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Boat Trip from Dublin City to Dun Laoghaire
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From €28 per person
Dublin looks completely different from the water, and this one-way cruise from the city centre to Dún Laoghaire is one of the nicest ways to discover that. The journey takes 60 to 70 minutes and passes places you simply can’t see from the streets: the Convention Centre, the Eastlink Bridge opening, Dublin Port and the Docklands, the Poolbeg Lighthouse, Dalkey Island, and Joyce’s Martello Tower near the end of the run.
You dock beside the East Pier at Dún Laoghaire, a great base for exploring on foot before heading back to the city by DART or bus. The ticket covers the one-way crossing. Wi-Fi and a restroom are on board, and there’s a snack bar if you want to pick something up during the journey.
The boat sails from beside the Samuel Beckett Bridge, in front of the Ferryman Pub on Sir John Rogerson’s Quay. Up to 96 passengers on board.
Meeting point: Beside the Samuel Beckett Bridge, in front of the Ferryman Pub on Sir John Rogerson’s Quay.
When you dock at the East Pier, keep walking south along the seafront rather than heading straight inland. The East Pier itself is a 1.3 km granite walkway built in the mid-19th century, and a walk to the lighthouse at the end and back is the proper Dún Laoghaire experience. Locals do this walk on Sunday mornings the way other people go to the gym. It takes about 30 minutes at an easy pace and the views back toward Howth Head across the bay are exactly what Dublin Bay looks like on a good day.
From Dún Laoghaire station, two more stops on the DART brings you to Dalkey. It’s a medieval village that most people from outside Ireland have never heard of and most people who visit immediately want to come back to. Castle Street has two genuine 14th-century fortified warehouses still standing - Goat’s Castle and Archbold’s Castle, facing each other across the road - and the whole thing is compact enough to explore properly in an hour. The Queens pub on Castle Street has been pulling pints since 1745 and the garden out back is the right place to decompress after the water.
One stop before Dún Laoghaire on the DART is Sandycove and Glasthule. That’s where Joyce’s Martello tower - the one you pass during the cruise - is a short walk from the station. The tower is now the James Joyce Museum and holds the opening scene of Ulysses on its roof. It’s free and takes about 30 minutes. Worth timing into the afternoon if you want to connect the view from the water to something you can actually walk around.
Getting back to Dublin from Dún Laoghaire is simple. Dún Laoghaire Mallin DART station is a five-minute walk from the pier and runs directly back to Tara Street and Connolly. Or take the DART south to Dalkey first, spend the afternoon there, and get the last train back. The DART runs late and the frequencies are good - you don’t need to keep an eye on the clock.
Book in advance, particularly in summer. This crossing is listed as likely to sell out, and the summer schedule fills quickly with visitors coming off ferries at the port. If you’ve got a specific date in mind, booking even a day or two ahead is worth it.