Stag do in Dublin

Bubble football in Dublin is usually played on outdoor all-weather pitches such as those in Templeogue, south-west of the centre. A game lasts an hour with ten suits rotating five against five, and groups of 20 or more get about 90 minutes. Arrive 15 minutes early. Wear trainers and a T-shirt: football boots and bare chests are not allowed, and the suits take players up to about 6 foot 5 and 22 stone. The exact pitch is often confirmed only two weeks before, and a mobile version can come to your accommodation if there is open space.

Dodgeball in Dublin runs for an hour, usually on an outdoor all-weather pitch at a sports venue, though some sessions are indoors. Start times sit between 10am and 4pm, so this is a daytime slot, and an event co-ordinator brings the balls and bibs and referees. Sessions are 18+ and need at least ten players. The exact venue is often confirmed only about two weeks before you travel, so keep the day's travel plan loose until then. If part of the group wants something different, a fast six-a-side soft-ball cricket format runs from the same kind of pitches.

Footgolf is the stand-out here: 18 holes on a course near the city, out in Dublin 24, played in teams of four with an event co-ordinator scoring. Allow two to four hours depending on numbers, with start times from 10am to 6pm. Studded boots are not allowed and loud golf clothes are encouraged. Footdarts and goggle football are shorter, about an hour (90 minutes for 21 or more), on all-weather pitches such as those around Templeogue. For something properly local, a refereed session of Gaelic football and hurling suits a sporty group. Venues are often confirmed about two weeks out.

Dublin's version is usually an old school sports day on all-weather pitches such as those around Templeogue: sack race, egg and spoon, relays, played in team houses with bibs and headbands. It runs about an hour for up to 32 people, and 90 minutes above that. A two-activity challenge bundle fills about two hours. For something Irish, a three-and-a-half-hour Gaelic games session with accredited coaches covers hurling, handball and Gaelic football. Start times fall between 10am and 4pm. Wear trainers and bring water.

The big one is the stout visitor experience at St James's Gate in Dublin 8: a self-guided route over seven floors, about 90 minutes to two hours, finishing with a pint in a rooftop bar with views across the city. It is one of the busiest attractions in Ireland, so book a timed slot. For something smaller, a working craft brewery runs one-hour behind-the-scenes tours with four core beers for groups of 10 to 25, and an experimental brewery offers tasting boards of four. All 18+.

Most group brunches in Dublin are in Temple Bar, at reserved tables with a set menu, over about 90 minutes to one hour 45. Check what is actually included: some are genuinely bottomless (Bellinis or Mimosas), while others give one glass of prosecco or one cocktail with the food. Smart casual is the norm and the venues are 18+. Larger groups may be asked to pre-order. A late-morning Saturday slot leaves the afternoon free and puts you in the right part of town for the evening.

Most Dublin cocktail classes run in Temple Bar or on Harcourt Street, so they lead straight into the night. Sessions last 60 to 90 minutes, start with a glass of bubbly and cover two cocktails each, and one version runs on into a three-course meal over about two hours. The class often takes place in a reserved area of a working bar rather than a private room. Smart casual applies, with no trainers, sportswear or ripped jeans at some bars, and 18+ ID is checked. A whiskey-based workshop is also on offer for groups who prefer it.

Most group dinners that suit a stag in Dublin are in and around Temple Bar, which leaves the first pub a short walk away. Expect a set menu of two or three courses at reserved tables, about two hours, and sometimes a first drink included. Smart casual is the usual standard, and several places turn away trainers, sportswear and ripped jeans, so pack one pair of proper shoes. Bring ID, as 18+ checks are common. Service charge is often added to anything ordered beyond the set menu, so agree up front how extras will be split.

Dublin's whiskey tastings sit inside working and heritage distilleries just west of the centre, in Smithfield and along James's Street in the Liberties. Guided tours run from about 45 minutes and finish with a comparative tasting, usually three or four whiskeys. For a group that prefers gin, a 90-minute tasting of three gins runs in a city-centre bar. Everything is 18+, so bring ID. A Saturday afternoon slot works well before dinner.

