Very interesting to just wander round this old jail that was still in use up to the mid 1980's. The tour can be done at your leisure as there is no tour guide to rush you round from A to B. I gave this 4 stars as some of the interactive videos were not working. Technical glitches can happen. That aside there is plenty of interesting facts to learn along the tour which took us about 2 hours comfortably to complete. Downstairs there is the Cuffs bar and restaurant where you can dine in on pub grub or main meals and have soft drinks, alcohol or tea and coffee. Restaurant prices are decent and won't cost too much. The tour price is very reasonable also. Make sure and pick up your map and wristband when you arrive. Parking is signposted and is accessible at the rear of the gaol.

Crumlin Rd Gaol Tour! If you are ever in Belfast make sure you tour the Crumlin Road Gaol. There is so much history to be revealed there and the tour is very interactive. You can easily spend half a day with the family at this location. Belfast itself is very enjoyable with lots of shopping and lovely architecture.

I can honestly say this is my favorite tourist attraction in Belfast. Being more of a blue collar town your not going to get the most extravagant castles or opulent cathedrals, but man they sure no how to make an awesome looking prison. Well worth the visit

Very cool and unique museum. Can be a little disappointed as it’s really small, if you not into history of it told in multiple languages you will go thru in 15 minutes. Should be made bigger - finally there was max 900 people in there! All escape history can be told in details- remaining wings and floors should be opened- without reconstruction - just be it - make it safe and available. Looks that someone have lost their mind over expansion of it.

Beautiful and eerie gaol. Though I feel that it's quite a short tour. I was hoping to get further inside the tunnel or on the upper levels of the prison.  Some of the wings were closed for some reason when we visited too. It is a self-guided tour so you can explore at your own pace.  Parking is free and very spacious. This museum is still worth the visit. I found it very interesting and interactive. They are offering a paranormal investigation tour as well as an event if you're into those.

Beware the parking! Make sure you don't park on the street but go to the designated parking area to avoid a ticket. Great, historic, tragic jail. Signs, video and audio all along the way. Move at your own pace. Cafe on site, but closed when we were there. Gift shop with food.

Purchased tickets in advance for out visit to Crumlin Road. The museum is self tour and you are in no rush to walk around the museum, inside and out. The site is very interesting and informative about its history. Worth a visit....and the city tour bus stops right outside so handy for getting back to the city center.

Good quality educational venue. The use of an old prison to explain the history of northern ireland to all generations is well presented. The parking for the visit was free and entry price was reduced with online booking. There are toilets, gift shop and food outlet on site.

Wonderful visit, but wish we could go up into the gaol to see other levels. Not very interactive. The condemned cell didnt work. There's a lot of info here and you can see a variety of different areas. Very well maintained.

The website recommended the self guided tour would take 60 to 90 minutes. We were there for 3 hours and would have been there longer if the art show hadn't been packing away! We really enjoyed everything about the tour. We hired audio guides but we didn't really need them. There are videos all the way around and lots of information but they gave our 7 and 8 year olds something to play with which they loved. The ear phones are way too big for a child but they put the guides on loud speaker at opportune moments. Some of the rooms are quite gruesome especially the hanging room so you might consider where is appropriate to take children. Our favourite room was the one explaining a potted history of the troubles with cartoons. That's really excellent. I certainly feel more informed now. It was a long walk from the city centre but we saw a lot on the way there and hopped on a bus back to the city centre. Highly recommended!

Great experience with warmhearted and funny Elaine. We learned a lot and enjoyed the experience very much. You did an awesome job and we felt that the topic and place is important to you. Thank You

An historic and sobering tour. Gives the visitor a potted history of both the Troubles and the Gaol itself. The Cuffs restaurant is well worth a visit too with friendly attentive staff and a great menu.

Amazing place to visit, the building is architecturally fascinating and preserved very well. The stories of the prisoners are interesting whilst understanding that the troubles were a big part of the prisons recent history. The executioners room really makes you think about the brutality of capital punishment. Our guide Iain was excellent. Really good value for money. And the restaurant there was good too. A must see. .

Nice plan for a rainy day. I decided last minute to book tickets online since it was raining all day and not much to do outside. The booking process is very simple, the ticket for self-guided tour cost £15,50 and I could book the time slot on the same day. There was no waiting time when I arrived, I received a map and followed arrows around the area. What I liked about the Crumlin Road Gaol was how interactive and interesting was the presentation of the prison, instead of reading everything, you could listen to recordings and even observe the holograms of "prison characters" who told you more about the prison. The place looked very authentic, took about 60-70 minutes to walk through, and even included testimonies from former prisoners. It was a nice way of learning more about the history of the country and Belfast itself.

Very informative, and information isn't biased. Can be slightly boring as most of your time is spent watching long videos in various rooms without seats. It is not appropriate or entertaining for children. Gives a great feel for the jail and conditions inside, and the staff are all super friendly and helpful. A lot of the experience is spent waiting for the gates to open to the next part of the jail, which was quite frustrating, especially since there were no seats in the waiting areas. It can be very busy and rooms can be crowded so make sure you know how busy it will be when you go.

