Offers of Skydiving Northern Ireland

If you keep a bucket list, we’re pretty sure that skydiving is one of the things you’ve got written on it. We’ve all dreamed of experiencing the totally unique sensation of freefall, but how many of us have actually made it happen? Well, we're to help you tick this adventure off the list, in the best way possible. Any parachute jump from a moving plane is going to be a real rush, but you can make that experience even better by choosing a beautiful location that you’ll see come hurtling towards you as you fall out of the sky. The Atlantic coast of Northern Ireland is one of the most breathtaking parts of the British Isles, and we’re offering you the chance to live out the dream here.

Where to go skydiving in Northern Ireland?

Many features on the north coast - including Mussenden Temple, Downhill Strand and Ballintoy Harbour - were chosen as filming locations for the hit fantasy series Games of the Thrones. You can get a unique perspective on this real life magical world if you complete a skydive right here in the Causeway Coast district, in the Movenis airfield. Other parts of the HBO series were filmed in studios in the capital city, Belfast, and you can also have an experience here. Don’t worry - you won’t have to dodge skyscrapers and land on busy streets, because this is indoor format in a specially designed wind tunnel. Whether you choose to freefall through the air, or float in an indoor jet stream, you’re guaranteed a heart pounding, hair raising, and value for money adventure.

What kinds of jumping experiences can you organise?

• Tandem Jump: This means jumping with a partner, and your partner will be a highly experienced skydiving instructor. That should come as a relief because it means that you’ll have someone to help you build up the confidence to jump out of the plane and take responsibility for opening the parachute at the right moment before guiding you back to Earth. Standard tandem jumps involve leaving the plane at an altitude of 10,000 feet, that’s 3,000 metres.

• Go Higher Tandem Jump: For true thrill seekers, there’s something even more extreme - a tandem skydive from a height of 15,000 feet, or 4,500 metres. Compared with the 10,000 foot, this gives you double the amount of time in freefall. Freefall means accelerating to speeds of over 120 miles per hour, and this lasts a full minute when you complete this higher jump, enough to fill your body with adrenaline and endorphins. Both kinds of tandem jumps can be upgraded with a package that includes photos and videos, to turn the adventure into an action movie where you’re the star!

• Charity Jump: The thrill that this activity represents might be enough to tempt you to try it, but if you need a bit more persuasion, perhaps the knowledge that you’re fearlessness is benefitting a good cause might do the trick. The skydiving centre in Northern Ireland has partnerships with many charities, which makes the process of fundraising smooth and simple. Or you can raise money independently for a charity of your choice. The fact that jumpers have raised over £80,000 for charity just goes to show that throwing yourself out of a plane is a great way to get people to open their wallets! All charity skydives are tandem jumps.

• AFF Course: We know that what we have told you so far won’t be enough for the biggest daredevils out there, so if you want to become a solo skydiver, this section is for you. To become a fully fledged skydiver, you need to complete multiple jumps as well as ground training over the course of around 4 days, but you can get a taste for the process and complete a non-tandem jump in just one day with a taster course! You have the choice of a standard jump, accompanied by two instructors, or a static line jump, in which you jump from 3,000 feet and the parachute opens automatically soon after. We predict that once you’ve tried it, you’ll be back before long to continue your training!

• Indoor Skydiving: When the weather puts a stop to this sport, when you don’t have time to travel to the the Causeway Coast, or simply when you’re looking for a thrill in the city, you can head to Belfast’s Titanic Quarter and have a go on the country’s only indoor skydiving wind tunnel. Just as you travel at 120 mph in free fall, in a wind tunnel, an air current of the same speed is generated, which is enough to let you fly up, down and around the air current. This experience can be part of a skydiving training, or it can just be a brilliant way to blow off some steam.

Requirements to do this activity

Airfields, also known as a drop zone, operates according to industry regulations, which are designed to keep all jumpers and instructors safe. Part of this is a minimum age limit of 16 years old, and 18 years old to give personal consent. Weight is also a factor, as the parachute has to support both the jumper and the instructor. The upper limit for men is 15 stone or 95 kilograms, while for women it’s 14 stone, which is around 82 kilograms.

If your children are desperate to fly, you can give them some good news. From the age of 4 years old, kids can experience freefall in the Northern Irish capital itself. Belfast’s wound tunnel experience is suitable for the whole family, and can even be organised for a birthday party. There is a height limit to use this piece of kit - 6 ft 2, or 188cm.

How long does the experience last?

As we’ve mentioned the freefall time for a skydive is just 30 to 60 seconds through this region's skies. The parachute descent can take 10 minutes or more, and with all the other parts of the experience - a safety briefing, getting kitted up, the flight - the full experience will be a couple of hours long. In the wind tunnel in Belfast, they offer at least twice the length of the freefall of a real skydive, so you can have several minutes of flight. And the best thing is, you can go again immediately without having to get back in a plane!

Just click the book button and watch out world! Here you come!