Belfast Voyage Tips and guide

Belfast (Irish: Béal Feirste) is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland. Most of it historically lay in County Antrim west of the River Lagan, with about a third on the east bank in County Down, but it's always been governed as a separate metropolis, with a population in 2024 of about 671,000. It's had a troubled history but is nowadays safe to visit and has the best-developed visitor facilities in Northern Ireland. And its situation means that Belfast can confidently claim to be the most fascinating city in both the United Kingdom and on the island of Ireland.

This noble city is named for a mud bank and is built upon sludge. The lower River Lagan is tidal and receives a dozen small tributaries (nowadays culverted) which drop their silt, forming banks of sand and mud. The lowest point at which you could ford the river at low tide is where the Lagan road bridge now crosses, and in Irish this is Béal Feirste, "river-mouth of the sand-bank ford". The tributary joining at that point, the Farset, is likewise named for the mud bank, not vice versa. And besides the man-made channels and culverts, a great volume of water seeps through the alluvial silt on both sides of the Lagan. It's a slimy, thixotropic impediment to building — clay dug out of a trench quickly feels homesick and slides back in — and a deterrent to high-rise; but Paris grew up on similar foundations.

Pre-industrial Belfast was a small provincial place. It grew rapidly in the 18th century with the linen trade, and in the 19th with smokestack industry, especially ship-building along the estuary. It sucked in labour, including Catholics moving off the land. In 1921 Ireland was divided: Dublin and the Republic fell behind economically, while Belfast found itself the capital city of Northern Ireland and, after the Depression, busily tooling up to fight the Second World War.

It slumped in the late 20th century as textiles and smokestack industries were lost to foreign competition. Tension rose between factions and communities, the Catholic minority faced blatant discrimination in many aspects of their lives, and both sides had a 200-year old tradition of paramilitary thuggery, which escalated. All of Northern Ireland, but especially Belfast, then suffered a notorious 30 years of "The Troubles" from 1969. Civilian rule broke down and the British Army was heavily deployed to keep order; they too became targets of violence. Riots, shootings and bombings were the daily grist of the newsreels. Barriers, checkpoints and armoured vehicles marked the junctions, helicopters throp-throp-thropped over a scarred, smoke-blackened city.

By the 1990s all sides were war-weary, and a confluence of political drives within Northern Ireland and externally from Britain, Ireland, the European Union and the USA led to the 1998 "Good Friday Agreement". There had been so many short-lived ceasefires and peace initiatives, and the Omagh bombing suggested that the GFA might be yet another - yet for the most part this one stuck. Cautiously the city de-militarised and normalised, though the "Peace Walls" to separate warring communities still stand. Hotels, pubs and other visitor amenities re-opened, and the city's Victorian and Edwardian heritage re-emerged. There was some mileage in "Troubles Tourism" but the final ingredient that Belfast needed was a new story to tell of itself with pride. This it received in 2012 with the opening of the Titanic Quarter east of the river.

• Visit Belfast, 9 Donegall Square North BT1 5GB (facing City Hall), ☏ +44 28 9024 6609. M-Sa 9AM-5:30PM, Su 11AM-4PM. They can book accommodation and tours, recommend itineraries and places of interest and sell you tacky souvenirs. (updated Jan 2026)
• Belfast City Council is the portal for info on local public services.

54.6147-5.87071 George Best Belfast City Airport (BHD  ^IATA), Sydenham BT3 9JH (2 miles east of city centre), ☏ +44 28 9093 9093. This airport is close to the city centre. Most flights come from the rest of the UK, mainly by Aer Lingus which has a base here. Other destinations include London Heathrow (British Airways), Amsterdam (KLM), and Frankfurt (Lufthansa) all with global connections. Loganair fly from Aberdeen and Inverness.  (updated Jan 2026)

Ground transport:

Bus 600 runs every 30 min from the airport to Queens Square, Victoria Square, Wellington Place and Grand Central Station. It runs 6AM-10PM daily, taking less than 15 min, adult single fare is £2.30 in 2026.

Taxis might cost £15 to most parts of the city, but check at the outset whether the fare you're quoted includes the £2.50 airport supplement, or the taxi driver may try to add it on when you arrive.

Train: Sydenham railway station is just southwest of the terminal and there's a free shuttle bus. Walk to the 600 bus stop and press the buzzer to call the shuttle. There's a footbridge over the busy dual carriageway to the railway halt, not ideal if you have lots of luggage. Sydenham is on the railway from Belfast via Holywood to Bangor on the coast, with trains 6AM - midnight every 20 min (hourly on Sundays). The adult fare in 2026 is £2.20 to the city and £5.70 to Bangor. So you can ride it to city centre for a trivial saving over the bus, but the main advantage is to reach southside locations (such as Botanic, for Queens University) for a single flat fare.

54.6619-6.21752 Belfast International Airport (BFS  ^IATA), Aldergrove BT29 4AB (20 miles west of city centre), ☏ +44 28 9448 4848. Northern Ireland's main international airport, with budget flights from the UK and EU. Easyjet fly from London (Gatwick, Stansted and Luton), Bristol, Birmingham, Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester, Newcastle, Southampton, Glasgow and Edinburgh. They also fly year-round from Amsterdam and Paris CDG, and seasonally from Barcelona, Nice, and Bordeaux. Jet2 fly seasonally to the Med resorts. Ryanair flies from Britain (East Midlands, London Stansted, Manchester), southern Europe (Alicante, Girona, Milan-Bergamo), and Central Europe (Budapest, Krakow). See Antrim for accommodation and other facilities close to the airport.  (updated Jan 2026)

To the city: Ulsterbus 300 takes 50 min from the airport via Templepatrick and Queen St to Grand Central Station; it's every 20 min daytime and hourly through the night. Adult fare is £9 single. Taxis might cost £40 to Belfast city centre.

To Antrim: Ulsterbus 109A runs every hour taking 15 min, adult fare is £3.10. Antrim bus station is next to the railway station, with trains from Belfast to Ballymena, Coleraine, Portrush and Derry.

Dublin Airport (DUB ^IATA) is often a good way to reach Belfast, with excellent flight connections from the UK and Europe. Its big advantage is direct flights from North America (with US pre-border clearance on return) and from the Gulf (with connections from Australia) - and the full-fare carriers handle connections much better than the budget carriers. Dublin Airport is some miles north of Dublin city, so by rental car you turn straight onto the motorway north, 100 miles (160 km) to Belfast. Hourly buses from Dublin Busáras call at the airport then take two hours to Belfast Grand Central. Operators are Ulsterbus and Aircoach, so there's price competition. Don't take the train as this involves doubling back via Connolly station in central Dublin. And don't have any truck with the taxis hanging around the airport bus stop. One other tip is, don't change money here (though it's a decent rate) as you'll get euros, use your bank card to pay for transport then buy pound sterling in Northern Ireland.

54.5948-5.93983 Grand Central Station is the city transport hub, which in 2024 replaced Great Victoria Street railway station and Europa bus station.

The Enterprise Train runs hourly from Dublin Connolly station, taking 2 hr 15 min via Drogheda, Dundalk, Newry and Portadown.

All other trains run to Grand Central plus other city stations:

• from Derry hourly via Castlerock, Coleraine, Ballymena and Antrim (for Belfast International Airport).
• from Portadown every 30 min via Lisburn.
• from Bangor every 20 min via Holywood and Sydenham (for Belfast City Airport).
• from Larne hourly via Carrickfergus and Whiteabbey (for Newtownabbey).

Translink is the rail and bus operator across Northern Ireland. Check their website for timetables, fares and ticket purchase.

Buses run hourly from Dublin Busáras and airport to Grand Central Station, taking 2 hr 20 min. Operators are Ulsterbus, Bus Éireann and Aircoach, so there's price competition. Day-trip excursions from Dublin also visit Belfast.

Citylink / Ulsterbus 923 runs 2-3 times a day from Glasgow via Ayr to the Cairnryan ferry for Belfast. The buses don't join the ferry so you have to lump your luggage off to board, then onto the waiting bus at the other end.

