Overview
Right now the Tower Museum is between chapters. Its two permanent galleries, The Story of Derry and the Armada shipwreck exhibition, have closed ahead of a move to the city’s planned DNA Museum, and what’s open in the meantime is the Derry Girls Experience, a preview space and the rooftop. If you’re coming for the deep local history, that’s worth knowing before you buy a ticket. If you’re coming for Derry Girls and a view over the Foyle, it delivers.
The museum stands just inside the historic city walls on Union Hall Place, opposite the Guildhall, and has done since October 1992. Five storeys, an internal lift to every floor, and an open-air platform on top: it’s compact, central and easy to fold into a walk of the walled city.
The building
The tower is a replica 16th-century tower house, built on the site of an earlier O’Doherty tower and funded through a public-private partnership backed by the European Development Fund and the International Fund for Ireland. Ian Paisley and John Hume were both at the 1992 opening. In the three decades since, the museum has taken four major awards, including Irish and British Museum of the Year, largely for packing a lot of local heritage into a small footprint.
What’s open now
- The Derry Girls Experience – The set of the Channel 4 series, recreated. Original props are here: Erin’s diary, Aunt Sarah’s pyjamas, Ma Mary’s Woolworths sweater and the Spice Girls costumes, along with the Quinn family living room you can step into. It’s the main reason most people come.
- DNA Preview Space – A first look at the collections bound for the new DNA (Derry on the North Atlantic) Museum, focused on the city’s transatlantic and maritime history.
- Rooftop viewing platform – The top floor opens onto an open-air terrace with clear views across the walled city and the River Foyle, and it’s the best quick orientation point you’ll get in the centre.
- Mabel Colhoun Collection – Photographs, maps and oral histories documenting 20th-century Derry, held in the museum’s archive.
The two closed permanent galleries won’t reopen here. Their material is moving to the DNA Museum, planned for Ebrington Square and targeted to open around late 2027, so if the Spanish Armada wreck of the La Trinidad Valencera is what you’re after, that’s the one to wait for.
Planning your visit
The museum opens daily, 9am to 5.30pm, with last admission at 4pm; it’s worth checking the website before a Sunday or bank holiday, as third-party listings don’t always agree with the official hours. Admission is cheap: £4 for an adult, £2 for a child, £9 for a family. The reception desk issues tickets, answers questions about what’s currently open, and arranges guided sessions for school groups or accessibility needs.
The building is fully accessible by lift to all five floors, including the learning area and toilets, with baby-changing facilities and autism-friendly tours on request. Some areas keep the lighting low to protect the exhibits.
Getting there and parking
The museum is in a pedestrian-friendly corner of the walled city, a short walk from the main bus and coach stops and most city-centre hotels. There is no on-site parking. The nearest car parks are Quayside and Victoria Market, both within about a three-minute walk; note that the Foyle Street car park is closed until at least late 2026. Coach parties are welcome but should give the museum advance notice.
Worth knowing
- Allow about an hour to ninety minutes. Weekday mornings are quietest.
- Bring a jacket for the rooftop; it’s open to the weather and the wind off the Foyle bites even in summer.
- The shop stocks locally published books and Derry-themed gifts rather than generic souvenirs.
- Children’s workshops run in the learning area, mostly during school holidays; check ahead for times.
At £4 a head and five minutes from the Guildhall and the walls, the Tower Museum is an easy add to a day in Derry, as long as you come for what’s actually open and save the Armada for the DNA Museum.