How To Have Ireland's Famous Glendalough All To Yourself

Glendalough is becoming one of South-Eastern Ireland's busiest tourist sights.  Big bus tours and Dublin day-trips keep Glendalough crowded all day long.  Here's how you can experience this mystical place without another tourist within sight...

Peaceful Glendalough

Glendalough (pronounced GLEN-da-lock), is a historical early Christian monastery nestled deep in the Wicklow mountains, just 45 miles south of Ireland's bustling capital city of Dublin.  Glendalough means "Valley of the two lakes" in Irish, and the monastic settlement is situated in a valley next to two lakes.  These picturesque lakes, along with Glendalough, are located in the Southern part of Wicklow Mountains National Park.  The Wicklow Mountains are a popular destination for locals and tourists alike because of it's close proximity to Dublin.  The plentiful walking trails, historical sights and natural beauty offered in the area are particularly busy during July and August.  Click the link to read my blog post on what to do in the Wicklow Mountains.  

Glendalough's Round Tower

The history of Glendalough is fascinating.  It was founded by Ireland's Saint Kevin in the mid-sixth century.  Within 100 years, Glendalough became a large ecclesiastical settlement of over 1,000 people, a "city," for those times.  Check out my blog post for more information on the history of Glendalough.  Today we can stroll peacefully through green meadows to the remains of centuries-old stone churches and Celtic crosses and an impressive round tower...without another soul in sight! 

The trick to having Glendalough to yourself is to arrive early in the morning before the visitor centre opens.  Glendalough is part of the Irish Office of Public Works' historic properties, and you can find out more at www.heritageireland.ie/en/.  There is a state-of-the-art visitor centre at Glendalough, which opens from 9:30-6:00, BUT you can explore the site anytime since it is free and always open.  Evening exploring can work well too, but there are usually still plenty of people milling about after the Visitor Centre closes.

The Two-Lane Road to Glendalough

Now, if you don't fancy getting up before the crack of dawn to drive one and half hours south of Dublin through narrow dark mountain passes, I do not blame you!  It's not a smart idea, especially if you are not accustomed to driving on the left side of the road.  Many tour operators offer guided tours to Glendalough, and the big tour coaches start arriving between 10:00-11:00. The public bus service to the Wicklow mountains from Dublin is limited, but there is a daily service with St. Kevin's Bus Service that takes you round trip to Dublin to Glendalough for €20 or €13 one way.  Or you can also try Bus Éireann to the town of Laragh, which is about 2 kilometres from the Glendalough visitor centre.  Either way, the busses don't arrive in Glendalough until the early afternoon when the site is packed with tourists.  
Unless you stay overnight...

St. Kevin's Kitchen

Another recommendation is to stay overnight in either the Glendalough International Hostel or in the Glendalough Hotel.  Both of these places are within a short stroll of the ancient monastic site and offer free breakfast, free wifi and free parking.  I decided to book a private family room at the Glendalough International Hostel.  The room at the hostel slept up to five people and came with an ensuite bathroom, was very clean, quiet, comfortable and such helpful staff.  There was a real mix of guests, families with young kids, backpacking youths, plus hikers from all over Ireland and elsewhere who were trekking the Wicklow Way.  The best part was that we paid less than half of what it would cost at the hotel down the road.  To book the Glendalough International Hostel, you can go to hostelworld.com or to booking.com.

Entrance To Glendalough

Imagine slipping through the timeless stone archway of Glendalough's entrance into a world of crooked mossy gravestones and decorated Celtic High Crosses.  Marvel at the construction of the 110 foot round tower with only the sound of the wind in your ears.  Wander amongst the ruins of stone churches and Cathedrals and ponder what it would have been like to live in Ireland 1500 years ago.   

With just a little planning, you can step back through time and experience Glendalough the way the Irish monks used to. No tourists.  No crowds.  No distractions.
Just you and St. Kevin's legacy.

High Cross at Glendalough

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