Dublin - North of Dublin Travel Guides | Dublin | Sub Regions | Dublin - North of Dublin

There are some appealing places to visit north of the city, and most of them can be easily reached by train from the centre of Dublin. Howth combines a working harbour, a transport museum and one of the best clifftop walks in Ireland. Further north, sandy white beaches and dunes dominated by golf courses stretch towards Malahide. Buzzing with activity during the rush hours, but descending into a quiet doze in between, this attractive commuter town is where well-heeled Dubliners spend their evenings away from the fuss of the city. It’s Malahide Castle that’s the big draw for tourists though, with the Fry Model Railway and the Talbot Botanic Gardens in its grounds. If you’ve time to spare, consider spending a night in Skerries to make the most of the village’s beachside walks, music pubs and working mills, and to visit a nearby stately home that is open to the public. Further afield again is the world-famous Newgrange passage tomb, perhaps best visited as part of an organized tour from Dublin, if only to take the hassle out of getting there.

DART Howth.

Howth is situated 15 km (9 miles) northeast of the city at the end of the lumpy peninsula that forms the northern portion of Dublin Bay. Popular with yacht owners and home to a small fishing fleet, this quiet little town has a very long history; the ancient geographer Ptolemy even included it on one of his maps. In the village are the National Transport Museum and the 15th-century ruins of St Mary’s Abbey, which was founded in 1042. The highlight of a visit to Howth, however, is the stunning hillside and coastal walk around Howth Head, which is a fulfilling way to spend a bright afternoon.

Off the coast at Howth is Ireland’s Eye, an island bird sanctuary that shelters puffins and other species, as well as a sixth-century monastery. Boats to the island depart from Howth’s east pier from 1100 daily during the summer, T 01 831 4200.

Heritage Depot, Howth Castle Demesne, T 01 848 0831, http://www.nationaltransportmuseum.org Sep-May, Sat, Sun and bank holidays 1400-1700, Jun-Aug, daily 1000-1700. E3. DART Howth.

Sixty trams, buses, lorries, fire engines and army vehicles, dating from the late-19th century through to the later years of the 20th century are on display in an exhibition space just inside the gates of Howth Castle. Among the exhibits is the Dublin tram that once ran up Howth Hill. The castle, which has been owned by the St Lawrence family continuously for eight centuries, is closed to the public, but the grounds are worth exploring, especially in May when the rhododendrons are in full bloom.

Malahide Castle Demesne, Malahide, T 01 846 2184. Castle tours Mon-Sat 1000-1245 and 1400-1700, Sun and public holidays 1100-1245 and 1400-1700. Fry Model Railway and Tara’s Palace, Apr-Sep, Mon-Sat 1000-1300 and 1400-1700, Sun and public holidays 1400-1800.  Castle tour E6. Fry Model Railway E2. DART/suburban rail Malahide. Bus 42 (from Beresford Place).

Set in a lovely 250-acre (506-ha) estate, this three-storey fortified house was owned for nearly 800 years by the Talbot family, apart from a brief period during the English interregnum. When the last Talbot died in 1975, Dublin Council bought the property and opened it to the public. The original 12th-century building is all gone, but one tiny part of a tower (closed to the public) dates back to the 14th century. The excellent tour of the house is the only way to see the interior, which is full of the family’s original possessions and other objects that also seem to have become part of the place. Instead of high-tech audio-visual displays, there is pleasing evidence of the way the house was actually used by the Talbot family. There are pretty turrets at each corner of the building that served as dressing rooms, sun rooms or bathrooms, a  worn-out looking library and a massive collection of family portraits.

Housed in an outbuilding in the castle grounds, Fry Model Railway, T 01 846 3779, is the train set to beat all train sets. It was collected by Cyril Fry, a railway engineer, and reproduces the Irish rail system in minute detail. In fact, the only thing that seems to be missing is dried-up sandwiches in the buffet cars. Also here is Tara’s Palace, a collection of doll’s houses and dolls dominated by the eponymous mansion constructed by Ron and Doreen McDonnell in 1980. It is based on Leinster House and comes complete with tiny silverware, paintings, cutlery and curtains.

On the other side of the castle are the 20-acre Talbot Botanic Gardens, planted between 1948 and 1973 by Milo Talbot, the last member of the family to own the castle. The gardens contain over 5,000 species of exotic plants from around the world.

