The Shelbourne is like an elegant old film star, classy and sophisticated, yet the staff are all polite and friendly- not snobbish. Located right across the street from St. Stephen's Green and just two blocks from Grafton Street, it has an excellent location. It's a 2-5 minute walk to all sorts of places to eat and shop. The HOHO bus stop is just down the street, so it's easy to catch the bus.
Our room was located on the side of the hotel so the only view was of the neighboring building, but the room itself was very comfortable. There was a large vanity area, the room was very quiet (except for fire alarm at 1am, which was a false alarm not initiated by the hotel), the bed was very comfy with good pillows. There was no hot water one morning, but we called the desk and they were very responsive, the problem was solved within 30 minutes.
The only negative was the wifi access. I feel wifi should be free when you're paying over $300 a night, but the Shelbourne charges €20 per day for wifi. There is free wifi in the downstairs bar, but I prefer to use it in my room and I don't feel I should have to pay extra for that.

Don't stay anywhere else in Dublin. Everything was excellent.

We stayed here for four night in late April. It is a beautiful hotel with a renaissance feel to it. We arrived early in the morning and our roon wasn't ready yet as they were full. We had some breakfast and they called us on our cell when it was ready. We had a king bed room with a roll away for our teenage son. It overlooked a courtyard between buildings. It wasn't a fabulous view but we weren't in Dublin for the hotel view. The bathroom was newly done and quite nice. Americans should be aware that no where in Ireland is an outlet allowed in the bathroom so you must style your hair using a mirror over the desk area. The room was a good size for a city hotel. Lots of special touches: lemon water and cookies all day in the lobby, gorgeous flowers.
Breakfast was a buffet with every imaginable offering. The scrambled eggs in Ireland are very tasty, way better than in USA. The lounges were very nice and packed on weekend nights. We ate in the restaurant one night for dinner with a group of six and everyone seemed very pleased with their meals.
All of the staff were friendly and helpful. The conceirge, Denis, was wonderfully helpful with all kinds of details, big and small, from how to get around town, to where to eat, to calling ahead to other hotels when he knew someone there to ask them to take special care of us. Really above and beyond the scope of the job! (Thank you so much to Denis, you weren't there when we checked out).

We booked a 3 night stay here and I have to say this was one of the best hotels I've stayed in. We were welcomed by the bellboy who took our cases, showed us around the foyer, showed us where the restaurants were, describing each in detail. He then took us to check in and gave us home made lemonade and cookies. We checked in, with a lovely receptionist who was so friendly and helpful. We had booked a queen room using Priceline and were happy with the price, however we were delighted to be told we had been upgraded to a delux king room for our stay. Our room was beautiful. Dark furniture all in pristine condition, the soft furnishings were in shades of gold. The bathroom was modern with a deep tub, great shower and complimentary Elemis toiletries. We had complimentary bottled water daily as well as a morning newspaper. The room had an iron and ironing board, hair dryer and coffee/ tea making facilities. Wifi was available for a fee. The bed was the most comfortable bed I have ever slept in and the hotel was so quiet during the night I had the soundest sleep I've had in a long time.Check out the museum in the lobby, which is fascinating, the hotel is really old and has ledgers dating back to its beginning. All the staff were friendly and the hotel was spotless. If I return to Dublin, which I'm sure I will as it's a fantastic city this will be my first choice for accommodation. It is ideally situated at St Stephens Green right in the heart of the city with Grafton St a 3 minute walk away and the hop on hop off bus right across the street if you want to tour the city. This was five star at its best. A superb stay.