Why go now
Everyone crushes into the city for March's St Patrick's Day parades, but far better to visit for the more esoteric Bloomsday on 16 June (jamesjoyce.ie). It celebrates the life of James Joyce, and is named after Leopold Bloom, the protagonist of Ulysses, and involves lots of readings, dramatisations and drinking. Many enthusiasts dress in Edwardian costume and retrace Bloom's route around Dublin as described in the book, reciting passages as they go. Hungry for more literature? Catch the Dublin Writers Festival for five days of readings and debates with Irish and international authors (11-15 June; dublinwritersfestival.com). It's also now even easier to get to Dublin thanks to a new British Airways flight from London City Airport, which starts today and operates up to three times a day.
Checking in
The Dylan, renovated from a Victorian nurses' home and retaining its original ornate red-brick exterior, opened in 2006 and is still the hottest place to stay (Eastmoreland Place, 00 353 1660 3000; dylan.ie; doubles from €240). There are deep red carpets, bold gilded mirrors and arty furnishings. Number 31 (31 Leeson Close; 00 353 1676 5011; number31.ie; doubles €220-280) is the place for romantic getaways, with chocolate-brown marble bathrooms and a sunken lounge to die for, in a classical Georgian coach-house once belonging to architect Sam Stephenson. Bewleys (Merrion Rd, Ballsbridge; 00 353 1668 1111; bewleyshotels.com; all rooms €119) in a restored 19th-century Masonic school has simple, no-frills rooms in a peaceful suburb close to the centre, and is good value for families. If you're travelling alone and resent paying for a double room, historic Trinity College (College Green; 00 353 1896 1177) is set in an immaculate sculpture-studded campus and has single rooms as well as twins from €60 during the summer holidays, starting mid-June.
Hit the streets
Rather than joining long queues to glimpse the Book of Kells, visit the glorious Chester Beatty Library in the grounds of Dublin Castle (00 353 1407 0750; cbl.ie) to see Beatty's personal collection of illuminated sacred manuscripts and, from 25 June, Rembrandt etchings. North of the Liffey, Hugh Lane Gallery (Charlemont House, Parnell Square North; 00 353 1222 5550; hughlane.ie) celebrates its centenary as the world's first contemporary art gallery. Don't miss the re-created, chaotically untidy studio of Dublin-born Francis Bacon. If the sun decides to emerge, locals flock to St Stephen's Green's manicured lawns, but you can escape the crowds at the secret garden of nearby Iveagh Gardens, once private grounds of the Earls of Iveagh, filled with water cascades, broken statues and a Victorian rosarium.
Coffee break
Everyone's favourite institution, Bewleys (78-79 Grafton St; 00 353 1672 7720; bewleys.com) has been importing, roasting and serving coffee for more than 150 years. Feast on a full Irish breakfast or sip a macchiato on its outdoor terrace overlooking busy Grafton Street. For a perfect afternoon tea, sample home-made cakes at quaint tearoom Queen of Tarts (4 Cork Hill, Dame St; 00 353 1670 7499) or have an alfresco pit stop at Quartier Bloom (Lower Ormond Quay), the newly created Italian quarter.
Neighbourhood watch
Centrepiece of the regenerated Docklands area is Grand Canal Square, adorned with a paved garden, huge red 'chopsticks' lit up at night and, from 2009, a new theatre designed by Daniel Libeskind. From the square, it's a picturesque leafy walk past the Grand Canal's locks and barges to Portobello and the Shaw Birthplace (33 Synge St, D8; 00 353 1475 0854), childhood home of George Bernard Shaw.
Worked up an appetite
Forget the old cliche of substandard Irish food. These days Dublin boasts top international cuisine such as Michelin-starred Bon Appetit (9 James Terrace, Malahide; 00 353 1845 0314; bonappetit.ie), where Dublin-born chef Oliver Dunne creates exquisite French cuisine. Gruel (68a Dame St; 00 353 1670 7119) is ideal for a good value hearty lunch of thick home-made soup with a hunk of bread. Dine on fresh pasta and crunchy salads alongside exquisite Harry Clarke stained-glass windows at Café Bar Deli (Bewley's Café, 78-79 Grafton St; 00 353 1672 7720; cafebardeli.ie) or sample modern Irish cuisine such as potted Kerry crab on soda bread at the elegant Winding Stair (40 Ormond Quay; 00 353 1872 7320; winding-stair.com) overlooking the Liffey.
Retail therapy
At the Design Centre on the top floor of Powerscourt Centre (South William St, 00 353 1679 5718, powerscourtcentre.com), browse through fashions from top Irish designers such as Philip Treacy and Pauric Sweeney. Dublin is developing its foodie culture, as seen at the weekend Temple Bar Food Market (Meeting House Square, Temple Bar). Serious antique collectors should head to Francis Street, especially O'Sullivan Antiques (43-44 Francis St; 00 353 1454 1143; osullivanantiques.com) for Georgian furniture. The red-brick Victorian George's Street Arcade (South Great George's St; georgesstreetarcade.ie) has quirky stalls with kooky clothes and second-hand records.
Big night out
Kick off your cultural night out at the Abbey Theatre (26 Lower Abbey St; 00 353 1878 7222; abbeytheatre.ie), which has been staging literary classics for more than a century, while its newer Peacock theatre is dedicated to new Irish writers. Left-leaning regulars have been drinking at Grogans (15 South William St; 00 353 1677 9320) for decades. Enjoy informal traditional music sessions at Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann (32 Belgrave Square, Monkstown; 00 353 1280 0295; comhaltas.ie) or try its Friday night ceilidh.
Getting there
British Airways' new flights from London City to Dublin cost from £115 return (ba.com) and it also has departures from Gatwick. Both Aer Lingus and Ryanair (ryanair.com) fly from Birmingham, Glasgow, Manchester and London, with flights starting around £50 return. Dublin International airport is six miles north of the city centre, served by the Airlink bus (€10 return).
· Emma Levine is the author of the new Frommer's guide, Dublin Day by Day. To order a copy for £7.99 with free UK p&p go to observer.co.uk bookshop or call 0870 836 0885
