Lough Tay (Guinness Lake): Walks, Viewpoints + Map

Located along the Sally Gap Drive, Lough Tay – nicknamed ‘Guinness Lake’ due to its dark waters and white shoreline – looks uncannily like a freshly poured pint. It’s one of Wicklow’s most visited attractions, and for good reason.

Popular with film crews (Vikings, Excalibur, and Irish Wish were all filmed here), Wicklow’s Guinness Lake is off-limits to visitors, as it sits on private land owned by the Guinness Family Trust.

Below, you’ll find a maps with the viewpoints, the different Lough Tay hike options and what to see nearby.

About Lough Tay aka ‘Guinness Lake’

For the most part, a visit to Guinness Lake in Wicklow is fairly straightforward, however, there are a few need-to-knows that’ll make your trip more enjoyable.

1. Location

You’ll find Lough Tay in the Wicklow Mountains where it’s nestled between Djouce Mountain and Lugga. The Guinness Lake, as it’s known, is situated within a private estate, but it can be viewed from above from several viewing points (map below).

2. Why it’s called Guinness Lake

Lough Tay is nicknamed the Guinness Lake because it sits on the Guinness family’s private estate and, from above, its dark waters and white-sand shore resemble a pint of stout.

3. The Lough Tay car parks

So, there are several different places for parking at Lough Tay, with each one situated by/near viewpoints and/or trailheads. Scroll down for a map of the parking areas.

4. Getting there without a car

If you want to visit on a day trip from Dublin and you don’t have a car, you can take the Dublin to Glendalough bus and get off at Roundwood. It’s a steep 1.5 hour walk from the village (note: there are no paths). You could also take this 1/2-day tour from Dublin that passes Lough Tay.

The Lough Tay viewing points

There are several great Lough Tay viewing points along the first leg of the Sally Gap Drive. Now, a couple of warnings. Firstly, some of these viewpoints are on private land – we’re not telling you to enter this land.

Secondly, many of these viewing areas have very sheer drops that can come upon you out of nowhere. Extreme caution is required.

Viewpoint A

The first Guinness Lake viewpoint is from the area across the road from the Ballinastoe Woods parking area (here on Google Maps). Now – there’s private land across the road. Although I’m not telling you to go onto this land, if you did, you’d have a view out over the lake. Extreme care would be needed here as there’s a very steep drop.

Viewpoint B

The second spot is arguably the best of the Lough Tay viewpoints, as you car park up and get an eyeful, as the site is elevated (here on Maps). This can be a hard spot to get parking, however, as it’s the starting point for Djouce, one of the most popular hikes in Wicklow.

Viewpoint C

The third Lough Tay car park is the JB Malone Car Park (here on Google Maps). Again, there’s an area across the road that’s privately owned that you could (remember – I’m not telling you to!) get a view from.

Viewpoint D

The final Lough Tay viewing point is arguably the one that’ll be suitable for most (here on Google Maps) as you don’t have to go near private land. You park up and the view out over the lake is clearly visible right from where you pull in (on the right if you’re approaching from Roundwood).

The Lough Tay hikes

If you’re visiting the area and fancy trying the Lough Tay walk, there are several routes to choose from of varying lengths.

In this guide, I’ll take you through the walk from Lough Tay to Lough Dan, the Luggala hike along with nearby Djouce Mountain Walk, where you’ll get great views of the lake from above.

1. The Lough Tay walk to Lough Dan (easy)

The short Lough Tay walk is an 8km linear trail that takes around 1.5 hours in total. It starts from the kissing gate opposite Ballinastoe Woods car park (here on maps).

Follow the road downhill, turn left at the white cottage with the red Lough Dan sign, pass the farm and then cross the two small bridges.

The road ends after the second bridge. From this point, you need to look for the rugged old stone wall – you follow this for the remainder of this version of the Lough Tay walk (see map above).

2. Djouce (moderate)

The second Guinness Lake walk takes you away from Lough Tay and up Djouce Mountain. This is a moderate, 6.5km/2-3-hour hike that treats you to glorious views from its summit.

So, why does it also get lumped in as a Lough Tay hike? Well, when you’re a bit of the way into the walk, you can soak up mighty views of the lake itself.

3. The Luggala Lough Tay hike (difficult)

The third Lough Tay hike rewards you with one of the best views of the inky-black lake below. This is the Luggala hike, a tough 2.5 to 3-hour climb that’s worth the effort if you’re well prepared.

Start as you would for the Lough Tay to Lough Dan walk, but take a right instead (see map). The ascent is steep and demanding, and once at the top, keep well back from the cliff edge – it’s a sheer drop

About Luggala Estate

Although you can’t get down to the lake, you’ll see the impressive estate from many of the viewpoints. Luggala Lodge was built in 1787 and, according to the official website, ‘gothicized thereafter for the La Touche family‘ (Dublin bankers of Huguenot origin).

Many years later, in 1937 Ernest Guinness, the second son of Edward Guinness (the head of the Guinness brewing business) bought Luggala and gave it as a wedding present to his daughter.

Now that’s some present… look at the size of the place! Over the years the estate has played host to everyone from Brendan Behan and Seamus Heaney to Mick Jagger and Bono.

The landscape at Luggala is picturesque and dramatic, which is why it has and it became a magnet for Hollywood over the years. The estate has been used in the filming of multiple movies, such as;

• Sinful Davey
• Zardoz
• Excalibur
• King Arthur
• Braveheart
• Becoming Jane
• P.S. I Love You 

What to do nearby

One of the beauties of the Guinness Lake walk is that it’s a short spin away from some of the best things to do in Wicklow.

Now, you’re best off following the Sally Gap Drive from the lake (see map above). Some nearby attractions include:

1. Glenmacnass Waterfall: 25-minute drive
2. Powerscourt Waterfall: 20-minute drive
3. Victor’s Way: 10-minute drive
4. Lough Ouler: 30 minutes to the car park
5. Glendalough: 25-minute drive (there’s loads of Glendalough walks, like The Spinc)