Hannon Coach is a competing service, and its buses with luggage do join the ferry. It runs twice a day from Glasgow (no stop in Ayr) taking 5 hr 30 min, and one bus continues to Lisburn and Lurgan.

By bus from London Victoria or Manchester you have to travel via Glasgow to join the Citylink or Hannon Coach.

A cross-border Ulsterbus plies from Cavan and Monaghan via Armagh, running four times a day. From Donegal, change in Derry; from Galway, Limerick or Cork, change in Dublin.

Bus routes across Northern Ireland radiate from Belfast, with the hourly bus from Derry taking 2 hours.

Belfast is the focus of the road network in Northern Ireland, and has a motorway from the Republic. The main roads are well-maintained and patrolled, your main task is to avoid rush hours.

From Dublin follow M1 / N1 / A1; there's a toll at Drogheda (€1.90 for a car). There are no checks at the border, all you'll see are signs that speed limits are in miles per hour.

Car rental: all the major companies have desks at Belfast City Airport, International Airport, and central Belfast. Their fleets are small so best book in advance. You should be able to hire from any of the above locations and return to any for no additional charge, but a one-way rental from Dublin to Belfast (or vice versa) will cost plenty. Check that a Dublin-to-Dublin rental is insured for Northern Ireland.

Park and Ride if you're only visiting for the day. There are four sites, all free, you just pay the normal bus fare. They close around 7PM which rules out evening use. They're at:

• Sprucefield, M1 junction 8, near Lisburn, for bus 651.
• Black's Road, M1 junction 3, for bus 650.
• Cairnshill, A24 Saintfield Rd, for bus 652.
• Dundonald, A20 Upper Newtownards Rd, for buses G1 and 655.

Foot passengers should always look for through-tickets by bus, train and ferry. They are considerably cheaper than separate tickets, and they take care of the connection between city and ferry port, which can be the trickiest part of the journey.

• From Cairnryan near Stranraer in Scotland, Stena Line sail a fast catamaran five times a day taking 2 hr 15 min. P&O also sail from Cairnryan to Larne.
• From Birkenhead across the Mersey from Liverpool, Stena sail daily, 8 hours. Cabins and meals are available.
• From Douglas, Isle of Man, IOM Steam Packet sails to Belfast 4 days a week, taking just under 3 hr.

You can also sail to Dublin from Birkenhead, Holyhead, Isle of Man, Cherbourg, Rotterdam and Zeebrugge. The Holyhead-Dublin route is usually the most convenient from England. There are no direct ferries to Northern Ireland from the Continent and it may be easier to sail into Rosslare or Dublin rather than trundle across Great Britain. Dublin port is connected by tunnel to the motorway north, so you're quickly on your way and not snarled in central Dublin traffic.

54.63-5.8954 Belfast ferry terminal is at the foot of Dargan Road, 3 miles northeast of city centre. Bus 96 meets some sailings and runs to Upper Queens Street, a short block away from Europa bus station; adult fare £2.10. Otherwise a taxi to the centre might be £10. Motorists should head west on Dargan Road to join M2.

54°35′42″N 5°55′48″W

Map of Belfast

Walk to all the central sights. The centre is within a mile or two of the Botanic Gardens, Queen's University and Titanic.

Belfast buses are run by Translink, a public corporation, check their website for timetables and fare deals such as day tickets. A single adult fare within city centre is £1.80 in 2026. There are three types of buses, which run from around 6AM to 11PM, plus Friday and Saturday night buses.

• Metro are pink. Buy on board if you don't have a card.
• Glider is a long purple bendy-bus, and for these you must buy your ticket before boarding from the machine at the stop. There are two Glider routes: G1 crosstown from Stewartstown Road and Falls Road in the west to Newtownards Road east, for Stormont and Ulster Hospital; and G2 from city centre to the Titanic area.
• Ulsterbuses are blue and run to outlying towns but you can use them for city travel, e.g. the bus for Lisburn to reach the Botanic Garden.

Almost all Ulsterbuses run from Grand Central but the Metro and Glider buses don't go in there.

54.6-5.9235 Laganside Buscentre by the river weir is the terminus for buses from Bangor, Holywood, Newtownards and the Ards peninsula. It's also a hub for the Metro buses, but you normally just board those on the street.

The Black Taxi is Belfast's equivalent to the dolmuş or marshrutka - they're shared taxis running over a fixed route for a fare similar to the bus. They mostly pick up and drop off at the bus stops but will stop anywhere that traffic allows along the routes, which connect the centre and the outlying housing estates.

The Black Taxis came about in the 1970s when it became difficult for buses to run. Especially in west Belfast, there were terrorist attacks against buses, passengers and staff, and roads or whole districts might be blocked off by riots or makeshift barricades. The worst attack was on 21 July 1972, "Bloody Friday", when the Provisional Irish Republican Army planted 24 bombs against the city transport system. Twenty exploded; nine people were killed and 130 were injured. Oxford St bus station was the worst hit, and bombs also went off at Smithfield bus station, three railway stations, the ferry terminal, a truck depot, a taxi firm, and several bridges and filling stations. This deepened the spiral of violence and among the many repercussions, it left the outlying districts without a bus service.

Individuals then bought up traditional London black hackney cabs and brought them to Belfast; this became an organised community initiative, and small businesses were formed. Belfast Taxis CIC emerged as the leading operator and are still plying routes. They've operated now for 50 years though the Black Taxis were suspended in summer 2020 because of Covid-19. Dolmuş literally means "stuffed full" and an old joke asks how many passengers can you fit in? Answer: "Mmm, maybe another two?" In autumn the taxis resumed with much reduced capacity and other anti-Covid measures, but this makes them non-viable unless they hike their fares. Meanwhile the buses are running and benefit from public subsidy, schools contracts, concessionary fares, greater safe capacity and so on. So it's not clear what the future holds for Black Taxis: ask around for which routes are running, and with what hours and frequency.

The Black Taxis are also comparable to the tuk-tuk or rickshaw, as a piece of cultural history. They're used for organised tours, especially of west Belfast - see "Do".

Standard taxi operators include Fonacab ☏ +44 28 9033 3333, Value Cabs ☏ +44 28 9080 9080, and Castle Cabs ☏ +44 28 9024 1111.

Uber is available in Belfast. In 2026 they charge around £15 for downtown rides including City Airport.

Beryl is the bike hire scheme, accessed through their phone app. You can pay per ride (£0.50 unlock then 7p per minute), or per minute (free unlock, £7 per 100 min).

Belfast city centre is focused on Donegall Square and Belfast City Hall. The main thoroughfare north from the square is Donegall Place, a retail street leading to the Cathedral. The centre is bounded to the east by the River Lagan, to the south by Donegall Pass, and to the west by the convenient but ugly dual carriageway Westlink. The centre is safe enough at all hours but falls very quiet after 8PM.