Great place to visit. Very well done and you can take as much time as you like. Finish off in Cuffs restaurant for a coffee or a meal

The history of the jail was very very interesting. And I did appreciate the extensive amount of information available. However, I have a few issues... 1) there was disruptive construction work taking place while we were there. If you take into consideration that most of the jails information is available via videos (which don't even have subtitles) you would miss large portions of information. I wouldn't have had such an issue with this if the tickets were subsidised, they should close the attraction if such work is taking place. 2) a lot of the videos are quite long (this isn't an issue, they're very entertaining and informative), I just think it'd be beneficial if there were small seating areas in the cells so you can fully enjoy the videos. I know seating is available in some rooms but even just a bench on the sides of the cells would be appreciated. 3) there was a lot of litter around the attraction. Discarded crisp packets, access bands etc. This may have been from people who came in before us but I just wanted to note in case it's a lack of preservation for cleanliness in the jail. 4) I think it would also be cool to have some of the cells on other floors open too. As you're really confined to the ground floor which seems a shame.. Also, I think it would be nice to see some of the cells just as they are (without videos, and how it would have actually be for the prisoners - minus any mannequins). It would also be nice if there was more to see in the circle room too as I feel there's not much in there and it's such a waste when it's such a spectacular feature of the jail. 5) i was disappointed that there wasn't staff in the jail to ask any further questions. There was also just a general lack of staff, we could hAve just walked in without paying and seen it all as nobody checked tickets or were on hand for anything. The only people working we did see were the construction workers. In conclusion, I would recommend the jail. It just has a lot of flaws that I feel should be addressed, it is good for the history but if you want to ask further questions or want to be immersed you will not have that experience.

We attended for the pumpkin patch, the place was decorated really well and all the characters were amazing they interacted so well with the kids. Loved the pumpkin patch, was so lovely right along the front of the gaol with great photo opportunities. You can carve your own pumpkin or it can be carved for you, while waiting on your pumpkin there are two rides for kids. There was a burger stall but we didn't eat at it, smelt good tho.

Decent venue. Plenty of free parking. It is a shame the tours are self guided. It gets a bit monotonous reading and listening to pre recorded videos. I really think having tour guides would make it more engaging and interesting.

Well laid out, informative, balanced and a great self paced tour. Food in the basement is surprisingly excellent. You have to book on Sundays, as the roast is great.

What a great place to visit. So much to do and see. Very interactive and loads to see for your money. Well worth going.

Wonderful attraction, great value for money and incredibly interesting. Love how the exhibits don't get overcrowded due to the clever one way system. An easy and cheap bus ride from town on the 11a, quick walk past the murals and there you are at the gaol.

Spent about 1 hour and 40 here, and enjoyed learning the history of the jail. Some bits do repeat themselves but just move on and see what else it has to offer. Everything was working and not very long wait times as we visited early Monday morning. If in the area of Belfast, I would recommend a visit.

Enjoyed the jail experience and it is a self guided tour. They have done a really nice job with the jail in regards to the tour. Well done with alot of historical facts. Enjoyed it.

We went to a Gaol and saw prison cells witch used to have real prisoners! We even saw a police helicopter outside! We went in a tunnel to the court building! It was very cool to see everything! I had a good experience.

This was an informative tour and very interesting. It gave you a great insight at what prison life was like in Belfast from well over 100+ years ago until fairly recently. There are interactive displays and various media presentations. The tour is in one direction, you enter one side and come out the other, so be prepared to walk the whole tour.

Grim reminder of the penal system in the not too distant past, especially the treatment of children.... Museum has very well preserved artefacts and an excellent audio visual presentation. Well worth a visit.

A good place to spend a couple of hours with some very sobering details of prison life, good informative projections and cells that will make you never want to fall on the wrong side of the Law! I guess the only improvements that could be made are to the poor signage, particularly after the execution area and when leaving the prison to the cemetery. Also, it would have been nice to have maybe one or two members of staff to be on hand but we literally didn’t see a single soul… I guess this added to the creepiness!

Very good exhibits. My only negative is that, although it is advertised as wheelchair accessible, it isn't fully. The doorways to the cells are too narrow to get a standard width wheelchair through. This means the wheelchair user can not experience any of the exhibits inside the cells. It needs more information in the area outside the cells so that wheelchair users can see and experience the same as able-bodied people.

We pre-booked the guided tour and arrived around 15 mins early. Our tour guide, Harry, was fantastic. He was incredibly knowledgeable and presented us with information in a really easy to digest way. He was also really friendly, I would definitely recommend him. The tour itself was good, however I do feel that the group size was a little large which meant the rooms ended up feeling crowded and it was sometimes a little difficult to see things (especially when you're not that tall!) We also visited the onsite restaurant, and the food was very tasty, safe to say it is much better than what the prisoners would have had! I would recommend visiting, it doesn't take too long to squeeze into a busy day but you can also pace yourself if you do have time!

