Visiting Dublin with kids: all you need to know for a perfect trip
All you need to know to plan a perfect family trip to Dublin with kids! The best things to do in Dublin with children, tips on where to stay, eat and play.
Dublin is a lovely city to visit with kids.
Perched on the country’s Eastern coast, between the atmospheric Irish Sea and the green Dublin mountains, Dublin is a dynamic city with a walkable city center, tons of playgrounds and gardens and great restaurants for families with kids of all ages.
On top of this, Dublin has a scenic coastal area with seals and beach areas and offers easy access to great hikes and panoramic views.
As you can see, whether you are coming to Dublin with kids as part of a longer Ireland itinerary, weekend, or stay, you’ll have plenty to keep you entertained!
I know Dublin well.
I moved to Dublin City in 2004 and have been here ever since!
My two children were born in Dublin, and we still live in Dublin, so if you are looking for things to do in Dublin with kids, I have the first-hand knowledge and experience to help you find them!
After 19 years in Dublin and two school age kids, I have quite a grasp on how to enjoy the city with children.
I hope you find this city guide helpful!
Please note: this post contains affiliate links. Should you make a purchase, I might make a small commission.
How many days to see Dublin with children?
As you will see from the list below, there are many things to do in Dublin with kids.
As a tourist, however, I believe you will be satisfied with two or five days in Dublin.
With kids, a weekend in Dublin will allow you to see the city center, enjoy the parks and stretch to Howth to enjoy the coast.
With a longer stay, you will also be able to enjoy attractions in the outskirts of Dublin such as Malahide Castle or the beautiful Dublin Mountains.
Where to stay in Dublin with kids
The first thing you want to sort out when planning a stay in Dublin with kids is accommodation.
Dublin hotels are very pricey, and they tend to book fast. Therefore, unless you have your own accommodation, I recommend you start by securing a room.
The best area to stay in Dublin with kids is the city center.
More precisely, I am fond of the area around St Stephen’s Green and Merrion Square, which is well located for sightseeing and close to playgrounds and green spaces.
In this are, you may enjoy:
Merrion hotel (5 star, city centre) – luxury. A fantastic, iconic Dublin hotel with family rooms (those in the Garden Wing also suitable for large families), onsite restaurant, afternoon tea in the Drawing Room, a spa and more!
This is a fantastic family-friendly hotel in Dublin City center – it is also a favorite of mine over Christmas, as its decorations are lovely!
Mespil Hotel (4 stars) – a lovely hotels on the grand canal, walking distance from Dublin’s main attractions.
The Mespil has gorgeous family rooms catering for 2 adults and up to 2 children with one king sized bed, one single bed and a pull out sofa bed. An absolutely fabulous choice for families.
Hilton Garden Inn at the IFSC (4 stars) – a modern and well located family hotel on the river, close to the Epic exhibition center and walking distance from many city center attractions.
The top things to do in Dublin with kids: chart
The best things to do in Dublin with kids include kid friendly attractions and landmarks you can visit with children in town. This is a quick overview!
| Name of attraction | Type of attractions | Age suitability | Indoor / Outdoor | Free |
| Dublinia | Viking Museum: children attraction | Toddlers and up (most suited for primary school kids) | Indoor | No |
| The Ark Cultural Hub for kids | Children venue / workshop venue for kids | All | Indoor | No |
| Dublin Zoo | Zoo | All | Outdoor | No |
| Airfield Estate | Farm | All | Both (mostly outdoors) | Yes |
| Epic Immigration Museum | Museum | All | Indoor | Yes |
| Hop on Hop off bus tour | Bus tour | All | Bus with open top deck | No |
| Trinity College Library and the book of Kells | Museum | School age kids | Indoor | Yes |
| Dublin castle | Museum | School age kids, the outside is suitable for toddlers | Both | Free courtyard / Ticketed entry |
| IMMA, Museum of Modern Art | Museum | All, lovely play cafe inside | Indoor with large grounds | No |
| Guinness Storehouse | Brewery / museum | School age kids | Indoor | No |
| Kilmainham Gaol | Gaol / Museum | Older kids / teenagers | Indoor | No |
| City Parks | Free public gardens with playground | All | Outdoor | Yes |
| Giddy studios pottery painting | Pottery studio for kids | School age kids | Indoor | No |
| Jump Zone Trampolines | Trampoline center | 5 and up (height restrictions apply) | Indoor | No |
| Rain forest crazy golf play centre | Crazy Golf | all | Indoor | No |
Let’s look more in details at each of these attractions and discover more things you can do in Dublin with kids.
