Wicklow and Glendalough day tour from Dublin: which option is right for you
From Dublin: Wild Wicklow Mountains and Glendalough tour
Duration: 8.5h
- Free cancellation
- Instant confirmation
Fifty kilometres south, a thousand years away
The Wicklow Mountains are Dublin’s back garden — 50 kilometres of high moorland, forested valleys, granite peaks and glacial lakes that begin barely outside the city’s southern suburbs. On a clear day you can see them from Dublin Bay. On a blue-sky day in April or October, they are among the most beautiful landscapes in Ireland.
Glendalough — “the valley of two lakes” — sits in the heart of the mountains, and it holds one of the best-preserved early-medieval monastic settlements in Europe. St Kevin retreated here in the sixth century to live as a hermit; a community grew around him, and by the ninth century Glendalough was a significant centre of scholarship and pilgrimage. Viking raids and later English suppression damaged but never quite destroyed the site. What remains — round tower, cathedral ruins, stone oratory, lakeside path — is genuinely moving, particularly in early morning before the tour coaches arrive.
The choice between Wicklow day tours from Dublin is largely a question of what you want surrounding Glendalough: wild mountain scenery, designed gardens, lake viewpoints, or the market town of Kilkenny beyond the mountains.
The Wild Wicklow full-day tour
The Wild Wicklow Mountains and Glendalough day tour from Dublin is the most popular single-day Wicklow option and consistently one of Dublin’s highest-rated day trips. The itinerary typically includes:
- The Sally Gap military road, one of the most dramatic passes in the Wicklow Mountains, crossing open bogland at altitude
- A viewpoint stop at Lough Tay (the Guinness Lake) — the dark peat water against the pale beach in the shadow of Luggala cliff is one of the more photographed spots in Ireland
- The Powerscourt Waterfall, Ireland’s highest waterfall at 121 metres
- Glendalough monastic valley, with 1.5 to 2 hours to explore
This tour earns its reputation because it shows you multiple faces of Wicklow rather than just one. The transition from Dublin suburbs to mountain bog to forested valley gives a genuine sense of the landscape’s range. The guide commentary covers both the history and the ecology, making the landscape more legible.
Full-day tours typically run 8 to 8.5 hours, departing around 09:30 and returning mid-evening. They run year-round, with the autumn colours (October) and spring light (April to May) particularly rewarding.
Powerscourt, Guinness Lake and Glendalough
The Powerscourt House, Guinness Lake and Glendalough tour focuses on the designed and picturesque Wicklow rather than the wild upland. Powerscourt House and Gardens — one of the finest Georgian country house gardens in Ireland — is the main addition here, offering formal terraced gardens, ornamental lakes, and a walled garden, all framed by Sugarloaf Mountain in the distance.
This tour suits visitors who are as interested in garden design and architectural heritage as in natural landscape. Powerscourt is among the top 20 gardens in the world by many assessments, and the 7-hour itinerary that includes it, the Guinness Lake viewpoint, and Glendalough makes for a well-rounded day.
The tour runs about 7 hours, shorter than the Wild Wicklow option, which makes it a slightly easier day physically.
The half-day option
The half-day Glendalough and Wicklow tour from Dublin is the right choice for visitors who are time-pressed, have young children, or want a shorter commitment. Running about 5 hours, it typically goes directly to Glendalough (often via a scenic Wicklow route) and back, with minimal additional stops.
This is enough time to see the full monastic enclosure, walk to the lower lake, and appreciate the valley setting. It does not cover the higher mountain scenery or Powerscourt.
The half-day option is often the best choice for visitors adding Wicklow as a half-day alongside a morning or afternoon in Dublin. The Dublin 2-day itinerary suggests this structure: Dublin sights in the morning, Glendalough in the afternoon.
Glendalough and Kilkenny combined
The Wicklow Mountains, Glendalough and Kilkenny tour adds Ireland’s best-preserved medieval city to the mountain monastery. Kilkenny — with its 12th-century Norman castle, medieval laneways (“slips”), Kilkenny Cathedral and a craft scene centred on the Design Centre — is one of the most rewarding small cities in Ireland.
