I stayed at the Avalon House a couple of years ago, before heading out on a backpacker's tour of Ireland. The van picked me up first, then drove by some other hostels to pick up others. Wow, was I ever grateful that I stayed at Avalon...heard countless hostel horror stories from those staying elsewhere. As hostels go, the Avalon wasn't bad...in summer, I had a very clean four-bunk room to myself at no extra charge (didn't request it that way, just no other guests in that room I guess). The breakfast was good, and the dining area had lots of tall windows with plenty of tables nearby. The big screen TV area was in a basement below, so you could hang out upstairs if you wanted quiet reading, or down in the basement if you wanted billiards, TV, etc. The place overall was clean. The staff were friendly. The location was good---very close to a mall that actually carried jeans in my length (I'm 6'6"), as my extra pair failed to jump into my carry on before my flight. It's also close to St. Stephen's Green (great park), and within walking distance of Temple Bar, public transport, tons of great places to eat. etc. The Avalon House also ran all kinds of cool sales/specials (stay two nights, get a third free, etc. etc.) on their own, in addition to having sales/specials connected with tour groups. (Got a free night from the backpacker group I went with, for example. All in all--paid for two nights, enjoyed two more free ones).

If you've got a few days, and don't mind decent hostels, I can't recommend that backpacker tour company highly enough. I'm usually not one for "organized tours" as I like to plot it all out myself usually...but, these guys were awesome. Check out http://www.tirnanogtours.com/ (also known as Irish Rover tours). They have all kinds of tours & routes for any number of days. They take you to great places, and strike a great balance of giving more time at places you'd want it, and less time at places you wouldn't need it. Their guides were fantastic, the hostels we stayed in were excellent. The cost was really, really reasonable. I get no commision or whatever for saying this, they were just a great way to really experience Ireland. Heck, with the Ireland fares going down, I'm seriuosly thinking of doing it again!!!