Best cinema ...
On the northside of the Liffey, just off O'Connell Street, The cute Lighthouse Cinema is the best place to catch a blockbuster or an arthouse film.  Meanwhile, the Irish Film Instute (IFI) on 6 Eustace Street in Temple bar showcases the best movies from around the globe. If you're visiting during the summer months you may be lucky enough to catch a free outdoor screening of a movie during the Sunday Times Outdoor Film Festival on Meeting House Square in Temple Bar. For a classy cocktails-and-movie experience check out the Sugar Club on 8 Lower Leeson Street. They regularly host decadent movie-themed parties where guests dress as their favourite screen idols before sitting down to watch the classic movie in question.  Past movie nights have included Breakfast at Tiffany's - don't forget your bling!

Prettiest parks...
Rent a bicycle in the Phoenix Park and spot deer in their native habitat. Besides being great exercise, it's also a really a fun way to spend a sunny afternoon. Bicycle rental costs €5 per hour or €7 for two hours and a map is included in case you get lost!  Alternatively, take a stroll around St Stephens Green or climb aboard a horse-drawn carriage for a romantic jaunt around the park. Also in the city centre, you'll find The Iveagh Gardens (just off Harcourt St) to be one of Dublin's best kept secrets - a true urban oasis.

Best place for a stroll...
Follow in the footsteps of all the greats from Oscar Wilde, to James Joyce and George Bernard Shaw and find out why Dublin is listed as a UNESCO City of Literature, by taking a literary walking tour of Dublin.

When the sun is shining, the leafy canal banks of Portobello are idyllic.  Take some bread along and join locals in feeding the resident swans and ducks of the Grand Canal.

Best place to hear traditional Irish music...
Most Dublin pubs will host evenings of traditional Irish music but there are a few special pubs that have earned a reputation for having great live music. The Cobblestone fits into this category.  Located on North King Street, Dublin 7, it is a traditional, casual, city centre pub that hosts some of the best traditional music and roots sessions in all of Dublin.

O' Donoghues in Merrion Row has been associated with traditional Irish bands including The Dubliners and the Furey Brothers for what seems like forever.  Both used to play regular sessions in the pub. Not much has changed in O' Donoghues, including the décor which still maintains many of its original features.  Traditional Irish music sessions place weekly and are highly regarded among musicians.

M Hughes on 20 Chancery Street, Dublin 7 is probably the least touristy of these pubs, due in most parts to its out of the way location (you'll find it behind the Four Courts Building).  It's the type of place where you'll just happen to stumble upon set dancing classes and traditional music performances.  The easiest way to reach M Hughes is to follow the Luas red line.

Best place to go for a drink...
Music and drinking go hand in hand in Dublin.  Those in search of jigs, reels and Guinness will adore The Cobblestone, The Stag's Head or O' Donoghues on Merrion Row.  Indie and alternative rock fans can sound- check their favourite bands in Whelans and The Village in Wexford Street/Camden Street but if you're dressed to the nines and ready to clink cocktail glasses, check out the upmarket bars and lounges of South William Street.  Or - weather permitting, grab a seat outside Grogan's and soak up the evening sunshine and after-work chat.

There are lots of nice bars in this area including the Bar with No Name at 3 Fade Street which is hard to beat for quiet drinks or lively banter on the terrace. 

Craft and food markets...
Temple Bar Food Market is an organic city centre food market that sets up its stalls every week on Saturdays between 10am and 4.30pm on Meeting House Square.  Here you'll find everything from delicious, local soda bread to organic apples and even oysters. Continuing on to South William Street, wander up to the attic of Powerscourt Townhouse and flick through the rails of cutting-edge clothing from Dublin's young designers at The Loft market. Shop the stalls from 12-6pm on Fridays and Sundays and Saturdays from 11am to 6pm.

Situated in the banks of the Grand Canal, opposite the Mespil Hotel, The Mespil Lunchtime Market takes place every Thursday from 11am-2.00pm.

The market offers a great range of Irish and international cuisine including wood-fired pizza, rotisserie chicken, lamb/horse skewers, paella, Spanish stews, German bratwurst, Palestinian wraps and salads, Mediterranean Grill, Irish chocolates, curries, coffee beans, artisan breads, Chinese noodles, Mexican burritos, cupcakes, burgers and Hungarian Goulash to name but a few dishes on offer.

Over on the north side of the Liffey, Moore Street (just off Henry St) is famous for its larger than life market traders with their battered Silver Cross prams piled high with oranges and giant Toblerones.  These ladies are so synonymous with Dublin Street life that they even starred in a recent photo exhibition.