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Ironbridge Gorge, England

Posted by (Longmont, Colorado) on

We stayed 3 nights in Ironbridge Gorge in May 2017 and loved it. Rick says that "without a car, Ironbridge Gorge isn't worth the headache". We disagree. We took the train to Telford, and then an inexpensive taxi to our B&B in Ironbridge. When we left Ironbridge 3 days later, our B&B hosts called a private car taxi (similar to Uber, I guess) for us and it was even cheaper.

We planned our stay for the end of May Bank Holiday weekend, so the Gorge Connect buses were running all weekend. We used the buses to get to Blists Hill one day and the Museum of Iron the next day. Very easy and fun. Plus, if you buy the Passport Ticket, you can buy a 1 GBP bus ticket that is good for as many rides on the buses as you want in one day.

The bridge is right in the center of the town, so you can walk to it whenever you want. Everyone is very friendly and the town itself is very small and walkable. We followed Rick's Ironbridge Gorge chapter for our B&B, restaurants, transportation, and all the sites.

Posted by
627 posts

I visited Ironbridge Gorge in August 2016. I traveled by sail-rail fron Dublin to Holyhead and then on to Telford, then walked out of the station and into a taxi.

Stayed at YHA Ironbridge-Coalport hostel in a private room for three nights and a total cost of £54. The hostel was part of a complex that had served as the Coalport China Factory on the banks of the Severn River, and included the Coalport China Museum and a custom bicycle shop. Absolutely peaceful, quiet and very relaxing. Enjoyed watching the constuction of custom bicycle frames in my down time as well.

Blist Hill was an easy walking distance from Coalport and spent an very pleasant day there, and then used the Gorge Connect buses to get to the other museums in Coalbrookdale and Ironbridge. I am a blacksmith and historian, so it was a bit of a religious pilgrimage to visit the Iron Musuem along with the site of Abraham Darby's first coke fired iron furnace and the brithplace of the Industrial Revolution.

The Ironbridge Gorge was such a beautiful and relaxed place to be and was a highlight tucked in between Dublin and York before finishing in London.

Posted by
3122 posts

Great to know! I've been intrigued by that region of England and my husband more so. On our last trip, the day we would have been passing that way we were on a tight schedule so we didn't make the stop. Hope to do so on a future trip.

Posted by
1446 posts

I too love this area. We've been there twice but always with a car.

Posted by
993 posts

I also like this area very much. Can one still get a "certificate" by crossing the bridge?

Posted by
11294 posts

Thanks for posting this. I am considering visiting, and you confirmed my own thinking - Rick says the area is a "headache" without a car, but as long as the Gorge Connect buses are running (or one is willing to spring for taxis), it didn't seem difficult from his descriptions.

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