• The Crown is the gorgeous Victorian pub that greets arrivals emerging from the bus and railway station. It's owned by the National Trust, see Drink for hours etc, but it's worth looking in even you don't intend a drink. Aw go on, maybe just a quick one then.
• 54.5965-5.930051 City Hall, Donegall Sq North BT1 5GS, ☏ +44 28 9032 0202. M-F 9AM-5PM, Sa Su 10AM-5PM. Grand municipal architecture, built in 1906 of white Portland limestone in baroque style. Durban city hall in South Africa has the same design. Here are housed Belfast's Council chambers and admin offices. You can look in to the glorious entrance hall and rotunda anytime, but for a proper look, join the guided tour held 3 times a day. Outside stands a memorial to victims of the Titanic and a statue of Queen Victoria. Tour £6.  (updated Jan 2026)
• Linen Hall Library is north side of the square facing City Hall. Founded in 1788, it hosts exhibitions and events, and has a huge collection of Irish books. It's open M-F 9:30AM-5:30PM.
• 54.5942-5.926832 St Malachy's Church is Roman Catholic, opened in 1844. It has a Tudor Revival exterior but what's most remarkable is the elaborate fan-vaulted interior, likened to "a wedding cake turned inside out". It's at 24 Alfred St at the corner of Clarence St two blocks south of City Hall, and open M-F 9:30AM-1:30PM, Sa Su 9:30AM-6PM.
• 54.6027-5.928843 Saint Anne's Cathedral, Donegall St BT1 2HB, ☏ +44 28 9032 8332. M-Sa 10:30AM-4PM, Sa Su 12:30-3PM. This Church of Ireland (Anglican) cathedral was built in Romanesque style around the previous parish church and opened in 1904. It's been added to and reconstructed in stages ever since, most recently in 2007 by the addition of the 130-foot, slender metal spire, floodlit at night. It couldn't have a traditional sturdy tower or spire as the soft clay foundations wouldn't support that. There are regular services. Adult £5, child free.  (updated Jan 2026)
• Northern Ireland War Memorial Museum, 21 Talbot St BT1 2LD (next to Cathedral), ☏ +44 28 9032 0392. M-F 10AM-4:30PM. Depicting city life during World War II. Free. (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.601-5.9284 Belfast Exposed, 23 Donegall St BT1 2FF, ☏ +44 28 9023 0965. Tu-Sa 11AM-5PM. Photography gallery with changing exhibitions in a refurbished warehouse. There's also an extensive photo archive. Donation.  (updated Jan 2026)

• 54.602849-5.9313195 Belfast Central Library, Royal Ave BT1 1EA, ☏ +44 28 9050 9150. M & Th 9AM-8PM, Tu W & F 9AM-5:30PM, Sa 10AM-4:30PM. The Victorian library building houses an excellent Irish section and a newspaper library, with archives of all Northern Irish newspapers.  (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.5974-5.92316 The Legal Quarter is the block between Victoria shopping centre and the river, with the courts and other legal buildings. You can't go inside them unless you're already in trouble, but the exteriors are interesting. Good examples are the former town hall (now a court house), the Royal Courts of Justice, and the Bar Library.
• 54.6009-5.927 Lagan Weir and footbridge was built across the river in 1994 just upstream of Lagan road bridge. It raised the river level, covering mudflats that were ugly and smelly at low tide. The weir can open as a gate or close as a barrage against high tides. The 1994 footbridge was replaced in 2006 with a more accessible structure. On the bank, The Big Fish is a large ceramic artwork looking on in approval of the weir, which has greatly enhanced river water quality.

This starts with a commercial area along Bedford St and a loyalist neighbourhood on Donegall Pass. Then south of Shaftesbury Square you come into the student quarter around Queen's University. A retail-and-pizza strip straggles along Lisburn Road while the rest is leafy streets and student accommodation. It's the most affluent part of the city, often referred to by its postcode BT9, and generally safe at all hours apart from the occasional aggressive drunk. Buses 8a,b,c,d run to this area from the centre, plus Ulsterbus 22 / 24 towards Lisburn.

• Golden Mile is the ironic name for the strip from the bus and railway station south through Shaftesbury Square to Queen's University. It's more for retail and bars than sight-seeing, and the only gold deposits on the pavements are upchucks of turmeric-stained rice.
• 54.5845-5.93518 Queen's University, University Rd BT7 1NN (bus as above), ☏ +44 28 9024 5133. Welcome Centre M-F 8:30AM-4PM. August red-brick Victorian building in Tudor style modelled on Magdalen College Oxford, with extensive grounds. On University Square note the fine Union Theological College: the Northern Ireland Parliament spent its early years here until Stormont was ready in 1932.  (updated Jan 2025)
• Naughton Gallery is on the first floor of the QUB Lanyon Building. There's a large permanent collection of University artwork plus rotating exhibitions, mostly modern. It's open Tu-Sa 11AM-4PM, free.
• 54.582-5.9339 Botanic Gardens (Multiple access points, main entrance is off University Rd by Ulster Museum). Daily 07:30-dusk. Established in 1828 and becoming a public park from 1895, this is an extensive leafy green space, popular with office workers and students from nearby QUB. The Palm House, completed in 1840, is an elegant cast-iron glasshouse by Lanyon and Turner (who went on to build similar glasshouses at Kew, London and Glasnevin, Dublin) with a cool and a tropical section. Near it is the Tropical Ravine House, where visitors walk around a raised balcony observing tropical flora and fauna. There are also extensive lawns, a herbaceous border as long as the Zambezi, a rose garden and woodlands. Presiding over the main entrance is a statue of Lord Kelvin. Free.  (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.5822-5.935510 Ulster Museum, Stranmillis Road BT9 5AB (in the Botanic Gardens), ☏ +44 28 9044 0000. Tu-Su 10AM-5PM. Excellent comprehensive museum, covering natural history, archaeology, history including the Irish conflicts, textile and fashions, and a large collection of art. The original neoclassical building was extended in the 1970s in a modern Brutalist style. It's part of the National Museums of Northern Ireland, who also run the Transport and Folk museums at Holywood, and the Ulster American Park at Omagh. Free.  (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.600586-5.92675211 Royal Ulster Rifles Regimental Museum, 28 Bedford St BT7 2FE, ☏ +44 28 9023 2086. Tu-Th 10AM-4PM. This light infantry regiment was formed in 1881 and served in the Boer War, World War I and II, and in Korea. The museum is part of the Royal Irish Regimental Museums group. Donation.  (updated Jan 2026)
• South Lagan Valley the city breaks up into parklands and golf courses towards Lisburn. Minnowburn is an attractive section upstream of the A55 bridge.
• 54.5531-5.958112 Malone House is a Georgian mansion edge-of-city that's primarily an events venue, but you can see the art collection and stroll the extensive grounds and sculpture park.
• 54.541-5.98313 Sir Thomas and Lady Dixon Park is a large park by the river at the south edge of the city, dogs permitted. The big attraction is the extensive Rose Garden.
• 54.5404-5.950214 Giant's Ring off Ballynahatty Road is a Neolithic earthwork 200 yards in diameter with a dolmen in the centre.
• 54.5546-5.876915 Lisnabreeny is a woodland walk, passing a memorial at the temporary graveyard for US servicemen, up to a Rath - an ancient hillfort, now just grazing land.

This area suffered the worst of the Troubles in Belfast. It's the city's largest "interface area", where a Protestant/unionist/British-loyalist community lives alongside a Catholic/nationalist/Irish-republican community: the former to the north along Shankhill Rd and Crumlin Rd, the latter south along Falls Rd. Most sights of interest relate to that conflict.

• 54.609-5.94216 Crumlin Road Gaol, 53 Crumlin Rd BT14 6ST, ☏ +44 28 9074 1500, [email protected]. Daily 10AM-4PM. Self-guided tour of this grim old prison, opened in 1846 with a typical Victorian hall design, and in use until 1996. Adult £14, conc £12.50, child £7.50.  (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.6-5.95517 Peace Wall: these are found in several places across Northern Ireland, but especially in West Belfast, and this one along Cupar Way is a good example. Walls were built from 1969 as civil unrest grew, and they became ever longer, sturdier, and higher to prevent bombs and bricks being hurled over. They continued growing after the 1998 Good Friday Agreement: both communities felt safer that way, and the Omagh bombing showed that murderous splinter groups remained active. There are several gates in the wall, open in daytime (and safe to visit) but closed by dusk. There is agreement in principle to remove all the walls, but this ideal prompts deep intakes of breath and slow sad head-shaking by residents.
• Political murals are likewise found in many places but especially in the interface areas. They're mostly seen on gable walls of buildings along the Shankhill Rd and Falls Rd, reflecting local allegiances. They come and go with political events, ask around if there are any out-of-the-way examples worth tracking down.
• Divis Tower is the dreary high-rise block of flats at the start of Falls Road. It's named for the hill seen to the west, and is the last survivor of 12 blocks built here in the 1960s. Divis Tower was mired in the Troubles: in 1969 a 9-year old boy was killed when an army patrol machine-gunned the Tower in the approximate direction of a sniper. Like Divis hill, the top floors of the tower became an army lookout, with troops helicoptered in and out since they didn't dare venture into the lifts and stairwells. Nor should you. The space was refurbished as flats in 2009, so it's people's homes not a zoo or museum.
• Irish Republican History Museum (Eileen Hickey Museum), Conway Mill, 5 Conway Place BT13 2DA, ☏ +44 28 9024 0504. Tu-Sa 10AM-2PM. Museum in a former mill depicting the history of Republicanism in Belfast. Eileen Hickey was a Provisional IRA organiser within Armagh prison and amassed a great collection of artifacts and memorabilia relating to her side of the conflict. This is the half-history where 1200 Catholic civilians died in Belfast during the Troubles. You have to cross the city to the Orange Heritage Centre for the half-history where 600 Protestant civilians died - and both are correct. Donation.  (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.5923-5.961218 Cultúrlann McAdam Ó Fiaich (Irish Language Cultural Centre), 216 Falls Road BT12 6AH, ☏ +44 28 9096 4180. M-Th 9AM-6PM, F Sa 9AM-9PM, Su 11AM-4PM. The hub of Irish language activities in Belfast. It's a cultural centre with visitor information, art, trad music, a cafe and a bookshop. They put on regular Irish language classes, from beginners to advanced.  (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.587-5.9819 Falls Park is the large green space just south of City Cemetery and north of Milltown Cemetery. Buses 10a-h run this way.
• 54.607-6.00920 Divis is the basalt crag and moorland west of the city, rising to 1568 ft / 478 m. It was long a military area, for training, telecoms and lookout, but in 2005 was handed over to the National Trust. It's easiest approached by the lane from the car park on Divis Road to the southwest.

