Events

Regular Tours

Guided Tours

Included in the price of your ticket is a fully guided tour from the ferry to the Fortress, lasting up to 1 ¼ hours. Our fully trained guides will tell you the story of Spike Island and give you access to areas not normally open to the public. You are then free to explore the other Fortress attractions and surrounding island at your leisure.

Audioguides with "Beacon Technology"

Our state of the art audio guides can be purchased in 4 languages, English, Irish, French and German from our cafe. They can be used with ‘beacon technology’, simple switch on the unit and plug in the headphones and start walking around, and our cutting edge beacons will detect your presence and trigger the appropriate audio. Or you can simply press and play.

Audio is one hour in total and you get to keep the guide as a souvenir!

Self-Guided Tour

After a short safety briefing on exiting the ferry, visitors to the island are free to explore the attractions and island habitat for themselves. You will be issued with a map and can follow our 16 point ‘Monolith Trail’ to explore the area. With 104 acres of an island and a 24 acre fort, bring your walking shoes!

Cafe / Toilets / Gift Shop

Our fully stocked Cafe is housed in the former prison gymnasium and sells hot rolls, wraps and sandwiches, soup, tea/coffee, scones, cakes and other items. 

Toilets are are located on the pier and at the fort entrance and in the cafe.

What's Here

In the last 1300 years Spike Island has been home to heroes and villains, captains and convicts, red coats and rioters, sinners and saints.  The islands impressive 104 acres have at one time or another hosted an Island monastery, an Island prison, an Island fortress and an Island home. 

Today visitors can discover the islands impressive 104 acres with tours departing from Kennedy pier, Cobh, Cork Harbour, which is right next to Titanic Cobh.  Cobh itself is a beautiful heritage town steeped in history, with one of the largest cathedrals in Ireland.  Cobh was also the departure point for over 2.5 million Irish emigrants, the single large departure point in the country. 

A scenic 10/20 minute ferry journey gives visitors an overview of the history and heritage of Cobh and Cork harbour and sets the scene for a visit to Spike.  Then its on to the imposing 24 acre Fortress Spike, a 200 year old star shaped fort that holds some of the most impressive buildings in Ireland, including;

  • The Punishment Block, an 1858 prison where inmates were chained to the wall in dark cells.
  • The 1985 cells, which housed modern prisoners in 4 man cells and included famous inmates like Martin Cahill, orchestrator of a 40 million Euro art heist in Dublin.
  • Irelands largest Artillery Gun Park, with cannons and modern military machines.
  • Walk the deep and narrow tunnels to our 6’’ harbour defence guns, the largest in Ireland.
  • Our former childrens prison conversion to the hold of a convict ship, our social history room, the John Mitchal room and our interactive display of Cork Harbour.
  • Former church Mitchel hall, which houses temporary art exhibitions.
  • Scale the points of our start shaped bastions to get incredible views of Cork Harbour and Cobh.
  • Meet and talk to our trained guides who can give you all the information you need about Spike Island and how it has influenced many corner of the world.

Click below to Discover more about the history and attractions of Spike Island.

Read More

Went over to Spike Island during the summer. What a great day out, very interesting place, great walks and a big field if you wanted too chill out or if the kids want to play. It has a shop so you can get food and drinks. You could make a whole day out of it, there was more added to it during the year so cannot wait to go over again this summer, would highly recommend it.

  • Bernard & Helena McCarthy
  • Ireland

We had the pleasure & experience of visiting Spike Island on a day trip the journey from Cobh harbour was by ferry, the crew were great giving information & answering questions. Our tour guide was brilliant, an ex navy man himself, spent time with all. He really got across the history of Spike and we will definitely go again.

  • Yvonne
  • Ireland

Great Tour of the Island. My Family and I visited Spike Island (February) and we all found it very interesting. The trip on the ferry accross was great and it was a dry day. We found it very interesting and for history lovers it is a great place to go. The views of Cobh from the Island are magnificent.

  • Caroline D
  • Cork

I went to Spike Island recently and found it totally amazing with the history and the heritage of the island. It's a great place to visit and the tour is great. If in Cork then it should be high on your list of places to go. Highly recommended.

  • John B
  • Cork

Very impressive! It was our second time here and well worth the trip. Lots of interesting information presented with a touch of Irish humour. We'd strongly advise everyone to go there, it's a great day out! You can take the island in at your own pace or join a guided tour. It's a brilliant opportunity to see all of Cork harbour.

  • Claire T
  • Ireland

Both for history and nature enthusiasts. Be sure to catch the free guided tour that is included in your ticket. Our guide was very skilled and made the history come alive through stories he told.Also take the time to explore the island and enjoy the view of Cobh from a different perspective. Take a walk around and take in the beauty of the nature and the island as a whole!

  • Kenny & Lisa
  • Brussels, Belgium

Amazing, a hidden gem! Must-see. Myself and my husband visited Spike Island today and although we both live in Cork we had never been. It was absolutely brilliant and would highly recommend. Our guide was excellent, so knowledgeable and funny! Time flies so we will definitely be back and will also do the After Dark tour too. I would never get sick of visiting and feel it is the kind of place you could visit over and over and still see and learn new things.

  • Trish
  • Cork

Spike Island is well worth a visit. The scenery is beautiful, even for a walk, it is worthwhile to go and see. The tour guide was excellent too and we enjoyed it all. You could easily spend a few hours here, a great way to spend a day and very affordable too. It is advisable to book the ferry beforehand, it is a popular spot.

  • Rose
  • Boston, Massachusetts, USA