A 400-year-old family estate outside Bray whose French-style 17th-century gardens, working farm, house tours and farm-to-table food sit just 35 minutes from Dublin.
Laid out in the 1680s in the French Baroque style and often described as the oldest garden in Ireland, with strict symmetry and individual formal 'rooms'. Walk the Long Ponds, Bowling Green, Walled Garden and flowering woodland.
Guided tours of the Tudor Revival mansion take in the principal formal rooms, the Orangery and the Statue Gallery. Tours run Tuesday-Sunday at 12pm, 1.30pm and 3pm during the garden season, booked first-come at the Gardens' Entrance Ticket Shop or by email in advance.
The Angles' high beech, hornbeam and lime hedges form pattes d'oie walks, while the 250-year-old Beech Circle frames a 60-foot round pond with a French fountain. The nearby Sylvan Theatre still hosts outdoor performances.
The kitchen and cut-flower Walled Garden supplies the estate's kitchens; a restored Victorian glasshouse survives here. There is also a Picnic Area and Giant Sandpit for younger visitors.
The 19th-century octagonal dairy designed by George Hodson is now a counter-service Tea Room with outdoor seating over the sunken Parterre, serving cakes, teas, ice cream and light lunches from the Walled Garden. Access is only with garden entry.
The renovated 19th-century farmyard holds the Farm Shop & Cafe (open daily, no admission needed) and the Grain Store restaurant for Fri-Sun lunch in a converted barn. The shop stocks plants, homeware, Irish craft and Killruddery-made preserves.
Sourdough pizzas baked at 700 degrees with estate-reared lamb and pork, Walled Garden toppings and Irish cheeses. Open Wednesday-Sunday plus bank holidays from 12pm, with takeaway and online pre-orders.
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