Looking for your next fun-filled day out in Dublin? Well, you’re in luck, because this stunning working farm and gardens just 15 minutes from the city is great for just that.
Anyone who has been out to Airfield Estate in Dundrum knows it’s not only gorgeous, but also full of things to see and do, whether you’re heading there with a group of pals or with the family. It can also make for a fairly romantic date idea.
Situated just a five-minute walk from Balally Luas stop and a mere 15 minute spin from St. Stephen’s Green, it’s pretty easily accessible from the city centre as well as other areas in North and South Dublin. Plus, the Estate also has plenty of parking.
And once you get out there, you’ll be happy you made the journey.
First, check out their organic food and ornamental gardens, where the gardeners at Airfield grow much of the seasonal ingredients for their Estate restaurant – Overends Kitchen. With a mission of inspiring people to make better food choices, the guys over at Airfield know how important it is to go with the seasons, produce fresh, organic ingredients and create wholesome and nutritious dishes from it.
You’ll also definitely want to visit their working farmyard with Jersey herd cows, Jacob sheep, Oxford sandy black pigs, Saneen goats, Rhode Island red hens, chickens and donkeys to name a few.
Little ones will love getting a glimpse at the farm’s residents and if you time your visit right, you’ll get to help collect the eggs at 10am, watch the Jersey herd being milked at 10.30am and you’ll even get to taste the fresh, creamy milk straight from the farm.
Calf feeding happens at 11am and animal feeding at 3.30pm, which are definitely ones not to be missed.
There are also heritage tours of the historic Airfield House at 11.30am and 2.30pm Wednesday to Sunday. But if you come on Monday or Tuesdays, don’t worry, the house is still open to explore and learn the fascinating story of the Overend sisters who left this Estate in charitable trust to the people of Ireland in 1974.
Plus, car fanatics will fall in love the three vintage cars in the Estate’s garage including a 1927 working Rolls Royce!
For those on the lookout for some physical activity, Airfield also has an outdoor adventure playground with climbing frames, slides, swings, balance beams and a whole lot more.
Perhaps most exhilarating of all, the playground has a zip wire that will be the highlight of the day for any young-thrill-seeker.
After all that fresh air, it’s time to head over to Overends Kitchen for refuelling. This farm-to-fork eatery does a mean breakfast, lunch and weekend brunch and most of the menu items come directly from the 38-acre estate. They even have their own speciality brewed roast from McCabe’s coffee in Wicklow.
The dishes that are served feature fresh ingredients that are grown and farmed on the estate, and then transformed into seasonal dishes bursting with amazing flavour and colour.
If you’re interested in growing and producing the best organic content yourself, Airfield runs classes and workshops regularly all based around seasonality, growing and cooking, and sustainability.
Sustainability is at the absolute forefront of everything that goes on at the Estate. Using ingredients grown and produced on the Estate means zero food miles, and they also use eco-friendly compostable coffee cups and have plenty of stations to fill up on clean drinking water. So a visit to Airfield Estate also comes without any negative impact on the environment.
Now doesn’t that make you feel good?
Whether you plan on heading along for a date, going with a group of pals, or perhaps the fam, you’d easily spend a few hours at doing, seeing, and eating everything at Airfield Estate.
Adult entry costs €12, while 18-25-year-olds and students pay a youth rate of €8, kids pay €5 and under 3s always go free.
To find out more about having a fabulously fun-filled day out at Airfield Estate, click here.