Really nice visit, the museum was interactive and interesting, they had loads of videos about the history of the prison, the infrastructure and the testimonials of ex-prisoners. The only bad thing it's that the place was a bit dirty (specially the floor) and the fact that you can only visit some parts of the prison, the main structure remains closed to the visitors, apart from that, highly recommended to visit if you are around Belfast.

Really recommend booking the tour if your visiting. Our tour guide was really enthusiastic and knew his stuff and was passionate during the tour, it took around an hour to get through and we found it really engaging and learnt some interesting stories. Its a very historic place with many interesting elements. Definitely something to do when visiting Belfast

Arrived at 4 (last entry) but just got round what is truly an experience with video info at various parts of prison. Most areas accessible and very interesting. Could say after you've seen one cell you've seen them all but every effort to take you back in time to different scenes.

Great experience, a lot of information. The audio guide simply voices what you can read in the attraction or there are videos with the same information so if you don't mind reading you save yourself some money. We visited in a cruise and did it on our own along with two other attractions and it was definitely worth it and doesn't take up your entire day.

We had a fabulous time! We were in about 3.5 hours. The prison is really cold, so wrap up! The information is told by holograms and TV screens, which is really good as you can take it at your own pace. Be mindful, the last room is the hanging cell. It's very poignant, and sombre. This may not be for everyone, including children, but the option is there to skip the room if you choose. The history of the place, the prisoners and the escapes are amazing, and it's defo worth a visit.

A really interesting tour round the old gaol. We stopped at cuffs for a drink and food before properly starting the tour, there had been a leak from the heavy rain which our server made us aware of but our drinks and food came very quickly. The tour itself was very unique and well layed out, but I do feel it was a little short. The cafe signposted isn't really a cafe either, it's more for takeaway drinks. A very hood experience overall!

A very interesting place to see for sure. We got off the bus tour and walked around the area, which was fine for us early in the morning, but I'm not so sure if it was a busy afternoon. There's a palpable edginess in the air. So, the prison: dare I say it, it's a lovely looking building from the outside! Very impressive but for those getting sent down, it would have been seriously depressing I'd imagine. There's plenty to discover about the origins of the gaol and prisoner/warden accounts, treatment/mistreatment, Bobby Sands etc. The tour is at your own leisure but I'd book in advance to save time.

We really enjoyed this. The guide was informative and interesting. He could answer all questions and tell fascinating stories of inmates. Even mentioning the hangman and taking is down the wing where the executions took place

Easy to find. It is interesting to learn about the lives of former prisoners from the 17th century.

We went to see a Johnny Cash Tribute act here . Was absolutely amazing. Only gripe was there wasn't enough chairs for our group to all sit together. ( Our own fault I suppose for not arriving earlier ) . Done the whole tour thing at another time. It was very good too , a lot of history and information told by the guide. Only the paranormal fright night to do but don't feel brave enough lol .

I visited the Gaol today for the first time. We had booked tickets online for the guided tour and were directed to wait in the courtyard for a short time. Our tour started on time. Our guide, Harry, was knowledgeable and presented the information in an entertaining way. The tour took one and a half hours and we spent approximately half an hour afterwards looking round by ourselves. The room where prisoners were brought when they first entered the gaol and the condemned man's cell were particularly interesting. The only negative point would be that at certain points in the tour there were videos playing in the background which made it a bit difficult to hear what our guide was saying. Overall, the tour was very interesting and enjoyable.

I am a little bit disappointed. There is not to much space to see when you take a self guided tour (£12 for an adult). All these information I can read in the internet for free If you want to see more you have to take a guided tour (£17.50 per adult) which is held 4 times a day at a certain time (10:00, 11:30, 13:30, 15:00). So it is just £5.50 difference. It will be great to make the self guided tour cheaper!!!

Excellent experience, well worth a wee trip here for sure. The tour was done at your own pace. It would however hve been nice to hve had a tour guide for questions, but the self guided tour was very well thought out. Excellent day out

A very informative visit of how the gaol operated. Life in prison and not how anyone would accept it now. Free carparking and booking on-line was easy to save money and book ahead, so social distancing could still be managed. Onsite light refreshment and gift shop or restaurant serving full meals & sandwiches. Visit took 2 hours as listening in to the background information in various cells really was essential.

Enjoyed the self guided tour. Interesting place to visit. Reasonably priced, well worth the trip.

This was a very informative excursion. I have never been and I was surprised by some of the information I picked up during this experience. I would definitely recommend it

well worth a visit. really easy to get to from the town center,lots of items to see very eerie in a few places such as the tunnel & execution room. to stand there & think about what went on in there makes the hair on the back of you neck stand up.

What a great experience. Loved it all. Really well thought out visitor attraction and sooo interesting.