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Gravel Bike Ride Dublin
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The Dublin Mountains are a maze of trails, forest roads, and quiet country lanes - and most visitors never get anywhere near them. This two-hour private gravel bike tour changes that. You start at Ticknock MTB Trail Centre, one of five national mountain bike centres in Ireland and one of the best places to ride in the country. There are over 30km of routes to choose from, and your guide picks the best trails to match your ability and the conditions on the day.
You’ll be riding Trek Checkpoint gravel bikes - kept only a few months old and maintained by full-time mechanics. The pace is yours to set. This is a private tour for one to eight people, so you’re not following a crowd. You get epic views across Dublin Bay and the city as you ride, and the tour wraps up with a well-earned pint at the famous Johnny Fox’s Pub.
It all starts with a welcome tea or coffee, a proper bike fitting, and a safety briefing before you head out onto the trails.
Ticknock is one of those places Dubliners keep to themselves. The trail centre sits above the suburbs at the edge of the city, and the transition from housing estates to open mountain happens remarkably fast once you’re pedalling. On a clear day the views from the upper trails stretch right across Dublin Bay to the Wicklow Mountains, with the city laid out below you in a way that makes the whole place look impossibly manageable.
The gravel bike format opens up more of the mountain than a standard road bike would. You’re not limited to the tarmac - the trails here mix forest roads, compacted gravel, and some chunkier technical sections depending on where your guide takes you. If you’ve only ever ridden a road bike, the extra traction and confidence of a gravel setup on these surfaces will be immediately obvious.
Johnny Fox’s Pub is the real thing. Sitting in the Dublin Mountains at over 300 metres, it’s one of the highest pubs in Ireland - and it’s been there since 1798. The pint at the end of the ride tastes exactly as good as you’d hope after two hours in the hills. Don’t be in a rush to leave; the atmosphere and the mountain views from the terrace are part of the deal.
Dress for the mountain, not the city. The Dublin Mountains can be 5 to 8 degrees cooler than the city centre and the wind picks up quickly on exposed sections of trail. Even on a warm summer day, pack a light windproof layer. Your guide will advise on what to bring when you book, but waterproof-breathable is always a sensible choice in Ireland.
This works well for mixed-ability groups. Because the guide picks routes on the day and the terrain at Ticknock ranges from genuinely gentle forest roads to more technical climbs, it’s possible to accommodate a group where one person is very confident on a bike and another hasn’t ridden much in a while. Talk to the guide before you set off about what everyone is comfortable with.