Rathgar Places to Visit

Rathgar is a suburb of Dublin and roughly 3 kilometres south of the city centre. The suburb's name comes from the Irish "Ráth Garbh", the meaning of which can be interpreted as "rough ringfort".

Rathgar was originally a village in the eighteenth century, but developed in size and eventually became a Dublin suburb in 1930. Nonetheless, today, it remains largely quiet and residential, despite its good range of amenities including schools and sports facilities.

The Irish novelist James Joyce, former Taoiseach Jack Lynch and Dracula author Bram Stoker are all associated with Rathgar.

Places to Visit in Rathgar, Dublin

If you love to feel connected to nature, you will certainly love Dodder Park. This spans Rathgar, Rathfarnham and Milltown and includes over 100 hectares of greenery. You could see plenty of wildlife there, including kingfishers, dippers, grey herons and foxes.

Despite its strong village character, Rathgar is a good place for shopping. The various retail outlets include a bike shop, wine shop and small supermarket of major national chain SuperValu.

Rathgar is well-served with both primary and secondary schools. These include The High School Dublin, which is independent, co-educational and Protestant managed, and Stratford College on Zion Road.

The best eatery for Indian food? Poppadom Restaurant is certainly a strong contender... The gracious Victorian residence Ardagh House is great for an overnight stay.

Transport in Rathgar, Dublin

Local operator Dublin Bus takes its 14, 14C, 15, 15A, 15B, 16, 16C, 49, 65, 65B, 140 and 142 services, plus its late night Nitelink 15N and 49N services, to Rathgar. There is also a route of Mortons Coaches that travels from Merrion to Citywest and stops at Rathgar on the way.

Rathgar does not have a railway station of its own, but is near to Ranelagh, which has its own station on the Luas light rail network that can take you to many different parts of Dublin.