Ireland's bustling capital has been busy transforming the traveller experience, with fresh ideas that put local people and cultural heritage at its heart. My first memories of Dublin are anchored in its storied docklands: riding a borrowed bike between the "two-up-two-down" redbrick terraced rows in Ringsend, the Dublin suburb where my grandparents lived, and making sandcastles on nearby Sandymount Beach. Every time I go back, sense-of-belonging floodgates fling open at first sight of the low-lying cityscape and the way it seemingly drifts into the calm shallows of its wildlife-teeming, Unesco-listed Biosphere Bay .
Strong emotions flow for a place I'm attached to but have never lived in. Dublin's ingenious initiatives to balance the needs of people with nature is one of the reasons why it has been named European Smart Tourism Capital 2024 by The European Commission. Another is that the city has created a slew of new experiences that explore "what it means to be Irish" – not only for the millions around the world connected by the Irish diaspora, but also for those who want to jump into local life and feel what being Irish is all about.
Barry Rogers, head of Dublin City Tourism Unit , explains that the capital has worked to transform the traditional tourism experience by "putting locals and people at its heart". A brilliant example: the new Dublin Discovery Trails app , which transports visitors from the streets of modern-day Dublin back to important events that shaped the c.