• 54.589722-5.97916721 City Cemetery, 511 Falls Road, Belfast BT12 6DE (corner of Falls Rd and Whiterock Road), ☏ +44 28 9032 3112. M-Sa 8AM-4PM, Su 10AM-4PM. Opened in 1869, the cemetery is full of Victorian funerary statuary, with separate areas for Catholics and Protestants, plus Commonwealth war graves. There's a large Jewish section: this community fled Russia and Poland in the 19th century and set up in the Irish linen trade. Famous members (though buried elsewhere) included Otto Jaffe (twice Lord Mayor of Belfast), Chaim Herzog (6th President of Israel), and Gustav Wolff (co-founder of Harland and Wolff; his family had converted to be Protestant).  (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.5825-5.97361122 Milltown Cemetery, 546 Falls Rd, Belfast BT12 6EQ, ☏ +44 28 9061 3972. Daily 9AM-4PM. Best known for its republican burials, but its range is far broader. It too opened in 1869 to receive the city's growing Catholic population, and its "poor grounds" hold some 80,000, many of them casualties of the 1919 flu pandemic. There is also a mass grave for casualties of the 1941 Blitz, Commonwealth war graves, and a Priests Row of leading RC clerics. The Republican plot, beneath the Irish tricolour, holds paramilitaries and other activists killed in conflict or dying in jail (including the 1981 hunger strikers), and there's a memorial garden. Other republicans lie in their separate plots around the graveyard. But not necessarily "rest in peace": in March 1988 at the funeral of those shot dead in their attempted bomb attack on Gibraltar, a loyalist attacked the mourners with hand grenades and pistol fire. Three mourners were killed and 60 were injured.  (updated Jan 2026)
• Balmoral Cemetery to the southwest on Stockmans Lane is only of interest if you're tracing an ancestor's grave.

For more on the story of the ship, see RMS Titanic

East Belfast is mainly residential, traditionally Protestant, bounded to the west by the river and A24. The inner parts are terraced housing, further out are leafy suburbs. Its northern part along the riverbank had the shipyards, and remains industrial. But in 2012 the area was revitalised and re-branded by the opening of the Titanic Exhibition.

• 54.608-5.900823 Samson and Goliath, West Bank Drive BT3 9DF. 24 hours. These are two massive gantry cranes near the entrance to the Titanic Quarter. Goliath is the first you encounter, built in 1969 and 96 m / 315 ft tall; Samson built in 1974 is 106 m (348 ft) tall. They stand over the Harland & Wolff dry dock and each has a load capacity of 840 tonnes. They're painted yellow and have become an iconic part of the Belfast sky-line. They've been kept in working order even though large-scale shipbuilding and associated heavy lifting has ended on site, but there are no tours up into their structure. Harland & Wolff went bust in 2019 and are now owned by Navantia. Both cranes are scheduled as Historic Monuments.  (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.6081-5.9124 Titanic Belfast, 1 Olympic Way, Queens Road BT3 9EP, ☏ +44 28 9076 6386. Daily 10AM-5PM. For a century this was the "T-word" in Belfast, even more than the Troubles, an unwelcome reminder of a catastrophe reflecting badly on the city. This exhibition, opened in 2012 in a striking modern building, has revitalised a whole city quarter and rescued RMS Titanic as a source of local pride, for its construction and its crew. You progress through the metal-bashing boomtown of Victorian and Edwardian Belfast, through the design, construction by Harland & Wolff, fitting out and test sailings, to events of the first and final voyage. Titanic left Southampton on 10 April 1912, picked up passengers by tender from Cherbourg and Cork, and sailed out into the Atlantic. She left behind a confident Britain that daily expected news of Captain Scott's triumphant return from the South Pole. The museum shows excerpts from films about her sinking, gashed by an iceberg that calved from a Greenland glacier about the same day the ship was launched. One myth that is nixed is the 1997 James Cameron film treatment, where patrician British officers near-as-dammit hold the Irish 3rd-class passengers' heads underwater while the gilded rich are helped to safety and the band plays on. In truth one group had even worse survival than 3rd class, and that was the ship's crew, many of them Irish. The final part of the exhibition has submersible images of the wreck, which lies in two pieces 12,500 ft / 3800 m deep off Newfoundland. Adult £25, conc £22, child £11.  (updated Jan 2026)
• SS Nomadic, Hamilton Dock BT3 9DT (in front of Titanic). Daily 11AM-4:30PM. Titanic and her sister-ship Olympic were too big to dock in Cherbourg, so in 1911 two tenders were built to transfer passengers, baggage and mail. SS Nomadic was the more luxurious and took first and second-class passengers, while SS Traffic took third class. During World War I they served as auxiliary military vessels then resumed as tenders for Olympic, until 1934 when Cherbourg harbour was enlarged. They saw further military service in World War II, after which the slow, accident-prone Traffic was scrapped. Nomadic was reprieved because bombed-out Cherbourg was again unable to receive large liners, so she tendered to the likes of Queen Mary and Queen Elizabeth before retiring in 1968. After a spell in Paris as a floating restaurant she looked destined for scrap, but a charitable trust brought her to Belfast for restoration. Same ticket as Titanic.  (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.6137-5.902625 HMS Caroline, Alexandra Dock BT3 9DT (behind Titanic). F-Su 10AM-4:30PM. Royal Navy light cruiser built in 1914 and engaged in the Battle of Jutland. After the war Caroline had a spell in the Indian Ocean then was mothballed until 1924, when she came to Belfast as a training ship and navy headquarters. Adult £11, conc £10, child £9.  (updated Jan 2026)
• The Great Light is a navigation light on the quayside behind Titanic, distinctly over-engineered for its purpose. It's two huge Fresnel Hyper-Radial first-order lens made in 1887 for Tory Island lighthouse off Donegal. In the 1920s they were re-cycled as a repair for Mew Island lighthouse at the entrance to Belfast Lough, and remained lit until 2014 when they were replaced by an LED. They're now housed here in a glass obelisk, looking like two cosmic gherkins in a pickle jar.
• Titanic Distillery and Pump House, Queens Rd BT3 9DT (behind Titanic), ☏ +44 28 9073 7813. Th-Tu 10AM-6PM. Impressive dry dock where the ship was launched, and the pump house which drained and flooded the dock. The pump house has been converted into a whiskey distillery. Dock tour adult or child £10. (updated Jan 2026)
• W5, Queens Quay BT3 9QQ (part of SSE Arena). Th-M 10AM-6PM. Interactive science museum aimed at younger children. Booking essential. Adult £12, conc or child £10.50. (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.598-5.90726 Short Strand is a Catholic enclave within the mostly Protestant east side. So it's an interface area with a sorry history of sectarian troubles, most recently in 2011 with an armed riot and in 2015 with a tit-for-tat murder. By day you can view the political murals and sections of Peace Wall. Don't wander around here after dusk.
• 54.5993-5.865727 Belmont Tower is a Gothic-style building of 1890, formerly a school. No interior access.
• 54.601-5.896728 Comber Greenway is a walking and cycle path along the route of a disused railway. It runs east from Dee St near Titanic to Dundonald then Comber.
• 54.5914-5.887629 Hyndford Street: Van Morrison grew up here at 125, and George Cassidy at 49 Hyndford Street. The alleyway where Van Morrison first practiced with The Sputniks is here as well, marking a spot in which the "Van Morrison trail" can be accessed. Take Bus 4 along Beersbridge Road.
• 54.605-5.83230 Stormont Parliament Buildings, Ballymiscaw, Stormont BT4 3XX (3 miles east of city, take bus 3 towards Ulster Hospital), ☏ +44 28 9025 0000. M-F 9AM-4PM. These massive buildings, built in neo-Georgian style in 1926, are the home of the Northern Ireland Assembly. Tours are available W-F noon and 2PM, and last 45 minutes, free but book online in advance. The buildings stand on the wooded Stormont Estate, you approach along the long avenue from Newtownards Road and Massey Ave. There's a nearby cluster of modern government office buildings, plus the 19th-century baronial Stormont Castle, only open on special occasions.  (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.5708-5.8930431 Museum of Orange Heritage, Schomberg House, 368 Cregagh Rd BT6 9EY, ☏ +44 28 9070 1122. Tu-F 10AM-5PM. Oranges don't grow in Ulster, so how come so many institutions and events sound like a Spanish street fiesta? Well, in 35 BC Roman army vets founded Arausio in the south of France, named for a Celtic water god, which grew into the city of Orange and became conflated with the name of the fruit. This museum picks up the story from the 17th century, when William Prince of Orange ousted the Catholic king of the British Isles and began Protestant rule. The Orange Order was founded in the strife that followed, and which has continued on and off for over 300 years. Free.  (updated Jan 2026)
• Ulster Folk Museum and Ulster Transport Museum: see Holywood for these excellent museums facing each other across the Bangor Road 8 miles northeast of city centre, and easily combined on a visit. Take the Bangor train to Cultra, two stops beyond Holywood station.

