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Kildare and Wicklow, close to Dublin, provide a welcome respite from the capital's urban bustle. As central counties of the Pale region (the area of land around Dublin most successfully controlled by the Anglo-Normans and then the British ), each is heavily resonant with the presence of the Anglo-Irish, yet scenically they are in complete contrast. County Wicklow has some of the wildest, most spectacular mountain scenery in Ireland, as well as some impressive monuments: the early Celtic monastery of Glendalough and the Neoclassical splendours of the great houses of Russborough and the ruined Powerscourt. County Kildare 's charms are more understated: a gently undulating landscape of farmland punctuated only by the great horse-racing plain of the Curragh, where the National Stud and adjacent ornamental gardens are well worth making time to see. Here, too, there are signs of the shifting patterns of settlement and land ownership - Celtic high crosses and pedimented buildings - written into the landscape for you to read as you travel. Their proximity to Dublin makes transport very easy in both counties. The Dublin inner-city railway network, or DART, will take you southwards as far as the seaside resort of Bray on the Wicklow coast; the main line continues to the bustling small towns of Wicklow and Arklow. The major tourist centres in inland County Wicklow are served, albeit infrequently, by buses. In County Kildare the major N7 road and the railway line to Limerick offer ready access to most sites. The scenic beauties of County Wicklow attract a lot of visitors and the positive spin-off is that a good range of accommodation is on offer, as well as an increasing number of excellent restaurants . It's worth bearing in mind, however, that hostels and B&Bs tend to be concentrated in just a handful of villages - especially in mountainous areas - and advanced booking is advisable during the summer months and over bank holiday weekends. Kildare is less visited, although here too a few pioneers offer good food and accommodation in beautiful surroundings; nevertheless, you'll generally find yourself relying on the standard B&B trade.
Your Tip for Wicklow and Kildare
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