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Kilkenny Wicklow and Glendalough Tour & Sheepdog Show

Kilkenny Wicklow And Glendalough Tour & Sheepdog Show — Guided Day Trips from Dublin

Granite hills at dawn, a round tower by afternoon light.

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Right now: Moderate — summer touring day Arrive by 08:00–08:10 to board on time.
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10.5 hrs
total tour duration
Round-trip day tour from Dublin
2.5 hrs
in medieval Kilkenny
Explore historic streets and castle grounds
2.25 hrs
in Glendalough valley
Visit the ancient monastic settlement
30 mins
sheepdog trial show
Live demonstration at a working farm
30 m
historic round tower
Iconic landmark of Glendalough's ruins
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Kilkenny Wicklow and Glendalough Tour & Sheepdog Show tickets at a glance

Compare fares, pick the fit — all bookings are mobile-voucher and eligible for free cancellation where shown.

Wicklow Mountains, Glendalough & Kilkenny Day Tour from Dublin 9 hr
Guided Experience

Wicklow Mountains, Glendalough & Kilkenny Day Tour from Dublin

4.8 (9213)
€45
  • Expert local guide
  • Small group
  • Skip-the-line access
  • Free cancellation
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Dublin: Wicklow Mountains, Glendalough & Kilkenny Day Tour 10 hr 30 min
Guided Experience

Dublin: Wicklow Mountains, Glendalough & Kilkenny Day Tour

4.4 (97)
€40
  • Expert local guide
  • Small group
  • Skip-the-line access
  • Free cancellation
Book this ticket
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Compare Kilkenny Wicklow and Glendalough Tour & Sheepdog Show ticket options

Experience DurationRatingSkip-the-lineGuideSmall groupFree cancel. Price
Guided Experience
Most popular
From Dublin: Kilkenny, Wicklow Mountains & Traditional Sheepdog Show
10 hr 30 min★ 4.8 $34 Book →
Guided Experience
Wicklow Mountains, Glendalough & Kilkenny Day Tour from Dublin
9 hr★ 4.8 €45 Book →
Guided Experience
Dublin: Wicklow Mountains, Glendalough & Kilkenny Day Tour
10 hr 30 min★ 4.4 €40 Book →

Is Kilkenny Wicklow and Glendalough Tour & Sheepdog Show worth it?

Worth it for car-free first-timers; skippable for hikers

The kilkenny wicklow and glendalough tour & sheepdog show packs three counties into one departure from Unit 3, Stephens Street Lower, and the value case is mostly logistical: without a car, Glendalough's round tower, monastic city and upper lake are awkward to reach, and Kilkenny's medieval castle and Black Abbey sit 90 minutes further south. One coach covers both, plus a working border collie herding trial on a Wicklow hill farm — the part guests remember. Boarding is free to attend at the office itself (0 EUR entry), with the fare set by whichever operator listing you pick from the grid above. This Dublin day tour pays off for visitors with two or three days total who want the Sally Gap, the glacial valley and a walled city in one hit. Walkers wanting the Spinc ridge should rent a car instead.

What makes it worth it

  • Three counties covered without renting a car
  • Live border collie herding trial, genuinely rare
  • Glendalough monastic site plus Kilkenny castle in one day
  • Sally Gap and mountain scenery en route
  • Free-entry departure point in central Dublin 2

Keep in mind

  • Long coach day, several hours seated
  • Glendalough stop is guided, not a hiking window
  • Kilkenny arrives midday with peak crowds
  • Lunch and Kilkenny site entries cost extra

Bottom line: If your Ireland trip is short and carless, kilkenny wicklow and glendalough tour tickets buy you a full county sweep no train timetable can match.

Head to head

Wild Rover vs Paddywagon: Choosing Your Kilkenny Wicklow and Glendalough Tour & Sheepdog Show Tour

Comparing different kilkenny wicklow and glendalough tour & sheepdog show tours is a common step for visitors seeking a historic monastic site in County Wicklow. They complement each other; most visitors who do both call Wild Rover the more structured choice for exploring Glendalough's glacial valley. Regardless of your pick, securing your kilkenny wicklow and glendalough tour & sheepdog show tickets early is recommended to guarantee your coach departure.

