We decided to stay in two different hostels, one being on the north side of the Liffey -- Abraham House -- and one closer to the Temple Bar than the other – Kinlay House – which was slightly more expensive because of its situation. We stayed in Abraham House for the beginning of the holiday, and three of the four nights were spent in an extremely comfortable and airy room with a shower attached, which was very handy. The staff members were very kind and friendly, and even more so in the ‘no curfew’ time zone, which is a must for night explorers, as there is so much to see. Because we were travelling in February, the prices were lower then in peak times -- we paid roughly £16 a night (€20 approx), but this accommodated us extremely well, with the ‘continental breakfast’ of a croissant and orange juice. The shower was interesting; it seemed to command itself more than I did, but it was still very useful.
Kinlay House, once a boys’ boarding house, had to be my favourite hostel; I think this was a general agreement throughout the group. This seemed to be because of the sheer originality of the room, which, when studied, was on a tilt, whilst the window rang straight (but not at an angle to have any effect).
Situated near Temple Bar, we had a great view of the road below, considering we had walked up about five flights of stairs, as seen in the picture. It has an amazingly violet staircase that winds its way up seven stories and can be quite nauseating in a rush. Again, we had no curfew and made good use of this, returning to cholesterol–building cooked breakfasts, clean bedding, and plug sockets, which were rare in Abraham House. Being on Lord Edward Street, the priced was bumped up to £18 a night (€22 approx), but we had access to luggage storage, which was tremendously valuable on a return date.