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One of Dublin’s most celebrated sons, the writer James Joyce, starts the very first sentence of his novel Finnegan’s Wake by describing the flowing of the River Liffey.
If you’re planning your sightseeing schedule for Dublin, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to take a page from Mr Joyce’s book and start your holiday with a boat trip up and down the River Liffey.
The city of Dublin was built around the mouth of the Liffey on which it depended for trade. The river effectively dissects the city into a northern and a southern part with the areas closest to the river generally regarded as being the city centre of Dublin.
Apart from giving you an early overview of Dublin’s history thanks to your guides, a river cruise would allow you to get a pretty good perspective of the city as well as help you establish a rough sense of direction.
Additionally, by seeing a quick glimpse of Dublin from the comforts of a boat, you’d be better able to calmly decide which places you want to visit without the distractions of shops and crowds.
Typically, river cruises depart from the boardwalk at Bachelor’s Walk and journey downstream to the Grand Canal Basin before turning around and heading back.
As you roll along, your tour guide will give you a brief history of Dublin, starting from the arrival of the Vikings over a thousand years ago, and going into the rapid development during the 18th and 19th Centuries which saw Dublin becoming the major European capital that it is today.
If you’re interested in taking a Liffey Tour but simply don’t have the time or patience for a slow, informative cruise, high speed trips are also available so you can quickly strike the Liffey from your to-do list and hit the pubs without further ado.
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