Top pick
Wild Rover
Paddywagon Tours
Departure Location Gardiner Street, O'Connell Street, College Green
Group Size Pacing Up to 64 guests per coach
Walking Tour Inclusions Optional walking tours of same destinations
Sheepdog Demonstration Setting Traditional working farm in Wicklow foothills
Vehicle Wi-Fi Availability Complimentary on-board Wi-Fi and USB ports
Pricing Structure Tiered pricing: €40 adult, €35 student/senior

Verdict: Ultimately, the official kilkenny wicklow and glendalough tour & sheepdog show stands out for its high-quality guides and structured schedule. While both operators navigate the scenic Irish countryside, Wild Rover remains the preferred choice for depth and organization.

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What you'll see

What you'll see at Kilkenny Wicklow and Glendalough Tour & Sheepdog Show

Glendalough Round Tower

Glendalough Round Tower

This 30-metre tower is one of the best-known features of the valley and a key vertical landmark in the monastic settlement. It is part of a wider early medieval site that stretches across a glaciated valley, giving visitors a rare mix of archaeology and landscape.

St Kevin's Church

St Kevin's Church

This church ruin is part of the clustered monastic remains associated with Saint Kevin and the early Christian community. The site’s buildings are spread across roughly 3 km, so even a short visit reveals how extensive the settlement once was.

The Cathedral

The Cathedral

Despite the name, this is not a cathedral in the modern diocesan sense but a large medieval church ruin inside the valley complex. Its scale helps explain why Glendalough became one of Ireland’s most important religious landscapes.

Reefert Church

Reefert Church

Located near the Upper Lake, this church is one of the quieter, more atmospheric stops linked to the original settlement area. The lakeside position adds strong topographic contrast and shows how the monastery expanded beyond the main visitor area.

Saint Kevin's Bed

Saint Kevin's Bed

This small cave-like recess is tied to local devotional tradition and is a memorable stop for visitors tracing the monastic story. It is one of the more personal landmarks in the valley, connecting the landscape to the saintly narrative that shaped the site.

The Monastic Gateway

The Monastic Gateway

The gateway marks the threshold into the historic core and helps frame the sequence of churches, tower, and graveslabs. As an introduction to the site, it is useful for orienting visitors before they continue deeper into the valley.

The experience

What visiting Kilkenny Wicklow and Glendalough Tour & Sheepdog Show is really like

You reach Unit 3, Stephens Street Lower between 08:00 and 08:10, which gives you a clear ten minutes to find the coach before it pulls away. Take a window seat on the left for the first stretch south.

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The city thins fast. Within forty minutes the road is climbing into blanket bog, and the driver pulls in at a viewpoint where the ground drops away toward Lough Tay — the dark lake with its pale crescent of sand. You step out into wind that is noticeably colder than Dublin, so keep a layer in your daypack. Back on board, the descent into Glendalough takes you past the gatehouse and into the monastic city, where you walk between grave slabs to the round tower and stand under 30 metres of dry-stone masonry. The Lower Lake path is short and flat; the Upper Lake needs longer than most schedules allow.

Afternoon brings the sheepdog trial. You gather at a field fence and watch a collie run wide around a flock on a single whistle, then hold it steady while the farmer talks you through the commands. On the kilkenny wicklow and glendalough tour & sheepdog show, this is the section people remember. Kilkenny follows: castle gates, the black limestone of the medieval mile, and free time along the Nore before the return leg north.

Kilkenny Wicklow and Glendalough Tour & Sheepdog Show
Everything You Need to Know

Your complete Kilkenny Wicklow and Glendalough Tour & Sheepdog Show guide

All the details about your upcoming adventure in one place

Saint Kevin arrived in the Glendalough valley seeking solitude, and within two centuries his hermitage had become one of Europe's busiest centres of learning. The monastic city that grew around him held workshops, guesthouses and scriptoria.

Its round tower still stands roughly 30 metres tall, its doorway set high above the ground. Norse raiders came repeatedly; the English burned the settlement in 1398. The stones outlasted all of it.

