includes short pieces about the snugs and pubs in Dublin as well as which haunts our famous pen friends used to frequent. You’ll then be able to go and have a drink in their honour, whenever the fancy takes you.

The literary tour is approximately 2 1/4 hours long but, don’t worry, you’ll only walk about half a mile in total. You can grab a snack in the second pub on the tour, but with only 20 minutes spent in each pub you’ll need to be quick. Joyce, Beckett, Behan, Mary Lavin, Oscar Wilde, Eavan Boland, Paula Meehan, Seamus Heaney and Yeats are just some of the writers featured on the walk.

If that has given you a taste for other literary pursuits in Dublin there are some other places that we worth a visit such as –

Dublin Writer’s Museum

Set in a tasteful 18th-century town house, there are displays relating to Irish literature in all its forms from around the 10th century to the present day. The exhibits include paintings, manuscripts, letters, rare editions and mementos of many of Ireland’s famous authors. There is even a stunning restaurant and bookshop on the premises.

James Joyce Cultural Centre

Located near the Dublin Writers Museum, is a centre devoted to James Joyce. The newly restored 1784 Georgian town house contains various exhibits, an archive, and a reference library.

Trinity College

The educator of many an Irish literary legend, this great college is a beautiful place to spend the day. Wander the picturesque gardens, and see the ancient Irish masterpiece the Book of Kells at the Old Library. You’ll feel like you’ve stepped back in time.

A keen writer and native Irishman, James has spent many hours walking Dublin’s streets, tracing the footsteps of former Irish greats. When not exploring Dublin, James works for Skyscanner.net – a flights search engine that compares, amongst other things, the cost of flights to the Irish capital. In his spare time James writes for a number of travel blogs and news sites, sharing his insights into literary destinations like Dublin, San Francisco and Montreal.