We had an amazing day! Loved seeing the beautiful nature of Glendalough but also the lovely old city of Kilkenny. During the travelling to the different places our guide told us a lot of fantastic stories and even sang us some songs. 10/10 would recommend taking a day to do this tour!
Glendalough, Wicklow and Kilkenny Full-Day Tour
Multi-award winning tour
Professional tour guide & separate coach driver
Voted top 3 best experiences in Ireland
Fáilte! Explore Ireland on our multi-award winning tour
Experience first-hand Ireland’s natural beauty and join us as we travel across the Emerald Isle’s spectacular landscape. Sit back, relax and discover ‘the Garden of Ireland’ and why it’s one of Ireland’s most beautiful visitor destinations.
Highlights
The stunning Wicklow Mountain range
Medieval Kilkenny & its intriguing history
6th-century monastic settlement & round tower
The world famous Glendalough valley & glacial lakes
Movie locations such as Braveheart & P.S. I Love You
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Tour Details
Tour Details
Price
Adults €40
Seniors €40
Youth (12 – 17) €40
Children (3 – 11) €40
Departure time
08:45 Depart O’Connell St. Upper (in front of the Hotel Riu Plaza The Gresham Dublin)
Arrive back in Dublin
18:00 Arrive back in Dublin – drop off point Westmoreland Street (near Trinity College)
Availability
Operating every day, all year round
Duration
9 hours
Group size
5-60
Included
- Transport to and from Dublin City on award-winning 5-star luxury touring coaches
- Live commentary provided in English
- Wicklow Mountains tour
- Separate professional tour guide on board
- Guided walking tour through Glendalough Valley and monastic settlements
- Guided historical walking tour of Kilkenny City
- Entry to Glendalough Monastic Settlement and Wicklow Mountains National Park
Not included
Lunch, entrance to Kilkenny Castle
What to bring
Warm clothing, comfortable footwear, camera & umbrella
Overview
Experience Ireland’s natural beauty and join us as we travel across the spectacular Wicklow mountain range to Glendalough. Glendalough in Irish means ‘valley of the two lakes’ and is also home to the 6th century monastic settlement. Discover medieval Kilkenny and its famous castle and find out why it’s also dubbed one of Ireland’s most cosmopolitan cities. Our professional, caring guides are there throughout the whole tour to provide information and to answer any questions. So relax on our 5-star coaches and immerse yourself in the immense natural beauty that Ireland has to offer.
Itinerary breakdown:
08:45 Depart O’Connell St. Upper (in front of the Hotel Riu Plaza The Gresham Hotel)
10:15 Arrive Glendalough
11:30 Travel across the Wicklow Gap (photo opportunities)
13:15 Arrive Kilkenny
16:15 Depart Kilkenny
18:00 Arrive Dublin City Centre (Westmoreland Street ,near Trinity College)
Glendalough
Glendalough is one of Ireland’s most iconic regions. Here, beauty and landscape meet the history and legends of Ireland’s Golden Age. For thousands of years people have been drawn to ‘the valley of the two lakes‘ for its spectacular scenery, rich history, archaeology and abundant wildlife. Our knowledgeable guides will take you on a walking tour of the 6th-century monastic settlement. These early Christian ruins were founded by St. Kevin and from this developed the “Monastic City”. Most of the buildings that survive today date from the 10th through 12th centuries. Next to the most famous of all the landmarks in Glendalough – the Round Tower. It stands 33 metres above the ground and was built almost 1000 years ago by the monks of St. Kevin’s monastery. Lastly, a short walk from the settlement lies the stunning Glendalough Lake. Surrounded by the rolling green mountains, here also lies the cave that St. Kevin called home for 7 years on the banks of the glacial waters. There will be plenty of time for pictures and to soak up the valley’s natural beauty, so come and discover why Glendalough is one of the best places to visit in Ireland.
Wicklow Mountains National Park
Known locally as the Dublin Mountains, the 40 kilometres journey from Dublin along the spine of the Wicklow Mountains is an awe-inspiring sight which stretches over most of County Wicklow on Ireland’s east coast. This tour will take you across the naturally wild Wicklow Gap through some of Ireland’s most spectacular and varied scenery. The winding mountain roads, natural ruggedness and the fast-flowing aibhneacha (Irish for rivers) are only a few reasons to bring your camera along!
The tour sets aside special opportunities for photos.
