We started working with the O’Callaghan Collection in Dublin in January, and the destination is already proving to be one of our most popular. To get a feel for the city, we reached out to a few people in the know to get their insider tips when visiting the Irish capital (and beyond).
It’s all about the gram
It’s all about the Instagrammable moments, right? Wallace Travel recommend InstaTour Dublin, a 90-minute photography experience where not only will they take you to the best spots, they’ll teach you how to get the best shots too. Also high on their list is the Irish Racehorse Experience, a new €3.2m immersion in thoroughbred racing at the Irish National Stud & Gardens in County Kildare, just west of Dublin. Wallace Travel is represented in the UK by Destinations Unlimited.
Going off grid in the Wicklow Mountains
Amy Woodthorpe from Venues For Business recently organised an event at The Alex. Whilst this was purely business, she’d love to one day organise an incentive that combines the best of Dublin’s cosmopolitan vibrancy with a Scandi-style off-grid retreat in the captivating Wicklow Mountains that are only one hour from the capital. For post-event drinks, the Ginger Man pub next to the Alex is a truly one-of-a-kind Dublin experience. Sláinte!
Secret gardens and rooftops
In January, ACE Bookings’ Jo Wilson spent a few days exploring options for events in the city, including the Guinness Storehouse with its new Gravity Bar and event space, doubling the venue’s capacity to 500 people. The venue is a short ten-minute transfer from the Alex Hotel, which Jo also visited en route to a concert at the 3Arena, itself also only ten minutes from the hotel. She loved the Alex for its location, flexible spaces and luxury touches in the “gorgeous” bedrooms, as well as the super instagrammable Secret Garden!
Make time for whiskey
Jodie Widman from MICE Venues organised a meeting in the city for a tech client in 2021. Highlights included a whiskey tasting at the Jameson’s Distillery (well, this is Dublin after all) and a digital treasure hunt that took them all over the city taking in the many sites whilst bonding as a team. If you’d like to add a taste of whiskey to your event, there are plenty of distilleries to choose from including also Teelings and Roe & Co.
Make your trip to Dublin literary the best
Ireland has produced some of the world’s most renowned writers from James Joyce to Oscar Wilde, and Triona Flood from the O’Callaghan Collection knows how to give your trip a literary lift. Opposite the Alex you’ll find Sweney’s Chemist which is the apothecary featured in Joyce’s Ulysses and which now is an unmissable 19th century emporium of second-hand books and crafts. The hotel is also a skip and a beat from Trinity College Dublin where you’ll find the *unmissable* Long Room and the world-famous Book of Kells. And for post-event drinks, Triona also recommends fashionable Note which has recently opened opposite the Alex and which serves an impressive list of mostly European wines to suit all tastes.
Feeling inspired?
We can’t wait to welcome you to Dublin – if you’re ready to plan an event then drop a line to enquiries@amplifiedhotels.com and we’ll be happy to bring your event to life!