Around Antrim Road and Limestone Road is an "interface area" where you have no reason to linger.

• 54.647-5.95132 Cave Hill is the basalt crag that looms north of the city. With a summit at 1207 ft (368 m) there are great views over Belfast, and on a clear day you can see the Isle of Man and Scotland. The Castle is on the east slope. Higher up are three large caves, and McArt's Fort which is a ringfort. The White Stone was a WWII navigation marker for RAF planes approaching Aldergrove airfield, now the international airport. Buses 1a-j run up Antrim road on the east side, by car you can also use the west car park on B95 Upper Hightown Road.
• 54.6427-5.9423233 Belfast Castle, Antrim Rd BT15 5GR (Buses 1a-j), ☏ +44 28 9077 6925. Daily 9AM-6PM. Baronial pile built on Cave Hill for the Shaftesbury family in the 1860s. It's nowadays an event space for weddings and the like, plus a posh cafe, assistance dogs only. You might be able to peek in at some of the grand rooms, but mostly you come for the view over the city. Free.  (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.656-5.94234 Belfast Zoo, Antrim Rd BT36 7PN (Buses 1a-j), ☏ +44 28 9077 6277. Apr-Oct daily 10AM-6PM, Oct-Mar daily 10AM-4PM. Extensive zoo on the north slopes of Cave Hill, daily talks and feeding sessions, free parking. Adult £14.50, conc or child £7.25.  (updated Jan 2026)

• What's on? Check Visit Belfast as well as individual venue websites.

And listen to Belfast 89FM on 89.3 MHz or read The Belfast Telegraph, The Irish News and The News Letter, all published daily.

• 54.5975-5.92011 Waterfront Hall, 2 Lanyon Place BT1 3WH, ☏ +44 28 9033 4400. Large events venue on the west bank of the river, see website for upcoming shows.  (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.6043-5.91572 SSE Arena (Formerly Odyssey Pavilion), 2 Queen's Quay BT3 9QQ (Bus 26), ☏ +44 28 9045 1055. This complex contains a 12-screen cinema, the multi-use SSE Arena, conference facilities, W5 science museum (see above) and restaurants and bars.  (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.5954-5.935063 Grand Opera House, 2 Great Victoria Street BT2 7HR. Opened in 1895, this is a splendid example of Victorian Oriental architecture, refurbished in 2020. It has a full programme of shows including panto. Oh no it doesn't! Oh yes it does!  (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.579-5.9344 Lyric Theatre, 55 Ridgeway St BT9 5FB (south tip of Botanic Garden), ☏ +44 28 9038 1081. The Lyric has a main theatre seating 400 and the Naughton Studio seating around 150.  (updated Jan 2026)
• Metropolitan Arts Centre (The MAC), 10 Exchange Street West BT1 2NJ (next to St Anne's Cathedral), ☏ +44 28 9023 5053. The MAC opened in 2012 and is a centre for art, theatre and dance.  (updated Jan 2026)
• Queens Film Theatre, 20 University Square BT7 1PA (at QUB), ☏ +44 28 9097 1305. Belfast's art house and repertory cinema, and the main venue for the Belfast Film Festival. (updated Jan 2026)
• Parks and open spaces: lots and lots. See above for:
  • South: Sir Thomas and Lady Dixon Park, Ormeau Park and Botanic Gardens, and the Lagan towpath to Lisburn.
  • North: Waterworks, Belfast Castle estate, Cave Hill and Alexandra Park
  • West: Dunville and Falls Park, Colin Glen Forest Park and the City and Milltown cemeteries
  • East: Orangefield and Victoria Park

• Rugby Union, 15-a-side: Ulster Rugby are one of the four Irish professional teams playing in United Rugby Championship, the top European (predominantly Celtic) tournament. Their home ground is Ravenhill (capacity 18,000) south of Ormeau Park. Rugby league (13 a side) isn't played in Ireland.
• Soccer: the city has four teams in the NIFL Premiership, the province's top tier. This plays Sep-April like the rest of the UK, while the Republic plays in summer.
  • Linfield FC^{[dead link]} often win the Premiership and qualify for European tournaments. Their home ground is Windsor Park (capacity 18,000) which also stages international matches. It's two miles south of city centre, take the bus down Boucher Rd or train to Adelaide station.
  • Cliftonville FC play home games at Solitude Stadium, capacity 3200, north side of the city on Cliftonville Rd.
  • Crusaders FC play at Seaview, capacity 3880, a mile north of the centre off Shore Rd.
  • Glentoran FC notoriously rejected the young George Best for being too small and light. Their home ground The Oval has a nominal capacity of 15,000. It's east of the centre in Sydenham towards the airport that's named for that light skinny fellow.
• Gaelic games: Casement Park was the traditional stadium for Ulster GAA, but it's derelict, with games transferred to St Tiernach's Park in Clones.
• Golf: see Holywood for Royal Belfast Golf Club. The south edge of the city and Lagan valley is strewn with golf courses.
• Ice Hockey: Belfast Giants play in the Elite Ice Hockey League, the UK's top tier. Their home rink is the SSE Arena.

These are especially useful for outlying or "interface" areas where a solo traveller might hesitate to venture, and where local knowledge from the guide is invaluable.

