The village
Roundwood sits 238m up on a plateau between Dublin and Glendalough, which is enough to let it claim to be one of the highest villages in Ireland. Its Irish name, An Tóchar, means ‘the causeway’ – a nod to the old raised track that once carried travellers across the boggy uplands. The 2022 census counted 907 people. On either side lie the two Vartry Reservoirs, built in the 1860s and still sending around 80 million litres of water a day to Dublin. There’s a solid spread of pubs, cafés and B&Bs, which is really why people use Roundwood: as a base for the Wicklow Mountains rather than a destination in itself.
If you’ve one morning, walk the Vartry Reservoir trails and leave the mountains for another day.
Vartry Reservoir walks
Three way-marked loops circle the lakes and forest, all flat and rated easy:
- Lower Vartry (7.2 km): passes a bullaun stone and a historic bridge, with Great Crested Grebes often on the water.
- Upper Vartry (6.4 km): pine-clad slopes with clear views to Djouce Mountain.
- Woodland Trail (3 km): a short family loop under Scots pines, some over a century old.
Interpretation panels by the Lower Reservoir dam explain the 1860s scheme that still supplies the city.
Victor’s Way
Just outside the village, Victor’s Way is a private meditation garden of more than thirty black-granite sculptures, carved in India to Victor Langheld’s commission and shipped to Wicklow. It’s the one attraction here that costs money and keeps strict hours: open only 17 March to 31 October, 11am to 6pm, with last admission an hour before closing, and €10 an adult (€11 by card). It’s pitched at quiet adult reflection rather than a family day out – worth knowing before you drive up with children in the back.
The bigger routes
Roundwood is a natural start for several serious walks:
- Wicklow Way: the long-distance trail passes just west of the village; Stage 3 (Roundwood to Glendalough) covers 17 km and ends at the monastic site.
- Djouce Mountain (725m): reached from the JB Malone car park on the R759 by a boardwalk loop that keeps walkers off the fragile peat bog.
- Ballinastoe: boardwalk walks and the JB Malone memorial viewpoint, with the Ballinastoe mountain-bike trails a short drive off.
History
Two Presidents of Ireland are tied to the area: Seán T. O’Kelly lived at Roundwood Park, an early-19th-century house later remodelled in castle style, and Erskine Hamilton Childers is buried at Derralossary churchyard nearby. General Joseph Holt ran a guerrilla campaign through these mountains after the 1798 rebellion, and the Synge family – including the playwright J. M. Synge – held estates close by.
Practical information
- Getting there: on the R755, about 50 km south of Dublin on the main Glendalough road. St Kevin’s Bus stops in the village on its Dublin–Glendalough run.
- Parking: ample in the village and at Victor’s Way. For the Glendalough-area trailheads, car parks charge around €4–5 on busy days.
- Best time to visit: spring to autumn. The plateau and reservoir edges are windy even in summer, so bring layers and waterproof boots.
- Safety: mountain weather turns fast – check the Met Éireann forecast and stay on the way-marked paths near boggy ground.
The 17th-century Roundwood Inn is the obvious place to end a walking day, and the Roundwood Stores café is where to grab coffee and a pastry before you start.