Belfast: IRA Conflict Private Tour, Murals & Republican Museum

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Free cancellationExcellent quality

1/807

Duration3h

GroupPrivate

LanguagesEN

PickupAt your hotel

Walk Belfast’s divided streets, hear stories from ex-prisoners, sign the Peace Wall, and feel the weight of history in every mural

You’ll walk Belfast’s Peace Wall with someone who lived through the conflict, see political murals up close on both sides of town, sign your name alongside thousands of others, and visit places like Milltown Cemetery and the Republican Museum that most tourists never find. Expect honest stories and moments that stick with you long after you leave.

Step-by-step itinerary

The Experience

I nearly dropped my pen when our guide — a former prisoner himself — handed me a marker at the Belfast Peace Wall and said, “Go on then, write something.” It was strange. I’d seen photos of this wall before but standing there, you can still smell spray paint from last week’s messages. The concrete felt cold under my hand. The city was quiet that morning except for a couple of kids kicking a ball behind us. Our guide told us how the wall wasn’t meant to last this long — but here it is, dividing Falls Road and Shankill after all these years.

We rode through West Belfast in an old van with plastic bullet casings rattling around in a box between the seats (I picked one up; heavier than I expected). The murals along Falls Road are massive — some angry, some mournful. Our guide pointed out faces he knew personally. There was a pause when we reached Bobby Sands’ mural. He just nodded at it and let us stand there for a minute. I didn’t expect to feel so much just looking at painted brickwork. On Shankill Road, things felt different — Union Jacks everywhere and murals of masked men staring right back at you.

The Milltown Cemetery was quieter than I thought it would be. Wet grass underfoot, red hands carved into stone. We stopped by Bobby Sands’ grave — people had left flowers and handwritten notes tucked into the headstone. Our guide shared stories about hunger strikes and funerals that turned into protests. At one point he laughed telling us about trying to explain all this to his own kids (“They just want ice cream,” he said). It made everything feel more real somehow.

The Eileen Hickey Irish Republican History Museum only opens for a few hours each day (we barely made it), but inside there were old posters, prison crafts, even letters smuggled out under watchful eyes. One of the volunteers let me hold a rubber bullet — “That’s what they used on us,” she said quietly. Walking out into the drizzle after that felt heavier than before.

What’s included

Your day includes private transportation with hotel pickup and drop-off around Belfast’s key conflict sites.
entry to Milltown Cemetery where you’ll see Bobby Sands’ resting place.
time to handle plastic and rubber bullets once used by British forces.
access to the Eileen Hickey Irish Republican History Museum (open 10am–2pm Tuesday to Saturday).
plus chances to walk along Falls Road and Shankill Road for close-up views of political murals—guided throughout by someone who lived through it all.

Good to know

Easy physical levelWheelchair accessibleAccessible transportStroller friendlyPublic transport nearbyInfants must sit on laps

Operated by Giants Causeway Tours