Rosita Boland picks six of the best places to go in the capital - without charge
At swim in city bay
There aren't many capital cities where you can access a clean beach within minutes of walking down the main street. Seapoint, a short Dart ride from the centre of town, is a Blue Flag beach. This means it has passed all the environmental and safety tests, that the water is clean and there's a lifeguard on duty during the summer season. Pack your togs and take the plunge.
Pick a picnic
Pack a picnic and walk around Howth Head for a blast of sea air. One of the most scenic walks in Dublin, with great views on a clear day.
Garden heaven
Now that garden space is getting more precious, at least there is still a beautiful public garden in Dublin available to all. The National Botanic Gardens in Glasnevin, known by Dubliners as the "Bots", cover some 48 acres, and feature an arboretum, rock garden, "Burren" area, pond and student garden. The jewels of the gardens, however, are not plants, but the beautiful curvilinear glasshouses. These were designed by Dubliner Richard Turner, who also designed the more famous glasshouse at Kew Gardens outside London. However, although all the Glasnevin glasshouses have been restored in recent years, Kew's were repaired using modern steel, while Glasnevin's 1995 repairs were done in the traditional way, using wrought-iron. Mon-Sat 9am-6pm. Sun 11am-6pm
Yeats dates
A world-class exhibition on the life and works of WB Yeats opened at the National Library of Ireland in May and will run for three years. It's a hugely impressive multimedia exhibition, which imaginatively showcases the key events in Yeats's life in a manner that's both engaging and informative. Items on show include letters written in childhood, Yeats's Nobel medal, drafts of his most famous poems, his passport, diaries and notebooks. Free tours at 11am and 3pm. National Library, Kildare Street. Open Mon-Wed 10am-7.45pm. Thur-Fri 10am-4.45pm. Sat 10am-5pm
Raising the Bar
Ongoing this month, the Temple Bar based festival is hosting a wide variety of events. Movies, including Sideways, Chicago and American Beauty, are being shown at weekend evenings at Meeting House Square. There's a circus season, a Moroccan market, bands, family events and a day of African culture. Everything free, but some events require tickets.
[ www.temple-bar.ieOpens in new window ]
Bog bods
A new exhibition at the National Museum of Ireland features the recently found bog bodies, Clonycavan Man and Oldcroghan Man.
An area of the museum has been given over to this Iron Age exhibition, featuring the bog bodies and related finds of the period. Excellent layout and audiovisuals contextualise the significance of the finds. Eerie and moving. National Museum, Kildare Street. Tue-Sat 10am-5pm. Sun 2pm-5pm.