After the last few years of revenge family reunions, there’s never been a better time to buck tradition.
It take up as an estimate : What if we go to Ireland for Thanksgiving ?
My wife , an academic , had the week to herself . I crop remotely , and an open - ended invitation toSlane Castleand its eponymous still in County Meath had latterly come up across my desk . And after a couple post - pandemic years of organize giantrevenge locomotion - instigate family gatheringsfor everything from natal day toChristmas — not to mention incite back within driving distance of both our mothers — travel abroad for one of the most US - centrical holidays on the planet sounded absolutely novel .
A few emails later and thing were in question . It was n’t long before word spread and my retired parent , a.k.a . our family ’s long - established go - to host for every festive occasion , asked if they could gate-crash our Thanksgiving - ditch company . Did it still count as an escape if we hadmom and dad in tow ? in spades yes , as all four of us were volitionally skirt our holiday obligations for the first time in memory .
Feast your eyes… on anything except a table full of turkey.|Adam.Bialek/Shutterstock
We schedule our flights , book our rooms , and laid out a plan to pass a few daysexploring Dublinafter leaving the castle . Despite my mother ’s fears , the rest of the family took the tidings in stride , simply arranging substitute sources for theircranberry sauce and pumpkin pie . Yet the slip still felt like a little , cheeky evildoing , like “ by chance ” staining your match Christmas pajama or sneaking off to the john just before it ’s your turn to secernate the Mexican valium what you ’re grateful for ( the trauma ) . We were in it for the kick — that , and the copious Irish coffees .
And they were indeed copious . We sampled them atSlane Distillery , then again at a nearby land saloon or two . We followed those up with a few more atTeeling Whiskey DistilleryandJohn Fallon ’s The Capstan Bar in Dublin . And , if you could believe it , cap off the trip with a final round of golf at the Dublin airport before catching the flight of steps domicile . Between frothy sips , we hike theHill of Slane , discuss the merits of Gaelic football , attend a blacksmithing demo lead by a charismatic modern - day viking , tour the chillingKilmainham Gaol , knock our feet to and Irish trio , crossed the Ha’Penny Bridge , paid our respects to the Book of Kells , recount meandering stories , and laughed — a fortune .
In reality , our little visit was less of an adrenaline rush and more of a breather of saucy air in a humankind where so many of our sanctioned holidays are spent reenacting the same routine , year after year , ten after decade . Do n’t get me wrong — I’m not turn my nose up at tradition by any means , and if you seek to serve me anything but lasagna on Christmas Eve , I ’ll bacchanalia . But transgress free from that expectation , if only for a single yr , can put up somemuch - needed respitein an otherwise chaotic clock time of year .
Bottoms up.|Slane Whiskey
If you ’re considering cutting and running this season , you have my blessing . And if you ’re still not convinced , here are a handful of reasonableness why traveling abroad for the holidays could just be the in force estimation you ’ve had all year .
Sleep Next to a Castle Surrounded by Whiskey, a Music Festival, and Fairies
Glamping never felt so magical.
Your schedule is what you make of it
Do n’t feel like ramble out of bed until midday on Thanksgiving ? No problem . Ca n’t sound making hours of little talk of the town with your Facebook - obsessed auntie ? Just do n’t . Prefer drinking your weight unit inGuinnessin a pub versus folding napkins while watching people awkwardly lug inflatable sketch characters down the street ? Be my guest . When you bound off town for the holidays , your schedule is what you make it .
For us , that mean sleeping until 9 am , loading up on a full Irish breakfast at Slane ’s basement restaurant , then embarking on aspontaneous hike to the nearby ruining of a stone hermitage . Afterwards , we made our way to Dublin , where we got an immersive spell of theGuinness Storehousebefore grab pick cocktail at poitin - crazedBar 1661 .
At Bar 1661 , we were seated at a four top add on to a saturnine banquette . Next to us , a in-between - aged couple accompanied by two teenage kids poured over their menu . Hearing our accents , the homo depend over and smiled . “ You guys avoiding Thanksgiving , too ? ” he asked .
It turned out the kinfolk , who survive inColorado , schedule a different Thanksgiving slip every year . “ The tiddler have the whole week off from school and we do n’t have any family nearby , ” added the woman as her Logos and daughter scrolled on their phones , doing their best to attend blase . “ They do n’t deal , and besides , it saves me a mass of dishes . ”
Not quite sated — and unable to snag a cab due to a gridlocked situation downtown — we hopped over the River Liffey to theBrazen Head , Ireland ’s self - proclaimed oldest pub , and settled in for some trad music with a side of Irish whiskey . The music was good , no one got stuck with those cup of tea , and there was nowhere else we ’d rather be .
And the same goes for the menu
free from the confines of thestandard American Thanksgiving routine — watching the parade , watching the intellectual nourishment , watching the television — the domain is on the spur of the moment your huitre . And if you require to only eat huitre , that ’s hunky-dory , too .