• Black Taxi tours use the London-style taxis which also ply regular city routes, see Get Around. A 90-minute tour in 2026 might be £75-£100 for 1-3 people. Operators include Taxi Trax, Paddy Campbell, Black Taxi Tour , NI Black Taxi Tours and Belfast's Past.
• Bus tours are run by Belfast City Sightseeing and City Tours Belfast. Both use bright red open-top double-deckers, you hop-on and hop-off at the various sights. They also run tours to the Giant's Causeway and anywhere vaguely associated with Game of Thrones.
• Walking tours are led by Belfast Mural Tours, Belfastology, Yellow Umbrella, DC Tours, Walking Tours Belfast, y tambien Tours por Belfast en español.

• Cathedral Quarter Arts Festival is in January. CQAF also run the Out to Lunch Festival in May.
• Jazz: Brilliant Corners is Feb / March.
• St Patrick's Day on 17 March (whenever that falls in the week) is almost as big an event here as in the Republic.
• City Marathon is in early May. They also stage a half-marathon in September and fun runs at other times.
• Belfast Book Festival is held in Crescent Arts Centre on the QUB campus in early June.
• Orange Order Parades are a piece of living history, catch one if you can. They're held across Northern Ireland throughout summer, but the biggest is in Belfast on 12th July, a public holiday commemorating the 1690 Battle of the Boyne. (When the 12th falls on Sunday, the parade and public holiday is Monday 13th - this next occurs in 2026.) There's a morning and an afternoon parade: both start as feeders from various quarters of the city, which combine around Donegall Square and then head south through the University area and Lisburn Road.
• Belfast Pride is in late July.
• Féile an Phobail is a community arts festival in late July and early August.
• Belfast International Tattoo is held over two days in September at SSE Arena.
• Belfast International Arts Festival is in late October and early November.
• Belfast Film Festival is in early November.

• Central Belfast has a large retail area, with Castle Court on Millfield to the west through Corn Market to Victoria Square on the east.
• 54.6014-5.93381 Smithfield Market, Winetavern Street BT1 1JE. M-Sa 10AM-5PM. Small mall north of Castle Court with some 30 independent retailers.  (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.5958-5.9222 St George's Market, 12-20 East Bridge Street BT1 3NQ. F 8AM-2PM, Sa 9AM-3PM, Su 10AM-3PM. Lively indoor market in an 1896 building with a grand range of food, clothing and crafts.  (updated Jan 2026)
• No Alibis, 83 Botanic Ave BT7 1JL (next to Scalini), ☏ +44 28 9031 9601. M-Sa 9AM-5:30PM. Renowned quirky independent bookshop, specialising in crime and US fiction. (updated Jan 2026)
• O'Neills Sportswear are within Castle Court Shopping Centre (M-Sa 9AM-6PM, Su 1-6PM) and at 564 Falls Road BT11 9AE. They stock their own brand sportswear, but their usp is as outlets for Gaelic Sports equipment, jerseys and memorabilia, ideal for a distinctive souvenir.
• Inns Cross Farmers Market is off Saintfield Rd (A24) south edge of the city near the A55 junction. It's 10AM-2PM on the first Saturday of the month.

• Maggie Mays, Branches at Queens St, 50 Botanic Ave, 2 Malone Rd and 44 Castle St. M-Sa 8AM-5PM, Su 10AM-5PM. Traditionally this is where you rock up with a hangover, for colossal servings of Ulster breakfast - bacon, sausage, egg, fried bread, soda bread, and anything else cardiologically rash. But maybe times are changing: they can even cater for vegans. (updated Jan 2026)
• Boojum, Branches at Great Victoria St, Victoria Square and Botanic Ave. Daily noon-10PM.. Mexican chain. (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.5996-5.92761 Bright's Restaurant, 23 High St BT1 2AA, ☏ +44 28 9024 5688. M-Sa 9AM-4PM, Su 11AM-4PM. Old style breakfast and lunch, and traditional ambiance right down to the biddy brushing under your table as you're trying to eat.  (updated Jan 2026)
• Little Italy, 13 Amelia St BT2 7GS, ☏ +44 28 9031 4914. Su-Th 5PM-midnight, F Sa 5PM-1:30AM. There when you need it - pizza takeaway behind Crown Bar opposite the bus and railway station. (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.5931-5.93162 The Bridge House (JD Wetherspoon), 35-43 Bedford St BT2 7EJ, ☏ +44 28 9072 7890. Daily 8AM-1AM. Reliable chain pub, good value food and drink.  (updated Jan 2026)
• The John Hewitt, 51 Donegall St BT1 2FH (50 yards south of cathedral), ☏ +44 28 9023 3768. Tu-Su noon-midnight. Friendly pub with real ales, often live music, food served until 8PM. (updated Jan 2026)
• Established Coffee, 54 Hill St BT1 2LB (by cathedral), ☏ +44 28 9031 9416. Daily 8AM-4:30PM. Light meals and coffee, with much connoisseur-type folderol over which coffee beans to grind. (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.5781-5.95253 Doorsteps, 455 Lisburn Rd BT9 7EY, ☏ +44 28 9068 1645. M-Sa 8:30AM-3PM. Stonking great sandwiches (hence the name) and trad meals, you'll need a hearty appetite.  (updated Jan 2026)

• Deanes is a chain with five city locations.
• Queen's Cafe Bar, 4 Queens Arcade BT1 5FF, ☏ +44 28 9024 9105. M-Sa 11:30AM-5PM. City centre pub in the shopping arcade does good grills. (updated Jan 2026)
• Lee Garden, 14 Botanic Ave BT7 1JQ (block east of Benedicts Hotel), ☏ +44 28 9027 8882. Daily noon-10PM. Reliably good place, especially good value for lunch and dim sum. (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.5989-5.92714 Little Wing Pizzeria, 10 Ann St BT1 4EF, ☏ +44 28 9024 7000. M-Sa noon-10PM, Su noon-9PM. Slick friendly place serves pizza Napoli-style. Also has branches on Lisburn Rd and Upper Newtownards Rd.  (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.5868-5.93265 Scalini, 85 Botanic Ave BT7 1JL, ☏ +44 28 9032 0303. Tu-Th 5-10PM, F-Su 4-10PM. Excellent pizzeria and trattoria near QUB, they make sure you realise they're Italian.  (updated Jan 2026)
• Darcy's, 10 Bradbury Place BT7 1RS (opposite Benedicts Hotel), ☏ +44 28 9032 4040. M-Th 5-9PM, F-Su noon-9PM. Large servings of Belfast cuisine in an old-fashioned candlelit ambiance. Excellent vegan/vegetarian menu. (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.5916-5.93296 Archana, 53 Dublin Rd BT2 7HE, ☏ +44 28 9032 3713. Daily 5-10PM. Good Indian restaurant, the lunchtime deals are great value.  (updated Jan 2026)
• Thai Village is opposite Archana at 50 Dublin Rd, open Tu-Su 5:30-10PM.

• Great Room Restaurant, 16 Skipper St BT1 2DY (within Merchant Hotel), ☏ +44 28 9023 4888. Daily 8-10AM, noon-4PM, 6-10PM. Magnificent setting, the food doesn't quite equal it. (updated Jan 2026)
• Muddlers Club, Warehouse Lane BT1 2DX (50 yards north of Premier Inn Belfast City), ☏ +44 28 9031 3199. W Th 5-9:30PM, F Sa 12:30-1PM, 5-9:30PM. Michelin-starred restaurant, reservations essential. (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.5812-5.94867 Shu, 253 Lisburn Rd BT9 7EN, ☏ +44 28 9038 1655. Tu-Sa noon-9:30PM, Su 12:30-6:30PM. Stylish modern French restaurant.  (updated Jan 2026)

