"Lucan Village" Dublin Things to Do Tip by Lochlainn

Since I've already recommended venues north, south and slap in the middle of Dublin, I better not forget the west! About the only people in these islands who definitely would not welcome a resolution to the 'Where's Lord Lucan' mystery are the residents of this suburb of Dublin and their co-patriots in Castlebar Co. Mayo, who were relieved of the urgency in paying their errant landlord's ground rent when he bumped off the kids' nanny and scarpered in 1974! (Even many English are amazed at the amount of money in ground rent paid by Irish tenants to English landlords to this day!) Lucan House itself is now the home of the Italian Ambassador. The village has grown into a sizeable suburb even since then but is still the starting point of some lovely rambles or cycle rides around the Liffey Valley. Situated between Lucan and Chapelizod, the Strawberry Beds may have spawned one of the most irritating Dublin folk songs that tourists and the rest of us are subjected to ad nauseum in recent years, but it is still a beautiful area, and home to one of Dublin's nicest pubs - also called The Strawberry Beds. And as I'm always aware that the kids' vote counts too - check out nearby Fort Lucan Adventure Playground (Don't worry - there's a cafe there for those not attracted for some reason to 40 foot slides and trampolines!). Myself, I'm content to explore the many riverside walks but canoeing enthusiasts may like to know that those same walks provide a unique spectating vantage point during Dublin's annual Liffey Descent, when thousands of canoeists brave the weirs and rapids in early September.

Directions: 8 km west of Dublin. If cycling go through the Phoenix Park exiting at Chapelizod and follow the river west.