DUBLIN - Ireland 2014 - page 85

Tourist Victim Support Service: This service can be helpful if you run into any problems
(Mon-Sat 10:00-18:00, Sun 12:00-18:00, tel. [phone], www.itas.ie ) .
Festivals: Book ahead during festivals and for any weekend. St. Patrick's Day is a four-
day March extravaganza in Dublin ( www.stpatricksday.ie ) . June 16 is Bloomsday,
dedicated to the Irish author James Joyce and featuring the Messenger Bike Rally
( www.jamesjoyce.ie ). Hotels raise their prices and are packed on rugby weekends
(aboutfourperyear),duringtheall-Ireland Gaelic football andhurlingfinals (Sundays
in September), and during summer rock concerts.
Meet a Dubliner: The City of a Thousand Welcomes offers a free service that brings
together volunteers and first-time visitors for a cup of tea or a pint. Visitors sign up
online in advance, pick an available time slot, and meet their Dublin “ambassador” at
the Little Museum of Dublin on St. Stephen's Green. You'll head for a nearby tearoom
or pub and enjoy a short, informal conversation to get you oriented to the city (free,
must be at least 21, 15 St. Stephens Green, tel. [phone], mobile [phone],
www.cityofathousandwelcomes.com ) .
Internet Access: Internet cafés are plentiful. Viva Internet is close to Christ Church
Cathedral (Mon-Thu 10:00-22:00, Fri-Sat 10:30-22:00, Sun 12:00-22:00, Lord Ed-
ward Street near City Hall, tel. [phone]). Central Internet Café is aptly named
(Mon-Fri 9:00-22:00, Sat 11:00-19:00, Sun 12:00-18:00, 6 Grafton Street, easy-to-
miss door is directly opposite AIB Bank, tel. [phone],
www.centralinternetcafe.com ). Global Internet Café is north of the River Liffey
(Mon-Fri 8:00-21:00, Sat 9:00-20:00, Sun 10:00-20:00, 8 Lower O'Connell Street, tel.
01/878-0295).
Bookstores: The giant granddaddy of them all is Eason's, five minutes north of the
O'ConnellBridge(Mon-Sat8:30-18:30,Sun12:00-17:30,40LowerO'ConnellStreet,
tel. [phone]). South of the River Liffey, check out the intimate Bookstore Up-
stairs, 50 yards from the front gate of Trinity College (Mon-Fri 10:00-19:00, Sat
10:00-18:00, Sun 14:00-18:00, 36 College Green, tel. [phone]).
Laundry: Krystal Launderette, a block southwest of Jurys Inn Christ Church on Patrick
Street, is full-service only. Allow six hours and about €10 for a load (Mon-Fri
9:00-20:00, Sat 9:00-18:00, closed Sun, tel. [phone]). The All-American Laun-
derette offers self- and full-service options (Mon-Sat 8:30-19:00, Sun 10:00-18:00, 40
South Great George's Street, tel. [phone]).
Bike Rental: Phoenix Park Bike Hire offers a stress-free ride option in huge, 1,750-acre
Phoenix Park. It's located off Chesterfield Avenue, the main road bisecting the park,
at the closest corner of the park to the city center, roughly across the river from Heu-
ston Station (€5/hour, €10/3 hours, €20/day, daily 10:00-19:00 “weather depending,”
mobile [phone], www.phoenixparkbikehire.com ) .