The idea behind the Dublin scavenger hunt
The Dublin scavenger hunt is a self-guided city game you play on your phone: you walk from landmark to landmark, solve a riddle at each one by looking closely at what is in front of you, and unlock the stories and legends behind it. It takes about 3 hours, with around 59 minutes of actual walking over 4.7 km and 10 stops, and you start whenever you like.
Highlights include the Spire on O'Connell Street, O'Connell Bridge over the Liffey, Christ Church Cathedral, St Patrick's Cathedral, Molly Malone outside St Andrew's Church and Fusiliers' Arch at St Stephen's Green. Dublin's centre is compact and flat, so one walk links the Georgian north side, the medieval quarter and the shopping streets around Grafton Street.
- Durationabout 3 hours
- Walkingabout 59 min · 4.7 km
- Stops10
- LanguagesEnglish, German, French, Italian, Spanish, Dutch, Polish, Chinese
From the Liffey to Grafton Street, one riddle at a time
Clues carved, cast and gilded
Every one of the 10 stops has its riddle, and the answer is out in the open: words on a monument, names cut into an arch, a figure in bronze. You get there by looking and reasoning, with no need to know any Irish history beforehand.
Dublin's stories and sayings
Solve it and the stop tells you more: where the phrase chancing your arm is said to come from at St Patrick's, why some Dubliners called the arch at St Stephen's Green Traitors' Gate, which Norse king founded the first church on the site of Christ Church. Audio narration is there for anyone who would rather listen than read.
4.7 km, mostly level
Google Maps guides you over 4.7 km, about 59 minutes on foot. The centre is flat apart from the short rise to Christ Church, and you cross the Liffey once, at O'Connell Bridge.
A shower or a lunch can pause it
Nothing is timed: shelter from the rain, stop for lunch, pick the game up tomorrow. If you are staying south of the river, the app lets you start down there and change the order of the stops.
See the route and attractions →
How it works
- Book online Choose the number of players. Your booking reference arrives by email straight away.
- Get the app Download the World City Trail app from the App Store or Google Play and enter your booking reference.
- Play when you like Start whenever you are ready, walk at your own pace and pause any time. No guide, no fixed schedule.
Good company for the Dublin hunt
A first walk across Dublin
From the broad sweep of O'Connell Street over the river to the two medieval cathedrals and on to St Stephen's Green, the route shows how the city fits together. Each riddle makes you stop where you would otherwise stroll past.
Children and their grown-ups
Children are good at spotting clues, and Dublin has the right kind: a gilded harp on a monument, a steel spire 120 metres tall, Molly Malone in bronze. An adult plays with them, and the level streets keep it manageable.
Friends, parties and office teams
Up to 5 players make a team, each on their own phone, so a big party can split up and play the same streets side by side. The last stop is the Irish Whiskey Museum on Grafton Street, opposite Trinity College, an easy place to meet up afterwards.
Good to know
- Bring a charged smartphone with mobile data; a power bank helps.
- No entry tickets needed: everything happens outside the buildings. Going inside is optional and paid separately.
- Family friendly; children must be accompanied by an adult.
- Not suitable for wheelchair users and difficult with strollers.
- Teams of up to 5 work best; bigger groups split into several teams, one ticket per player.
- Every purchase helps support stray cats and dogs in Greece.
The route: from O'Connell Street over the Liffey to the cathedrals and Grafton Street
10 stops · about 59 min walking · start: Parnell Monument · finish: Irish Whiskey Museum
The hunt starts at the Parnell Monument at the top of O'Connell Street and heads south past the Spire to O'Connell Bridge. Across the Liffey you reach Dublin City Hall, then climb to Christ Church Cathedral and St Patrick's Cathedral. You walk east to Fusiliers' Arch at St Stephen's Green, continue to the National Museum on Kildare Street and St Andrew's Church, and finish at the Irish Whiskey Museum on Grafton Street. Whether you would rather start on the south side or take the cathedrals first, the app lets you pick another opening stop and change the order, and because the riddles are all solved outdoors, not one ticket is needed between the Parnell Monument and Grafton Street.
Open the route map ↗
1Parnell MonumentStart
This monument at the north end of O'Connell Street honours Charles Stewart Parnell, the 19th-century leader who campaigned for Irish Home Rule. Augustus Saint-Gaudens made the bronze statue, set against a granite obelisk, and it was unveiled in 1911. Look for the gilded harp and Parnell's words about the march of a nation.
