Drumcondra Area Opinions

gmisk

I am coming pretty close to buying a house in this area.
Its just round the corner from the Drumcondra dart station.
I was just wondering if I could get some general feedback on the area?
Nearby amenities? Restaurants, Pubs, shops etc.....
Some people have said parking etc can be a bit of a nightmare on match days just wondering if that is the case?

Zamboni

gmisk wrote: »

I am coming pretty close to buying a house in this area.
Its just round the corner from the Drumcondra dart station.
I was just wondering if I could get some general feedback on the area?
Nearby amenities? Restaurants, Pubs, shops etc.....
Some people have said parking etc can be a bit of a nightmare on match days just wondering if that is the case?

Love Drummer.
No shortage of amenites the closer you are to Drumcondra Road - which it sounds like you are.
Parking is a nightmare most of the time - match day you would have a resident pass if appropriate for street access.
Probably the area with best transport links in the country.

gmisk

Thanks that all sounds pretty positive!
Must see what the situation is with residents parking permits.
I dont drive but would be handy if I had mates over.

L5

There is no dart that serves drumcondra.

RATM

Personally I'm not a fan of the area as I see it as traffic choked, the busiest road in the entire country runs right through the middle of it. It does have a couple of good pubs and restaurants but nothing you can't get anywhere else. Match days are a big consideration as there are a lot of them throughout the summer, with mid-week concerts on top of that as well. There is probably about 20-25 days of the year where your access will be difficult and there'll be big traffic jams for a few kilometers in every direction. It won't bother everyone but after the novelty of living in the areas wears off it could become very frustrating. Also consider the mounds of litter that doesn't get cleaned up until overnight.

I'm not a fan of the whole Dorset St/ Gardiner St / Mountjoy St/ Fredrick Street area which you have to pass through to get into town- its really kippish north inner city, its depressing. I'm not sure how safe it is as I never walk around there but it has a bit of an edgy feel to it, like something could kick off at any minute.

All that said Drumcondra does have excellent transport links, hundreds of Dublin Buses go into town that way every day so you won't have long to wait. Train station might also be handy if you want to connect with the DART.

Personally I think Drumcondra has a great location but there are better places to buy in Dublin without the hassle and for more or less the same price range.

Luca Brasi

gmisk wrote: »

I am coming pretty close to buying a house in this area.
Its just round the corner from the Drumcondra dart station.
I was just wondering if I could get some general feedback on the area?
Nearby amenities? Restaurants, Pubs, shops etc.....
Some people have said parking etc can be a bit of a nightmare on match days just wondering if that is the case?

I lived in that area for years and really enjoyed it. Unfortunately match days can be chaotic. The Clonliffe road/Russell St side isnt too bad because the Gardai put up barriers and have access only for residents. The other side towards St Annes Road/St Patricks rd is different and its not unusual to see a car abandoned outside your gateway.
Other than that though Drumcondra is a great spot with nice pubs etc. Watch out though in case you meet Bertie Ahern. He might be looking for a digout

mikemac1

I rented on Clonliffe Rd

It's far better to be inside the garda corden then outside it

If you own a car and want to return home and park outside your flat then forget about it.
At least inside the cordon they keep out cars.

You just plan your day around match days, when the game is over you just cannot drive up or down the road.

The gardaí around the place are always sound, the ticketcheckers can be a bit power mad looking for your resident pass.
Approach the gardaí, ignore the ticket checkers

Some nice pubs and Independent Pizza Company is very good.

You have a Tesco, it's small but has what you need.

Despite the good name the area has it's not exempt from scum, my motorbike was vandalized twice there.

And we were burgled. But you could get that anywhere. I got the same in Chapelizod

Good bus service on the main road but if you are down Clonliffe Rd there are no buses at all so you either walk to the main road or you take the maze of alleyways and shortcuts and walk through Ballybough.
That's the very edge of Drumcondra though, you likely won't be here.
On the main road there are hundreds of buses and you could get the train too if you wanted, I never used the train but it's an option

gmisk

This house is just off st annes road (its on st josephs avenue).
Sounds like I would be on the uncordened mental side on match days.............

cson

You'd be outside the cordon. To be honest, having there for over a year now, the impact of Croke Park match days is being overstated on this thread. It's a minor inconvenience that if you plan your day right, won't bother you at all. The two All Ireland Final days are nuts alright but its 2 days out of the year. Aside from that its a cracking little suburb; great transportation links (7+ bus routes go from the Rail Station to City Centre, you can access the DART easily by going from the Rail Station to Connolly, you have the Air Coach for going to the Airport anytime). Great choice of food (Thunders Bakery, Independent Pizza and Diep are as good as anything you'll find in Dublin at their respective fields) you've a Spar, Centra and a recently revamped Tesco Metro for groceries. Its a great area imo.