The main games bar for groups sits on Fleet Street in Temple Bar: a large sports bar with about 24 screens, pool tables, table tennis, air hockey and shuffleboard. Packages give the group a reserved area, a pint or three each and finger food for one to two hours, while most games are pay-as-you-play on a first-come basis. A separate shuffleboard bar books tables of up to eight for an hour with drinks tokens. There is also a traditional sports bar with live music every evening. On a big match day, book well ahead.

Dublin's main club strip is Harcourt Street, with more late venues a few minutes away around Camden Street and Wexford Street. Guestlist entry here comes with a cut-off: depending on the club, the group has to be through the door by 9.30pm, 11pm or midnight, so plan dinner and the pubs around that rather than the other way round. Smart casual is the norm, at least one well-known club sets its door age at 23, and doors refuse anyone who looks too far gone. Booths are usually sold per table of about six, with a bottle of house spirits and mixers.

Dublin has a large dedicated comedy club plus a regular comedy night in Temple Bar, with a mix of local and international acts. Plan on two and a half to three hours. Doors open around 7pm, arrivals before 7.30pm sometimes get a free drink, and the show starts at about 8.30pm. Groups get reserved seating with table service and finger food platters, and the bar stays open after the show. Smart casual is expected, and at the larger club payment is card or contactless only, so nobody should rely on cash.

Dublin crawls meet at 8pm, and the group needs to be there by 8.15pm or risk missing the start. Expect around five hours across five or six pubs and bars, a pint of stout on arrival, three or four shots along the way and entry to a club to finish. Some routes lean on live music, which is the point of a night out here. Public crawls take groups of up to about 20; from 21 upwards you can have a private guide. Smart casual is the safe choice for the club at the end, and 18+ ID is checked.

Life drawing in Dublin is usually a private 90-minute session in a function room above a city-centre pub, with sessions found around Leeson Street. A tutor brings the boards and materials, and a bottle of wine for the group is often included. It is strictly 18+ and most bookings need at least ten people. The stag version swaps the hired model for the groom: he poses while the rest of the group draws, with the tutor directing. Daytime and early-evening start times are the norm, so it slots in before dinner.

Dublin escape rooms hold up to about eight people each, and venues typically have two or three rooms, so a larger stag splits into teams and races side by side for the hour. Running rooms in parallel depends on availability, so book early. For a bigger or more active group, there is a two-hour indoor challenge zone with 29 physical, skill and mental challenges, played in teams of four or five with a games host. Wear activewear for that one, and expect photos and video to be sent on afterwards.

Dublin's tours come in a few formats that work for a group: a hop-on hop-off bus with local guides on a 24-hour ticket, a 75-minute amphibious tour in Viking costume that splashes into the Grand Canal Docks, and a two-hour ghost bus through the city's darker history. There is also a viewing tower in an old boiler-house chimney, 60 metres up, with drinks at the bar afterwards, which takes about an hour. Any of these fits a Friday afternoon before the pubs. The amphibious and ghost tours set minimum group sizes, so book them early.

Dublin stitch-ups tend to be timed around two moments. One is the airport transfer, where a private bus is pulled over by a fake police officer on the way into the city. The other is a 15-minute wake-up call at the hotel or apartment the morning after a big night. Both are 18+ and both need the timings and the address agreed in advance. If you are in a hotel, check it will allow an outside performer up to the room before you book the morning version.

Dublin's hunts are app-based and self-run, so the group starts whenever suits on the day rather than at a booked time. Teams of two or more each need a captain with a charged phone, and the route unlocks clues, puzzles and photo challenges at GPS points across the city centre, with a live scoreboard. The city version takes about two hours. The pub version is the obvious stag choice: each stop is a pub where teams answer trivia rounds, and you pick the pub within each area yourselves.