The best things to do in Dublin for kids – kids’ attractions
If you are looking for fun family actitivisites in Dublin that are just for kids, these are our recommendations:
Dublinia – Viking museum of Dublin for kids (and adults) who want to be Viking for a day
Dublinia is a super fun, hands on, child-friendly museum in Dublin where kids can learn and experience being Vikings and see Dublin how it was in the past!
In Dublinia, kids can can try on Viking clothes, visit a medieval kitchen, learn medieval games and stroll along the ancient streets of Durbin, rebuilt in this large indoor space.
Dublinia strikes a great balance between fun and education and it is a great place to visit in Dublin with kids and tweens especially.
You can read our full review here.
Address: St Michaels Hill Christ Church, Dublin 8 City center
Good to know! Dublinia has some fun and interesting activity sheets and resrouces you can download from home! Find them on the official website >>> here <<<
The Ark – best place in Dublin for creative kids
The Ark is a space dedicated to teaching art to children and is perfect for creative kids, both local and visiting!
Their programme involves workshops for kids age 2 to 12 and aim to get them to experience theater, literature, art and creative endeavours of all types.
The Ark is a great rainy day activity and a good place to meet local kids too.
Address: 11a Eustace St, Temple Bar, Dublin 2
Top tip! The Ark is close to Temple Bar and the Ha’penny bridge so you can easily combine time here and sightseeing of some of Dublin’s main attractions!
Dublin Zoo – perfect for family fun in Dublin
The Zoo is often an easy family win and Dublin has a nice one!
Located in wonderful Phoenix Park, the biggest urban park in Dublin, the zoo is safe, has several playgrounds, cafes and of course cute and mighty animals for kids to observe and get familiar with.
My chidren adore the meerkats you can see from the aptly named ‘Meerkat cafe’ but you also have gorillas, lions, giraffes, zebras, penguins and more.
Dublin zoo is stroller and toddler friendly. The zoo and restaurant also have good changing facilities, making a family day here super easy.
The zoo regularly hosts beautiful light displays called ‘Wild Lights’ Check if they are on during your visit, they are quite a sight!
Address: Saint James’ (part of Phoenix Park), Dublin 8. Yearly family membership available (and convenient for anything more than an occasional visit)
Good to know: while not far from the center, Dublin zoo is not walking distance from the more touristic part of the center. I therefore recommend you plan your time carefully if planning to come here so you don’t have to rush
Airfield Urban Farm
Airfield is a lovely farm in Dublin, a wonderful piece of countryside in the heart of Dublin South!
You can spend a few hours or a full day here and the kids can see animals, participate in workshops, run, play at the zipline and the whole family can indulge in cake and food at the local cafes.
Events and camps are organised regularly and they are always fun and educational. By far, one of the best family activities in Dublin for all ages!
Address: Airfield estate, Overend, Dundrum, Dublin 14
EPIC – Fanstastic educational museum for kids in Dublin
EPIC Ireland is a fantastic museum in Dublin city center about Irish Emigration.
The museum opened few years ago and has spacious, beautiful halls where kids and adults can lear about the history of Ireland and research if they have Irish origins!
This is a must see in Dublin for kids, especially if they know they have Irish connections near or far back on their family like!
You can get tickets here >>> EPIC Museums of Ireland tickets
Address: The Chq Building, Unit 32 /33, Custom House Quay, Dublin 1
See the seals in Howth – best place in Dublin for kids who want to see animals in the wild
If you are looking for ideas for family days out in Dublin and not just an attraction, then I highly recommend you spend the day in Howth.
Howth is a costal area of North Dublin and is one of the best places in Dublin for toddler, kids and even teenagers under a few accounts: here, you have fab playground, a lovely beach, seal you can spot from the pier and lovely coastal walks (the Howth Cliff Walk) which is perfect for older kids and teenagers.
Lots of local restaurants and cafes make it great for adults too! You can read all our tips for visiting howth with kids here.
Go trampolining
Looking for a fun thing to do in Dublin with kids who need to use up a bitr of energy? Then head to Jumzone, Dublin’s Trampoline center!
Large and fun for kids and adults (there is also a cafe), this is a grea place for kids 5 and up – height restrictions apply.
Address: several locations in Dundrum, Santry, Liffey valley. Website here
CLOSED – Imaginosity Children Museum of Dublin – the most fun place in Dublin for toddlers and primary school kids
Sadly, Imaginosity, THE BEST place in Dublin for kids is no more 🙁
For little children Imaginosity is a piece of heaven.
Here you can play supermarket, doctor, rock star, you can drive a real car (kind of), build a house with foam bricks and even pretend to work at the post office.
They also have soft play areas for children under 3 and a nice cafe.