Zamboni

Speaking of facilities..Dorset St is about 60% brothels.

handlemaster

You may want to check out where drumcondara flooded previously

gmisk

http://www.floodmaps.ie
I checked here and this area wasnt affected at all

handlemaster

Botanic avenue was hit will flooding before

mgn

Great area lived on St Clements rd for years never had any problems but im not to sure about noise levels on josephs ave from Quinns,late licences a few nights a week,also thats the road where the get all there deliverys and worst of all empting bottle skips

user1842

I have been living in the area for well over a year now, I dont like it. I really don't find it nice, there seems to be a lot of undesirables around and a lot of drunks. Its also a horrible journey into town as Dorset Street is depressing. Parking is a nightmare, make sure you have off-street, on-street is 24 hours in most places due to croker making visitors parking difficult. I live in lower Drumcondra maybe upper is nicer. When my lease is up im moving to be honest. I think Drumcondra is just to close to the rougher areas of Dublin.

Just my opinion.

cson

What constitutes rough? I live pretty much beside Croker and I regularly walk into/out of town via both Dorset St and Summerhill and I've never once had any problems. I've done this after nights out too and never felt threatened. You have your few beggars around the rail station alright but tbh I'm oblivious to them at this stage.

I'll grant you that south of the Whitworth Rd is probably less appealing to the eye than say north of Fagans but classing the journey through Dorset St as horrible is a bit excessive. It's hardly downtown Mogadishu now.

I'll say it again; given the rental prices around Dublin the likes of Drumcondra and Fairview offer some cracking value due to some misplace conceptions of the Northside.

EricPraline

A lot of negative opinions above, but seem to be largely related to Lower Drumcondra and Dorset Street, which is understandable. As with many popular inner Southside suburbs (I'm thinking of Rathmines in particular), there are affluent roads a stone's through away to less desirable roads. Also, to be blunt the north inner city is depressing, but similarly if you live in Rathgar or Terenure, you're going to end up spending a lot of time passing through less desirable parts of the south inner city.

For instance, although the distance is short (2-3 mins in car/bus off-peak), there is a large difference between the settled roads in Upper Drumcondra and Lower Drumcondra. Similarly, the red bricks around the Iona estate are not far at all from Whitworth or Clonliffe, but the atmosphere is completely different there.

I'll say it again; given the rental prices around Dublin the likes of Drumcondra and Fairview offer some cracking value due to some misplace conceptions of the Northside.

Have to agree with the above. When you come with other similarly priced suburbs close to the city. IMHO Stoneybatter, Smithfield, Phibsboro, South Circular, or Inchicore have more problems with anti-social behaviour, while you'll pay more for the privilege of living in Rathmines, Harold's X, or Ringsend.

user1842

cson wrote: »

What constitutes rough? I live pretty much beside Croker and I regularly walk into/out of town via both Dorset St and Summerhill and I've never once had any problems. I've done this after nights out too and never felt threatened. You have your few beggars around the rail station alright but tbh I'm oblivious to them at this stage.

I'll grant you that south of the Whitworth Rd is probably less appealing to the eye than say north of Fagans but classing the journey through Dorset St as horrible is a bit excessive. It's hardly downtown Mogadishu now.

I'll say it again; given the rental prices around Dublin the likes of Drumcondra and Fairview offer some cracking value due to some misplace conceptions of the Northside.

Just giving my opinion, when I was looking into renting in Drumcondra over a year ago everyone said it was great. Unfortunately I have not had a good experience renting there.

In regards to walking into town, again in my experience I would not recommend it. I did walk in a few times at the start but from being shouted at, accosted and on one occasion almost attacked by undesirables I just started taking the bus/train.

