Review: the Conrad Dublin hotel – bookable in the Hilton sale

This is our review of the Conrad Dublin hotel, part of the Hilton Honors portfolio.

Hilton is currently running its latest sale for hotels and resorts across the UK, Europe, Middle East and Africa.

You can get up to 20% off participating properties in the UK, Europe, Middle East and Africa when you book by 2nd September 2025 for stays by 7th September. 

You can see full details of the sale on the Hilton website here.

As part of the sale we will be reviewing a number of Hilton properties in the UK and Europe. We started at the London Hilton on Park Lane, reviewed here. During August we’ll hopefully be visiting France and Spain too.

Hilton provided my stay and dining for review purposes. HfP paid for all extra costs, including flights. Hilton has not seen this review before publication.

The Conrad Dublin hotel website is here.

About the Conrad Dublin hotel

Conrad Dublin opened its doors in 1989 and has remained a stalwart of the Dublin hotel scene ever since. It has hosted some of the most high profile visitors to the city, including Hillary Clinton, Miley Cyrus, Axl Rose and even Joe Biden earlier this year.

I can’t say I spotted any major international dignitaries, but my stay coincided with the ‘Ishka Aviation Finance Festival’ so I did get to see plenty of salespeople for management consultancies, German banks and various engine leasing specialists.

Getting to the Conrad Dublin hotel

The Conrad is situated on Earlsfort Terrace, a quiet road that leads from the southeastern corner of St Stephen’s Green, a pretty park which I regard as the gateway to ‘tourist’ Dublin. Dublin’s popular shopping street, Grafton Street, is approximately 15 minutes walk away through the park and plenty of Dublin’s top sights are a short walk, tram or taxi ride away.

The National Concert Hall, Ireland’s ‘designated home of music’ and home to the National Symphony Orchestra Ireland, is directly opposite the hotel. It hosts a busy schedule of high profile performers, along with the occasional Baby Rave.

I took the 700 Aircoach from Dublin Airport to Leeson Street Lower which cost €8 and it’s a short walk from there. A taxi from the airport should cost around €45.

Checking into the Conrad

The exterior to the hotel is a very noticeable red brick pile in the typical style of 1980s architecture, and includes a dedicated drop off area and an underground car park.

Whilst the exterior would not be my favourite in a city full of beautiful Georgian townhouses, any concerns of a dated interior swiftly faded as I entered the hotel.

The lobby is a calm, bright space, with eye-catching architectural lights hanging over a circular seating area, with check-in desks to the left hand side. Stunning, locally-grown floral arrangements are immediately noticeable in the central seating island and in small bouquets on each desk.

Check-in staff were swift and friendly and I was ready to go to my room in just a few minutes.

Rooms at Conrad Dublin

I had a King Junior Suite, a 50sqm room with views out onto ‘Conrad Plaza’ a quiet court between the hotel and some office buildings.

The entrance to the suite opens directly into the sleeping area, with a large oval desk to the right.

The desk had three different types of sockets (UK, US and Europlug), along with USB ports, and a supportive chair ideal for working from. I liked that it had a small spinning globe, a pleasant touch of individuality.

A set of coffee table books are stacked on a bureau nearby, on the subjects of Irish history, sport and culture.

The bed was large and comfortable with excellent quality linens, and frankly I’d expect nothing less at a Conrad. I appreciated the new style of out-tucking the side of the duvet, meaning you can simply lift the cover when you climb in, rather than having to yank it out from under the mattress.

There’s a lovely seating area in the bay of the window which was a pleasant space to watch tv.

The room is equipped with a Nespresso machine, with cups, glasses and a kettle tucked away in the drawer underneath. It was a decent space to make a tea or coffee, with room to set up the kettle and cups.

A large, full height, double wardrobe provided plenty of space to hang clothes (including long dresses) and a second single cupboard provided shelves to store additional clothes. There was an iron, ironing board, dressing gowns and a safe.

An additional vanity area provided a comfy spot to sit and do make-up, with a brightly lit circular mirror.

The decor in the room is contemporary and sleek, with muted neutral colours and pops of black and the longer I spent in the room, the more artistic details I enjoyed. Nothing was too matchy-matchy and when brought together with things like the stack of books and a photo montage of Dubliners on the back wall, it made the room feel quite homely.

That is, if my home was a interior-designed city apartment, rather than a collection of rooms that resemble the toy section in a charity shop ….

