TRAVEL: Think you’ve ‘done Dublin’, think again!

For Dublin has a surprising secret ready to greet you just 20 minutes DART ride away from the city centre - the Dun Laoghaire Rathdown area.

Where the city meets the sea, Dun Laoghaire Rathdown (DLR) has everything a visitor could possibly want from the mountains to the sea! The DLR County Council towns and villages have something to suit every taste - whether you’re in Blackrock, Killiney or Dundrum, Dalkey or Glencullen, Monkstown or Mount Merrion.

Stepping onto the train in Portrush, just five relaxing hours later, I was breathing in the sea air at the tranquil FitzPatrick Castle Hotel in Killiney. This 18th century, four star luxury castle hotel is located near the village of Dalkey and the town of Dun Laoghaire. The family-owned hotel exudes an air of tranquillity, grace and old world elegance while also being warm and welcoming.

Tucking into a mouth-watering lunch of fresh sandwiches and wraps, followed by the most exquisite mini desserts (the lemon tart was the outright winner!), we chatted with CEO Eithne Fitzpatrick who is at the helm of this third generation business. She has now been joined in the running of the hotel by her two sons. Fifty years since Eithne’s father Paddy took a derelict building and transformed it into a fabulous hotel, FitzPatrick Castle Hotel is still one of the best known in Ireland and regularly welcomes a loyal clientele from Northern Ireland.

Stepping into my room, it’s not hard to see why - quite apart from the luxuriously decorated room, opening a patio door, I stepped out onto my balcony to a stunning vista of the Dalkey Bay coastline.

Then it was off out into Dun Laoghaire town to enjoy the attractions of its prime seafront position. We first visited Ireland’s National Maritime Museum which is situated in the decommissioned Church of Ireland Old Mariners’ Church. This fascinating building, which still houses