That endurance is what gives the kilkenny wicklow and glendalough tour & sheepdog show its shape. A single day threads together three distinct Irelands. The Wicklow Mountains rise as a granite dome pushed up some 400 million years ago, then scoured by glaciers into the corries and U-shaped valleys visitors cross on the road over Sally Gap. Blanket bog covers the upper slopes. Heather turns the ridges purple in late summer, and the peat holds water like a sponge, feeding the two lakes — the Upper and Lower — that give Gleann Dá Loch its name.

Kilkenny offers the counterweight. Where Wicklow is empty, Kilkenny is dense: a medieval mile of narrow lanes running from the Norman castle to Saint Canice's Cathedral, past slipways down to the River Nore. Black limestone, quarried locally and polished to a marble sheen, faces buildings across the city. Brewing has continued here since the abbey days; the Smithwick's site occupies ground used by Franciscan monks from the thirteenth century.

Between the two sits the working countryside, and this is where a sheepdog demonstration stops being a novelty. Border collies on Wicklow hill farms respond to whistled commands carried across distances no shout would cross. The vocabulary is precise — come-bye, away, lie down — and the dogs read a flock's hesitation faster than a person can. Watching a trial in a field beneath the mountains explains upland Irish agriculture more directly than any interpretive panel.

The combined Wicklow Mountains and Glendalough guided day tour has become the standard way to see all three in daylight hours, which is why kilkenny wicklow and glendalough tour & sheepdog show tours consistently fill through the summer months of 2026. Coaches depart from Unit 3, Stephens Street Lower, Dublin 2, with the operator's desk open 08:00–18:15 daily and no entrance fee to the departure point itself. Glendalough's monastic ruins remain free to walk. The valley belongs to everyone who reaches it.

Norse raiders came repeatedly; the English burned the settlement in 1398 — the stones outlasted all of it.

Dress code

Dress for a full day outdoors in the Wicklow Mountains and around Glendalough. Even in summer, the valley and hill stops can feel cool, damp, and windy, so a light rain layer and closed-toe shoes are sensible.

Bags & security

Pack light, because this is a coach-based day tour with multiple stops and limited time for luggage handling. Keep valuables, phones, and travel documents with you at all times rather than leaving them in the coach seat area.

Photography

Photography is generally fine at the scenic stops, including Glendalough and the sheep farm demonstration area, but follow the guide’s directions around private farm property and other visitors. A zoom lens helps for landscape shots across the monastic valley and mountain roads.

Families & strollers

The itinerary suits families who can manage a long day on the road and several short stops. Children should be supervised closely at the farm demonstration and in the monastic site because paths, stones, and farm areas can be uneven.

Accessibility

The tour uses coach transport and includes walking around Kilkenny and Glendalough, so it is better suited to travelers comfortable with short walks and uneven outdoor surfaces. If mobility is a concern, ask about boarding assistance and seating before departure.

Food & drink

Lunch is not included on this tour, so you can bring snacks and a drink for the coach, then buy a meal during the free time in Kilkenny or at another stop. Keep all food sealed and tidy, since coach operators typically expect passengers to respect shared seating and cleaning rules.

Not allowed

× hot food × open alcohol × illegal drugs × firearms × knives × hazardous liquids × fireworks × drones × tripods in restricted areas × oversized luggage × pets on board × smoking or vaping on coach

What to bring

✓ comfortable walking shoes ✓ light rain jacket ✓ small day bag ✓ water bottle ✓ phone charger ✓ cash or card for lunch ✓ sunscreen

Opening hours

Mon 08:00 – 18:15
Tue 08:00 – 18:15
Wed 08:00 – 18:15
Thu 08:00 – 18:15
Fri 08:00 – 18:15
Sat 08:00 – 18:15
Sun 08:00 – 18:15

How to get there

Closures & exceptions

  • ·23 Dec – 29 Dec — Christmas closure at Glendalough visitor centre

At a glance

Opening hours

Mon-Sun 08:00–18:15

Address

Unit 3, Stephens Street Lower, Dublin 2, D02 RW74, Ireland

Entry fee

Free entry, 0 EUR

Best arrival window

08:00–08:10 for timely boarding

Phone

+353 1 284 5560

Official site

https://wildrovertours.com/activity/kilkenny-wicklow-mountains-glendalough/

Cancellation policy

You can cancel or amend your booking up to 24 hours in advance of the tour date. For a full refund, notice must be sent by email before 12:01 AM on the day prior to travel; card or bank processing fees are non-refundable.