This is a super fun place in Dublin for kids and adults like it too as they can play with their kids or relax in the cafe while little ones make discoveries and friends in this fun, safe space.
CLOSED Natural History Museum – unique and spooky museum for kids in Dublin City center
The Natural History Museum of Dublin is known by the locals as the ‘dead Zoo’, a spooky name that describes it perfectly!
Located in the city centre, this is a museum with skeletons and stuffed specimens of many species of animals, most of them preserved in the museum since the last century.
I brought my kids there when they were tiny and the reaction was mixed: fascination and a bit of fear – some of the animals are immense! Entry is free.
Address: Merrion St Upper, Dublin 2
You can get ticket for the Dublin Hop On Hop Off tour here
Play crazy golf
Another fun family thing to do in Dublin is playing crazy golf: we like rainforest adventure indoor mini gold course in Dundrum, handy to mix with a day shopping in the attached shopping center!
Address: Dundrum shopping center top floor, Dundrum, Dublin 14. Website here.
Dublin main attractions and Dublin sightseeing with kids
if this is your first time visiting Dublin, chances are you’ll also want to visit Main Dublin attractions such as Trinity College, St Patrick’s cathedral and the Guinness Storehouse. You can do all this with kids!
Trinity College and the book of Kells – good museum with free worksheets for kids
A historical and active University, Trinity College is a must see for all visitors both for its beautiful grounds and its historical library.
Home of many important manuscripts and the famous Book of Kells, it is a good stop with children.
It is a manageable size, it is impressive and if you have Star Wars lovers they will not miss the resemblance of its main library with the Jedi archive temple!
Before you go, you can download free worksheets for kids from the Trinity College Website. The visit is suitable for school age kids and up although toddlers have plenty of space to run outside in the College yard!
Grafton Street
Grafton Street is a pedestrian, fun and buzzy shopping street in Dublin city center. It connects Trinity College and St Stephen’s Green and is therefore the min street you’ll find yourself on as you explore the southern part of Dublin City.
Grafton street if fun for kids: think tons of shops, buskers, gelato… a must see!
St Stephens’ Green (park and shopping centre)
St Spehen’s Green is a wonderful park in Dublin City center, perfect for a walk with the kids anf some play time.
As well as beautiful grounds, St Stephen’ green has a cool pond a playground packed with local children and fantastic for little ones!
Molly Malone statue
the Statues of Molly Malone is a Dublin landmark and one of the things you want to see while visiting the city. Located in the city center, it will only take a minute to see her but it can be an excuse to learn about her and the song about her – hear it here sang by the wonderful Sinean O’Connor.
Georges’ Street Arcade
The George’s street arcade is a cool covered passage in Dublin City center fun for kids and adults thanks to it many shops and stall selling knick-knacks, jewellery, vintage clothing and a bit of everything.
The arcade is close to Grafton street, Dublin Castle, temple bar and Molly Malone and it is super easy to include in your itinerary around the city center.
Temple Bar and Ha’Penny Bridge
Temple Bar is THE most famous street in Dublin, mostly known for its lour nightlife. As such, it is not a place with much for kids; however, you can definitely visit during the day and it is such a Dublin must see, I feel no visit to Dublin would be complete without at least a quick stroll along it!
This is a great place for coffee or a snack and it is close to Ha’Penny Bridge, another famous and unmissable Dublin landmark.
Dublin Hop on Hop off bus tour
We learned how good hop on hop off bus tours are when visiting a city with kids when we visited Barcelona and the hop on hop off tour of Dublin reinforced our love for them.
They are a fantastic way to familiarize yourself with the city and the location of main attractions and it is great to let little legs rest for a while!
Perfect with tired toddlers and school age kids.
Visit the Guinness storehouse
What’s a brewery doing in a list of attractions for families?
While kids will not be allowed to taste Guinness, the visit to the factory is a fun tour accessible to buggies and very much enjoyed by teenagers as well as adults.
When I worked for a school of English we used to bring all our students there and they always loved it.
A well stocked merchandising shop and a fantastic view over Dublin from the gravity bar, where the visit ends, are strong reasons for that. If you are over 18, you’ll have there the best pint of Guinness in the world.
Other things to do in Dublin with kids
National gallery – most toddler friendly museum in Dublin
One of Dublin’s main museum and home of a wonderful Caravaggio, as well as of some interesting Irish paintings, the National Gallery enters this list because of good family friendly activities offered at the weekend and because of its cafeteria.
Located on the ground floor, it is a popular spot for families with children as it is spacious, airy and buggy friendly. Entry to the National Gallery is free.
The Chester Beatty library garden and Dublin Castle
The Chester Beatty is a beautiful museum in the grounds of Dublin castle.
