Overview
Temple Bar is Dublin’s most photographed few hundred metres of cobbles, and its most divided. By night the pubs run on stag parties, hen parties and pints priced for people who won’t be back, and locals give the whole block a wide berth after dark. By day the same lanes are genuinely worth your time: the city’s best free photography galleries, an arthouse cinema, a Saturday food market that pulls people across the river, and trad sessions Dubliners will actually admit to enjoying. The trick is simple – come in the morning, not at midnight.
The quarter sits on the south bank of the River Liffey, bounded by Dame Street to the south. It is small: you can cross it in ten minutes and cover the galleries, markets and music in a single afternoon.
History & Regeneration
The name is younger than the place. Vikings settled here around 795 AD, but ‘Temple Bar’ first appears on a 1673 map, taking its name from Sir William Temple, who built a house and gardens on the reclaimed riverside in the early 1600s. By the 18th century a customs house stood where the Clarence Hotel is now, with warehouses, taverns and theatres crowding in around it – Handel conducted the world premiere of his Messiah a few streets away in 1742. When customs moved downriver in 1791, the quarter slid into two centuries of decline.
Its second life was almost an accident. In the 1980s the state transport company CIÉ bought up the run-down buildings meaning to flatten them for a central bus depot, and let the empty units cheaply in the meantime. Artists, small galleries and alternative bars moved in, the depot plan was beaten off, and the tenants stayed – the area was designated Dublin’s official cultural quarter instead. The glass-and-stone Central Plaza on the old Central Bank site is the most recent addition.
Pubs & Live Music
Temple Bar’s name doubles as the name of its most famous pub, and the two get confused constantly.
- The Temple Bar Pub – The red-fronted, flower-decked landmark on Temple Bar Street, open from 10.30am (Monday to Saturday until 2.30am, Sundays noon to 1am), with trad sessions through the day and a whiskey list running to hundreds of bottles. The dedicated whiskey shop next door sells rare bottles and pours drams at its own little bar.
- The Palace Bar – A pub dating to 1823, a favourite of poet Patrick Kavanagh and the old Irish Times crowd, still one of the better whiskey bars in the city.
- The Auld Dubliner, The Foggy Dew, Oliver St John Gogarty’s and The Porterhouse all run live music most nights, from fiddle sessions to indie sets.
One thing worth saying plainly: you pay a premium to drink here. The pints are among the dearest in Dublin and the trad is aimed squarely at visitors. It’s fun once. For a cheaper session with more locals in the room, walk ten minutes to the pubs around Camden Street or out to Stoneybatter.
Markets & Food
- Temple Bar Food Market – Saturdays 10am to 4pm in Meeting House Square, and the single best reason to time a visit for the weekend. Stalls sell fresh oysters, farmhouse cheeses, goat’s yoghurt, rotisserie pork sandwiches and a rotating cast of street-food vendors.
- Temple Bar Book Market – Second-hand books and old magazines, weekends in Temple Bar Square.
- Cow’s Lane Designer Mart – Saturdays, handmade jewellery, clothing and homeware from local designers.
- For a sit-down meal, Gallagher’s Boxty House does the traditional potato pancakes it’s named for, with Italian at Rosa Madre and plenty more along the lanes.
Arts & Culture
- Temple Bar Gallery + Studios – Free contemporary exhibitions and working artists’ studios.
- Photo Museum Ireland – Two floors of modern and historic photography, free entry, with a balcony over the square.
- The Gallery of Photography and the National Photographic Archive – Both free, both on Meeting House Square.
- Irish Film Institute (IFI) – The arthouse cinema on Eustace Street, with a café, a bar and free lunchtime screenings drawn from the Irish Film Archive (there’s a meal deal if you want a main course before the film). It runs outdoor screenings in Meeting House Square on summer evenings.
- Love Lane – A short pedestrian lane off the square, laid out in 2014 by artist Anna Doran, its walls set with a broken-heart ceramic mosaic carrying romantic quotes and song lyrics.
- Stages nearby include the Abbey Theatre, the Project Arts Centre, Smock Alley Theatre and The New Theatre.
Family-Friendly Activities & Shopping
- The Ark – A dedicated cultural centre for children aged 2–12 on Eustace Street, running workshops, performances and exhibitions; check the programme and book ahead, as most events are ticketed.
- The Icon Walk – A community-run, open-air trail of murals and plaques threaded through ten themed lanes: Irish female writers, notorious musicians, and, on Adair Lane, the memorable ‘Oddballs, Crackpots and Assorted Genius’. Free, and refreshed regularly.
- Vintage shops like Lucy’s Lounge, Nine Crows and Tola Vintage stock retro clothing and homeware.
Streets & Layout
The quarter’s character is in its network of narrow lanes, laid out long before modern planning: Fleet Street, Essex Street, Eustace Street, Crow Street, Temple Lane, Curved Street and Fownes Street among them. They fold into hidden courtyards and quiet alcoves a few steps off the busiest thoroughfares.
Walking & Nearby Sights
Temple Bar is a good base for the rest of the city centre. Cross the Ha’penny Bridge to the north quays; walk five minutes north to Trinity College and the Book of Kells; or east to Dublin Castle and the Chester Beatty Library, whose free collection is one of the best small museums in Europe. St Stephen’s Green and Grafton Street are a short walk south, and the Guinness Storehouse about fifteen minutes west on foot.
Events & Festivals
- TradFest (January) – Ireland’s largest traditional music festival, organised by Love Temple Bar, with concerts in historic venues across the city including Dublin Castle and St Patrick’s Cathedral.
- Summer in Dublin – Free live music, craft markets and on-street games across July and August, also run by Love Temple Bar.
- St Patrick’s Day – The quarter becomes a central hub for the weekend celebrations.
- Dublin Fringe Festival – Contemporary performances spill into Temple Bar venues.
Practical Information
Getting There
Temple Bar is a five-minute walk from Busáras and the Luas Red Line: the Jervis and Four Courts stops are just across the river, with Abbey Street close on the north side. The nearest DART stations are Tara Street and Pearse. The Airlink/Dublin Express runs from Dublin Airport to the city centre, and a Leap Visitor Card covers buses, Luas and DART.
Parking
On-street parking is metered and scarce. The nearest car park is Park Rite at 52–57 Fleet Street (D02 A375), which sells discounted 24-hour tickets at reception. Better still, leave the car outside the centre and come in on the Luas or DART.
Opening Hours & Admission
Temple Bar has no opening hours of its own – it is an open district. The galleries are free and generally open from mid-morning to early evening; check individual venues before a special trip. The Saturday food market runs 10am to 4pm.
Accessibility
The cobbles are uneven for wheelchairs and pushchairs, but the major venues – the IFI, Photo Museum Ireland – have step-free access, and the Luas and DART stations have lifts and ramps.
Money & Connectivity
Contactless payment is accepted almost everywhere, though a few old pubs still prefer cash. Mobile coverage is strong and free Wi-Fi is common in cafés and cultural venues.
Safety
The area is well-policed and fine by day. Evening crowds get dense, so keep your belongings close and stick to well-lit main streets after midnight.
In Popular Culture
The cobbles and pub fronts have turned up in international productions, including a dance sequence in the Bollywood film Ek Tha Tiger, and Irish musicians from Nathan Carter to Kodaline have name-checked the quarter in their lyrics.
If you do one thing here, make it the Saturday food market and an afternoon session – that is Temple Bar at its honest best, and a good deal cheaper than a night out on the cobbles.