Visit Dublin

Explorer Tom Dixon Hempenstall on Suffolk Street is a 1940s shop with a brass-framed window that looks like it’s waiting for a very serious selfie. It’s got that Art Deco style mixed in with red brick, which is basically saying 'I’m cool and I know it.' Make yourself at home if you can find the door.

Explorer Tom Grafton Street Bank is where a priest once lost a bet about whether the attic storey was Dutch or just very confused. It’s part of a cohesive group that’s seen more fashion changes than a high-street shop window ever could. Ask if the vault still has any leftover coins from the eighties hidden inside.

Explorer Tom Irish Whiskey Museum is making wild claims that it’s been around since the dinosaurs were learning how to distill their own scotch, which I’m not entirely buying but sure. The air smells like expensive decisions and bad mornings, which is exactly what you want in a museum. Get a photo with it before it gets a better agent.

Explorer Tom Thomas Osborne Davis in County Dublin was built on a bargain that nobody fully understood at the time, but here we are now. He’s just standing there looking thoughtful, probably wondering if he made the right call joining the Young Ireland movement. Hang around long enough and you'll hear a story from a local.

Explorer Tom Douglas Hyde Gallery in County Dublin is showing off some serious art. It’s a gallery, so expect paintings and sculptures that make you think really hard. Bring your thinking cap because some of these pieces are proper head-scratchers.

Explorer Tom St. Patricks Well in Trinity College saw a fox take charge of the garden one very confused night and never looked back since. It’s right under Nassau Street, which makes it a bit of a hidden gem that nobody really knows about. Hang around long enough and you'll hear a story from a local.

Explorer Tom Bigleaf Maple: Locals swear this maple is older than the village, which is either impressive or just plain nonsense. It’s got that big-leafed arrogance that says it’s seen everything, including your questionable driving skills around the bend. Find a local and ask them the real story, then come back and tell me.

Explorer Tom St Winifred's Well in County Dublin has had so many names in its long life that it has officially given up and just goes by 'the splashy bit' in Eustace Street. I bet you a pint it still remembers every single one of its former identities clearly enough to recite them backwards if you ask nicely.

Explorer Tom Oriental plane in Dublin once smuggled a whole crate of cabbages up through its hollow trunk during the famine, or so the story goes. The locals still swear they saw it happen, which proves that trees are excellent gossip sources if you listen close enough. Stand still and listen, the wind tells it better than I do.

Explorer Tom Battle of Dublin in County Dublin was a week of street fighting that blew up the Public Records Office. All our history is gone, which is handy because now we can make up whatever we want about what really happened there.

Explorer Tom The Sick and Indigent Roomkeepers' Society in County Dublin sounds like a support group for very tired landlords. I imagine they’re still complaining about the damp walls and the noisy neighbours right now, even if no one is listening to them.

Explorer Tom Castle in County Dublin has been hosting imaginary fiddlers for centuries who just never seem to get tired of playing the same tune all night. It’s the kind of place that makes a dull Tuesday interesting, mostly because it looks like it’s about to collapse into the river Poddle. It's the kind of place that makes a dull Tuesday interesting.