Read the full story →
2The Spire
The stainless steel Spire, also called the Monument of Light, rises 120 metres above O'Connell Street. Designed by Ian Ritchie Architects and completed in 2003, it stands where Nelson's Pillar stood until it was blown up in 1966. At night its tip is lit from inside.
Read the full story →
3O'Connell Bridge
James Gandon's Carlisle Bridge crossed the River Liffey here from the 1790s. It was rebuilt and widened around 1880 and renamed after Daniel O'Connell, the campaigner for Catholic emancipation, and it is almost as wide as it is long. His bronze monument by John Henry Foley stands at the end of O'Connell Street.
4Dublin City Hall
Thomas Cooley designed this domed neoclassical building, built between 1769 and 1779 as the Royal Exchange for Dublin's merchants. In 1852 it became the seat of Dublin Corporation, the city council. Its Corinthian columns face Parliament Street, and Dublin Castle stands right behind it.
5Christ Church Cathedral
The older of Dublin's two medieval cathedrals goes back to around 1030, when the Norse king Sitric Silkbeard founded a church here. The Normans rebuilt it in stone from the late 12th century, and its present look comes largely from George Edmund Street's restoration in the 1870s. A covered bridge links it to the former Synod Hall.
6St Patrick's Cathedral
Founded in 1191 beside a well where, according to tradition, Saint Patrick baptised converts, this is the largest church in Ireland and the national cathedral of the Church of Ireland. Jonathan Swift, author of Gulliver's Travels, was its dean and is buried here. The phrase chancing your arm is said to come from an old door in the cathedral.
7Fusiliers' Arch
This granite arch at the Grafton Street corner of St Stephen's Green was put up in 1907 to remember the Royal Dublin Fusiliers who died in the Boer War in South Africa. The names of the fallen are carved on its underside, and some Dubliners called it Traitors' Gate. Marks on the stone are said to date from the 1916 Rising.
8National Museum of Ireland – Archaeology
The museum on Kildare Street opened in 1890 in a building by Thomas Newenham Deane and his son, entered through a domed rotunda. It holds Ireland's archaeology collections, including the Tara Brooch, the Ardagh Chalice and Iron Age bog bodies. Next door stands Leinster House, seat of the Irish parliament.
9St Andrew's Church
This Gothic Revival church on Suffolk Street was built in the 1860s on the site of an earlier oval church that Dubliners called the Round Church. The parish gave its name to nearby St Andrew Street. Outside stands the bronze statue of Molly Malone, the fishmonger of Dublin's best-known song, first unveiled in 1988.
Read the full story →
10Irish Whiskey MuseumFinish
The Irish Whiskey Museum stands on Grafton Street, opposite the front gate of Trinity College. Inside, guided tours tell the story of Irish whiskey, whose name comes from the Irish words uisce beatha, meaning water of life.
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Rebecca– United States –
Collected on GetYourGuide
What a nice surprise
Germany –
Collected on GetYourGuide
Die Frage am Spire war etwas missverständlich ausgedrückt, aber ansonsten gefiel uns das Spiel sehr gut
Germany –
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Spain –
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Anonymous (verified owner) –
Bien mais sans plus. Une erreur sur la carte, ce n’est pas la bonne église St Andrews qui est indiquée, et donc nous avons du passer une énigme.
France –
Collected on GetYourGuide
United Kingdom –
Collected on GetYourGuide
we understand a great time around Dublin walked so left the last 2 places cause we got tired. Great way to find ur way around city on first day. for £10 it was ok but would have preferred tompay a little less.x
United Kingdom –
Collected on GetYourGuide
we understand a great time around Dublin walked so left the last 2 places cause we got tired. Great way to find ur way around city on first day. for £10 it was ok but would have preferred tompay a little less.x
Italy –
Collected on GetYourGuide
Ottimo giro, fattibile in mezza giornata, si vedono cose interessanti. Rapporto qualit?-prezzo eccezionale.
Jason– France –
Collected on GetYourGuide
Good way to visit some of the sights in Dublin, would have preferred a more complete tour with other spots included
Ireland –
Collected on GetYourGuide
first question is near impossible compared to the rest of them! Great experience and is a must do!
J?r?my– Belgium –
Collected on GetYourGuide
Chouette moyen de d?couvrir la ville.
Germany –
Collected on GetYourGuide
Wir hatten bei der Schnitzeljagd viel Spa?. W?hrend man die R?tsel l?st, erh?lt man viele interessante Informationen ?ber die Sehensw?rdigkeiten und sieht viele wichtige sehenswerte Orte. Die kniffligen R?tsel sind alle l?sbar und machen Spa?.