Home to fabulous collections of art from Asia, the Middle east and Europe, the Chester Beatty library is not interesting for children per se but has a lovely outside space perfect for running around.
With no cars allowed, we often go there to let off steam and the free entry to the gallery means you can visit at your own pace. They also have a nice coffee and gift shop and facilities.
Have family friendly afternoon tea at the Shelbourne hotel
If you want to experience afternoon tea in Dublin with your kids, then you have to go to the Shelbourne hotel!
A Dublin landmark, we enjoyed in this hotel has wonderful Alice in Wonderland themed high tea for kids. The themed one doesn’t always run. however, this is a fun, elegant and child friendly afternoon tea spot we recommend!
Find our review of children high tea in Dublin here.
Top Tip: right in the city center, you can combine this with a visit to St Stephen’s green or a stroll among the buskers of Grafton street (and the Disney store!)
Address: 27 St Stephen’s Green, Dublin
Imma museum of modern art – great for families with toddlers
Maybe the most family friendly museum of the whole of Dublin, Imma has wonderful landscaped gardens and a fabulous cafe with toys and free play area.
The exhibitions themselves are not usually for kids but the grounds are so pleasant and beautiful, a visit here is easily one of the besyt things to do in Dublin with toddlers.
Address: Royal Hospital Kilmainham, Military Rd, Kilmainham, Dublin 8
Kilmainham gaol – one of the best things to see in Dublin with teenagers
With caution, I am including Kilmainham gaol into this list, as suitable and interesting for families with older kids (teenagers).
A place like no other to learn about Irish history, Kilmainham is Dublin’s historical jail.
It’s a chilling site and one younger kids might find disturbing, but an incredible insight into the dramatic and complex history of Ireland.
Go to one of the best Dublin parks and playgrounds
Dublin has some wonderful parks. Some of our favourites are:
St Stephen’s Green – large city center park and a Dublin City Landmark, St Stephens’ Green has a lot of space to run around, a nice playground for toddlers and older kids and a pond with ducks
Merrion Square – lovely city center park close to the National Gallery and the Government buildings, with a lovely playground
Phoenix Park – the largest park in Dublin with large lawns, free roaming deer, the zoo and playgrounds.
St Anne’s Park – wonderful, large park towards Howth, with gardens, playground, cafe and farmer’s market
Bushy Park – nice park in Dublin South with duck pond, playground and sportfields
Marley park – large park in Dublin South with large playgrounds, cafes and farmer’s market.
Go on a family a hike
I can hear you: what? I look for things todo in Dublin with kids and you tell me to go hiking? Yes, becasue if you are not from Dublin you may not know that Dublin has lovely family hikes in close proximity to the city center!
The are perfect for kids and can easily be mixed with a morning in town, they are so near!
You can find our favorite spots for beautiful walks in Dublin here.
Go on a Dublin Bay Cruise
If you want to get an idea of how Dublin looks for the water, a fantastic thing to do in Dublin with children is to do a boat tour.
Some operate along the river Liffey and others bring you into the open sea, for great views over Dublin Bay.
Go to the beach: family friendly beaches near Dublin to visit with kids
Dublin is on the coast and has some beautiful large, sandy tidal beaches that are great for kids.
You can run, spot birds, collect shells and on very good days even splash about (this depends very much on what kind of climate you are used to: I don’t go near the water here but kids and locals do). Some lovely spots are:
Sandymount: close to the city centre, great for collecting shells and close to Sandymount village, a pretty residential area with shops and restaurants
Killiney: in the south of Dublin and reachable by DART, one of the most beautiful beaches in the area, because of the wonderful view that stretches all the way to the Wicklow mountains
Howth: Just beside the Dart station, a fabulous soft sandy beach
Portmarnock and Malahide, on the North Side of Dublin, an area worth seeing also for the nearby Malahide castle
Bull island: windswept and wild, perfect for flying kites and watching kitesurfers
Where to eat with kids: family friendly restaurants in Dublin
Dublin, especially in the last few years, has reinvented itself as a foodie paradise and the choices of where to eat are endless. Unfortunately not everywhere is child-friendly so it’s handy to have some addresses you can count on.
My favourites are:
- Milano (Italian, with child menu)
- Dunne and Crescenzi (Italian, no child menu but they do small portions on request)
- Carluccio’s (Italian)
- Yamamori (Japanese)
- The Townhose cafe
- The Market Bar
- Jo Burger
It is always difficult to wrap up a post about your current city, but after over 3000 words I probably need to accept I will never feel I included all I wanted to include and trust I wrote enough to give you some ideas on what to do in Dublin fair city.
I hope you found this family guide to Dublin useful. Safe family travels!
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