Derry is the second city of Northern Ireland, about 85,000 people on a hill above the River Foyle, and it has the only complete set of city walls left in Ireland. You can walk the entire circuit in under an hour, about a mile of seventeenth-century rampart with the city inside it and the Bogside below, and it is free, open and unrestricted.
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FIRST, THE NAME, BECAUSE IT CANNOT BE AVOIDED AND SHOULD NOT BE FUDGED. The original settlement was Daire, from the Irish for oak grove. In 1613 the City of London's guilds were granted the plantation of the area and the prefix was added, making Londonderry, which remains the legal name of the city and the county. In practice NATIONALISTS AND MOST RESIDENTS SAY DERRY; UNIONISTS OFTEN SAY LONDONDERRY. The local authority is Derry City and Strabane District Council. Many people, road signs and the BBC use both or hedge with Derry stroke Londonderry, and the city is affectionately called Stroke City for exactly that reason. NEITHER CHOICE IS NEUTRAL AND NOBODY WILL MIND A VISITOR USING EITHER. Our UK travel guide for women covers the country.
SECOND, THE WALLS ARE THE REASON TO COME AND THEY ARE GENUINELY UNUSUAL. Built between 1613 and 1619, they were never breached, which is why Derry was called the Maiden City, and they withstood the Siege of Derry in 1689, a 105-day blockade that is still commemorated. Walking them gives you the whole shape of the city and the whole shape of its history, since the view from one stretch is over the Bogside.
AND THIRD, THIS IS A CITY THAT EXPLAINS ITS OWN RECENT PAST BETTER THAN ALMOST ANYWHERE. The Troubles are not hidden here or turned into a theme; they are presented, in museums and on gable walls, by people who were there. That is the most valuable thing about visiting, and it asks something of a visitor in return, which is to come as someone willing to listen rather than to photograph.
The Walls, the Bogside and the Bridge
A complete rampart circuit, a gallery painted on gable ends, a bridge that curves on purpose, and Donegal half an hour away.
THE WALLS are entered at several points and walked clockwise or anticlockwise in about 45 minutes. Four of the original gates survive in some form. The bastions hold cannon, including some from the siege. ST COLUMB'S CATHEDRAL, inside the walls and finished in 1633, was the first cathedral built in Britain or Ireland after the Reformation and holds siege relics. THE TOWER MUSEUM, built into the wall, covers the city's story and the wreck of a Spanish Armada ship.
THE GUILDHALL, just outside the walls, is a neo-Gothic 1890 building with an exceptional set of stained glass windows showing the city's history, free to enter, and it was rebuilt after bomb damage in 1972. IT IS ALSO WHERE THE SAVILLE INQUIRY SAT.
THE BOGSIDE IS THE PART THAT MATTERS MOST AND IT NEEDS TO BE DESCRIBED PROPERLY. It is the nationalist area below the western wall, and on 30 JANUARY 1972 BRITISH SOLDIERS SHOT TWENTY-SIX UNARMED CIVILIANS DURING A CIVIL RIGHTS MARCH THERE. Thirteen died that day and one died later of his injuries. The Saville Inquiry, which reported in 2010 after twelve years, found that none of the casualties had been posing a threat and that the killings were unjustified, and the Prime Minister apologised in the Commons on the day it was published. THE MUSEUM OF FREE DERRY tells it from the community's perspective and is small, serious and extremely well done. FREE DERRY CORNER and the PEOPLE'S GALLERY, a sequence of large murals on gable ends, are a short walk along the same streets. Guided walking tours are led by local people, including people directly affected, and are the best way to see it.
THE PEACE BRIDGE, opened in 2011, is a curving cable-stayed footbridge across the Foyle, and its shape is the point: it links the mainly unionist Waterside on the east bank to the mainly nationalist Cityside on the west, and the deliberate S-curve was designed to represent a handshake. It leads to EBRINGTON SQUARE, a former British Army barracks now a public space, which is itself the clearest physical statement the city makes.
NEARBY, AND THIS IS DERRY'S UNDERRATED ADVANTAGE: THE REPUBLIC OF IRELAND IS THIRTY MINUTES AWAY. The Inishowen peninsula in County Donegal, with Grianan of Aileach, Malin Head and some of the emptiest beaches in Ireland, is a short drive across an invisible border. THE GIANT'S CAUSEWAY and the Antrim coast are about an hour and a quarter east, and Belfast is about an hour and a half.
Recommended Tours and Experiences
Getting There, and the Border
Easiest via Belfast or Dublin, and the border is invisible but real.
