The Lost City: Playing Crazy Golf At Yorkgate, Belfast, Northern Ireland
“Chip Beck. Tiger Woods. Davis Love Hat-Trick” – Golfers Names.
I used to play golf a lot when I was younger. Dad had a set of clubs, I had a set of plastic clubs as a kid, and later I had some real golf balls and real clubs. I still watch most of the major golf tournaments. Golf is quite a dominant sport in Northern Ireland and so it should be – we have 4 World Champion Major Winners – Fred Daly, Darren Clarke, Graeme McDowell and Rory McIlroy and three of them are still playing. Rory McIlroy has actually won 3 of the 4 majors and only needs the famous green jacket of the US Masters to complete the foursome. There are many types of golf – real golf (18 holes, professional course), 9 hole course, pitch and putt, mini-golf and putting. But those are all too normal and real. I prefer the wacaday stuff. I prefer crazy golf, or as The Lost City call it, Adventure Golf. Crazy golf is where there are random obstacles in the way of the golf hole, yet hole in ones can still be had, please be aware that is NOT “mini-golf” – mini golf is just a miniature version of real golf, it ain’t crazy 😉
Arrival at The Lost City, Yorkgate, Belfast
I was here in Sumer 2023 with family – nephew George, brother Marko, Mum and Dad! Parking at Yorkgate is free as it’s a shopping mall and supermarket zone car park. It’s also easy to get to by bus, train and walk, but most people drive here, as we did. Once you park, head into the Yorkgate Shopping Centre and straight up the escalators/lifts to the upper floor and here you will see the rather dark and mystical entrance to The Lost City…
On arrival you get a score card, your clubs and balls. We had 5 different colour balls. There are two courses to choose from! The upper course is called The Sunken Skull Ridge and is harder. So we chose that one.
The Sunken Skull Ridge
The course is fun for all the family – from George aged 5, right through to Marko in his 30s and me in my 40s, plus my parents who are now in their 70s. Everyone likes crazy golf and it’s to play and a wee bit comeptitive. This course has loads of quirks to it. Every hole is different and for kids – beware of the alligators, the hippos, the parrots, the bugs and the anaconda. George was animal spotting while trying to secure a hole in one.
We meandered our way through the course, which takes just over an hour at regular pace. It’s a really fun course – we did the Sunken Skull Ridge this time, so if I play again, I would play the Explorer Falls course. This was the second time I played crazy golf with George – the first was in New Brighton, England.
Scorecard
After 18 holes, it was time to check the scores and find our winner. Here are the scores.
On the 18th hole, we all get a hole in one as when you hit the ball hard, it disappears down the hole and the ball is swallowed and it’s game over. Dad won, and he also got 4 hole in ones. Marko and I had 2 holes in ones and Mum and George got a hole in one each. It’s all a bit of fun, and great entertainment. There is also a bar and restaurant inside The Lost City, and it’s licensed for alcohol too which includes cocktails. There are other bars and restaurants in the Yorkgate Complexa anyway too.
Here are the details of The Lost City, Yorkgate, Belfast, Northern Ireland:
https://www.facebook.com/LostCityBelfast
Here are some videos from our family day out playing Crazy Golf at The Lost City, Yorkgate, Belfast, Northern Ireland: