No army has ever got past Derry’s walls – not in the 105-day siege of 1688–89, not since – which is why Northern Ireland’s second city is also the Maiden City. The mile of 17th-century rampart around the old town is the only complete circuit of city walls in Ireland, and you can walk it free, at any hour, in either direction.
The city (85,279 people at the 2021 census, over 100,000 in the wider urban area) sits on the River Foyle where the Wild Atlantic Way meets the Causeway Coastal Route, which makes it a practical base for Donegal one day and the Antrim coast the next. It began as a 6th-century monastic settlement founded by St Columba (Colmcille).
The name
Legally the city is Londonderry; the council is Derry City and Strabane District Council; road signs carry both. Which name a person uses tends to track community background – Derry among nationalist residents, Londonderry among unionists – and the radio-era workaround ‘Stroke City’ covers everyone. Use either; nobody will mind, and most locals are happy to explain the history.
The walls
Built between 1613 and 1619 by the Honourable Irish Society during the Plantation of Ulster, the walls run about 1.5 km around the Diamond and the four original gates – Bishop’s, Ferryquay, Butcher and Shipquay – and reach 35 feet wide in places, among the broadest surviving in Europe, with original cannon still lining the ramparts. The circuit is mostly level and manageable with a pram or wheelchair, though some of the old gate passages have steps.
You can wander up at any time, but the guided walks from the Water Gate (meeting outside the entrance to the Foyleside Shopping Centre) earn their 90 minutes, covering the siege, the cannon and the stories behind the murals below. High-season departures are typically 10am, 12pm, 2pm and 4pm – book ahead in summer, when demand peaks. Sunrise is the quiet slot if you want the ramparts to yourself; after dark the whole circuit is lit.
If you do one thing in Derry, walk the walls. If you do two, take the murals tour.
The Bogside
Below the western walls, the Bogside was the centre of the civil-rights movement, the 1969 Battle of the Bogside and Bloody Sunday. The twelve large murals of the People’s Gallery face the road through the estate and are free to see on foot; a 90-minute walking tour led by local historians unpacks the symbolism, and the Museum of Free Derry covers the civil-rights era and the Free Derry period of 1972–73. This is recent history with living relatives – treat it as more than a photo stop.
Museums and the old town
- Tower Museum – the Story of Derry from prehistory to the present, a Spanish Armada exhibition and the interactive Derry Girls Experience. Daily 10am–4.30pm; £6 adult, £4 concession, £3 child.
- Guildhall – neo-Gothic civic building with stained-glass windows and a clock modelled on Big Ben. Tours 11am and 2pm, £3; café on site.
- St Columb’s Cathedral – built in 1633, it holds the original keys to the city. Free, open year-round.
- Siege Museum – the 1689 siege told through artefacts and a recreated cannon room. Daily 10am–5pm, free.
- Void Gallery – contemporary art by local and international names. Tue–Sat 11am–6pm, free.
- Craft Village – artisan workshops and food stalls (Soda & Starch among them) in a courtyard off the centre. Daily 10am–6pm.
Across the Peace Bridge
The Peace Bridge, opened in June 2011, curves over the Foyle from the old city to Ebrington Square, a former army barracks now given over to outdoor art, cafés and events – the link between unionist and nationalist sides of the river is the point as much as the crossing. It’s lit at night and free, obviously. Nearby, the Walled City Brewery serves its own ales and a full menu in a former warehouse (Mon–Sat noon–11pm, Sun 1pm–10pm; tours available).
Back in town, Peadar O’Donnell’s has trad sessions nightly and Browns in Town does locally sourced seafood and Irish mains. Derry Girls is a small industry of its own: the giant mural on Badger’s Bar, a walking tour of filming locations such as Dennis’ Wee Shop and St Augustine’s Church, and a themed afternoon tea at the Everglades Hotel.
Festivals
Halloween, late October, is the big one – street parades, costumes and fireworks that draw thousands, so book beds early. The City of Derry Jazz & Big Band Festival runs five days over the May bank holiday weekend; the Foyle Maritime Festival turns the riverfront into a marina with food and music in late June; and the Apprentice Boys Parade on 12 August commemorates the 1689 siege with marching bands and fireworks. Derry was the first UK City of Culture in 2013, and the festival calendar has not slowed since.
On the water and out of town
A riverside path follows the Foyle for up to 10 km, and Far and Wild run guided stand-up paddle-boarding under the Peace Bridge and Craigavon Bridge, with evening trips for the sunset. The flat 8 km Ballymacran loop on Lough Foyle suits families and birdwatchers, and Inch Wildfowl Reserve, a short drive into Donegal, is at its best during the winter migrations. For full day trips: the Inishowen Peninsula and the Grianán of Aileach to the north, or the Giant’s Causeway and Bushmills east along the Causeway Coastal Route.
Getting there and practicalities
City of Derry Airport serves the city, and trains connect to Belfast, with Dublin reachable via the Enterprise service. By road, the A2 coastal route links the Wild Atlantic Way and the Causeway Coastal Route. Paid parking sits on both banks – Cityside near the Guildhall, Waterside near the Peace Bridge – each within five minutes of the sights, and local buses, bike share and taxis cover the rest.
Currency is pounds sterling; bring euro if you’re heading into Donegal. Accommodation runs from the Bishop’s Gate Hotel in the historic centre to hostels and B&Bs on the Waterside. Summer and Halloween bring the crowds with the festivals – spring and early autumn give milder weather and a quieter circuit of the walls.