Wicklow Way Mountains Walking Tour

Arrive in Tinahely — a charming market town on the edge of the Wicklow Mountains, about ninety minutes from Dublin. Tinahely is as far south as the Wicklow Way reaches before rolling into County Carlow, and it makes for a civilised starting point: a handsome square, a decent pub or two, and the gentle countryside that will carry you north for the first few days of walking.

Your B&B is ready, and the afternoon is yours. You can enjoy a short walk around the town, have an early dinner at one of the pubs, and get to bed early — tomorrow the trail begins.

Optional Extra: A private airport transfer

After a complimentary transfer to the Tallons Pub at Shillelagh—where the Wicklow Way climbs out of farmland and begins its long rise into the mountains—you walk north through rolling countryside toward Moyne.

This is the southern Wicklow Way at its best: green pastureland, stone walls, wooded glens and a first glimpse of the higher ground ahead.

The walk covers just under 16 kilometres over about 4 hours, with a few climbs to loosen the legs but nothing punishing. You pass through Mullinacuff and Stranakelly, cross quiet lanes and farm tracks, and finish at Moyne — one of those small Wicklow hamlets that feels more like a crossroads than a village, but with proper Irish hospitality waiting at the end of the day.

After breakfast, we drive you north past Moyne and into the foothills proper, dropping you at the Iron Bridge on the Wicklow Way above Aghavannagh, where the trail re-enters the high ground.

From the Iron Bridge, you walk about 8 km north, climbing steadily over Slieve Maan's broad shoulder before descending into the head of the Glenmalure valley. This stretch is one of the quietest sections of the whole trail – you can go hours without meeting another walker – and the first sight of Glenmalure opening below you, a long green cleft between granite walls, is one of the real moments of the Wicklow Way.

You arrive in the valley for a late lunch at the Glenmalure Lodge and spend the afternoon at your own pace. A short wander up the valley to the old miners' ruins is well worth the hour. Dinner at the Lodge and an early night — tomorrow is the long Mullacor crossing into Glendalough.

The day you climb out of Glenmalure and into Glendalough is one of the great crossings in Irish hiking. The walk begins at your doorstep, climbing immediately through pine forest onto the open flank of Mullacor and up onto the long, broad ridge that separates the two valleys.

For two hours you're on an open mountain with nothing but wind and distance. The ridge is broad and well-waymarked, with views north to the ridges you'll be crossing later in the week and east toward the Irish Sea on clear days. This is the quiet Wicklow – the part walkers talk about when they come home.

The descent to Glendalough is one of the great arrival moments of the whole trip. Forest gives way; the Upper Lake appears below, then the Lower Lake, and finally the round tower of the monastic city rising above the tree canopy. You walk the last kilometre through the ruins themselves before dropping into Laragh and your B&B. Go back to the monastic site after dinner when the day-visitors have left — the light at that hour is something you'll remember. Accommodation in Laragh is about 2km from the trail head in Glendalough.

Today, you walk north on the Wicklow Way, starting from your own doorstep in Laragh. The path climbs steadily out of the valley through oak and birch woodland before breaking onto the open flank of Paddock Hill — heather moorland, granite outcrops, and big sky in every direction.

This stretch is the quiet heart of the Wicklow Mountains. You'll cross Oldbridge and skirt the edge of Lough Dan below you to the west, its dark waters sitting in their own private bowl of mountains. The descent into Roundwood winds through birch and bracken, with the village appearing as you come round the shoulder of the last hill.

Roundwood claims to be Ireland's highest village—240 m above sea level, with a decent pub and a famous bakery. We drive you back to Laragh for the night, so you can sleep in the same bed and wake to the same Glendalough view.

Your last full walking day, and the biggest—about 17 kilometres and a proper mountain climb.

A complimentary transfer to Oldbridge allows you to pick up the Wicklow Way again, head north across the plateau, and arrive at Lough Tay, the 'Guinness Lake', before climbing Djouce Mountain and passing the JB Malone memorial stone.

Look back over your shoulder for a final glimpse of Lough Tay before deciding to climb Djouce Mountain or pass underneath the summit on the eastern flank.

Djouce's summit is the moment the whole trip comes together. Dublin Bay opens up to the north; the Sugar Loaf stands sharp in the middle distance; Bray Head juts into the sea beyond; and somewhere in the ridges behind you is everything you've walked through – Glendalough, Mullacor, Glenmalure, and the southern farmland. Pause here.

The descent is long but gentle, past Powerscourt Waterfall (Ireland's tallest) and into Crone Wood as the oak and ash close in around you. Enniskerry village appears at the end of the forest track.

A short complimentary transfer brings you to your last night's B&B.

Boots off. Wicklow Way complete.

A leisurely final morning in Enniskerry — no rush, no transfers until you're ready. Powerscourt Estate is a twenty-minute walk from the village if you have the time, and the village coffee shops do a slow breakfast very well. When you're set, we transfer you back to Dublin airport or the city centre.

Most walkers spend the last hour going back over the Djouce summit moment and the night in Glenmalure, already making plans for next year. We'll be here when you're ready.