Again maybe im just having a bad experience in Drumcondra.

I rented a place for 4 years in another part of Dublin and never had any trouble or issues at all.

Just to answer your question about what constitutes rough:

- Shouting and antisocial behavioral at 4am in the morning on numerous occasions and not by students (garda are sick of calls)
- Seemingly alot of robberies (gards said this too) we were robbed.
- A lot of cars seem to get broken into (happened to my house mate) again gards said it is a regular occurrence

Maybe its just the particular area im in (Lower Drumcondra, close to Dargel road)

gmisk

user1842 wrote: »

Just giving my opinion, when I was looking into renting in Drumcondra over a year ago everyone said it was great. Unfortunately I have not had a good experience renting there.

In regards to walking into town, again in my experience I would not recommend it. I did walk in a few times at the start but from being shouted at, accosted and on one occasion almost attacked by undesirables I just started taking the bus/train.

Again maybe im just having a bad experience in Drumcondra.

I rented a place for 4 years in another part of Dublin and never had any trouble or issues at all.

Just to answer your question about what constitutes rough:

- Shouting and antisocial behavioral at 4am in the morning on numerous occasions and not by students (garda are sick of calls)
- Seemingly alot of robberies (gards said this too) we were robbed.
- A lot of cars seem to get broken into (happened to my house mate) again gards said it is a regular occurrence

Maybe its just the particular area im in (Lower Drumcondra, close to Dargel road)

Oh....I dont like the sound of that this house is just off Dargel Road.......

user1842

gmisk wrote: »

Oh....I dont like the sound of that this house is just off Dargel Road.......

Well I seem to be the only person having a problem so one bad experience verses a lot of positive experiences does not make the place bad at all. Take all opinions into your decision. See can you chat to a couple of neighbours of where the house is.

Grover81

I live very close to Drumcondra, have friends who live there and my sister is renting very close to Dargle Road.

Drumcondra, from my experience is a fantastic area. Yes, parking can be difficult in some spots (which is one of the reasons I didnt end up buying there - that plus some of the nicer houses are v. pricey) and it can get busy on match days, but overall it is a great neighbourhood with great facilities and extremely well connected.

None of my friends nor my sister (who shares with another girl) have had any problems when living there. As with all areas you can occasionally come across the usual gang of scobies, but this is infrequent. I would say, yes as soon as you move closer towards Dorset street (say after Whitworth Road) it does get a little more "urban", with fewer houses and more houses divided into flats, but it still is safe.

comuirch

Feedback so far seems pretty mixed, so just thought I'd give a bit more positive feedback as I feel Drumcondra is much more pleasant that some posts would imply. I've lived in Drumcondra for about three years (just off dargle road). A few points I'd like to make:

1) Dorset Street/Summerhill are not Drumcondra (although people selling or renting their properties would like you to think so). As one or two other posters have commented, just because you have to pass through some dodgy areas on your way to town doesn't take away from the fact that most of Drumcondra is perfectly nice

2) My experience has been that the further away from the bridge at Dorset Street you go ( ie towards fagans and beyond) the nicer it gets. Drumcondra does border on a few dodgy areas, and the closer you get to these the dodgier it gets. The main areas I'd avoid would be as you go further away from the Drumcondra road on Clonliffe, and the areas of Dorset Street and phibsboro (particularly around the mater and mountjoy). These areas can be quite unpleasant at times.Worth noting that most of Drumcondra is quite a distance from these places

3) match days are undoubtedly a pain in the ass. If you have secure designated parking this is less of an issue, but even so it will be an inconvenience

Now for the positives -

4) Great location and fabulous transport links. Depending on where you are in Drumcondra you can walk to town in 15-40 mins. There are a huge number of bus routes (meaning you're never waiting long). It's on the route out to the airport which is super convenient when either going to or from flights. Also on the train line to Connolly/Pearse which can be useful depending on where u are

5) some beautiful accommodations to be found here (from period houses to brand new high spec apartments) all for very reasonable prices when compared to elsewhere

6) Drumcondra has everything you need, from good restaurants (and a few bad), to Tesco, pharmacies, newsagents, and decent pubs

I can only speak on my experiences which have been positive, but agree with some of the negatives that have been mentioned. Personally I think it's a great area!

gmisk

Really appreciate all the feedback folks

snowey07

I live off Dorset St near the bridge with Drumcondra. I have never had any trouble and I reguerly walk aroud and into town at all different times. I also weekly walk home through Drumcondra after visiting friends at 2am and Ive had no bother. I think Drumcondra is a great part of Dublin , loads of character and some nice places to eat and have a drink. Match day isnt great but there isnt a match every weekend of the year!