The bathroom

Ah, the bathroom.

The rooms at the Conrad underwent a renovation recently. The main bedroom part of the suite does feel fresh, but it is clear that the bathrooms did not undergo renovation too.

This also had a homely feel, but the feeling was more Mum and Dad’s ensuite in a 1990s show home than sleek city apartment. Lots of cream tiles, silver fittings and brown marble.

Functionally, the bathroom is fine – nice sizeable bath, separate shower, double sinks – but it lacks some of the modern elements that go into bathroom design at a 5* level.

For example, the shower is a bit poky, with only a static overhead and there’s nowhere in arm’s reach to hang your towel.

That said, there was plenty of space for toiletry bags and a well-lit, large mirror.

The amenities were from the Swedish luxury goods company, Byredo, and I really love their scents so I did enjoy those elements. Yes, the soap was individually wrapped bars (not a favourite of mine as I think it’s wasteful), but they came in paper boxes rather than plastic wrapping and with a soap dish so I’ll let the Conrad off.

The Gym at Conrad Dublin

There’s no pool at the Conrad, but there’s a decent sized gym, which was well equipped with a range of machines and a free weight section.

Dining at the Conrad Dublin hotel

I had dinner at the main restaurant at the hotel, The Coburg. The Coburg has equestrian-inspired design – lots of dark leather and brass, with the odd horsebit and buckle here and there.

Part of the restaurant looks out onto the plaza and has large wide windows, but for the dinner, I was seated in a cosier interior section close to the lobby.

The food was very good. The menu was designed to ‘showcase the best of Irish produce’ and I felt it lived up to the promise.

Homemade bread and butter was brought to the table and exceptionally difficult to resist. So I didn’t.

I didn’t have a starter and went straight for the pea and goats cheese risotto, which was delicious and as picturesque as a risotto can be. I ordered a side of heirloom tomato and peperonata, which may have been the start of the show – very fresh and flavoursome.

The wine list was extensive, but I decided to try something different and had a non-alcoholic Wild Idol sparkling wine, which was enjoyable.

Breakfast was also served at The Coburg, and this time I sat in the windowed section, which was a lovely bright spot.

On entering the breakfast area there’s an eye-catching, ‘make your own’ Bloody Mary station, with Henriot champagne seemingly available to help yourself to – I’m unsure if this is chargeable and as I was on the way to a conference, didn’t try it out myself. The beautiful floral arrangements were on display here too.

There are plenty of options for breakfast.

Hot items were available to help yourself but you could additionally order freshly cooked egg dishes.

I liked this section with fresh fruit, yogurts, smoothies and cold meats, cheeses and fish.

The bakery section was displayed well and was extensive.

There’s another restaurant situated on the lower ground floor called The Terrace that includes an outdoor seating area on the plaza, making for a nice spot for lunch. I unfortunately did not get a chance to try it, but I loved the design – it felt a world away from The Coburg, with lots of bright colours and artworks by Irish artist Ciara O’Neill.

There’s a bar just by the lobby called Lemuel’s. I couldn’t go inside due to private functions running there during most of my stay, but it looked like a great spot for a drink.

Conclusion

It’s easy to see why the Conrad is the go-to for visiting diplomats and tired pop stars. The hotel exudes calm throughout, with its quiet rooms and impeccably trained staff, who toe the line between politeness and friendliness perfectly.

The food is very good and the hotel has some lovely social spaces to enjoy a drink or a chat with a friend. Near enough to the Dublin sights, yet tucked away on a quiet street makes the Conrad the perfect antidote to a hectic day of sightseeing or shopping

Whilst the bathroom in my suite was a bit dated in style, it was still a luxury bathroom and it certainly wouldn’t stop me staying at the Conrad again. The overall design of the hotel impressed me and I have to remark on the beautiful floral arrangements in every corner of the hotel – not something I usually take notice of, but they really were impressive.

The Conrad Dublin is included in Hilton’s Summer Sale for UK, Europe, Middle East and Africa hotels. In terms of pricing, a weekend in August starts at around €300 per night for a King room or €500 for a Junior Suite like mine.

Pricing does move around sharply in the summer, potentially driven by sporting fixtures, and if you are planning a Dublin break you should definitely check hotel rates before booking any flights.

Thank you to the team at the Conrad Dublin for hosting me.

The Conrad Dublin website is here if you want to learn more or book.