For our Thanksgiving dinner , we started with an afternoon piece of Guinness - impregnate bar , then transitioned to the savoury side with a charcuterie board and humus courtesy of the cocktail saloon . For our main , the Brazen Head ’s beef fret steal the show , while the firecracker and mash and Pisces and french fries followed closely behind . And between it all , brisk walk along the river and a bust of knee - slapping tunes — not to mention a well amount of lager anda few nip of whisky — kept us up and buzzing , imaginativeness of tryptophane - rush comas far from our thoughts .
Dublin’s Best Bookstore Has Been a Bohemian Hot Spot Since the ’80s
This place has stories for days.
Travel might not be cheap, but what is?
As you might require , fly during the holiday is n’t necessarily the most wallet - friendly endeavor . However , unless you find fault a terminus synonymous with extremely seasonal escapes likeCancun , London , orVienna , you ’re looking at dropping a decent amount for Christmastime airfare ( importantly less for Thanksgiving , of class ) . The top side ? Once you get there , accommodations are generally less expensive during the winter , and the roving gang of tourists are a bit thinner , as well .
In fact , say accommodations might even be running a vacation special . When we make it atthe Merrion Hotelin Dublin , we were surprised to find that the property ’s Thanksgiving software , which included a weekend stay , spa discourse , and full dud dinner at the onsite restaurant , was actually sell out . “ We ’re set about to connect with Thanksgiving now because that ’s become more of a thing , ” Fiachra Martin , conductor of Edgar Guest relation , distinguish us . “ We threw it out there as a feeler and everybody just eff it — a good percentage of Americans , too . It ’s been a Brobdingnagian success . ”
One illusion is to fly on the vacation itself , which often saves you a bunch of money onplane tickets . And if you ’re skipping the festivities anyway , there ’s no rationality not to . Plus , think about how much you ’re saving on home decor , grocery store expenses , and random gifts you feel obligated to buy mass you see once a year . I ’m no mathematician , but I ’m fairly certain breaking even should be in the cards .
When you skip town, your holiday itinerary is up to you.|Kris Dublin/Shutterstock
Two words: no traffic
I of late moved from the Midwest back to the East Coast , and being within a few minute ’ driving distance of my family in New York is , while true nice , also plenty exhausting . That four- to five - hr trek up I-95 is galling at best , and a monumental , behind - moving headache at high-risk . Throw inholiday traffic , and you ’re calculate at some very unhappy campers .
By travel abroad , you ’re disembarrass yourself of all driving duties . leave behind it to the Ubers . Or , better yet , sit back and watch the scenery pass you by as you cross the countryside on ahigh - speed string . On our trip , we chiefly used hack for suffer around , subbing in the casual long walk whenever we could . And with each ride , the subsequent lack of tenseness was well deserving the € 10 - ish price tatter .
Mingling with strangers beats bumping into high school classmates
Picture it : You ’re back in your hometown over Thanksgiving or Christmas . Bored of heed to your dad yell at the TV while your mom doles out Eucalyptus amygdalina schnapps , you head to thelocal barfor a deglutition of your choosing and some calibre alone prison term . And before you’re able to even settle into your stool , you sense a script land jovially on your articulatio humeri . It ’s Mark from AP Chem , and he ca n’t believe it ’s really you .
There ’s nothing quite like run into someone in your 30s you did n’t want to flow out with when you were 17 . Because by the time you reach your thirty , you ’ve perhaps regrettably built upon your teenaged social state of grace , pull you to engage Mark in small talk for the next 40 minutes or so . And that ’s the best sheath scenario . What if Mark is harboring an full Class of 2004 table at the back of the saloon ? And what if it happens to be trivia night ? And what if they need a fourth ? The repulsion .
It run short without state that launch yourself several thousand miles away from your city of origin guarantee safe from all the Marks of yore . But not only that , it give up you to ruffle it up with strangers in the lowest of low stakes environment . While in Ireland , my wife and I learned how to “ divide the G ” in a midget County Meath taphouse , threw back Baby Guinness shots with travel Brits at a rowdy Central Dublin gin mill , commiserated withfellow Ohio State fansover cyder at a mutant bar in Broadstone , and suppress White Claws on the saltation story of agay club in Temple Bar . And not a exclusive person enquire what we were up to these days .
No Christmas ham in sight.|Loch Earn/Shutterstock
Ireland’s Capital City Is Bursting with Natural Beauty, Rich History, and Good Craic
Come to Dublin for quality pubs, friendly people, and loads of personality year-round.
Happy holidays to you and you only.|Slane Whiskey
Stretch your legs and kiss bumper-to-bumper traffic goodbye.|Roy Harris/Shutterstock
There’s nothing like a pub full of possibility.|The Brazen Head
