Worth getting out of bed for
Highlights the best Belfast has to offer, from art and culture to fun-packed activities; we've even found the most inspiring place to enjoy the views from.
- Viewpoint
- Head to the Cave Hill Country Park and climb the 368-metre peak looming over Belfast. You’ll see all of the city’s glorious sprawl and on a clear day, you‘ll get a glimpse of Scotland on the horizon, too. Jonathan Swift took his inspiration for Gulliver’s Travels from here. If you squint up at it from below, it does look a little like a sleeping giant.
- Arts and culture
- Belfast has a booming arts scene, and the Belfast Festival, every October/November, is Europe’s second-biggest arts festival. Gallery hounds will find satisfaction strolling around the Cathedral Quarter; Belfast Exposed (www.belfastexposed.org) specialises in photography and is highly recommended. Our favourite space is the Ormeau Baths Gallery (www.ormeaubaths.co.uk) hosting Irish and international artists and quirkily located in the former Victorian baths. The Naughton Gallery at Queen’s University (www.naughtongallery.org) is a cutting-edge visual-arts platform, with ever-changing displays.
- Something for nothing
- Inside the Victorian Palm House at the Botanic Gardens (+44 (0)28 9032 4902), the Tropical Ravine is a unique, sunken gully of tropicana that runs the length of the building, with a balcony either side for viewing the triffid-like flora. The one to watch is the Dombeya, which flowers every February.
- Shopping
- High street habitués stick to the city centre; more selective spenders head along the Lisburn Road, aka the 'Diamond Mile', for a boutique-shopping day with a village feel. St George’s Market in the city centre is a Belfast landmark. Renovated to its former Victorian glory, it hosts fantastic weekly shopping extravaganzas: on Fridays you’ll find everything from soap to shark steaks at the Variety Market; on Saturdays, the City Food and Garden Market woos visitors with its delicious displays of regional and European produce, flowers and live music.
- Daytripper
- For jaw-dropping scenery, take the 90-minute drive north to the Giant’s Causeway (www.causewaycoastandglens.com). Resembling some ancient experiment with Lego, the rugged coastline is a World Heritage site. Don’t worry if it rains – it’s even more dramatic and soul-stirring in bad weather (which you get a lot of up here). Alternatively, you could just head for the Bushmills distillery (www.bushmills.com).
- Perfect Picnic
- Head for the Giant’s Ring, a prehistoric circular earthwork that spans 600 feet and has superb views of the parkland areas of South Belfast, as well as a purpose-built, 2,000-year-old walking circuit around its perimeter. Gather your gastronomic goodies at Sawyers, the award-winning deli in the Fountain Centre (+44 (0)28 9032 2021); Irish cheeses are their forte.
- Walks
- Keen wildlifers will love Colin Glen Forest Park on the Stewartstown Road (www.colinglentrust.org). Various trails take in woodland paths, meadows, ponds, bogs and waterfalls, all in the heart of Belfast, though you wouldn’t know it. The upper glen is physically more taxing.
- Children
- Take animal-loving youngsters to Streamvale Open Farm (www.streamvale.com), a hands-on working farm where cuddling and feeding is actively encouraged. They even make their own ice-cream – the perfect reward for good behaviour. A family ticket costs £16. For older, more adventurous children, Pirates Adventure Golf in Dundonald is a 36-hole course of jolly japery – parrots and peg legs optional (www.piratesadventuregolf.com).
- Activities
- Casement Park (+44 (0)28 9060 5868) is the home of both Gaelic football (a bizarre blend of volleyball, soccer and rugby) and hurling (hockey crossed with Harry Potter’s quidditch – without the flying). Book tickets to see the fast and furious action at www.ticketmaster.ie.
- And...
- The Crown Liquor Saloon on Great Victoria Street (+44 (0)28 9027 9901; www.crownbar.com) is notable for being one of only two pubs in the UK owned by the National Trust. Its listed Victorian interiors feature original gas lamps and carved wooden snugs with imposing etched-glass panels.
Diary
January Out to Lunch is a fringe festival of lunchtime music, theatre and comedy in the Cathedral Quarter (www.cqaf.com). March Belfast Film Festival showcases an edifying programme of international flicks with social and political merit (www.belfastfilmfestival.org). May Cathedral Quarter Arts Festival offers the best in new theatre, comedy, music, literature, circus performance, visual arts and more (www.cqaf.com). July–August Europe’s largest community arts festival, Féile an Phobail, gives Glastonbury a serious run for its money (www.feilebelfast.com). September–October Open House Festival brings traditional roots and acoustic music to the Cathedral Quarter (www.openhousefestival.com). October The Belfast Festival at Queen’s is Europe’s second-biggest arts festival, with opera, stand-up comedy and live performances (www.belfastfestival.com). November Cinemagic is an international children’s film festival (www.cinemagic.org.uk).