Lisette– Netherlands –
Collected on GetYourGuide
Makkelijke manier om in je eigen tempo de stad te zien.
Canada –
Collected on GetYourGuide
Un peu trop facile
Germany –
Collected on GetYourGuide
Die Infotexte zu den Sehensw?rdigkeiten waren toll
Friedel– Germany –
Collected on GetYourGuide
Die Tour war informativ, interessant und kurzweilig.
France –
Collected on GetYourGuide
Permet de d?couvrir la ville
Ireland –
Collected on GetYourGuide
First riddle I don’t know where we would have gotten the answer…. The rest were pretty good, not too challenging. We tried it in the rain and ended up drinking our way through it! ??
Christophe– France –
Collected on GetYourGuide
Une r?flexion bon enfant et qui permet une ballade tranquille dans Dublin
United States –
Collected on GetYourGuide
It was difficult to follow some of the picture clues because they were so small on our cell phone and wouldn’t stay enlarged
Germany –
Collected on GetYourGuide
The Riddles were good, however you need Exit Games experience to not trust the hints and think out of the box. The hints itself could also be better, e.g. if you have to find two statues for a solution, the location of the statues should be given with the last Hintergrund.
Terry– France –
Collected on GetYourGuide
Tr?s bonne chasse au tr?sor qui nous a permis de d?couvrir la ville de fa?on tr?s ludique. Bonnes ?nigmes.
Anja– Germany –
Collected on GetYourGuide
Die Idee einer Schnitzeljad zu den bedeutendsten Sehensw?rdigkeiten ist gut. Leider waren die Anweisungen oft nicht richtig zu verstehen oder zu ungenau. Zum Beispiel sollte man das Alter der auf 2 S?ulen abgebildeten Personen vergleichen. Dann stellt man aber schnell fest, dass es diverse Statuen in der Stra?e gibt…
Bert– Germany –
Collected on GetYourGuide
Great Walking tour, not too difficult.
Germany –
Collected on GetYourGuide
Nette M?glichkeit die Stadt zu erkunden Leider schlecht ?bersetzt
Germany –
Collected on GetYourGuide
Texte waren unabh?ngig von den R?tseln bzw. der entsprechenden Sehensw?rdigkeiten. Wir hatten schon mal eine Schnitzeljagt in Rotterdam, da war beides besser aufeinander abgestimmt. Wir haben lange gebraucht und nicht alle Aufgaben bearbeitet. War nett, aber w?rden es nicht nochmal buchen.
United States –
Collected on GetYourGuide
The activity overall is very fun and a great way to see a lot of things in Dublin in one day. I think that the instructions could have been done better, but besides that the activity was good.
Germany –
Collected on GetYourGuide
Super Schnitzeljagd.
France –
Collected on GetYourGuide
Activit? tr?s plaisante et agr?able Nous avions fait deux groupes et donc un challenge C’?tait donc tr?s ludique Je recommande vivement cette activit?
France –
Collected on GetYourGuide
Activit? tr?s plaisante et agr?able Nous avions fait deux groupes et donc un challenge C’?tait donc tr?s ludique Je recommande vivement cette activit?
Guernsey –
Collected on GetYourGuide
Tricky to start, but once you got the hang of it very good. Great way to see the sights if you are not in a rush.
France –
Collected on GetYourGuide
Super activit?, ludique et culturelle Nous ?tions entre amis et avons fait deux groupes, tout le monde a ador? Nous recommandons sans difficult?
Germany –
Collected on GetYourGuide
Unfortunately, we couldn’t do 2 riddles. One church was closed and to solve the riddle we had to go inside (Molly Malone). The second one was the national museum of archeology (building activity). It has a new entrance recently. So we hadn’t had a good view to the building to complete the error search properly…
Germany –
Collected on GetYourGuide
Die Schnitzeljagd war wirklich eine lustige Tour durch die Stadt. Manche R?tsel sind einfacher als andere. Wir fanden es gut das man zwischendurch seine Pausen machen konnte oder sogar am n?chsten Tag erst weiter l?uft.
Cameron –
Collected on GetYourGuide
Great fun and explored so much more of the city that we initially would have. Some were hard but great to have the clues to push us along. Great fun for a couple.
Danielle –
Collected on GetYourGuide
soms onlogische route, deden t vanaf 17 uur ivm lichtjes tijdens kerst waardoor we niet bij aanwijzingen konden komen
IliasSol –
We finished the game in about 2 hours. The route was very good and we saw many places of the city. The riddles were good and the info interesting. Would recommend