More than Travel Hacking the Cliffs of Moher 

I’ll be honest – I have been to the Cliffs of Moher but never visitor centre.  At first I wasn’t sure if there was one… but with a few quick taps of the key board, my Google search revealed a pretty expansive webpage with everything you need to know about the Cliffs of Moher.  Entry to the Cliffs if you buy right now online (as I am writing this) is 50% off, and due to the summer high season, they recommend entry at 4pm as they are prone to closing during peak visitor times.  Geez what a bummer.  

If you’re a bit of an ‘off the beaten track’ traveller like me, being restricted to visit during a certain time or a certain day can sometimes kill the adventurous vibe you’ve got going on… plus, crowds of excited tourists attempting to get the perfect shot can sometimes kill the mood. 

This isn’t always a bad thing because a lot of the features a visitor centre can offer is pretty incredible.  If you’re a history buff, there’s loads of information you can devour.  There’s also toilet facilities, paved walkways… the benefits are pretty much endless… but, if you’re looking for something with a bit more adventurous and you’ve got the means to do it… here’s how you can travel hack the Cliffs of Moher. 

This is where I get excited because going to the Cliffs of Moher was an incredible experience.  First up, you’ll need a car, horse, tractor, bicycle or some form of transport to get you where you need to be. Set your Google maps to: Cliffs of Moher Liscannor Walk.   Yes, you’ll be weaving though green fields of yesteryear asking your mates, “Are you sure this is where we’re supposed to go?  Shouldn’t we be going the opposite direction?  I feel like we should be making a left.  Why are we turning right?” Now, don’t be freaked out when Google Maps drops you right in front of some farmer’s barn.  THIS IS EXACTLY WHERE YOU WANT TO BE.  Also, let me just get this public service announcement out: Don’t be an asshole who illegally parks your car on the road.  Do the right thing and stay travel friendly. 

As my friends and I exited our car, a nice lady ask for €5 which allowed us to park here all day. This is an absolute bargain if you think about it.  So, we grabbed our water, donned our hats and sunnies and made sure our shoelaces were tight.  We locked the car and off we followed the gravel road up a slight incline.  This was about a 2k walk, but it didn’t really feel like it as there was endless green sweeping views of rolling fields.  It was well worth seeing the wild flowers on the side of the road and making friends with the cud-chewing cows as they wondered why the heck we were there.

When we finally reached the top, this is what we were greeted with: Un-interrupted views of greens, browns, blues for a full 360 degrees.  Everywhere we looked was beautiful and the great part about it was, we were the only ones there!  We all congratulated ourselves for being travel hacking experts of the Cliffs of Moher and sealed our awesomeness with a round of high-fives while enjoying our private oasis all to ourselves.

We wandered around wondering what the old Moher Tower was used for.  Did a king live here?  No, it was just an stone ruin of an old Watch Tower.  We started to follow a well-worn path.  Deeply ingrained into the cliffs, it kept us a safe enough distance from the edge of the cliff.  Might I also add, this trail has no fence, no railing, there are no harnesses or safety devices holding you back from one slip from a life-changing event.  This uneven terrain does offer tragic consequences if your footing is not firm.  These cliffs are nothing to laugh about.  At roughly over 200 meters, you’re in for a world of pain if you slip.

A few of us took a break on a bushy mound of thick and hearty grass.  That’s one great feature about Ireland – the grass is always greener and it is pretty bushy to boot.  When we sat on the grass, it felt like sitting on a soft natural cushion of comfort.  We posed for photos and enjoyed the sun drenched clouds as a light wind tickled our face.  It was truly a stunning day for us because there wasn’t a care in the world since there was about 3,200 kilometres of ocean between us and Newfoundland.

Not only did we discover the beauty of the cliffs, but for some of us, time stopped.  We paused from the crazy spinning stressful days of our normal lives and just enjoyed a moment.

There’s something about looking beyond the epic vastness.  When there is free time like we had to just sit alone and enjoy the view it gave us a chance to feel smaller.  In grand scheme of things,  isn’t that a good thing?

I think that sometimes in our modern day lives, we sometimes forget to breathe, forget to think, forget to bend our minds around the things we no nothing about.  From an early age, we are told to stop thinking about frivolous things but, I think it’s great to embrace our inner hippie once in a while and to question the things that we might not think about in the first place.

A few of us went off to be alone with our thoughts while others opened up to each other.  There was magic in those experiences and I think a lot of us unadmittedly knew it.  Was it unexpected? Totally.  Was it worth going off the beaten path? Totally.

I do suggest that if you are ever given a moment to try something different whilst travelling, to give it a go.  You might be surprised at what the unknown may hold.

Do you have any Cliffs of Moher travel hacks or any experiences that you wish to share? Please leave them in the comments!