Overview
Avoca is a one-street village strung along the east bank of the Avoca River in County Wicklow, best known for two things: a weaving mill that has run here since 1723, and a spell as the fictional Ballykissangel in the long-running BBC series. The Meeting of the Waters, where the Avonmore and Avonbeg rivers join, is about 3 km up the valley – not in the village itself, whatever the postcards imply. If you’ve an afternoon, the mill tour and a riverside walk are the core of it.
Craft heritage and the mill
The Avoca Handweavers mill is the village’s centrepiece and, established in 1723, claims to be Ireland’s oldest working woollen mill – it began when the Ritchie family set up hand-weaving on this site. The brand as it stands today was shaped by the Wynne family, whose dyeing techniques and bold colour patterns caught the attention of international designers. After facing closure in the 1970s, solicitor and cricketer Donald Pratt bought the business in 1974, restoring production and expanding its export reach. It passed to the hospitality group Aramark in 2015, but the original building remains the operational and creative heart of the brand, still producing throws, scarves and homeware by methods that have barely changed in a century. For mill tour booking details, see the Avoca Handweavers Mill page.
The Meeting of the Waters and river walks
The confluence of the Avonmore (the ‘big river’) and the Avonbeg (the ‘small river’) is one of County Wicklow’s most photographed spots. The two waters meet with a visible contrast in colour and flow before continuing together toward the sea at Arklow, and Irish poet Thomas Moore fixed the scene in his 1808 poem The Meeting of the Waters. The confluence proper is about 3 km upstream of the village, marked by a riverside park and a bust of Moore. In the village itself, a flat, paved path runs from the mill down to the three-arch bridge of 1868, lined with riverside woodland and easy with a buggy or on a wet day.
Red Kite Loop and woodland trails
Just north of the village, Kilmagig Woods has been managed to support the recovery of Ireland’s red kite population. The Red Kite Loop is a 2.5 km forest trail on a gentle gradient through mature woodland. Sightings are never guaranteed, but spring and early summer give the best odds of catching the birds circling above the canopy. The path is well-maintained and suitable for casual walkers, though sections can be muddy after heavy rain. For a more formal horticultural day out, Mount Usher Gardens at Ashford – a Robinsonian landscape known for its mature trees and winding water features – is a short drive away.
Mining in the valley
The valley’s other history is industrial. Copper and other ores were mined in Avoca from around 1720 until 1982, and the scarred spoil heaps and open pits are still visible on the hillsides – a stark counterpoint to the greenery, and a reminder that this was a working mining district long before it was a scenic one.
What to see and do
- Guided mill tour: €8 adults, €6.50 seniors, students and groups, €5 children aged 5–16, under-4s free; runs March to October with the last tour at 3.30pm, and can be booked online. Guides walk you through the carding, spinning, dyeing and weaving, and the visitor centre itself is free to enter.
- On-site shop: the full range of mill-made textiles, from heavyweight throws to lightweight scarves and homeware.
- Mill café: homemade soups, pastries and coffee with views over the river and mill race.
- Ballykissangel trail: the village stood in for the fictional Ballykissangel, and fans still seek out the pub and church used in filming; parts of Vikings and Cocaine Bear were also shot in the area.
- Village walk: cross the 1868 bridge, visit St Mary & St Patrick’s church, and browse the independent shops and craft stalls along the main street.
Practical information
- Getting there: Avoca is about 30 minutes by car from Wicklow town via the R752. Public transport is limited: Local Link route 183 (Arklow–Sallins) serves the village, and the nearest train stations are at Rathdrum (about 10 km) or Arklow (about 15 km) – Avoca’s own station closed in 1964.
- Opening times: the store opens 10am–5pm daily and the café 10am–4.30pm daily; mill tours run 10am–3.30pm (last tour) from early March to the end of October.
- Parking: free on-site parking, including disabled bays, though it fills fast on summer weekends. A public car park on the R752 a five-minute walk away takes the overflow.
- Accessibility: the store, café and mill tour are wheelchair accessible with disabled toilets, though a few historic workshop areas have narrow doorways. The riverside path is flat and buggy-friendly.
- Contact: for group bookings or event enquiries, email tours-events@avoca.com.
- Nearby stops: pair Avoca with a drive to Brittas Bay for coastal walks, head inland to Avondale for the 1.4 km treetop walkway that rises 38 m above the forest floor, or follow the Valley of the Two Lakes route toward Glendalough.
Come on a weekday morning to dodge the weekend crowds at the mill shop, and allow at least two hours for the tour, a café stop and the full riverside walk to the bridge.