Planning a trip to Derry City
Visitor Information
The Derry Tourist Information Centre is at 44 Foyle Street, Derry, B48 6AT (www.derryvisitor.com; 028/7126-7284). It’s open daily, year-round; weekday hours are generally 9am to 6pm, weekends 10am to 5pm, though there are some seasonal fluctuations.
Coin of the Realm
When we're in the Derry area (on the border between Ulster and the Republic of Ireland), we carry two change purses -- one for euros and one for pence -- because we never know which we'll need.
Getting Around
Ulsterbus, Foyle Street Depot, Derry (www.translink.co.uk; 028/9066-6630), operates local bus service to the suburbs. There is no bus service within the walls of the small, easily walkable city. The black London-style taxis you'll see are known in Derry and Belfast as "people's taxis," and they pick up multiple passengers going in the same direction for very cheap fares (they first appeared during the Troubles when buses would not serve the violence-prone areas and are now local institutions). However, they primarily serve nationalist areas outside the walls and will not go to most areas of interest to tourists. Use any of the other taxis available throughout the city, which are plentiful and reasonably priced.
There are taxi stands at the Ulsterbus Depot, Foyle Street (028/7126-2262), and at the Northern Ireland (Waterside) Railway Station, Duke Street, Waterside (028/7134-2228). To call a cab, contact Sackville Taxis (028/7137-1666), Derry Taxis (028/7126-0247), or Foyle Taxis (028/7126-3905).
Local car-rental offices include Europcar (028/7181-2773) and Hertz (028/7181-1994) at the City of Derry Airport.
The focal point of Derry is the Diamond, a large square holding a war memorial in the center of the city. Four streets radiate out from the Diamond: Bishop, Ferryquay, Shipquay, and Butcher. Each extends for several blocks and ends at a gateway (Bishop’s Gate, Ferryquay Gate, Shipquay Gate, and Butcher’s Gate) cut into the thick city walls.
Although the original walled city was built on the west bank of the River Foyle, Derry has spread across to the east bank as well, with three bridges connecting the two sides. The Craigavon Bridge, built in 1933, is one of only a few double-decker bridges in the British Isles. The Foyle Bridge, Ireland’s longest bridge, opened in 1984 and provides a dual-lane highway about 2 miles (3.2km) north of the Craigavon Bridge. The sleek, modern Peace Bridge links Ebrington Square with the rest of the city’s central area. Its name refers to the fact that it joins two traditionally warring districts, the mostly Catholic Cityside and the largely Protestant Waterside.
West of the river are two major areas: the walled inner city and, outside the walls to the west, the area known as the Bogside. Waterside refers to streets near the waterfront, where most hotels and many restaurants are located. Also in Waterside is a small grassy viewing point called the Top of the Hill, where you can enjoy spectacular eagle’s-eye views of the city. You’ll never find your own way there, so take a taxi and bring your map. Short of a helicopter tour, this is the best way to get your initial bearings.
Getting There
By Plane -- Service to Derry Airport (www.cityofderryairport.com; 028/7181-0784) is provided by the budget airline Ryanair (www.ryanair.com; 0818/303030 in Ireland, 0871/246-0000 in the U.K.) from London Stanstead, Liverpool, and Glasgow, plus a limited service to and from Majorca in Spain.
By Train -- Northern Ireland Railways (www.translink.co.uk; 028/9066-6630) operates frequent trains from Belfast, which arrive at the Londonderry/Derry Station—known by everyone as Waterside Railway Station (028/7134-2228), on Duke Street, on the east side of the Foyle River. The journey takes about 2 hours. A free Linkline bus brings passengers from the train station to the city center.
By Bus -- The fastest bus between Belfast and Derry, the no. 212, operated by Ulsterbus (www.translink.co.uk; 028/9066-6630), takes just under 2 hours. Ulsterbus also has service from Portrush and Portstewart. From the Republic, Bus Éireann (www.buseireann.ie; 091/562000) offers a few buses a day from Galway (about 5 1/2 hours), Cork (between 7 and 9 hours) and Dublin (around 6 hours). Most of the long-distance routes involve changes.
Fast Facts
In an emergency, dial tel. 999 for fire, police, and ambulance. Altnagevin Hospital is on Glenshane Road (tel. 028/7134-5171). The main police station is on Strand Road (tel. 028/7136-7337).
In the city center, the Bank of Ireland (tel. 028/7126-4992) is on Shipquay Street, and the Ulster Bank (tel. 028/7126-1882) is at Waterloo Place. Both are open Monday to Friday 9:30am (10am on Wed) to 4:30pm. The Northern Bank (tel. 028/7126-5333) at Shipquay Place is open Saturday 9:30am to 12:30pm, in addition to the typical weekday hours.
You can access the Internet from computer terminals at the Central Library, 35 Foyle St. in the city center (tel. 028/7127-2300), for £3 per hour.
The main post office, 3 Custom House St. (tel. 028/7136-2563), is open Monday 8:30am to 5:30pm, Tuesday to Friday 9am to 5:30pm, and Saturday 9am to 12:30pm.
