The Ultimate Gay Travel Guide
The Gay Passport is your complete Gay Travel Guide. Looking to Drink, Play or Sleep we have reviews to help. Award-winning & Updated 2021.
The gay nightlife area of Dublin is, conveniently, the same as the general nightlife area of Dublin: the cultural and party hub of Temple Bar. This is where most tourists spend the bulk of their time in Dublin, especially in the evenings. As well as all the pubs and clubs you could ever want, Temple Bar is home to museums, shops, and landmarks like Dublin Castle and Trinity College. Despite being the most popular area of Dublin for tourists, there are quite a few budget-friendly hotels and hostels to choose from. Most of these are no-frills in terms of facilities, but many have cool design or fun traditional bars. Pubs don’t usually open beyond 12:30, so you should be able to get some sleep even if your room is above a busy bar.
Legally yes, all hotels in Ireland are gay-friendly.
Ireland has seen a dramatic change in LGBT attitudes and policies within the space of a generation. For many years, Ireland was a conservative country with a strong religious influence, but in 2015 it became the first country in the world to legalize gay marriage on a national level by popular vote. People have the right to self-declare their gender, and there are strong protections from discrimination and hate crimes on the basis of sexuality.
Most gay visitors to Dublin book hotels around the Temple Bar area. This area includes most of Dublin’s gay nightlife and is also the most popular part of the city for tourists in general. As well as all the gay nightlife, the bulk of Dublin’s general pubs and clubs are located here as well the city’s museums amd shops.
Temple Bar Inn is a popular gay-friendly hotel in Dublin, combining chic interior design, comfortable facilities, and a fantastic location right next to world-famous Trinity College. The gay bars in Temple Bar are just 5 minutes away, and Buskers, a club that often hosts the popular gay party Profile, is just around the corner. The hotel has a cozy atmosphere, with contemporary industrial design in the lobby and colorful, modern rooms with Celtic decorative accents. Their single rooms are ideal for solo travelers, while the triple and quadruple rooms are great for groups. Facilities include a great workspace in the lounge, a lovely terrace on the ground floor, and 24/7 complimentary tea and coffee. Temple Bar Inn is one of the most booked gay-friendly hotels in Dublin.
Blooms Hotel is impossible to miss when walking around Temple Bar, thanks to its fabulously colorful Art Nouveau floral exterior. Inside, the rooms are a lot more classic and understated, and extremely comfortable – there are options for two, three, and four people. One of the best things about the hotel is its bar, VAT Bar, an authentic Irish pub serving traditional bar food all day long. For taking the party well into the night, there is also an attached club, Club M – although you also have all the nightlife of Temple Bar right on your doorstep. The George, Dublin’s most famous and most beloved gay bar, is just a 3-minute walk away. Blooms Hotel is one of the most booked gay-friendly hotels in Dublin.
Paramount Hotel has a stylish 1930s art deco vibe, with cozy classic rooms furnished in dark wood and leather. Its location is impeccable, under a 5-minute walk to the River Liffey, Dublin Castle, and pretty much all the gay Temple Bar venues. Both Street 66, a popular gay bar, and The Boilerhouse, Dublin’s best gay sauna, are under 100m from the hotel. Paramount Hotel also boasts an excellent bar of its own, the Turks Head, which features a spectacular Spanish-inspired mosaic bar and DJs spinning until 3 AM every night.
This boutique hotel offers excellent value, with a quiet location right in the middle of Dublin’s busy nightlife district. The iconic Temple Bar pub is just next door, while all the gay bars of Temple Bar are under a 5-minute walk away. The rooms are cozy and comfortable, with colorful decor – fans of crushed velvet will feel particularly at home. The compact Lightbox Double Room and Pod Bunk Room are especially good value, although there are bigger options if you would like some more space.
This budget hotel is located on the north bank of the River Liffey, about a 10-minute walk to The George and the rest of the Temple Bar nightlife area. Rooms are simple and no frills, and come in single, double, and triple. Some rooms have views of the Liffey – ask to book one of these if you can. There are two bars attached to the hotel: Lanigan’s and Metropolitan Bar, both friendly, authentic Irish pubs serving classic Irish bar food.
This sprawling hostel is located on the northern banks of the River Liffey, about a 10-minute walk across the picturesque 19th-century Ha’penny Bridge to the Temple Bar nightlife. Choose between a private room (which can sleep up to four people) or a small, medium, or large dorm. The largest dorm sleeps 34 people, making it incredibly easy to make new friends, but you may want to choose one of the smaller dorms for more peace and quiet. The hostel boasts several cool hangouts, including a games and music room and a relaxed lounge with hammocks, and the walls are covered in original murals. The bar is lively and reasonably priced, and they even let you bring in your own drinks. There are daily free walking tours and a pub crawl every night, so you’ll always have people to go out with.
This friendly, no-frills hostel is located in the heart of Temple Bar, under a 5-minute walk to all the gay venues in the area and to several major Dublin sights like Dublin Castle and Trinity College. It offers private rooms for two, four, or six people, as well as shared dorm accommodation. The hostel is attached to a traditional Irish bar and restaurant, with live music on every day. There is a shared kitchen if you want to make your own meals, and rates usually include a continental breakfast.
This branch of trendy hostel chain Generator is directly adjacent to the Jameson Distillery, which is good news for Irish whiskey lovers. Its industrial architecture is cool and contemporary, with large shared spaces and minimalist rooms with custom-made furnishings, colorful accents, and wall art. The rooms come in a wide range of styles and sizes, from Deluxe Doubles that would look at home in a design boutique hotel to large dorms – you can even book a private dorm room with a Jacuzzi, for the ultimate group experience! There are plenty of social spaces to meet people, including a fun bar and a cool bar and restaurant. Plus, as a perk, guests get discounted entry to both the Jameson Distillery and Guiness Storehouse tours.
Temple Bar Hotel is a popular gay-friendly hotel in Dublin, offering chic boutique-style accommodation a short walk from Dublin’s main shopping streets and from its gay bars. The decor is polished and modern, featuring minimalist furnishings in a cool palette of greys and blues with pastel yellow accents. The rooms are exceptionally comfortable, and there are options for every budget and every type of traveler: the compact pod rooms are great for solo travelers or couples on a short break, while the Deluxe Doubles and the Suites are ideal for a more luxurious romantic getaway, and the triple and quadruple rooms easily accommodate a group of friends. There is a cool bar with live music on the weekends, as well as a sports and games bar. Temple Bar Hotel is one of the most booked gay-friendly hotels in Dublin.
The Fleet is a stylish boutique hotel, located on the eastern end of Temple Bar a few minutes from Trinity College. Thanks to a recent refurbishment in 2019, all the rooms and common areas of the hotel are looking great. The hotel bar, lobby, and cafe offer classic old-school elegance, using original features of the early 20th century building, while the rooms are more contemporary yet still have vintage touches. There are rooms to suit every budget, but even the simple Double Rooms are exceptionally comfortable and stylish. One of the highlights of every room is the bed, topped with memory foam and guaranteeing a fantastic night’s sleep.
The Gay Passport is your complete Gay Travel Guide. Looking to Drink, Play or Sleep we have reviews to help. Award-winning & Updated 2021.