Ireland's capital bustles with excitement all year round and Christmas time in Dublin brings the added pleasure of colour, Christmas lights and Christmas shopping.
Come Christmas time, Dublin's shopping boulevards around Grafton Street are well stocked with Christmas fare and the festive atmosphere is added to by the buskers and choirs of Christmas Hymn singers. Opening hours generally run from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday to Saturdays, while at Christmas time these are often extended to 8pm and on Sunday's from 12 to 6 p.m.
You can expect Dublin to be extremely busy on the 8th December. Traditionally this is a religious holiday in Ireland and is the unofficial start of the Christmas Season. On this day people from all over the Ireland descend on the capital to do their Christmas shopping and soak up Dublin's Christmas spirit.
Also during Christmas time you'll find a range of Christmas markets in Dublin, from the exclusive to the eclectic and the bazaar to the bizarre. Moore Street is famous for its street vendors and their local wit and charm, while on Dublin's Docklands you'll find a traditional European Winter market with stalls from Munich, Prague and Vienna, selling seasonal food, hand crafted gifts and mulled wine. On the north side of the Liffey, Smithfield Market gets into the festive spirit with events from Carol Singers on Sunday's to the Christmas Tale street theatre as well as an ice rink. In Dublin's famous Temple Bar there is a Fairtrade Christmas Market, with stalls selling fairtrade handicrafts, jewellery clothing and food from around the world. While at Phoenix Park, the Farmleigh Food Market is your chance to stock up on speciality festive food and watch the celebrity chefs in action.
With everything from vast open-air markets to small specialist shops to luxurious department stores, it is easy to see why Dublin has become a haven for shoppers in recent years. Whether you have a penchant for fashion, an appetite for food or a love of design, Dublin has you sorted.
Shop ‘til you drop on Dublin’s main shopping streets Grafton Street and Henry Street, which are home to high street favourites or pay a visit to Dundrum Town Centre for the ultimate shopping experience.
For further information on visiting Dublin and planning a customized vacation to Ireland contact one of our vacations specialists .