CITY OF DERRY AIRPORT takes a small number of UK flights. In practice most visitors come through BELFAST, about an hour and a half by road or two hours by train on a line that runs along the Foyle and is one of the most scenic in these islands, or through DUBLIN, about three hours by road and the usual route for anyone flying long haul.
THE BORDER WITH THE REPUBLIC IS THE PRACTICAL THING TO UNDERSTAND. It is thirty minutes away, there are no checks and often no sign, and you can cross without noticing. IT IS STILL AN INTERNATIONAL BORDER AND THREE THINGS CHANGE: the currency becomes the EURO rather than sterling, SPEED LIMITS CHANGE FROM MILES TO KILOMETRES, and YOUR MOBILE MAY ROAM ONTO AN IRISH NETWORK, which since Brexit can mean charges depending on your plan. Check your roaming terms before you drive to Donegal, and check that a hire car's insurance covers cross-border driving, which not all do.
IN THE CITY, everything inside and immediately around the walls is walkable, and the Bogside and the Peace Bridge are both a few minutes on foot. THE CITY IS BUILT ON A STEEP HILL, which is worth knowing: the walls are at the top and the river is at the bottom.
A CAR IS WORTH IT for Inishowen and the Antrim coast and unnecessary for the city itself.
When to Go
May to September. This is the wet, mild Atlantic north west and the rain is the constant.
Derry runs 2 to 8C in January and February, 12 to 19C in July and August, and it rains in every month. THE NORTH WEST OF IRELAND IS GENUINELY WET, wetter than most of Britain, with weather coming straight off the Atlantic and changing within an hour. Summers are mild rather than hot and 25C is a notable day.
MAY TO SEPTEMBER is the season, with June and July giving very long evenings, light until nearly eleven at midsummer, which is a real advantage this far north. September has the best chance of settled weather.
OCTOBER TO APRIL is dark, wet and cheap, and Derry works in winter because its best things are indoors or short: the museums, the Guildhall, the pubs with live traditional music, and a walls circuit that takes 45 minutes. DAYLIGHT IS SHORT, with sunset before four in December.
TWO DATES WORTH PLANNING AROUND, AND THEY PULL IN OPPOSITE DIRECTIONS. DERRY'S HALLOWEEN FESTIVAL at the end of October is one of the largest in Europe and genuinely excellent, with a carnival parade and the city dressed up, and accommodation books out well ahead. AND THE MARCHING SEASON, which peaks around the TWELFTH OF JULY, is when parades and bonfires take place across Northern Ireland. Most pass without incident and some are a significant cultural spectacle; a minority of locations see localised disorder, and traffic and road closures are common. If you come in early July, check local news and avoid interface areas on parade days.
Is Derry Safe for Women Travelers
Yes, and the honest version of that needs more than one sentence.
US State Department travel advisory: the United Kingdom advisory. Read the current level there directly rather than relying on a figure printed in any guide.
UK FCDO travel advice: there is none, and this is not an omission. The FCDO advises British nationals on travel abroad, so it publishes nothing for the United Kingdom itself and both gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/united-kingdom and /uk return 404. In its place, the Government of Canada advice for the United Kingdom gives an equivalent third-country assessment.
The United Kingdom publishes its own national terrorism threat level, and Northern Ireland carries a separate one. That is unusual and it is more useful than a generic warning, because it is current and official rather than a guess. The threat level is published on gov.uk and is worth reading there rather than relying on any figure printed in a guide, including this one, since the level changes and a printed figure ages badly. The practical advice attached to it never changes: stay aware in crowded places, note where the exits are, and follow instructions from police and staff without waiting to see what everyone else does.
THE SEPARATE NORTHERN IRELAND THREAT LEVEL IS THE PART TO READ, and it is the single fact most visitors do not know. Northern Ireland has its own national terrorism threat level, set independently of the level for the rest of the United Kingdom, and it has historically been higher. WHAT THAT REFLECTS IS DISSIDENT REPUBLICAN ACTIVITY DIRECTED AT POLICE AND SECURITY PERSONNEL RATHER THAN AT THE PUBLIC OR AT VISITORS. Incidents are rare, they are targeted, and tourists have not been the object of them. Read the current level on gov.uk rather than from any figure printed here, and keep it in proportion: Northern Ireland has a lower rate of ordinary violent crime than most of the United Kingdom and Derry is a notably friendly city.
ORDINARY CRIME IS LOW AND THE CITY IS WELCOMING. Derry's reputation for friendliness towards visitors is deserved and consistent. The ordinary precautions are the ordinary ones: a bag closed in a crowd, care around the pubs late at weekends, and a taxi rather than a long walk in the dark. Street crime against visitors is uncommon.
