Why you should visit The Gobbins this year

After seeing all the hype around the reopening of The Gobbins cliff walk, I decided to purchase two tickets as part of a birthday present for my better half. Two tickets soon turned into five tickets which turned into ten tickets as both of our families decided to join us too. The more the merrier as the saying goes.

Tickets booked, we headed off on a dry day at the end of July. Meeting at the visitor centre in Islandmagee, we were given a safety briefing from our lovely guide and then popped on a bus down to the cliffs.

The walk itself consisted of a 2.5 hour guided tour along the cliff path. There is a steep but manageable pathway at the beginning and end of the tour. The website makes it sound more like Mount Everest! Don’t let it put you off as you have plenty of time to take the hill at your own pace.

The tour begins at Wise’s Eye close to sea level. Here you pass through a small gated hole in the rock into the unknown beyond. The guide then brings you down narrow paths, over wonderful bridges, alongside caves and nesting birds. All this whilst telling you about the history of the path, the wide array of birds you’ll see and about the people who built and used the path in the early 1900s.

The path brings you right along the coastline until you meet dead end where a rock fall has blocked the remainder of the path. Here you turn back and go along the same pathway to where you started.

I would highly recommend booking for summertime for the best opportunity for good weather as the path is quite exposed. Another tip would be to wear walking boots if you own them, otherwise they will charge extra to borrow boots. They are quite strict about this, I wore my walking shoes and was made change into rented boots!

All in all it was a great day out! The tour was interesting and the path is a definite must see in Northern Ireland.

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Article sponsored by The Gobbins Cafe.