• 54.5947-5.934231 Crown Liquor Saloon, 46 Great Victoria St BT2 7BA (opposite Europa Hotel and stations), ☏ +44 28 9024 3187. Daily 11:30AM-midnight. Gorgeous authentic Victorian pub. The stained glass windows have been replaced a few times, what with the earth tremors opposite, but the interior is mostly original and gas-lit. Inside, the booths can seat about a dozen people, and may be closed off from the bar with the attractive wood-paneled doors. They are hot property after work on a Friday afternoon, so move quickly if you want the chance to occupy one. And for sit-down meals you'd best book. Run by the Nicholson's pubs chain, but National Trust ensure the decor remains.  (updated Jan 2026)
• Robinsons Bar (Fibber Magee), 38 Great Victoria Street BT2 7BA (next to Crown Liquor Saloon), ☏ +44 28 9024 7447. Su-W 11:30AM-midnight, Th-Sa 11:30AM-1AM. Trad "long" pub, established 1895. The saloon (front end off GVS) is decorated with Titanic memorabilia, this is the area for a quiet pint. Head to the first floor bistro for food, served until 9PM. The back bar is Fibber Magees, which you can also enter via the alley behind Travelodge: this has trad music every night. (updated Jan 2026)
• Europa Hotel (see Sleep): the Piano Bar tinkles away on the first floor.
• 54.5972-5.926662 The Garrick, 29 Chichester St BT1 4JB, ☏ +44 28 9032 1984. M-Sa 11:30AM-1AM, Su noon-midnight. This slick Victorian pub does good beer and grub.  (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.6007-5.927583 The Northern Whig, 2-10 Bridge St BT1 1LU, ☏ +44 28 9050 9888. M-W noon-11PM, Th-Sa noon-1AM, Su 1PM-midnight. The Northern Whigs were the United Irishmen who plotted the 1798 rebellion. The site of their seditious club became the offices of the newspaper Northern Whig, a liberal-unionist daily published 1832-1963. That in turn became a bar circa 1997, refurbished in Victorian style in 2016. It gets good reviews for drink and food.  (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.5987-5.92434 Bittles Bar, 70 Upper Church Lane BT1 4QL, ☏ +44 28 9031 1088. Su-F 11:30AM-11PM, F Sa 11:30AM-1AM. Atmospheric little pub in a distinctive flatiron building.  (updated Jan 2026)
• Kitchen Bar, 1 Victoria Square BT1 4QG (opposite Bittles), ☏ +44 28 9024 5268. Daily 11:30AM-11PM. The original pub dated back to 1859 but was demolished in 2004 to make way for the shopping centre, so it moved round the corner into an old converted warehouse. It's kept its Victorian atmosphere and gets good reviews for beer and food.  (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.5994-5.92635 Morning Star, 17 Pottinger's Entry BT1 4DT, ☏ +44 28 9023 5986. M-Sa 11:30AM-midnight, Su noon-11:30PM. Grand alehouse since 1810, the food gets mixed reviews. LGBTQ-friendly.  (updated Jan 2026)
• McHugh's, 29 Queens Square BT1 3FG (50 yards north of Laganside Buscentre), ☏ +44 28 9050 9999. M-Sa noon-1AM, Su 1PM-1AM. In a building of 1711, with a 100-seat restaurant, a basement bar offering live entertainment and the main gallery. Often has trad music.  (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.5928-5.92876 Limelight (Katy Daly's), 17 Ormeau Ave BT2 8HD, ☏ +44 28 9032 7007. M W Th 10PM-2AM, F Sa 5PM-2AM. Standard pub early evening, then late night there are four music and club areas: Katy's the main bar, Limelight 1 and 2, and the rooftop Rock Garden.  (updated Jan 2026)
• The Spaniard, 3 Skipper St BT1 2DZ (opposite Merchant Hotel), ☏ +44 28 9023 2448. Daily noon-1AM. Small friendly bar with tapas and cocktails. Great fun. Lesbian friendly. (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.6018-5.92737 Duke of York, 7 Commercial Court BT1 2NB, ☏ +44 28 9024 1062. M-Sa 11:30AM-midnight, Su 1-8PM. The main Duke of York bar is a classic mirrored beer hall, Harp Bar is a trad saloon with live music, The New Orpheus is its swish extension, The Friend at Hand is the whiskey collection, and The Dark Horse is their events venue.  (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.6001-5.92858 Whites Tavern, 2 Winecellar Entry BT1 1QN, ☏ +44 28 9031 2582. Su-Th 11:30AM-1AM, F Sa 11:30AM-2AM. Founded in 1630 and probably Belfast's oldest pub. Cosy bar with live music on Friday nights, the Oyster Rooms are the bistro.  (updated Jan 2026)
• The Monico, 17 Lombard St BT1 1RB (block west of Whites), ☏ +44 28 9032 3211. M-Th 11:30AM-10PM, F Sa 11:30AM-midnight, Su 11:30AM-8PM. Serving good grub, with the original sports pub in back. (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.5882-5.93269 Belfast Empire, 42 Botanic Ave BT7 1JQ, ☏ +44 28 9024 9276. M noon-11PM, Tu-Sa noon-1AM, Su 12:30PM-midnight. This former church has three floors of bars and music venues.  (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.5759-5.917210 Errigle Inn, 320 Ormeau Rd BT7 2GE, ☏ +44 28 9064 1410. M-F noon-midnight, Sa Su 10:30AM-midnight. Unchanged since it opened in 1935, this is a popular authentic southside Belfast boozer.  (updated Jan 2026)
• Merchant Hotel (see Sleep) has Bert's Jazz Bar in Art Deco style, The Cloth Ear with Victorian decor, and the Cocktail Bar if your budget extends to Champagne.
• The Points, 44 Dublin Rd BT2 7HN (opposite Arcana). M-Th 4PM-1AM, F-Su 1PM-1AM. Classic Irish pub with a whiskey selection and live music. (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.6031-5.932611 Sunflower, 65 Union St BT1 2JG, ☏ +44 28 9023 2474. Su-W noon-midnight, Th-Sa noon-1AM. Lively pub, they keep the security cage around the front door to show what an edgy place you've come to.  (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.6039-5.930912 Kremlin, 96 Donegall Street BT1 2GW, ☏ +44 28 9018 4431. Nightly 10PM-3AM. Soviet-themed gay dance club.  (updated Jan 2026)
• Union Street Bar, 8 Union St BT1 2JF (block west of Kremlin), ☏ +44 28 9031 6060. Tu-Th 5PM-1AM, F-Su noon-1AM. LGBTQ-friendly pub and wine bar with Med food. Shoe Factory is the late club next door. (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.599-5.93213 Kelly's Cellars, 30 Bank St BT1 1HL (off Castle Street), ☏ +44 28 9024 6058. Daily 11:30AM-1AM. Great pub with trad music at weekends, restaurant upstairs. It was built in 1720, and the 1798 United Irishmen uprising was plotted here.  (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.6001-5.933714 Maddens Bar, 74 Berry St BT1 1FJ, ☏ +44 28 9024 4114. M-Sa 11:30AM-1AM, Su 1PM-midnight. Buzzing pub with trad music at weekends.  (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.6001-5.925415 Muriel's Cafe Bar, 12 Church Lane BT1 4QN, ☏ +44 28 9033 2445. Daily noon-1AM. Friendly pub serves great gin.  (updated Jan 2026)
• Thompsons Garage, 3 Pattersons Place BT1 4HW (off City Square, in alley opposite Titanic Memorial), ☏ +44 28 9032 3762. Daily 9PM-2AM. Long-established late-night club. (updated Jan 2026)
• Mermaid Inn, 5-11 Wilsons Court BT1 4DQ (off High St), ☏ +44 28 9032 7829. M-Sa 11AM-11PM. A cozy trad pub, frequented by punters for horse racing and dog racing. (updated Jan 2026)

• 54.58104-5.9385716 The Botanic Inn (The Bot), 23 Malone Rd BT9 6RU, ☏ +44 28 9050 9740. M-Th noon-midnight, F-Su noon-midnight. This bar near QUB is popular with students. Downstairs is a large bar with live sport, upstairs has a night club. Good food and drink.  (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.5857-5.922917 Hatfield House, 130 Ormeau Rd BT7 2EB, ☏ +44 28 9043 8764. Daily noon-1AM. Buzzing southside pub in 1850s trad building, often has live music and Gaelic sport on TV.  (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.5837-5.943618 Ryan's Bar & Restaurant, 116 Lisburn Rd BT9 6AH, ☏ +44 28 9050 9850. M-Th 11:30AM-11PM, F-Su 12:30PM-1AM. The ground floor has a family-friendly grill restaurant and there's a late night bar.  (updated Jan 2026)