My great granda and the next 2 generations lived in a house on St Josephs Avenue :-)

RATM

Lots of different opinions here on Drumcondra. Personally I feel that as an area it is far from the worst and rental wise it does seem to offer good value close to town. But for me there is no way I'd live there as I see it as sitting on the busiest road in the country- the Dublin to Belfast N1/M1. I've no idea what the daily traffic volumes are but I'd hazard a guess that there is more than 30,000 vehicles passing through Drumcondra every 24 hours. As Drumcondra is the section of that route where cars are slowed up and constantly braking and accelerating it is not hard to see how the air quality soon becomes pretty poor.Drumcondra and Dorset St are two of the most trafficked areas in all of Ireland so it is inevitable that the air quality there is going to be much lower than in other areas away from a main artery into the city.

For me I'd be thinking that if you lived there for 10 or 15 or 20 years and were breathing in excessive amounts of carbon emissions its not difficult to see how your health could suffer a bit. Not for everyone of course but there is likely a few who have asthma symtoms speeded up by living in a heavily trafficked suburb like Drumcondra. If you plan on living there permanently and having kids it is a consideration that people should take into account IMO. I say this as someone who lived on Pearse St and suffered coughing fits; soon after I moved to the southern Alps in New Zealand and my breathing improved ten fold. There was a hugly noticable difference between the two. I just feel that Drumcondra has its plusses but that its constant 24/7 flow of traffic takes away from what otherwise would be a very liveable suburb.

Princess_Bleuh

This thread is very helpful, as I'm also considering moving to this area.
Can anyone tell me where the cordons go up, what parts of the road are contained?

Thanks!

gmisk

In the end I didnt go for the house....huge problems with damp and wasnt totally sold on the area, appreciated all the advice.
Princess Bleuh - I think people said the streets are cordoned of on the side of the road from drumcondra station to croke park, but not on the other side.

RATM

gmisk wrote: »

In the end I didnt go for the house....huge problems with damp and wasnt totally sold on the area, appreciated all the advice.
Princess Bleuh - I think people said the streets are cordoned of on the side of the road from drumcondra station to croke park, but not on the other side.

Thanks for getting back to us gmisk. Are you still looking in the Drumcondra area ? Or are you considering other areas at all ?

I lived in Drumcondra for about 3 years. I was on Druncondra Road Upper near Griffith Avenue, and then on St Patrick's Road, near the station. I really liked it there and I'd move there again if I had to.

The traffic on match days was an annoyance but not something I'd dismiss the area over. I'm in Fairview now and I think I'd still prefer Drumcondra.

gmisk

RATM wrote: »

Thanks for getting back to us gmisk. Are you still looking in the Drumcondra area ? Or are you considering other areas at all ?

No worries at all!.
I am looking in lots of areas, inchicore, cabra and a few others. Tbh not much stock available in my price range in drumcondra (single buyer and all!)

RATM

gmisk wrote: »

No worries at all!.
I am looking in lots of areas, inchicore, cabra and a few others. Tbh not much stock available in my price range in drumcondra (single buyer and all!)

I'm in the same boat as a single buyer- it's tricky as you tend to get priced out of the market by couples.

Keep an eye on Kilmainham too as there are plenty of 2 bed cottages in the area. Also I'm a big fan of the Astown area, it seems very safe and has the canal running through it, Phoenix Park is only a 5 minute walk and there is a Superquinn and other shops there too. It's also got a good pub in the Halfway House and its not that far from town- Ashtown train station is right there and it takes 18 minutes to get to Connolly. Prices in the area are reasonable but stick is quite limited.

gmisk

Very similar to me RATM .

I live in Kilmainham and not many houses there either (lots in inchicore, I know certain areas are very good though).
Ashtown....interesting! Cheers!