Dublin’s St. Patrick’s Festival will take place from 15-17 March and the schedule for city-wide events is now live.
The famous Dublin St. Patrick’s Day parade will take place on 17 March, and the route map is now available here: St. Patrick's Day Parade. It is free to view the parade from the street, however, the crowd is usually very large. If you want a good vantage point, you must arrive very early. Also, please take care of your personal safety and your belongings in the large crowd. There will be some changes to regular train, bus and Luas routes and times to facilitate activities. Extra services will be provided, however some diversions may have to be made - details can be found here. Please check your route for your trip to Dublin and your return trip carefully before making the journey.
Highlights of the Dublin parade will be shown live on RTE television. The parade can be viewed on RTE1 TV and online via the free RTE Player app from 12.15 on Monday, March 17th.
Local parades will take place all over the country on St Patrick’s Day and are often more fun and authentic than the parade in Dublin. Details are as follows:
- Maynooth Parade will start at 11 am on Monday 17 March from Greenfield. Theme: “Back to the 80s”
- Clane Festival — Annual St. Patrick's Day Parade in Clane, Co. Kildare, Ireland Theme: "That’s Entertainment!"
- Kilcock Parade will start at 1 pm on Monday 17 March. Theme: “Vikings – Raiders, Pirates, Traders, Explorers” followed by Duck Race (rubber duck racing) at 2 pm
- Celbridge – Parade starts at 2.15 on Main Street and will feature two marching bands from the US. There will also be a free pre-parade concert. More details here: Celbridge St. Patrick's Day Parade
There are also some important sporting events taking place this weekend.
On Friday night, live on RTE2 and RTE Player, Ireland’s Under 20s team take on Italy as part of the U20s Six Nations. On Saturday evening, the Irish national rugby team takes on Italy in Rome. The matches will be available on RTE2 and RTE Player, and many pubs will show it live. A good atmosphere will be guaranteed, as rugby is important to the Irish!
Please note that St. Patrick's Day is a bank (public) holiday in Ireland. Many businesses, including pharmacies, will close for the day. Most supermarkets will open on St. Patrick's Day, though many may operate on reduced hours. All emergency services will operate as usual and can be contacted on 999 or 112.