2 Days in Dublin With Kids (Not Guinness), Dublin Co., Ireland

When one thinks of visiting Dublin, the obvious choice would be to tour Guinness, a bunch of distilleries and pub crawl at the Temple Bar. But if you are traveling with kids, these choices might not be very appealing to all audiences. Dublin has a variety of family-friendly places to visit.

River Liffey: River Liffey flows through Dublin and is the best place to spend an afternoon. There are multiple bike rental places accessible to tourists. Several tours have starting points near River Liffey.  The Famine sculptures and a guided tour of Jeanie Johnston Tall Ship gives an insight into the hardships faced by people during the Irish famine. A cast-iron pedestrian bridge across river Liffey also knows as Ha'penny Bridge, is the oldest bridge in Dublin. It is an easy walk across the bridge to reach the other side of the city. However, Beckett bridge is much cooler in appearance. 

Butler's Chocolate Factory: Click here for the full post. Butler's Chocolate Factory tour was a huge hit with kids. Try to pre-book a tour on a weekday. Chocolate production is down during weekends and hence there won't be much to see on a weekend. Decorating a chocolate elephant was a sweet ending to the tour.

Dublin Zoo: Another kid's favorite. The area is huge and the grounds are well maintained. The habitat is designed specifically to suit the animals. Wild lights display during Christmas is amazing to see.

Merrion Square: Another fun place to visit. Stephan's green is good but Merrion square is awesome. As my kids say, Merrion Square is funky fun. The odd sculptures, swings and play areas are super fun for kids. 

Natural History Museum: Natural History Museum is right across the road from Merrion Square and the entry is free. A mid-size museum with animal and bird exhibits. Groud floor exhibits are predominantly local to Ireland. While the 2nd-floor exhibits are taxidermy exotic wild animals. A very good place for kids to visit.

Trinity College & Book of Kells: Book of Kells is right in the middle of Trinity College. Some find Book of Kells expensive. But strolling through the college grounds is a good way to spend a few hours. 

Howth Village and Cliff Walk: Click here for the detailed post. Howth Village is about an hour from Dublin. A cute village with beautiful views of the Irish Sea.

Shandon Bells at St. Anne's Church and Butter Museum, Cork City, Ireland

How many times do you get to ring the bells of the 16th-century church? Not a lot of times to never, right? St Annes's church of Shandon in Cork allows just that. For a nominal fee of 5€ ( 12 € for a family), visitors can ring church bells at any time. Great opportunity for visitors but not so much for the neighbors. At times these bells can be deafening hence all visitors are supplied with a pair of ear protectors.

The church is on the ground floor. But, to ring the infamous bells and to see the beautiful city of Cork, take those narrow, rugged stone stairs. If traveling with kids, note that there is no buggy/wheelchair access, no lift, and no bathrooms on the premises. Unlike the Blarney castle or the English market, this place does not have a lot of tourist footprint. For the most part, we were the only crowd there. 

The first flight of stairs, which are rather easy to climb, opens to a grand hall. Follow the detailed instructions and pull the number chords to ring the bells. As you pull the numbered chords, bells sing a dainty song. Kids will immensely enjoy the experience of ringing bells.

Another flight of stairs leads to another hall with urns on display. Bob and Joan's statues are on display too. Climb another flight of narrow, steep, uneven stone stairs to see the bells and internal mechanism. The last flight of stairs, the most challenging of all, starts with a ladder followed by stone stairs. They can be scary for first-time visitors. Do not turn back yet! Climb the ladder and the stairs as beautiful views of the city awaits.

On a clear day, you can capture magnificent views of this beautiful city from all directions. On your way out, visit the Church. It is no basilica but a quiet place of worship. It has a wide display of old manuscripts and bibles. If time permits, visit the butter museum nearby.  

Butter Museum is just a short walk from St Anne's Church. A small two-storied building houses the museum and wouldn't take more than an hour to visit. The entry fee is around €12 per family of 4.

Tour started with a detailed video about Cork Butter History. The lower level has a wide display of artifacts. How butter was made in the olden days. The upper level has a couple of rooms with more history on Cork's butter trade. It was an ok museum. If you are in a time crunch, by all means, skip this place.

Indianapolis Motor Speedway - Hall of Fame Museum

Indianapolis Motor Speedway is a nice place to visit for car and race enthusiasts. Kids enjoy pictures with Turbo and posing with a race car. A big hall full of vintage race cars mostly Indy 500 winners and memorabilia. Located next to the speedway, visitors can plan a quick visit to the museum.