THE MARCHING SEASON IS THE ONE TIMING-DEPENDENT CAVEAT. Around the Twelfth of July, parades and bonfires take place across Northern Ireland. The overwhelming majority are peaceful and well policed. A minority of locations, usually where communities meet, see disorder, and in a small number of years that has included rioting. THE PRACTICAL ADVICE IS SPECIFIC AND IT WORKS: check local news in early July, do not go to an interface area on a parade day out of curiosity, do not photograph bonfires or paramilitary murals in a way that draws attention, and if you find yourself near disorder, leave rather than watch.
THE POLITICAL AND HISTORICAL CONVERSATION DESERVES CARE RATHER THAN AVOIDANCE. People in Derry will talk about the Troubles openly and often generously, and the single most useful thing a visitor can do is listen, ask rather than assert, and not treat anyone's family history as a debating position. Take a guided Bogside tour with a local rather than wandering with a camera. Do not photograph people's homes. AND DO NOT ASSUME WHICH COMMUNITY SOMEONE BELONGS TO, which includes being thoughtful about the name of the city, where either choice is fine for a visitor and neither is neutral.
THE RIVER AND THE WEATHER are the physical risks. The Foyle is wide, fast, cold and tidal, with a strong current; it is not a swimming river. The walls have drops and some stretches have low parapets, and the stone is slippery in rain. The city is built on a steep hill that gets greasy wet.
Official health authority: the Public Health Agency for Northern Ireland, part of Health and Social Care. Northern Ireland's health service is HSC, Health and Social Care, rather than NHS England, so the Public Health Agency is the right authority here and residents are not NHS patients. Emergency treatment is provided regardless of nationality, but non-residents can be charged for ongoing care, so travel insurance is still needed
US Embassy: the United States Embassy in London, with a consulate in Belfast.
Official tourism authority: Discover Northern Ireland, the national tourism body. And Visit Derry, the city's own tourism service, which is the right body for walls tours, Bogside walking tours led by local guides and Halloween festival planning
Socially Northern Ireland is relaxed and informal, with no dress expectations anywhere. Pub culture is central and sociable and a woman alone in a bar, a restaurant or a museum is entirely unremarkable. Licensing hours are more restrictive than in England and Sunday opening is later.
The Derry Packing List
A proper waterproof, which is the first item and not negotiable
A packable rain jacket for women. It rains in every month in the Irish north west, the weather comes off the Atlantic and changes within the hour, and the wind on the walls means an umbrella is of limited use. A hood is worth more than a brolly here.
Shoes with grip for wet stone and a steep hill
Walking shoes with a real sole. The walls are worn seventeenth-century stone that is slippery in rain, the city is built on a steep hill, and the Bogside walk and Ebrington are all on foot. If you are going to Inishowen or the Causeway coast, the same shoes do that too.
Proper socks
Merino hiking socks. Wet feet are a genuine likelihood here in any month, and merino keeps insulating when damp where cotton stops.
A warm layer, in July as well as January
Our merino base layers are 100% Australian merino at 17.5 micron, and a long sleeve merino wool base layer for women is the right answer for an Atlantic city where a 17C July day with wind and drizzle feels considerably colder than the number. THE ARGUMENT FOR WOOL HERE IS SPECIFICALLY ABOUT DAMP: merino keeps insulating when it is wet, which in a place where you will get rained on most days is the difference between carrying on and going back to change.
A beanie and gloves, October to April
A merino beanie and insulated touchscreen gloves. Winter here is wind and wet rather than deep cold, and the touchscreen gloves earn their place because the daylight is short and you will be using a phone for maps and photographs in the dark and the rain.
Water, which is free and drinkable
An insulated water bottle. Tap water across Northern Ireland is safe, and the walls circuit and the Bogside walk are both short enough that a bottle covers the day.
The small things
BOTH CURRENCIES IF YOU ARE CROSSING TO DONEGAL: Northern Ireland uses POUNDS STERLING and the Republic uses the EURO, and the border is thirty minutes away with no sign. A contactless card covers almost everything on both sides. CHECK YOUR MOBILE ROAMING TERMS before you drive south, because since Brexit an Irish network can mean charges. A UK three-pin adapter for 230V type G, and note the Republic uses the same plug. An eye mask if you visit at midsummer, because it is light until nearly eleven. And nothing at all for the Halloween festival except a costume, because the whole city dresses up and not doing so is the conspicuous choice.
Essential Resources for Women in Derry
Emergency numbers: 999 is the emergency number for police, ambulance, fire and coastguard across the United Kingdom including Northern Ireland, and 112 also works from any phone. 101 IS THE NON-EMERGENCY NUMBER for the Police Service of Northern Ireland. For medical advice that is not an emergency, the NI system differs from England: THERE IS NO 111 SERVICE IN NORTHERN IRELAND, so contact your GP, an out-of-hours GP service or go to an emergency department, and a pharmacy can advise on minor problems. NOTE THAT IF YOU CROSS INTO THE REPUBLIC, 999 AND 112 BOTH STILL WORK, which is a useful thing to know on a Donegal day trip.