Skerries, T 01 849 5208, http://indigo.ie/skerries Apr-Sep, daily 1030-1730, Oct-Mar, daily 1030-1630. Closed 20 Dec-1 Jan and Good Friday. E5. Suburban rail Skerries. Bus 33 (from Eden Quay).

Skerries is an unintentionally picturesque fishing village-cum- commuter town that’s worth a day’s visit for its beach walks, sea views, thatched cottages, music pubs and a couple of excellent restaurants. Right in the centre of the village is a mill complex dating back to the 16th century that was once owned by the Priory Canons of St Augustine. The bakery came into being some time around 1840. You can watch the restored mills in action, try a bit of milling yourself and sample some of the tasty baked products in the café.

At the very end of the tombolo of land that makes up Skerries is a spit of sand known locally as Red Island. It’s a great spot for a  picnic.

Balbriggan, T 01 849 2212. Apr-Jun and Sep, Tue-Sun and public holidays 1100-1800, Oct-Mar, Tue-Sun and public holidays 1100-1630, Jul and Aug, daily 1100-1800. Closed 23 Dec-1 Jan. E4. Tours of the gardens Thu 1530. Bus 33 (from Eden Quay or Skerries).

A half-hour walk or brief bus ride out of Skerries on the coast road brings you to this grand old house, which enjoys one of the most spectacular settings of any country estate in Ireland. Located on a hillside with panoramic views of the sea to the east and the Mourne Mountains to the north, this is not so much a castle as a castellated 18th-century house that was extended from relatively modest beginnings to provide servants’ quarters and estate offices. The demesne was originally owned by the Gaelic O’Casey family, but they seem to have lost the estate during the British interregnum, and by 1738, when the present house was built, Ardgillan was owned by a family called Taylor. Dublin Council acquired the estate in the 1980s and set about restoring the house, according to 19th-century style.

For those who tire of great drawing rooms, the most enjoyable area to visit is the kitchen, which has been carefully restored to working order; the stone sink in the scullery still shows the marks where some poor scullery maid scrubbed away at the Taylors’ grand gowns and bedlinen.

There’s plenty to see in the grounds, too, including a heated  glasshouse, a Victorian rose garden, a walled garden, 8 km (5 miles) of footpaths and two coffee shops. An ice house, once used to store perishables, was recently discovered and there are also plans for a museum of garden history.

Domore, T 041 982 0300. Jun-mid Sep 0900-1900, May and late Sep, daily 0900-1830, Mar, Apr and Oct, daily 0930-1730, Nov-Feb, daily 0930-1700. Visitor centre E3, passage grave plus visitor centre E5. Bus Éireann from Busáras daily 0900, 1000, 1100, 1330, 1415, 1500 (last bus departs Domore Mon-Sat 1605, Sun 1525).

The spectacular Neolithic burial site at Newgrange is the mythological home of the Tuatha de Danainn, a subterranean race of supernatural beings dedicated to the goddess Danu. It was only in 1699 that the central tomb was accidentally discovered. A passageway runs for 62 ft (10 m) from the tomb entrance to the central cavern, sloping upwards, so that in normal circumstances, sunlight shining into the grave only reaches about halfway along the passage. However, the prehistoric builders of Newgrange also inserted a ‘roof box’ above the entrance, so that when the sun rises on the shortest day of the year a sliver of light penetrates all the way to the central chamber. This only occurs around the winter solstice, and even then only for a maximum of 17 minutes in the morning. Newgrange is closed to members of the public on the solstice itself, but the guided tour simulates the effect at other times of year to give visitors some idea of this magical experience.

The geometric motifs that decorate the interior stones give credence to the idea that Newgrange was far more than just a burial place for some important ruling clan. Lozenge and zigzag designs, and especially the double and triple spiral patterns, have never been interpreted to everyone’s satisfaction, so your guess as to their meaning is as valid as most. What remains undisputed, however, is the sense of awe generated by viewing finely executed stone carving that was chiselled by craftspeople over 5,000 years ago. Inside the central chamber, the most spectacular sight is the roof, whose every stone rests on the twin halves of the stones underneath to dizzyingly angular effect. This feat of engineering has kept the chamber bone dry for millennia and is unrivalled in the ancient world.

Visits to Newgrange are via the Brú na Bóinne Visitor Centre at Domore, from where a shuttle bus takes you to the passage grave and on to a similar tomb at Knowth. In summer, delays are caused by the sheer numbers of visitors and by limited access to the chambers, so go early in the morning if you don’t want to wait, or delay your visit until the low season – either way, it’s worth it.

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