Glendalough – in the Valley of the Two Lakes

We actually only made one mistake when planning our trip to Ireland – and that was far too little time. Actually, I was also aware that the time would only be enough for Dublin itself and smaller trips to the coast. But how it works – as soon as you’re on site, the ideas suddenly bubble up. First of all – Ireland offers enough great villages, forests, mountains, lakes and coastal strips that you can easily spend two to three weeks on it. Only we didn’t have two to three weeks. In order to get to see at least a tiny bit of Irish landscape, we decided to take a day trip to Glendalough in the Wicklow Mountains National Park. This is one of a total of six national parks in Ireland.

The Glendalough St. Kevis Bus Service offers a convenient daily connection between Dublin (stop in Dawson Street) and the National Park (Glendalough Visitor Centre) for 20 euros (round trip). Tickets can only be purchased on the bus. There is no pre-sale. In case of large crowds – which was the case for us due to the great weather – a second bus will be called up. Information about the exact timetable (varies by season) and further information can be found on this website: Glendaloughbus.com

The journey from Dublin to Glendalough takes just under 1.5 hours and leads through a landscape that corresponds to the postcard idyll par excellence. At the bus window, lush green hills, peacefully grazing sheep, bright horses and from time to time lonely country cottages pass by. Perfect!

Arriving in Glendalough – the valley with the two lakes – we first explored the famous monastic settlement. The complex was founded in the 6th century and the most striking monument, the Round Tower, was built in the 11th century. The tour of the facility is free of charge. Although we had bombastic weather (and someone says that it only rains in Ireland), I was almost a bit disappointed. When the sun is shining, the whole thing looks a bit out of place. Somehow, wafts of fog belong to this backdrop…

From the monastery we then hiked comfortably past the first lake up to the “Upper Lake”. The network of hiking trails around the valley is diverse and there is something for every age and fitness level. Of course, we had to take into account the time frame of the bus timetable when choosing our route. But we had enough time to hike up the Upper Lake to the end of the valley. In total, we were on foot for about 2.5 hours.

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In my opinion, a day trip to Glendalough is a great way to add some variety to the classic city trip program and at the same time get an insight into the “green” Ireland.