You’ve only got a couple of days. It’s not the world’s biggest city, but there’s plenty to keep you occupied. How then to make the right choices so that you will have the most authentic experience in the couple of days you have at your disposal?

As a native Dubliner, I am convinced that most city breakers do not get an authentic experience of the city, they’re too busy standing cheek by jowl with other tourists in the over-hyped bars and clubs of Temple Bar – which are studiously avoided by the locals.

A good Encounter guide will dispense with all the hype and the rubbish and focus on the best the city has to offer – most of which, in my experience, is rarely found in the tourist brochures or in those horrible inflight magazines you read to pass the time on the plane. Which isn’t to say that you should avoid the obvious tourist attractions – after all, they’re popular for a reason – but a memorable weekend shouldn’t be confined to ticking the top five attractions off a list and settling for a meal in a restaurant that your cousins from Leeds met a really nice bunch of lads from Sheffield in last year when they came over.

My overriding thought as I wrote this guide was pretty straightforward: if friends of mine were visiting Dublin for a long weekend, what do I think they should see and where do I think they should go to really get into the heart of the city? I thought of all the great pubs I know and some of my favourite restaurants (whilst keeping my personal favourite in secret reserve), and tried to tailor the list of attractions to focus on not just the most popular ones, but the ones that were really special but mightn’t have the benefit of a slick PR campaign to sell their charms.

Anyone who’s ever been to Dublin will know that the best thing about the city are its people, and in the short essays I tried to give a sense of what Dubliners were really like – as opposed to the simplistic caricatures of a happy-go-lucky bunch of boozers that often pass for character assessments.

I am convinced that only a local who can observe his own city with an air of detached fondness is capable of doing all of these things, which is why the Encounter guides only work if written by a clued-in native. They’re the only ones who can read between the city’s lines.

And so here’s a few bits of Dublin, between the lines.

For cultural pursuits, the world-class collection at the Chester Beatty Library (closed Monday) has no equal – not even the Book of Kells can compete. The National Museum of Ireland is another sure fire hit, but rather than the more visited archaeological collection on Kildare St (admission by donation; open 10am-5pm Tue-Sat, 2-5pm Sun), I’d opt for the decorative arts section, housed in the spectacular Collins Barracks (Benburb St; admission free; open 10am-5pm Tue-Sat, 2-5pm Sun), on the Liffey’s north side.

Dublin without booze is like the Sahara without sand, so a trip to the Guinness Storehouse is nearly a must, my own choice would be the Old Jameson Distillery where you’ll get to try a host of different whiskies.

Which leads neatly on to the alpha and omega of most visits to Dublin: the pub. With over 1,000 in the city to choose from, you’ll be spoilt for choice, but my current favourites are the Victorian classic that is the Long Hall (tel 475 1590; 51 South Great George’s St) and If it’s alternative music and atmosphere you need, look no further than An Seo (pronounced ‘On-Shaw’; tel 475 1321; 28 Camden St).

And for that little bit of Sunday afternoon retail therapy, head for the Powerscourt Centre (South William St), crammed with boutiques selling everything from high-end fashion to bric-a-brac.

NOT MANY PEOPLE KNOW THAT

- Around 9,800 pints of beer are drunk each hour by Dubliners from Friday night to Monday morning

- If the whole of Ireland had a population density of Dublin there would be over 300 million people living in the capital

- St Stephen’s Green was once used for public whippings, beatings and hangings

- Women outnumber men in Dublin by 20,000

- 12% of workers travel over 20 miles to work each day, more than double the distance in 1981

- The Phoenix Park is bigger than all of London’s major parks put together

Lonely Planet launches its new city guidebook series later this month. Developed for urban adventurers on short city breaks, the Encounter series was built "in collaboration with travellers to create the ultimate pocket guide," said a spokeswoman. The guides are researched and written by locals who have lived in each city and also feature insider tips from locals in the know. Other features include listings by neighbourhood, a pull-out city map and a City Diary, listing the best events and festivals around. The launch titles are: Dublin, Barcelona, Hong Kong, Istanbul, Las Vegas, London, New York, Paris and San Francisco.

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