The gravity Bar at the Guinness Storehouse has been doubled in size thanks to a €20m revamp.
The expansion revamp was necessary to meet demand for space at the pinnacle of Dublin’s most visited tourist attraction, with 1.7 million visitors in the last year.
It sees the bar go from being one circular room to a ‘figure-of-eight’.
The Gravity Bar not only offers views of the city’s skyline, including Phoenix Park and Dublin mountains, but also serves as the final stop on the tour of the storehouse.
After taking the tour, visitors can relax with a pint and take in the view.
The bar still offers that unique view and has now added a 721 sq m structure which has allowed the bar to double in size.
Other additions include new a bar, a kitchen, a mural of Arthur Guinness and a mural of the Guinness toucan.
Paul Carty Is the managing director of the Guinness Storehouse.
He said: “We look forward to welcoming guests to enjoy what we believe is the very best view of Dublin.”
Carty also spoke about the necessity of the revamp to meet the demand – as well as one of his more out-of-the-box ideas.
He said: “The Gravity Bar is like the jewel in the crown. Everybody comes in here to redeem their complimentary pint at the end of the tour… but it was just too tight.
“At any one time you could have 300 people [in the original bar], and they wanted to dwell and sip their pint in comfort and look over the view over Dublin. So, the capacity drove us.
“I believe we are now at the tallest point in Dublin. Guinness is on a gradient up from the centre of Dublin, therefore we are reliably informed that we are at the highest point.
“I even suggested we could do a zip wire from here, right into Roe & Co.”
Many of the world’s most famous people have stopped by the Gravity Bar for a pint of the black stuff including the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, Queen Elizabeth, Bill Clinton, Kylie Minogue and Tom Cruise.
Carty said: “When the queen (and Prince Philip) visited, the hairs on the back of my neck stood up.
“They were really tickled pink by the pouring of the pint… and she just loved the view.”
To find out more about the Gravity Bar, visit the Guinness Storehouse website.
Written by Michael Kehoe @michaelcalling