Experience the unsurpassed beauty of rural Ireland during this full-day excursion to Wicklow, Glendalough and Powerscourt. The splendor starts quickly as Dublin gives way to neighboring Country Wicklow – a natural wonderland of domed granite mountains penetrated by deep glens and wooded valleys. It certainly deserves its nickname, “The Garden of Ireland.”In Glendalough, you’ll stop for morning coffee and a guided tour of the ancient monastic site here, its ruined 1000-year-old churches and famous 100-foot Round Tower arrayed around two silvery mountain lakes. After a relaxing lunch at an area hotel or restaurant, your country drive continues on to magnificent Powerscourt House & Gardens. This estate includes some 50 acres of formal gardens, sweeping terraces, ornamental lakes with secret hollows, rambling walks and walled gardens; many of its plantings date from the 19th century. Five elegant terraces step down from the Palladian Mansion, built around a 14th-century castle, to a lake Sugarloaf Mountain looming majestically in the background. A fire gutted the house in 1974, though you would never know this as you browse its suite of bespoke shops each with its own style and character. You’ll have ample time to enjoy all that Powerscourt has to offer.