The Troubles Tour- Two Stories, One Journey

Discover Belfast’s past while exploring life during The Troubles, when conflict, fear, and resilience shaped everyday reality. Guided by two local women — one from a Republican background and one from a Loyalist community — you’ll walk the Falls and Shankill Roads, where murals, streets, and memories reveal how identity, division, and community shaped their childhoods. They share personal stories of loss, strength, everyday routines under threat, and the courage required to hold families and neighborhoods together. Though separated by politics and walls, their experiences reflect a shared determination to protect loved ones and hope for a better future. You’ll also learn how women on both sides supported dialogue, helped sustain the peace process, and continue to work toward reconciliation today. More than a sightseeing tour, this is a reflective, human encounter with lived history — an invitation to hear real voices and understand Belfast through the perspectives of its women.

Itinerary

1. Was the tallest building in Belfast and house a British Army observation building on its roof and was the location of the tow of the first deaths on the night the troubles broke out in August 1969 (10 min)
2. A wonderful array of murals depicting local events and international conflicts both past and present. (15 min)
3. A garden to remember local Republicans who lost their lives in the conflict from the Lower Falls Road area. One of two gardens that we visit and can be controversial as they honour the dead of IRA members. (10 min)
4. One of the most famous murals in Belfast, Booby Sand who died on hunger strike in the Maze prison in 1981 (10 min)
5. Fr, Alex Reid was the resident priest who was instrumental in the beginning of the talks that eventually led to the Good Friday Agreement being signed. (10 min)
6. The second of the Memorial Gardens we visit, this time dedicated to the Republicans of The Clonard area and the location which is generally accepted as being the location where 'The Troubles' broke out in August 1969 (10 min)
7. Gates between the Loyalist Shankill Road and the Republican Falls road that still close nightly
8. Sign the 14m high "Peace Wall that divides the two communities and leave your thoughts on peace. (5 min)
9. A UVF Mural in remembrance of 7 members of the UVF that lost their lives in the Conflict (5 min)
10. Shankill Bomb Site where 9 people lost their lives (10 min)

Meeting & end point