Kilkenny City
From Dublin to Kilkenny, Ireland’s medieval capital is the last stop of the day. Quietly sitting on the banks of the River Nore, Kilkenny is where modernity meets history. With its narrow winding streets, brightly coloured shop fronts and ancient castles and ruins, it’s as picturesque as it is full of rich, intriguing history. The town also has deep religious roots and many well-preserved churches and monasteries, including the famous St. Canice’s Cathedral and the Black Abbey Dominican priory, both dating back from the 13th century.
Here, we will take a guided walking tour to explore the city through the medieval side streets. The highlights include the ‘Black Abbey’ and castle gardens and there’s always time to fit in a pint – touring can be thirsty work!
Guide, Coaches and Driver
Tour Guides
With a wealth of knowledge and the famous Irish smile, we believe that the tour guide is the most important element in a successful touring day, bringing everything to life and giving meaning to every part of the visit. This is why we have a separate tour guide in addition to a professional coach driver. This allows the guide to escort you on the tour and on the various visits. Our tour guides are all approved and have completed all the necessary qualifications and training courses. They all have many years experience and are always delighted to assist you in any way possible during the tour.
Coaches
Our fleet of 5-star executive coaches are the most luxurious in Ireland, custom built and equipped to the highest possible standards to ensure you enjoy the ultimate travelling experience. Our impressive fleet consists of modern, high quality, air-conditioned 5-star touring coaches which are custom built to ensure our passengers enjoy the ultimate travelling experience. The average age of our touring fleet is less than 2 years. All of our vehicles offer complimentary WIFI, USB charging points, air-conditioning, reclining leather seats, entertainment system, footrests, armrests, tinted windows, fridge, carpets, extra legroom, courier seat and curtains.
Drivers
Our drivers are all fully qualified, professional coach drivers and they all receive extensive in-house training in customer service and health and safety to ensure your safety and comfort on your day tour.
Frequently Asked Questions
Hot drinks or hot food are not allowed. However, cold drinks with screw caps are perfect.
We don’t have a toilet on the bus, but there are sufficient bathroom opportunities during the day.
90% of the coaches used on our Glendalough, Wicklow and Kilkenny Day Tour have USB charging points on board so you can charge your phone and camera on the move. For all other day tours, USB charging points may not be available.
Please refer to the Trip Details section for our pick-up location. Feel free to contact us if you require any further assistance.
All of our coaches have 4G wifi aboard.
Check out what our guests are saying
Such nice stories! Loved loved loved it, recommend to get out of Dublin for a day and enjoy this very on-point tour with lots of information and laughter
Loved the lakes and loved the tour guide Mike. He had so much knowledge to share and he was incredibly funny and pleasant. I enjoyed the whole experience very much, but Glensalough was the best part. Especially the church and the history of the area.
Comfortable trip with knowledgeable tour guide Mike! Beautiful locations with a lot to see. There was a reasonable amount of time off the bus to explore as well. Highly recommend!
I wish everyone could have Mike and Pat on their tour. I wasnt sure what to expect but from the very start as I was welcomed and guided to my assigned seat, I knew I would have a fantastic and fun time. Pat is full of great facts and insights that he shared throughout the day. And I always felt safe and well cared for with Mike. Highly recommend this tour!
What a day! Pat and Alec were tops! Pat’s history and good sense of fun was wonderful. He treated us to the best day outside the city of Dublin but with information to Dublin’s best points of interests. Alec was an amazing driver and got us to our places of Irish history safely and in a timely manner. We would highly recommend Collins Tours for your next visit to Dublin.
Pat and Alec made this tour just amazing. Excellent driving and Pat’s knowledge and love for Ireland gave us everything needed for a tour. Would absolutely recommend this tour over any other
The tour was amazing, with the best tour guide and bus driver!! Pat and Alec, thanks for the amazing experience!! We were entertained through the whole experience and we learned a lot about Ireland and it’s amazing wonders! 5 out of 5 and thumbs up for Pat and Alec!
We really enjoyed the entire day. The scenery was gorgeous and there was an awesome sense of history at each site we visited. Pat was an excellent host and guide and Alec ensured that the drive was comfortable and smooth. 10/10 would recommend. I wish all guides were like this.
Our tour guide was fantastic – so knowledgeable & hails from County Kildare! Lots of stories – not like someone who has memorized a script – would definitely recommend to others to book with Collin tours!
Pat our guide was fabulous, so knowledgeable and a good sense of humour, he really went the extra mile in ensuring we had a great trip. My 13 year old son also loved it! Thanks also to Arnes our bus driver, some of those roads were narrow and you navigated them very well!
