Why visit Ironbridge?

Ironbridge is an industrial town in Telford England and is regarded as the birthplace of the industrial revolution.

We popped up for a couple of days on route to York and stayed in "Ecopods" supplied by PODLIFE - link at the bottom of this article.

So why visit? It's essentially a bridge set over a river in a rather lovely little village - Ironbridge - thus named after this impressive bridge which was opened in 1781.

NO DRONES!

That's right drone fans - NO DRONES - much in common with several English Heritage sites they detest drones which frankly is a little backwards because it's FREE PUBLICITY if managed correctly but never mind - moving on...

Arriving late on a Friday we settled in to these rather wonderful ECOPODS set in a field overlooking (through trees) the gorge through which the river runs. It's within walking distance of the bridge so it's a cracking place to stay.

Now this was Saturday evening so it was wine then to sleep ready for the next day and a stroll to the Victorian Village.

Come Sunday we set off for a walk to the village and that was amazing - best chips ever! Worth a visit and subject for another article later as there's so much to see although it's a long old walk. Driving would be a better idea to be honest particularly as we were in the middle of a heatwave at the time (July 2021).

That evening we enjoyed a drink by the river but shortly after that...

IRON BRIDGE SHUT!

Seriously - closed! Nothing open, pubs, restaurants etc SHUT! What else was there to do? Heading back to the ECOPODS we rang about a few takeaways but none delivered so we wondered back to the town to try find something open. 

Eventually we did find somewhere which to be fair was rather nice but why is it all closed? It's as if Ironbridge doesn't want to the tourist pound!

One other thing to consider for the potential visitor - BOY RACERS! Really? Yes IRONBRIDGE has a race track/road right alongside the river where young people and some sad middle aged people zoom up and down with ultra load exhausts. They go round and round continuously most of the day for some reason annoying visitors. There's no peaceful sit by the river here thanks to Ironbridge's resident HALFORDS HEROS!

So is Ironbridge worth visiting?

Yes, either for 2 days or as a stop off. Plenty to see (the Victorian village is ACE). 

Advice for visitors

• Earplugs (boy racers plague the village like flies around a dog turd)
• Mozzie spray (If you stay in the Ecopods they're in a field and that's where mozzies hang out)
• Food (If you're there Sunday - Ironbridge is closed!)

Fancy staying here?

• Podlife Ecopods: https://bit.ly/3i44jtr
• Victorian village: https://www.ironbridge.org.uk/explore/blists-hill-victorian-town/