Dublinia

Dublinia occupies the Synod Hall, a Victorian building joined to Christ Church Cathedral by a covered stone bridge over the street, and covers the city from the Viking arrival in the ninth century to the end of the medieval period. It is reconstruction-led: a Viking house you can enter, a longship section, a medieval street with a merchant's house and a fair, a plague and sickness section, and a floor on how the archaeology was recovered, drawing heavily on the Wood Quay excavations of the 1970s - the site a few hundred metres away where an exceptionally rich Viking settlement was dug and then, over enormous public protest, built over with civic offices. That episode is covered directly. Saint Michael's Tower at the top gives a view over the rooftops after a long climb. The ticket includes the bridge across into Christ Church, which is the more atmospheric half of the visit.

What you actually see

• The Viking house and longship - full-size reconstructions you can walk into.
• The medieval street - merchant's house, fair and everyday life.
• The Wood Quay story - the excavation and the protest over building on it.
• The bridge to Christ Church - the covered stone crossing to the cathedral.

When to go

Any season; indoors. School holidays are busy. Two hours covers Dublinia and the cathedral together on the combined ticket.

Honest expectations

Reconstruction and interpretation rather than original artefacts - most of the real Wood Quay material is in the National Museum. Aimed substantially at families. Saint Michael's Tower is a long climb up a narrow stair.

Nearby

Christ Church Cathedral is across the bridge; Dublin Castle and Temple Bar are a short walk.