Derry's Walls are no longer a noose - they have become a necklace, showing up the city's cultural pearls, writes Patti Holly

If Derry's city fathers had their way back in the early 1970s, the city's Walled City Cultural Trail would have been a definite non-starter. According to planners of the day, the historic walls were holding up the city's redevelopment and needed to come down.

The 17th century walls, one commentator famously said were like a noose around the city centre. Another claimed they "meandered rather inconveniently between rows of tenements and partly destroyed buildings".

The consensus was the sooner they come down, the better. Thankfully, common sense prevailed and Derry is the only remaining completely walled city in Ireland - and one of the finest examples of a walled city in Europe Today the historic walled city has been identified as a signature project by the Northern Ireland Tourist Board under its Strategic Framework for Action 2004-07.

The strategy's objective is to establish a "world-class visitor experience" in Northern Ireland founded on five projects: the Walls of Derry; the Giant's Causeway/Antrim Coast; the Titanic; Christian Heritage/Saint Patrick; and the Mournes National Park.

Recognition of the walled city's potential as a visitor attraction may have been long overdue but now it is right up there with the best of what the rest of Northern Ireland has to offer and the walls are marketed as an integral part of the city's heritage. All of which is good news for the Walled City Cultural Trail.

Now in its fifth year, the trail is well-worn around the compact city centre. Both local people and visitors alike are discovering it is the key to unlocking Derry's rich and diverse cultural heritage.

The trail is tied into an itinerary of daily events and activities catering for all ages and tastes.

It includes animation and clown workshops; behind-the-scenes tours of the Millennium Forum and the Verbal Arts Centre, sightseeing tours onboard an open top bus; storytelling, walking tours, children's film screenings, classical and traditional music recitals at lunchtime; Highland and Irish dancing exhibitions, mural tours with the Bogside Artists, tours of the Apprentice Boys Memorial Hall; and a variety of evening entertainment.

Everything the visitor needs to know about the cultural trail is included in a handy pocket-sized guide which also takes readers through the themed days of the week. Mondays, for example, are "Behind the Scenes" days; Tuesdays, "Talks and Tours"; Wednesdays, "Family Fun Days", Thursdays, "Traditions Day"; Fridays, "Art Beat"; Saturdays and Sundays, "Weekend Relaxation".

According to the Cultural Trail's project officer, Sinéad Glynn, numbers taking part this year are up on previous years by almost 20 per cent. "Each year we try to include something different and this year we have included several new venues and events to build on the success enjoyed in the past few years," she said.

The cultural trail is organised by the Derry Visitor and Convention Bureau in association with Derry City Council and the an ever-growing number of the city's cultural and heritage organisations anxious to get involved. Although many of the events and activities are free, it is generally a good idea to check availability, as places in some venues are limited.

[ www.derrycity.gov.uk/culturaltrailOpens in new window ]

The north-west: easy on the pocket

Business is thriving for Derry entrepreneurs Martin McCrossan and Dessie Lynch, who claim to have come up with the antidote for visitors suffering from "rip-off Ireland" syndrome. Their Beauty of the North-West Tour is a five-day all-inclusive package which,they say, makes visiting the region stress-free and easy on the pocket, writes Patti Holly. McCrossan of Derry City Tours explains: "For years tourism in Northern Ireland and the north-west has lagged behind the rest of Ireland. People were reluctant to travel here because of our peripheral location, but also because of its negative image. Just when we seemed to be making headway on these fronts, talk turned to visitors being ripped off. Having worked hard to build up business, we couldn't afford to sit back and watch it all crumble." So they analysed visitor numbers and saw that while there was an increase in the number of people visiting Derry, many were passing through on their way to Donegal or the Antrim coast.They decided to capitalise on their location and develop a package to encourage visitors to use Derry as their base, with the support of local hotels. Although many hotels are having a disappointing season, visitor numbers in Derry are up on previous years. Visitors can begin their tour in the centre of Dublin, Galway or other convenient pick-up points such as airports. The package includes transport by luxury coach, four nights B&B and four evening meals in a leading Derry hotel, day trips to Inishowen, the Giant's Causeway, Bushmills Distillery and a walking tour of Derry's historic walls.

... For information on the Beauty of the North-West Tour contact: 0044 771 293 7997; from Northern Ireland 0771 293 7997.