Police and support: the PSNI is the police service and there is no separate tourist police. THE RAPE CRISIS AND SEXUAL ABUSE HELPLINE FOR NORTHERN IRELAND, run by Nexus, and the 24 hour DOMESTIC AND SEXUAL ABUSE HELPLINE on 0808 802 1414 are free and confidential and cover all genders. The Rowan is Northern Ireland's regional sexual assault referral centre, on 0800 389 4424, and offers support with or without police involvement. ASK FOR ANGELA operates in participating licensed venues, where saying that phrase to staff gets you discreet help.
Main hospital or clinic: ALTNAGELVIN AREA HOSPITAL in Derry has a 24 hour emergency department and is the main hospital for the north west, including a regional radiotherapy centre. It is on the Waterside. For anything less urgent, a GP practice or a pharmacy is the route, since there is no 111 line here. Emergency treatment is provided regardless of nationality, but non-residents can be charged for ongoing care, so travel insurance remains necessary, and if you are driving into Donegal note that you are then in a different health system entirely.
Northern Ireland has its own national terrorism threat level, set separately from the rest of the UK. It reflects dissident republican activity aimed at police and security personnel rather than at the public or at visitors. Read the current level on gov.uk.
The border is thirty minutes away and invisible, and three things change. Currency to the euro, speed limits to kilometres, and your mobile may roam onto an Irish network.
Take a Bogside walking tour with a local guide. It is the best thing to do in Derry and it is a different experience from walking those streets with a camera.
Solo women safety assessment: Derry is a safe, friendly and genuinely welcoming city for a woman travelling alone, and its reputation for that is deserved. Northern Ireland has a lower rate of ordinary violent crime than most of the United Kingdom, street crime against visitors is uncommon, pub culture is sociable and central, a woman alone in a bar, restaurant or museum is entirely unremarkable, and there are no dress expectations anywhere. The FCDO publishes no advice for the United Kingdom because it advises on travel abroad, so the pair is the State Department's UK advisory plus the Government of Canada's as a substitute. THE ONE THING MOST VISITORS DO NOT KNOW IS THAT NORTHERN IRELAND CARRIES ITS OWN NATIONAL TERRORISM THREAT LEVEL, set separately from the rest of the UK and historically higher, and what it reflects is DISSIDENT REPUBLICAN ACTIVITY DIRECTED AT POLICE AND SECURITY PERSONNEL rather than at the public or at tourists; incidents are rare and targeted, and the current level should be read on gov.uk rather than taken from any printed figure. THE TIMING CAVEAT IS THE MARCHING SEASON around the Twelfth of July, when parades and bonfires take place across Northern Ireland: the overwhelming majority are peaceful and well policed, a minority of interface locations see disorder, and the advice that works is to check local news in early July, not to visit an interface area on a parade day out of curiosity, not to photograph bonfires or paramilitary murals conspicuously, and to leave rather than watch if you encounter trouble. On the political conversation, people here talk openly and often generously about the Troubles and the useful thing is to listen, ask rather than assert, take a Bogside tour with a local guide rather than wandering with a camera, not photograph homes, and avoid assuming which community anyone belongs to, including being thoughtful about the city's name where either choice is fine for a visitor and neither is neutral. Physically: the Foyle is wide, fast, cold and tidal and is not a swimming river; the walls have drops with low parapets and the stone is slippery in rain; and the city is a steep hill that gets greasy wet. 999 or 112 for emergencies and both work across the border, 101 for the PSNI, 0808 802 1414 for the domestic and sexual abuse helpline, 0800 389 4424 for The Rowan. There is NO 111 service in Northern Ireland.
Reading On
Start with the UK travel guide for women. An hour and a half east is the Belfast packing list, which is the obvious pairing and covers the other side of the same story, and the Causeway coast sits between the two. In Great Britain, the Edinburgh packing list and the Glasgow packing list are the nearest cities by ferry and short flight, and the Scotland packing list covers the country. Further south, the London packing list, the York packing list and, on the south coast, the Brighton packing list and the Dover packing list. For why merino rather than cotton where it rains in every month and wet wool still insulates, read the guide to merino wool base layers for women. Every destination we cover is indexed at the travel packing guide for women, and the base layers are at the Roman Trail collection.
If the outer journey is calling you, the inner one usually is too. Explore SoulMap at romantrail.com/blogs/soulmap.
