OHR

DavidO

Check out The Shelbourne — The hotel does have a fitness center and comes with Virtuoso amenities:

• Upgrade on arrival, subject to availability
• Complimentary Buffet Breakfast for two daily for duration of the stay served in restaurant (additional charge for room service)
• A complimentary lunch or dinner for up to two people per room, excluding alcohol, taxes and gratuities once during stay
• Early check-in/ late check out, subject to availability
• Complimentary Wi-Fi

GetSetJetSet

The Merrion (LHW). The gym is pretty basic though.

RichardInSF

When I stayed here, I thought it was a very bad value. Room sizes, in particular, were small. Many list this as the best hotel in Dublin but I wouldn't stay there again.

However their restaurants, even the more casual one, are good.

david22

When I go to Dublin I typically stay at The Marker because 1) I'm always going for work and it's very close to where I need to be and 2) I want a hotel with AC, even in Dublin. :-)

A few thoughts on The Marker:

• I'm not sure what you'd like to see or do in Dublin (other than your event)... so I can't really comment on the location. It's close to a bunch of tech companies mostly, although Grand Canal Square is nice on a sunny day.
• The gym is small but serviceable.
• I've never used the spa but they do have one.
• They have a pretty popular rooftop bar.
• Most (all?) of the entry level rooms have a large bathroom, which is nice. [Bath amenities are Malin + Goetz rum body wash / hand soap bars and peppermint shampoo.]
• The room categories are rather limiting in terms of "scaling up" your room. All of the higher categories just add a larger sitting area next to the bed (Corner suites) or a slightly different view. If you want a proper suite (i.e. totally separate bedroom and living area), they only have three and they are the "named suites" (The Roche, The Schwartz and the Presidential Suite).
• I've stayed in the Schwartz suite before and have pictures I can share. While even most (all?) entry level rooms have a large bathroom with a separate shower and soaking tub, the Scwhartz suite has a rather cramped bathroom with a shower over tub layout plus a separate half bath. Kinda strange since it's 85 sq meters vs. 35 sq m. for entry level rooms.
• I've always experienced pretty good and friendly service there, although when I'm traveling for work I'm mostly focused on work.
• I enjoy the 3fe coffee shop and Junior's / Pauli's hole-in-the-wall restaurants nearby.
• The beds are on the firm side.

I've never stayed at the Merrion but it is definitely well-regarded. To RichardInSF's point they do charge a high premium if you compare apples-to-apples with other 5 star hotels in Dublin.

I have stayed at the Four Seasons Dublin and then again at the same hotel after it turned into the InterContinental Dublin.. but both stays were probably at least 3 years ago. The rooms were well equipped (though the decor was definitely "grandma's house" when I stayed). Ultimately, the area over in Ballsbridge is pretty residential and not close to where I needed to be and since I've always enjoyed my stays at the Marker I haven't had a reason to return. Also one of my colleagues stayed at the InterContinental more recently and said they had installed motion sensors on the temperature control so they'd shut off while you sleep... which would annoy me.

At some point in the past the Dylan also popped up as a potential hotel fitting my criteria (AC, close to where I wanted to be, reviews looked promising, etc.), but I didn't end up staying there.

OHR

GetSetJetSet

I've stayed there a number of times and can't recall any small rooms, but I haven't stayed in all their rooms so who knows!