The combined tour runs about 9 hours and is the longest of the Wicklow options. Time at Glendalough is typically 1.5 hours; Kilkenny gets 1.5 to 2 hours in the afternoon. The day is full and you will not see either site in depth, but you get two very different parts of Ireland’s heritage in a single day out of Dublin.
This tour is good value for visitors who specifically want to see Kilkenny and are happy to pair it with Wicklow, but who do not have a separate full day for either destination.
Practical notes
All Wicklow tours handle the logistics that make self-navigation difficult: the mountain roads are narrow in places, parking at Glendalough fills up by mid-morning in summer, and the public bus service to the upper Wicklow valleys is limited. For independent visitors, St Kevin’s Bus from Dawson Street reaches Glendalough twice daily year-round.
Wear layers and waterproof footwear regardless of the forecast. Mountain weather in Wicklow can shift quickly, and the paths around the valley and monastic site are sometimes muddy.
Read more in the Wicklow and Glendalough day trip guide, the Glendalough guide, and Wicklow Mountains guide.
Compare alternative tours
| Tour | Duration | Rating | Price | Highlights | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| From Dublin: Powerscourt House, Guinness Lake & Glendalough | 7h | — | From €35 | Free cancellation · Instant confirmation | Check |
| From Dublin: half-day trip to Glendalough and Wicklow | 5h | — | From €25 | Free cancellation · Instant confirmation | Check |
| From Dublin: Wicklow Mountains, Glendalough & Kilkenny tour | 9h | — | From €47 | Free cancellation · Instant confirmation | Check |
Frequently asked questions about Wicklow and Glendalough day tour from Dublin
How far is Glendalough from Dublin?
Glendalough is about 50 kilometres south of Dublin, roughly a 1 to 1.5-hour drive depending on traffic and the route. Most tours reach the valley within 90 minutes of leaving the city. The journey passes through the Wicklow Mountains, which are themselves beautiful, making the drive part of the experience.What is at Glendalough?
Glendalough ('valley of two lakes') is a glacial valley in the Wicklow Mountains containing a remarkably intact early-medieval monastic settlement founded by St Kevin in the sixth century. The site includes a 10th-century round tower, cathedral ruins, a well-preserved stone oratory, medieval grave slabs, and two glacial lakes surrounded by wooded hills. The combination of early-Christian history and natural scenery is exceptional.How long do you need at Glendalough?
Most tours allow 1.5 to 2 hours at the Glendalough monastic site and lower lake area. This is enough to walk the main monastic enclosure, circle the lower lake, and take in the views. The upper lake and waterfall trail add another 45-60 minutes. A full exploration of the valley including the upper lake walk takes around 3 hours.Is Powerscourt worth adding to a Wicklow day tour?
Yes, if you are interested in formal gardens. Powerscourt House and Gardens is one of the finest designed landscapes in Ireland — a terraced garden dropping from an 18th-century Palladian house toward the Wicklow Mountains with Sugarloaf visible in the background. It is a very different experience from Glendalough's wild scenery. Tours that combine both give you two distinct types of Wicklow landscape in one day.What is the Guinness Lake?
Lough Tay, locally known as the Guinness Lake, is a glacial lake in the northern Wicklow Mountains owned by the Guinness family. The dark peat-stained water against the pale sandy beach creates an appearance that looks remarkably like a pint of Guinness — hence the nickname. Most Wicklow tours with a scenic focus include a viewpoint stop here.Can you do Glendalough without a tour from Dublin?
St Kevin's Bus runs from Dublin city centre (Dawson Street) directly to Glendalough twice daily, year-round. If you want to spend several hours in the valley at your own pace, this is a good option. For visitors who also want Wicklow Mountain scenery, Powerscourt, or the Sally Gap on the same day, a guided tour reaches places the public bus does not.
