Ireland » Dublin

In the wake of a remarkable economic boom, Dublin's landscape has changed immeasurably over the past decade. This vibrant city hums with a palpable sense that it is creating a new cultural heritage. The city's burst of prosperity gave it a new confident shine, but what remains special is the spirit of the people who ensure that despite whirlwind changes Dublin remains one of Europe's most down-to-earth, friendly and accessible cities.

However, it is easy to see why tourists today head to Dublin in such large numbers. This vibrant, fun-loving city on the River Liffey is full of atmospheric pubs where the craic is spun with a well-polished finish and the streets echo with the ghosts of artistic luminaries such as James Joyce and W B Yeats. An excellent time to visit is between April and October, when the weather is at its best, with July and August the busiest months. Increasingly, however, the city is a popular destination throughout the year, with many festivals, cultural and religious events and sporting fixtures.

A plethora of buildings and museums (including Trinity College, Irelands oldest university, and the Guinness Storehouse) convey a real sense of living history. Indeed, it is this living history, present in the media of music and literature, which has brought Dublin such international acclaim.

In the new millennium, Dubliners are no longer content to rest on the laurels of this richly cultural history. Alongside the smoky old bars, the museums and the folk music in the pubs, there is a new Dublin of funky bars, rebuilt city streets and confident moneyed 20-somethings an image that is being carried forward by popular music acts like West life, the Corrs and, the biggest of them all, U2.

This new face of the Irish capital stems mainly from the stunning economic success of the country in recent years, which has managed to combine extensive funding from the EU with sound financial acumen to stimulate high levels of growth. There is no denying Dublin, the capital of Euro-cool, is currently booming and its citizens are intent on enjoying it while it lasts.

However, the economic boom has also had negative implications. Prices have increased dramatically and, although long-term unemployment figures have steadily decreased in recent years, the capital is struggling to come to terms with the recent influx of immigrants and asylum seekers, who have imported cultures often at odds with Dublins own lifestyle.