Dun Laoghaire (Ireland)

Dun Laoghaire is a port town and an alternative cruise port for Dublin, located approx 7 mi / 12 km to the southeast (along the coastal road R118) of Ireland's capital and largest city.

The settlement (Dunleary) received town status in the early-19th-century (in 1816/in 1821 was renamed Kingstown) to become a major harbour serving Dublin City. The town was renamed from Kingstown to Dun Laoghaire in 1920. Due to its close proximity to Dublin, Dun Laoghaire developed as a seaside resort and one of the city's suburbs.

The 2001-inaugurated Dun Laoghaire Marina is Ireland's largest boating facility, with capacity 820 slots/berths for leisure boats and yachts.

Dun Laoghaire Harbour (port locode IEDLG) is an artificial harbor which construction started in 1817 and was completed in 1859. In 1834 was opened Ireland's first railway line linking Dublin's Westland Row station with Kingstown's old port (Dunleary/the current West Pier), which was later extended to Victoria Wharf (current St. Michael's Wharf). The railway led to residential developments (houses and apartments). In the second half of the 19th century, the Dublin-Kingstown line was extended to Rosslare (major ferry port).

Since the harbor's completion and up to the 21st centuy, Dun Laoghaire was Ireland's principal port serving regularly scheduled passenger ferries linking to the UK (Holyhead, Anglesey Island Wales). The route's main operator STENA LINE made the Dun Laoghaire-Holyhead service seasonal in 2010 and in 2015 replaced it with direct connections to Dublin.

In 2011, Dun Laoghaire Harbour Company (Port Authority) announced a master plan for developing the Port as a cruise ship destination, targeting both ferries and cruise vessels.

As cruise port, Dun Laoghaire is a tender port and usually included in summer itineraries (May-June-July). The first cruise ships docked here in 2013 - Cunard Line's Queen Mary 2 (on May 16th), followed P&O UK's Arcadia (July 9th).

Larger-sized cruise ships anchor at sea and transport their passengers ashore via the ship's tender boats. From Dun Laoghaire, most tourists visit Dublin (via buses) but reportedly ~40% of them visit Dun Laoghaire Town and its surrounding area, further benefiting the local economy. The Port's largest cruise vessel so far is MSC Preziosa (LOA 1093 ft / 333 m, max capacity 4378 passengers + 1388 crew).

In November 2016 was granted permission for an ЕUR 30 million project for building a dedicated cruise ship berth (in Dublin Harbour's southern part) but Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council withdrew these plans in May 2019. By these plans, the berth's capacity was restricted to vessels with max LOA length 820 ft / 250 m) while the Port Authority's application was for larger vessels (max LOA 1115 ft / 340 m).

In 2022, the Port handled a total of 65 cruise ships (79000 passengers + 44000 crew), which ranked it Ireland's second-largest - after Cork-Cobh.

In 2023, Dun Laoghaire Harbour reported a record-breaking season with 90+ booked cruise berthings and estimated ~235000 tourists (~164000 passengers plus ~71000 crew). Most of the visits scheduled for 2023 were for ships of NCL-Norwegian Cruise Line (20), Viking OCEAN Cruises (17) and Princess Cruises (11).