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Dublin is both the largest city and the capital of the Republic of Ireland. It is located near the midpoint of Ireland's east coast, at the mouth of the River Liffey and at the centre of the Dublin Region. Founded as a Viking settlement, the city has been Ireland's primary city for most of the island's history since medieval times. Today, it is an economic, administrative and cultural centre for the island of Ireland and has one of the fastest growing populations of any European capital city.

Dublin is one of the constituent cities in the Dublin-Belfast corridor region which has a population of just under 3 million.

The common name for the city in Modern Irish is 'Baile Átha Cliath' ('The Settlement of the Ford of the Reed Hurdles'). 'Áth Cliath' is a place-name referring to a fording point of the Liffey in the vicinity of Heuston Station. 'Baile Átha Cliath' was later applied to an early Christian monastery which is believed to have been situated in the area of Aungier Street currently occupied by St Valentine's (Roman Catholic) church. Due to its length, it is sometimes abbreviated as BÁC. A person from either the city or county of Dublin is often referred to as a "Dub".

The subsequent Scandinavian settlement was on the River Poddle, a tributary of the Liffey, to the East of Christchurch, in the area known as Wood Quay. The Dubh Linn was a lake used by the Scandinavians to moor their ships and was connected to the Liffey by the Poddle. The Dubh Linn and Poddle were covered during the early 1800s, and as the city expanded they were largely forgotten about. The Dubh Linn was situated in the area of the park of the Chester Beatty Library in Dublin Castle.

In 2008, Dublin was listed as the fifth-richest city in the world

Dublin Shopping

Dublin is a popular shopping spot for both Irish people and tourists. Dublin city centre has several shopping districts, including Grafton Street, Henry Street, Stephen's Green Shopping Centre, Jervis Shopping Centre, and newly refurbished Ilac Shopping Centre (all popular meet-up spots for decades). On Grafton Street, the most famous shops include Brown Thomas and its sister shop BT2, being akin to Bloomingdales in New York City, for example. Brown Thomas also contains "mini-stores" such as Hermès and Chanel on its Wicklow Street frontage. This is Dublin's nearest equivalent to a Designer shopping street such as Bond Street in London or 5th Avenue in New York City.

Dublin city is the location of large department stores, such as Clerys on O'Connell Street, Arnotts on Henry Street, Brown Thomas on Grafton Street and Debenhams (formerly Roches Stores) on Henry Street.

A major €750m development for Dublin city centre has been given the green light. The development of the so-called Northern Quarter will see the construction of 47 new shops, 175 apartments and a four-star hotel. Dublin City Council gave Arnotts planning permission for the plans to change the area bounded by Henry Street, O'Connell Street, Abbey Street and Liffey Street. The redevelopment will also include 14 new cafes along with a 149-bed hotel. It is expected that work on the new area will start in the second half of 2008. Prince's Street, which runs off O'Connell Street, will become a full urban street and pedestrian thoroughfare.

Since the mid 1990s, suburban Dublin has seen the completion of several modern retail centres. These include Dundrum Town Centre (on the Luas Green Line), Blanchardstown Centre, The Square in Tallaght (on the Luas Red Line), Liffey Valley Shopping Centre in Clondalkin, Northside Shopping Centre in Coolock, and Pavilions Shopping Centre in Swords.

Dublin Northside and Southside

A north-south division has traditionally existed in Dublin for some time, with the dividing line being the River Liffey. The Northside is seen by some as working-class (with the exception of a few suburbs such as Howth, Malahide, Portmarnock, Clontarf and Sutton) while the Southside is seen as middle and upper middle class (with the exception of a few "working-class" suburbs such as Crumlin, Drimnagh, Inchicore, Ballyfermot, Neilstown and Tallaght). However this is not a clear divide in reality by any means and in fact it is only in recent times that the divide has taken on the present "rich and poor" badge. Traditionally it was a working class divide which began at Dublin docks in the early 1900s where, depending which side of the Liffey a boat docked, the dockers on that side got a day's work while those on the other side went home.

A noted theory on the division dates back some centuries, certainly to the point when the Earl of Kildare built his residence on the then less-regarded Southside. When asked why he was building on the Southside, he replied "Where I go, fashion follows me", and he was promptly followed by most other Irish peers.

Dublin postal districts have odd numbers for districts on the Northside — for example, Phibsboro is in Dublin 7 — and even numbers for the Southside — for example, Sandymount is in Dublin 4. An exception to the rule is Dublin 8, which straddles the river.

About City Sightseeing

City Sightseeing is a global sightseeing bus brand, started by Ensignbus, which operates tour bus rides around keyword plus various cities in the UK and worldwide.

Typically the tours consist of an open top double-decker bus. As the bus travels around the town or city, either pre-recorded or live commentary is provided. City Sightseeing buses are recognisable due to their distinctively decorated red livery. Tickets and offers are transferable between the worldwide tours.

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