Hotels near Christ Church Cathedral

Christ Church Cathedral, founded around 1030 by the Hiberno-Norse king Sitric Silkenbeard, is the older of Dublin's two medieval cathedrals and the seat of the Church of Ireland Archbishop of Dublin and Glendalough. The current building dates largely from a heavy Victorian restoration in the 1870s, but it preserves a Romanesque doorway and stone effigies from the original Norman rebuild of 1180.

The highlight is the 12th-century crypt, one of the largest medieval crypts in Britain or Ireland, which now houses the cathedral treasury, the mummified cat and rat known affectionately as Tom and Jerry, and a Stuart-era set of stocks. The covered footbridge across Winetavern Street connecting the cathedral to Dublinia, the interactive Viking and medieval history museum, is the only enclosed footbridge in the city.

Pro Tip: A combined Christ Church Cathedral and Dublinia ticket is the best way to make sense of medieval Dublin in a single visit - allow at least 90 minutes for both, ideally before lunch when school groups have moved on.