Plan your time

Daily Schedule and Duration Pacing for the Wicklow Mountains Day Tour

Recommended time

Full day, about 10.5 hours

For the kilkenny wicklow and glendalough tour & sheepdog show, plan on a full day because the coach itinerary is paced around three main stops plus road time. Wild Rover’s timings allocate 2.5 hours in Kilkenny, 2 hours 15 minutes in Glendalough, and 30 minutes for the sheep farm demo, with the rest spent on transfers and the Wicklow Mountains drive. Expect the busiest feel at the coach meet-up and again around lunch, while Kilkenny and Glendalough flow more steadily once the guided walk moves into free time. The scheduled best arrival window is 08:00–08:10, so arriving early helps avoid boarding stress.

Crowd levels through the day

Early morning Light
Late morning Moderate
Midday Busy
Afternoon Moderate
Late afternoon Light
The story

Chronology and Historical Origins of Kilkenny and Glendalough

Glendalough begins with one man's withdrawal. St. Kevin, of the Dál Messin Corb, retreated to the Upper Lake around 498 and died, by the annals, in 618. His hermitage grew into a monastic city. By the 9th century the valley held churches, workshops and a round tower some 30 metres tall, its doorway raised above ground level. Viking raiders struck repeatedly; the settlement was burned in 1398 by English forces under the Justiciar, and the diocese was merged with Dublin in 1214. A kilkenny wicklow and glendalough tour & sheepdog show now traverses ground that survived four centuries of assault. Kilkenny's story is Anglo-Norman. Richard de Clare, called Strongbow, raised a timber castle above the Nore in 1172; William Marshal replaced it in stone from 1195, and the Butler family purchased it in 1391, holding it until 1967. St. Canice's Cathedral rose between 1202 and 1285 beside an older round tower. The Statutes of Kilkenny, enacted in 1366, forbade intermarriage and the Irish language among the colonists. From 1642 to 1649 the Confederation of Kilkenny governed much of Ireland from the city, until Cromwell's siege in March 1650 ended it. What survives is unusually complete. The Gateway, St. Kevin's Kitchen and the Priest's House stand in the Glendalough valley; the Medieval Mile links Kilkenny Castle to the cathedral. Sheepdog handling in the Wicklow uplands is its own inheritance, worked by hill farmers across generations. Visitors booking a kilkenny wicklow and glendalough tour today depart from Unit 3, Stephens Street Lower, Dublin 2, D02 RW74, Ireland, where entry costs 0 EUR and the office operates 08:00–18:15 daily. Guided Wicklow Mountains excursions of this kind trace granite, monastic ruin and Norman masonry in a single day. Reservations for kilkenny wicklow and glendalough tour & sheepdog show tickets are handled through wildrovertours.com or by phone on +353 1 284 5560; many kilkenny wicklow and glendalough tour & sheepdog show tours combine all three strands.

c. 498

St. Kevin establishes his hermitage beside the Upper Lake at Glendalough.

618

The annals record the death of St. Kevin; the monastery continues to expand.

9th–11th c.

The round tower and principal stone churches are raised; Viking raids strike the valley repeatedly.

1172

Richard de Clare, Strongbow, erects a timber fortification above the River Nore at Kilkenny.

1195

William Marshal begins rebuilding Kilkenny Castle in stone.

1214

The diocese of Glendalough is formally united with that of Dublin.

1366

The Statutes of Kilkenny are enacted, restricting Gaelic custom among Anglo-Norman settlers.

1650

Cromwellian forces besiege Kilkenny, ending the Confederation that had governed there since 1642.

