St Anne's Church Shandon Bells & Tower

This iconic landmark evokes so many memories of Cork, hearing the bells at Midnight ringing in the New Year as a child when visiting Cork, buying sweets in O’Keefe’s sweet shop at the bottom of Shandon Hill, later going to college in Cork and climbing the narrow stairs with a girlfriend and taking in the panoramic view of the city. I was fortunate to live in an apartment on Pope’s Quay where coincidentally my grandfather used to have his wool treatment business. Up Cork!

If you visit Cork City don't miss out on this cool experience. You get to climb to the top of the bell tower for amazing views of the City. And along the way you can ring the church bells and climb through the tower as they ring. This was a super cool experience. Visiting the church was also fun for the kids as they hide some little Jesus's around for you to find. We visited on a weekday afternoon and it wasn't crowded.

Inexpensive, not touristy, rustic bell tower experience in a 300 year old Church. Feels like you've gained private access as you climb up a super narrow stone staircase, with pleasant pauses at different levels in the tower, and there's no big line to ring the bells. Not the usual tourist trap bell tower. Super narrow dark stone stairway not recommended if you don't like tight spaces, but not a crazy long climb so kids/elderly can easily do it. Stunning views. Consider a donation to the Church because the entrance fee is so reasonable.

Don’t miss this if you’re around Cork ! Climbing up the bell was fun as the space got narrow the more we were reaching the top. Splendid view from the top.

very interesting, small church. old copies of the library are kept here, they are exhibited in the church hall. you can climb the narrow stairs to the very top, ring the bells and admire the beautiful view from above. the clock on the tower shows different times on each side😁

It's a tricky climb, but worth it. Unfortunately the bells are still out of action. The view from the top is great. The staff at the entrance are friendly.

A lovely walk up the old narrow streets of Cork, and it is very much 'up'. The bell tower is under refurbishing but was open for visitors on my day, €6, and they give you ear defenders as you will be going up by the bells. The climb up the stairs starts off fairly normal, but at the last but, it's very steep and very narrow, one meter at it's WIDEST. The views from the top are lovely especially if the day is nice. Inside the church is small and beautiful. And the grounds are lovely. It's a really old church and I definitely recommend

Well worth the visit, €4 to see the church and climb to the roof, not for the faint hearted.

SHANDON CHURCH St Anne's Church, high on a northside hill, is one of the most familiar landmarks in Cork City, visited by many tourists but generally ignored as a visit by the locals. I walked up there recently and enjoyed my stroll. The historic church has eight bells 8 which weigh 6 tons and first rang out over the city in 1752. The patients in the nearby (now closed) North Infirmary would often have been disturbed from their slumber by the bells' vibrations (lessened in modern times by improvements in placement). But it is the clocks on the sides of the church tower that have most engaged Corkonians over the years who jokingly called them the Four Liars as it was reckoned that the four clocks never agreed on the time! Not that I've heard that joke recently! The "Goldie Fish" mounted high on the church has entered the local literature and indeed Shandon comes up regularly in the songs and poems of the city. Fr Prout's nostalgic lines below are probably the most famous "With deep affection and recollection, I oft times think of those Shandon Bells" Nowadays, after your visit to the church, where you can get to ring the bells and enjoy the view over the city, you may take a rest on the seats in the adjoining St Anne's Park before walking back down to the city centre.

We were looking for something fun to do during our last day in Cork and decided to check out the bell tower at St Anne's. I want to mention that I am not religious so I can't comment on anything other than the fun tourist aspect of the church. St Anne's was easy to find by walking since you can keep your eye to the sky to follow the streets to the tower. The woman at the entry was nice and explained why she handed us earphones. We immediately started the climb up the steps. The first thing you come to is the room where you can play a song on the bells if you like. We had fun doing this but weren't musically inclined enough to make it sound like it should. We then continued the walk to the top. If you are a pretty large person or if you have claustrophobia this is not the place for you. The stairs are very narrow and steep. In one spot you have to climb around the bell. The view from the top is fantastic and well worth the climb. After our climb back down we did take a peek inside the church and found some cool things inside to check out. I totally recommend visiting St Anne's and climbing the tower. There are quite a few steps but its pretty easy even if you aren't in the best shape.

Playing "Fernando" and "Here comes the sun" while pulling on some heavy ropes is a very fun activity. Living right under the bell tower for one year and half and having to endure the other false notes is a completely other story. The entrance is expensive and the climbing quite dangerous. The view is cool.

I must say at the outset that I'm not a churchgoer, in the Christian sense of the word anyway, but I like to see beautiful old buildings of many kinds and, if you can climb to the roof, then there's always a view to appreciate. This church is interesting in many ways but, probably the most unusual is that it's possible to ring the bells yourself! You can follow the 'play by numbers' chart which means that you have a choice of tunes to choose from and it's not difficult (apart from trying to get the timing right!) You must wear the special ear protectors before you start as it's loud (obviously) and you are given a special certificate afterwards! The view from the top is marvellous - I strongly recommend anyone coming to Cork to see it from the top of this church. The open-top bus tours will bring you here, so you can get off for a while and pick the bus up outside the church a little later (which is what we did).

St. Anne's Church is a beautiful historic gem. It is simplistic but refreshingly so. Although the treck up narrow and then narrower flights of stairs followed by a shady ladder (which they don't tell you about) is somewhat nerve racking...the view from the church balcony is lovely! One the way back down my boyfriend was almost hit by one of the bells in the belfry ; -)