Overview
Killiney Hill gives you one of the best views near Dublin for about twenty minutes’ effort. From the 153-metre summit you look north over the city and Dublin Bay to Howth, south to Bray Head and the Wicklow Mountains, and east across the Irish Sea – on a genuinely clear day, all the way to the mountains of Wales. It’s the lower of the twin hills above Dalkey, and the centre of Killiney Hill Park, free and open dawn to dusk all year.
If you only do one thing, walk straight up to the obelisk from the Burton Road car park and back. Everything else – the quarry, the woodland loops, the coast road – is a bonus on top of that one view.
The obelisk and the wishing stone
The stone obelisk on top isn’t decorative. John Mapas (the name also appears as Malpas) put it up in June 1742 as relief work during the famine of 1740–41, the brutal winter Irish remembers as Bliain an Áir, ‘the year of the slaughter’. Its inscription says so plainly: ‘Last year being hard with the poor, walks about these hills and this were erected by John Mapas, June 1742.’ The many old walls criss-crossing the hilltop were built for the same reason – to give the destitute paid work. The monument now looks out over some of the most expensive property in Ireland.
A few metres north-east is a small stepped pyramid from 1852, known locally as the Wishing Stone. The tradition: walk around each tier, climb to the top, and look towards St Begnet’s Oratory on Dalkey Island to seal the wish. Whether or not you bother, it’s the best spot on the hill for the full sweep of the bay.
One quiet detail worth knowing: the summit used to be higher. Through the 19th century stone was cut from the hill – the great granite face on the north side is Dalkey Quarry – and a lot of it went into building the pier at Dún Laoghaire, lowering the peak in the process.
Dalkey Quarry and the walks
Dalkey Quarry left sheer cliffs of 30 to 40 metres, and it’s now one of the country’s main rock-climbing venues, with hundreds of routes. You don’t have to climb to enjoy it – the perimeter paths let you watch from above and take in the geology.
For a longer outing, link Killiney Hill with Dalkey Hill next door: it’s a circuit of a couple of kilometres through meadow and woodland with views down over Dalkey village and harbour. Be warned that the connecting steps, including the steep ‘Cat’s Ladder’, are uneven and not for buggies or wheelchairs. The park also drops down to Vico Road, one of the most photographed bits of coast in Ireland, with the Vico Baths and White Rock Beach below for a swim.
Getting there and practical information
The hill was dedicated to the public in 1887 by Prince Albert Victor of Wales, for Queen Victoria’s Golden Jubilee, and briefly renamed Victoria Hill; the land passed fully to public ownership in 1891. It’s run today by Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown County Council.
- By DART: the easiest way in. It’s a 10–15 minute walk up from Dalkey station, or about 16 minutes from Killiney station. Dublin Bus routes 7 and 7A also serve the area.
- By car: there’s a pay-and-display car park at the main entrance (around €2.50 an hour), and free parking is available at the Killiney Hill Car Park on Burton Road. Either fills fast on sunny weekends – come before 10am or take the train.
- Facilities: a tea room and a children’s playground near the main entrance, public toilets, and a paved path to the summit that’s manageable for wheelchairs; the older stone steps and quarry paths are steep and rough. Dogs are welcome under control.
Pick a clear day a day or two after rain for the sharpest visibility, bring a windproof layer even in summer – the top is fully exposed – and time it for early morning or evening light if you can.