Photo spots

Best Vantage Points on the Kilkenny Wicklow and Glendalough Tour & Sheepdog Show

Wicklow Gap Viewpoint

Wicklow Gap Viewpoint

Best light · Midday during the coach stop

Capture the rolling green hills and deep valleys of the Irish highlands from this elevated pass. It is one of the top locations featured on various kilkenny wicklow and glendalough tour & sheepdog show tours. Focus your camera towards the old peat bogs and winding roads for a classic landscape composition.

Glendalough Upper Lake Shoreline

Glendalough Upper Lake Shoreline

Best light · Afternoon

Walk along the water's edge to photograph the dark glacial waters framed by steep, forested hillsides. Bringing your camera to this serene spot is a highlight of the kilkenny wicklow and glendalough tour & sheepdog show tour. Compose the frame with the wooden boardwalk or the pebble beach in the foreground.

Glendalough Round Tower

Glendalough Round Tower

Best light · Afternoon

Frame the iconic 10th-century stone tower against the backdrop of the surrounding monastic city ruins. Visitors using their kilkenny wicklow and glendalough tour & sheepdog show tickets will find this angle near St. Kevin's Kitchen highly rewarding. Use the ancient gravestones to add depth and historical context to the scene.

John's Bridge in Kilkenny

John's Bridge in Kilkenny

Best light · Morning

Stand on the pedestrian pathway overlooking the River Nore to shoot the imposing medieval facade of Kilkenny Castle. This spot highlights the medieval city of Kilkenny before you head into the mountains. The reflection of the castle walls in the water offers an excellent composition on a calm day.

Laragh Sheep Farm

Laragh Sheep Farm

Best light · Afternoon during the demonstration

Photograph the agile border collies demonstrating their herding skills on the grassy slopes of this working farm. This live demonstration is the centerpiece of the kilkenny wicklow and glendalough tour & sheepdog show. Capture action shots of the flock moving in unison under the guidance of the farmer.

Gallery

Moments from Kilkenny Wicklow and Glendalough Tour & Sheepdog Show

With kids

Family Logistics and Stroller Accessibility for the Wicklow Countryside Excursion

The kilkenny wicklow and glendalough tour & sheepdog show is a coach day out that works well for families who can handle a full itinerary and a few countryside stops. Expect a mix of city walking, Glendalough’s uneven trails, and a live sheepdog demonstration that usually keeps children engaged.

Strollers

Bring a lightweight stroller if you need one, but plan to fold it for dirt paths and any short walks around Glendalough. The sheep farm stop is brief, so a carrier can be easier than a bulky buggy.

Best ages

Wild Rover says this tour is not suitable for children under 3, so it suits older toddlers and school-age kids better. The sheepdog trial and the chance to see lambs make the rural stop the most child-friendly part.

Facilities

The coach is air-conditioned and has 4G WiFi, which helps on a long day between stops. Family-friendly comfort is better on board than at the trails, so use the coach for snacks, shade, and downtime.

Sheepdog demo

During the sheep farm visit, children can watch the handler and dogs work at close range, and may also get to hold lambs when available. Keep little ones near you, since this is a live farm rather than a staged show.

Pacing

The tour uses 2h30m in Kilkenny, 2h15m in Glendalough, and 30 minutes at the sheep farm, so it suits kids who can manage several transitions. If your child needs frequent breaks, the Kilkenny Wicklow and Glendalough tour is easier with an older family member to help.

Food & drink

Dining Guide for the Kilkenny Wicklow and Glendalough Tour & Sheepdog Show

For the kilkenny wicklow and glendalough tour & sheepdog show, lunch is usually best planned in Kilkenny City, then kept simple near Glendalough. Kyteler’s Inn works well for a sit-down meal, while Laragh/Glendalough has a few close-by cafés and pub lunches for a faster stop.

Kyteler’s Inn

€€

Pub restaurant — Kilkenny lunch stop

Good for a fuller break on the Medieval Mile. The kitchen serves traditional Irish dishes and casual bar food; it can be busy at peak lunch and early evening, so group bookings help.

FAQ

Kilkenny Wicklow and Glendalough Tour & Sheepdog Show — frequently asked questions

Everything you need to know for your journey

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