Arigna Mining Experience

About the museum

Coal was mined in the Arigna valley from the 1700s until 1990. The land around Arigna is poor farmland, so the pits gave local families steady work for generations, including through the famine years. In 1958 the ESB opened a power station nearby that was designed to burn the local coal, and it became the mines’ biggest customer. As the best reserves ran out, mining ended in 1990, and the power station was decommissioned in 1993 after using up the remaining stock.

The local community then set out to keep this heritage alive and to bring visitors to the area. With help from Roscommon County Council’s LEADER programme and government departments, the Arigna Mining Experience opened in April 2003. More than €2 million has been invested in total, of which €250,000 was raised locally. The visitor centre was extended in 2019 and now includes a café, a gift shop and an audio-visual room.

Today the main attraction is a 45-minute guided tour into a former mine, led by a miner from the area, which shows the narrow seams and the methods used to dig the coal. The free exhibition in the visitor centre traces about 400 years of mining history with documents, photographs, tools and film of miners at work shortly before the mines closed, and it includes the original control panel from the Lough Allen power station.

Highlights

• Underground tour of a former coal mine with an ex-miner as guide
• Free exhibition on 400 years of coal mining and the local community
• Film of miners at work recorded weeks before closure
• Original control panel of the Lough Allen power station
• Wheelchair-accessible tour route without stairs or cages

Permanent exhibitions

• Coal Mining Exhibition – A free exhibition of documents, photographs, tools, machinery and film tracing about 400 years of mining in the Arigna valley and its effect on the community.
• Underground Mine Tour – A guided 45-minute tour into a former coal mine, led by an ex-miner, showing the narrow seams and the digging methods.

Founded

2003

Admission & discounts

The prices are for the guided underground tour. The exhibition in the visitor centre is free and needs no booking.

Accessibility

• Wheelchair accessible
• Elevator: no information
• Accessible restroom
• Accessible parking: no information
• Service dogs welcome: no information
• Tactile models & exhibits: no information
• Sign language tours: no information
• Easy-to-read materials: no information
• Audio description: no information

The car park, visitor centre and underground tour route are accessible for wheelchairs and buggies, with no stairs, lifts or cages. There is an accessible toilet. Visitors with severe claustrophobia or concerns about low light are advised to check with the team before booking.

Kids & families

Great for kids & families

• Family tours & workshops
• Stroller-friendly

The site says the tour is family-friendly and suitable for children of all ages with parental supervision; younger children should be comfortable in a dark underground setting. A child price and family tickets are available, and a Santa’s Underground Grotto event runs before Christmas.

Getting there & parking

The centre is in the Arigna valley, a short drive from Carrick-on-Shannon and from Sligo.

Amenities & dining

• Café
• Museum shop

Café with breakfast, lunch and children’s options, open 10:00 to 16:00, and a gift shop selling books on mining history and local crafts.

Events & venue rental

• Corporate events

Private and corporate group tours can be booked. The centre has a meeting and audio-visual room, but hire terms are not published.

Plan your visit