If you’re arriving into Dublin by cruise ship, this is a well-organised way to see both the city and the Wicklow Mountains in a single day. Your guide meets you at the Dublin cruise terminal with a sign (Elegant Irish Tours), and you travel in a luxury Mercedes van with a maximum of 24 passengers.
The day starts with a panoramic drive through Dublin, taking in Trinity College, O’Connell Street, the GPO, the Molly Malone statue, the River Liffey, Ha’Penny Bridge, Christchurch Cathedral, and St Patrick’s Cathedral. From there you head south into the Wicklow Mountains to visit Glendalough - the valley of two lakes - where St. Kevin’s 6th-century monastery is one of Ireland’s finest monastic sites, complete with a remarkable round tower.
One practical note worth knowing: during peak season (1 May - 30 September) this tour sells out well ahead of departure on most dates, so advance booking is strongly recommended.
Dublin city highlights - Your guide starts the day with a panoramic drive through the city, pointing out the key landmarks: Trinity College, O’Connell Street, the GPO, the Molly Malone statue, the River Liffey, Ha’Penny Bridge, Christchurch Cathedral, and St Patrick’s Cathedral. Stoppage time depends on your liner’s arrival schedule.
County Wicklow and the road to Glendalough - You head south through Wicklow, known as the Garden of Ireland, with its rolling hills and wooded glens. The landscape here has appeared in Hollywood productions including P.S. I Love You and Braveheart. Stoppage time depends on your liner’s schedule.
Glendalough - Glendalough means “valley of two lakes” and it’s one of those places that genuinely stays with you. St. Kevin founded a monastery here in the 6th century, and the site has Ireland’s finest round tower. If you manage to get your hands around St. Kevin’s Cross, local legend has it you’ll be married within a year. Stoppage time depends on your liner’s schedule.
Return through the Wicklow Mountains - On the way back to Dublin you pass through some of Wicklow’s finest mountain scenery - lakes, rolling turf hills, and the kind of landscape that ends up on Irish postcards. Stoppage time depends on your liner’s schedule.
Grafton Street and Dublin city - After a refreshment stop, your guide brings you through the city sights including O’Connell Street, the Ha’Penny Bridge, Temple Bar, the Molly Malone statue, St. Patrick’s Cathedral, Christchurch Cathedral, Trinity College, and time on Grafton Street for shopping. Stoppage time depends on your liner’s schedule.
Return to port - The tour is structured to have you back at the dockside at least one hour before your liner departs, after approximately 8 hours. If your boat is leaving earlier, the itinerary will be adjusted accordingly.
Meeting point: Your guide will be at the cruise terminal with a sign showing your name(s) and BID code. The vehicle will likely be a black Mercedes-Benz Sprinter with “Elegant Irish Tours” in silver on the side.
Arrive at Glendalough early in the day. The valley fills with coaches from around 10:30am - the advantage of a small-group tour departing from the port is that you can often be there before the main rush. If your ship docks early, you’ll have the round tower car park to yourselves. Leave the valley before noon and you’ll remember it differently than the day-tripper crowd does.
The actual village near Glendalough is Laragh, 1.5km east of the monastic site, at the junction where three mountain roads meet. If your guide builds in a brief lunch stop, Laragh is where to look - Lynham’s pub and Trinity Mountain Bothy café both feed walkers without the prices the visitor centre area commands. The monastic site and visitor centre is not the right place for lunch if you want something quieter.
The flat walk between the two lakes is worth every minute of time you have. The Green Road runs from the visitor centre along the Lower Lake, past the cathedral ruins and the round tower, through the woods, and out to the boardwalk at the foot of the Upper Lake. It’s buggy-friendly and flat, and it takes you past nine of the major monastic ruins in about 25 minutes each way. The Upper Lake, at the end of that walk, is the quieter one.
The round tower doorway at Glendalough is three and a half metres off the ground - that was deliberate. When the Vikings came looking for monastery silver, the monks pulled the ladder up behind them. The conical roof was rebuilt from the original stones in 1876 after a lightning strike. Your guide will likely explain this, but knowing it in advance makes the building make sense.
If you’re driving back to Dublin via the Wicklow Gap, the road passes through Hollywood - the western trailhead of St Kevin’s Way, the medieval pilgrim road that once led directly to the monastic city you just visited. The village is small (one pub, one church, the stone walls of a 17th-century church of the same saint) but the Hollywood Inn, established 1790 as a stagecoach stop, is a reliable stop for a post-Glendalough drink. The road over the Gap at 470m is one of the better mountain drives in Wicklow.