• 54.5987-5.897219 The Great Eastern (The Deeside), 273 Newtownards Rd BT4 1AF, ☏ +44 28 9045 7534. Daily 11:30AM-11:30PM. Welcoming lively trad East Belfast pub.  (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.5893-5.845720 The Poet, Kings Square BT5 7EA, ☏ +44 28 9515 0070. A modern bar and grill with decent drinks, meals and social spaces.  (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.5979-5.893321 Prince Albert Lounge (The Albert), 369 Newtownards Rd BT4 1AJ. Daily noon-11PM. A great atmosphere and friendly staff. Reasonable drink prices and good selection of drinks.  (updated Jan 2026)

• 54.5854-5.92971 Lagan Backpackers, 121 Fitzroy Ave BT7 1HU, ☏ +44 28 9514 0049. Basic small hostel, cleanliness varies. Dorm £27.  (updated Jan 2026)
• Belfast International Youth Hostel, 22 Donegall Road BT12 5JN (behind Benedicts Hotel), ☏ +44 28 9031 5435. Basic hostel, central spot near Shaftesbury Square. Dorm £28. (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.5861-5.93912 Botanical Backpackers, 63 Fitzwilliam St BT9 6AX. Small independent hostel near QUB, well-run and good atmosphere, LGBTQ-friendly. Dorm £33.  (updated Jan 2026)
• Travelodge Belfast Central, 15 Brunswick St BT2 7GE (opposite bus & railway station), ☏ +44 28 9033 3555, [email protected]. Chain hotel in great location, decor and cleanliness variable. Double (room only) £120. (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.5862-5.92893 Global Village, 87 University Street BT7 1HP, ☏ +44 28 9090 4687. Hostel open all year. Simple dorm, no private rooms.  (updated Jan 2026)
• Premier Inn have three hotels: "Cathedral Quarter" on Waring St, "City Centre" on Alfred St, and "Titanic Quarter" at the marina.
• Ibis have two hotels: "City Centre" on Castle St, and "Queens Quarter" on University St.
• 54.5875-5.93614 Vagabonds Hostel, 9 University Road BT7 1NA, ☏ +44 28 9020 9600, [email protected]. Lively hostel with friendly staff, reliable wifi, a kitchen, and a large comfortable shared space for hanging out. Bunk £30.  (updated Jan 2026)

• 54.5891-5.93495 Benedicts, 7-21 Bradbury Place BT7 1RQ (by Botanics railway station), ☏ +44 28 9059 1999. Lively clean mid-range hotel near QUB with good restaurant. B&B double £120.  (updated Jan 2026)
• Holiday Inn, 40 Hope St BT12 5EE (facing railway station), ☏ +44 28 9024 2494. Comfy central chain hotel. B&B double £160. (updated Jan 2026)
• Leonardo Hotel (formerly Jury's Inn), Great Victoria Street BT1 6DY (a block north of the railway and bus station), ☏ +44 28 9053 3500. A reliable mid-range place. B&B double £190. (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.582-5.94256 Malone Lodge, 60 Eglantine Ave BT9 6DY, ☏ +44 28 9038 8000. This is being refurbished and is expected to re-open in Feb 2026.  (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.5727-5.91367 Ravenhill House, 690 Ravenhill Rd BT6 0BZ, ☏ +44 28 9028 2590. Cosy welcoming B&B open April-Oct, no children under 10 or dogs. Double (room only) £130.  (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.5657-5.95028 Old Rectory, 148 Malone Rd BT9 5LH, ☏ +44 28 9066 7882. Comfy charming B&B near university. No dogs.  (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.5879-5.93099 Tara Lodge, 36 Cromwell Rd BT7 1JW (by Botanics railway station), ☏ +44 28 9059 0900. Smart small hotel near Botanics and QUB. B&B double £130.  (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.5958-5.930210 Ten Square (Doubletree by Hilton), 10 Donegall Square South BT1 5JD, ☏ +44 28 9024 1001. As central as you can get, facing city hall, can be noisy. Now part of Hilton chain. B&B double £300.  (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.5945-5.839111 Stormont Hotel, 587 Upper Newtownards Rd BT4 3LP, ☏ +44 28 9065 1066. Good reviews for comfort and catering at this Hastings chain hotel by the gates of Stormont. B&B double £130.  (updated Jan 2026)

• 54.5967-5.919112 Hilton Belfast, 4 Lanyon Place BT1 3LP, ☏ +44 28 9027 7000. Decent mid-range chain hotel next to Waterfront Hall. B&B double £200.  (updated Jan 2026)
• Titanic Hotel, 8 Queen's Rd BT3 9DT (Dockland next to Titanic museum), ☏ +44 28 9508 2000. Swish modern hotel in the former Harland & Wolff offices. B&B double £250. (updated Jan 2026)
• Europa Hotel, Great Victoria St BT2 7AP (next to GVS bus and railway station), ☏ +44 28 9027 1066. The Europa needed to be a sturdy place in the 20th century, but the only "Troubles" nowadays are raucous parties and the odd car alarm shrieking off. Great location, popular mid-range choice. No on-site parking. B&B double £140.  (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.6001-5.924313 Malmaison Belfast, 34-38 Victoria St BT1 3GH, ☏ +44 28 9600 1405. Jazzy hotel in a great location, some gripes over noise. B&B double £200.  (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.601-5.925914 Merchant Hotel, 16 Skipper St BT1 2DZ, ☏ +44 28 9023 4888. Slick upscale hotel in a converted bank, with spa and rooftop gym. The Great Room restaurant is a splendid ritzy place. B&B double £240.  (updated Jan 2026)

Belfast is for the most part a safe, welcoming city. Though there's trouble beneath the surface, it's locals settling old scores, and tourists aren't involved. After dark you should avoid the "interface areas" noted earlier, and keep your wits about you around Shaftesbury Square (between QUB and Grand Central Station), Botanic Station and Strandtown. Beyond that, just follow the same obvious rules you'd follow in any other big city. Keep your nose and big mouth out of local politics (which stretch back 300 years), and expect some banter if you wear the wrong colour of football jersey. Keep well away from rowdy youths, who may attack unprovoked.

• 54.5715-5.94371 United States, Danesfort House, 223 Stranmillis Rd BT9 5GR, ☏ +44 28 9038 6100, [email protected]. M-F 8:30AM-5PM. For out of hours emergencies involving a US citizen call +44 20 7499 9000, the US Consulate in London.  (updated Jan 2026)
• 54.5789-5.93982 Poland, 67 Malone Rd BT9 6SB, ☏ +44 28 9620 9500. M 10-5PM, Tu-F 9AM-3PM. For out of hours emergencies involving a Polish citizen call +44 7880 712909.  (updated Jan 2026)

To call a number in Northern Ireland from the Republic, use area code 048 with no country code. The +44 28 versions given above will work but incur international rates.

As of Jan 2026, the city and its approach roads have 5G from all UK carriers.

There is no land-based mobile signal on the ferries. Switch off in case your phone latches onto the ferry company WiFi, they'll be delighted to connect you at international rates.

• Transport routes radiate from Belfast so virtually all of Northern Ireland is within a day trip.
• Holywood for the excellent Ulster Folk Museum and Ulster Transport Museum.
• Hillsborough is a picturesque village, with the grand powerbase of Hillsborough Castle.
• Giant's Causeway is the standout on the north coast, and can be reached by train or bus. With a car you can meander along the coast via Carrickfergus and Larne into the Antrim Glens and Ballycastle, for ferries to Rathlin Island. The Glens are quiet so the Causeway will feel very touristy by comparison.
• Derry is a fascinating historic city within its ancient walls.
• Dublin can be day-tripped by bus or train but deserves much longer.

merges with ←	N  S	→ Lisburn → Dublin
Derry/Londonderry ← Newtownabbey ←	NW  SE	→ merges with /
END ←	W  E	→ Cultra → Bangor
merges with ←	N  S	→ merges with

END ←

SW  NE

→ Cairnryan