Tollymore National Outdoor Centre

Although I had no previous knowledge of Tollymore or its wonderful Outdoor Center. I was driving through the area looking for a trailhead to the trail I intended to walk last Easter Sunday (2012). I saw the center from the road and stopped to turn in and was hit by a very fast car on the "wrong" side of the road at the top of the hill. Neither car was drivable, and there was car debris along the road for a good ways. The people at Tollymore came right out and started helping. The owner was leaving, but told his staff to provide me with anything I might need and told me that I could go in and use anything necessary. After all the police and medics had done their work, I went inside to give my report to the head policeman. The Tollymore staff saw to it that we had some nice hot coffee and a comfortable table on which to complete the report. They even let me use their phone number so that I could communicate with my car rental company. After all was done and I was on my own waiting for another car from the rental place, they said they would watch for their arrival and I could wait upstairs in their most comfortable and well outfitted lounge. i was going to watch some television, but fell right to sleep on one of their incredibly comfortable couches. A lovely young man came to wake me gently. I got my things together and was on my way, but wondered what I could do to thank these people who had made an awful situation (no one was hurt badly thankfully) so much easier for me. A friend suggested I write a review for them, so I'm just now finally getting around to it - should have done it much sooner - but this place has the most hospitable people I've ever had the good luck to meet. The center itself was spotless, dining and lounge were great, and I'm certain anyone taking part in their activities would be beyond satified with their services. Tollymore: thank you so much!!! The American woman who crashed outside your drive.

I bought my husband a weekend course "Mountain Skills 1" for Christmas and bought two places because I thought that he wouldn't want to go alone. If I am honest I was dreading it - I thought it would be full of action man types and that there would be nothing worse that being on a mountain in Northern Ireland in January. How wrong I was!

The staff were wonderfully friendly, the facilities were spotlessly clean.

We stayed in a family room which consisted of a double bed, single bed and another double bed which was up a ladder over the ensuite. The rooms have basic but very comfortable furniture. There is a TV lounge, you get access to their climbing wall and full use of the drying rooms etc for your often dirty and wet kit!

The course was lead by Graham with assistance from Brendan, it was great! We learnt how to read maps, plan routes, pacing and to take a bearing along with some basic health and safety. Graham and Brendan then helped us put it all into practice.

My husband and I have been hiking and climbing for several years but we learnt quite a lot on the course.

They do a range of courses from full on mountaineering to Kyaking and have a great High ropes facility - not for the faint hearted!

It would be a great weekend trip for a family.

We came up for the weekend for a meeting and expecting a hostel type place, came prepared.
The weather was terrible, the building unbelievably nice.
All designed for people who would be doing outdoor activities, but without loosing the quality. The place and staff were welcoming, the room was clean, warm and very nice. Bedding and Towels were provided and were clean, nice and there was even tea/coffee available in the room.
The food, was fabulous, kitchen staff couldn't do enough and even without warning them about no Wheat, Dairy including Beef and no Caffeine, I had lovely packed lunches both days, and the two dinners were fabulous including a wonderful desert. Breakfast was fresh and so much choice it was unbelievable and there were 34 of us sitting down to breakfast !!.
I can also say it was very reasonably priced and can't wait to find a reason to go back as soon as possible

Been back to the centre today for the first time in ages. Glad to see the place is just as good now as we both remembered. Great centre and superb staff. Amazing views outside after you've tired yourself out on the walls with both top rope, bouldering and auto belay available at the hot rocks indoor climbing centre. Outside there's highropes, mountain biking and more

Just back from a one night residential, fantastic location, our first time here and it won't be our last! Special mention to Marty and the kitchen staff, from the moment we walked in the door they where on hand to ensure the meals they had planned suited our various needs. It's a lovely touch when the kitchen staff come out to wave us off. Thanks for going the extra mile and making our trip memorable!

I love my kids but once in while I like to kick back and watch them do something frenetic while I sip a cup of tea. The kids did the outdoor course and some wall climbing. Their rosy red cheeks and laughter told me they had a great time long before they launched into a full description of the fun they had. Staff are friendly and had a knack of making the shyest teenager feel great about themselves and trying all sorts of challenges. Brilliant result!!!

Went here on mountain bike February 2013, paid our fee to a member of staff who told us virtually nothing about what facilities we could use, was only by pure accident that we discovered a 2nd mountain bike track (saw bikes crossing the road)as we were finishing, maybe he was having a bad day but we were paying customers who deserved to be informed of such things.

I attended TNOC for a First Steps in Sea Kayaking course, and had an absolutely fantastic day.

The instructor Stephen was absolutely first class, sorting out our kit efficiently, and explaining what we were doing and why. He allowed us to get a feel for the boats and choose which one we wanted to paddle, giving advice on what we should be paying attention to, what should be comfortable and how to adjust the footrests to ensure we'd be comfortable on the water.

Having had no paddling experience, I was a little nervous. I've spent a lot of time on the water, but never in a kayak, and Stephen took us into a sheltered area first, to get us used to the motion of the boats, and to ensure we were all comfortable with basic paddling strokes. Once we were all comfortable, and some issues with some participants were sorted out, he then took us out into more open, but still sheltered, water, where we were shown some more basic boat handling including going backwards and turning.

All through the day Stephen made us feel comfortable and ensured we felt safe and secure. The way the day was structured meant we got to actually make a short trip, trying new skills as we went, rather than just sitting around and trying things without actually going anywhere. This meant that we were using the skills we were being introduced to were actually being used to go somewhere, and we got to enjoy seeing numerous herons, sandpipers, cormorants and even an inquisitive seal.

I really enjoyed my day, which was made all the better by the excellent weather we had. We got to see Islandmore, Dunsy Island and Pawle Island from a different perspective, and will definitely be looking to attend a next steps course as soon as I can.

Instructor was excellent but course was very unfair
Two of us had no experience which was the way it should be and the other two had been kayaking
Packed lunches provided no water or drinks which o would have said was very unprofessional for this type of service

Awesome weekend with great instruction from start to finish. Paddled with stevie and made to feel like we were out with mates rather than under instruction.