Northern Ireland has it all. Enjoy historical heritage, scenic splendours, vibrant cities with shopping, nightlife and festivals, outdoor activities, fabulous food and unspoilt retreats where you can unwind, relax and recharge.
Much has happened in the past few years and there’s no doubt that Belfast’s dynamic nightlife, with its club scene, modern bars, traditional pubs and gourmet restaurants, has huge appeal for young and old. A measure in the city’s renewal has been the increase in hotel room numbers: they’ve trebled in just five years.
Beyond the cities you’re immediately off the beaten track and into green countryside, with farms and villages linked by small roads winding between thorn hedges. And according to a UN report, Northern Ireland has the second lowest crime rate in the developed world, only Japan is safer for tourist to visit.
Size-wise Northern Ireland is small. Establish a base – hotel, cottage, anywhere, your choice – and you can visit the top attractions on easy day trips. For sheer variety of landscape, the country feels bigger than it is. Mountains, glens an inland sea, peaty moors, everything’s packed neatly together.
Must see and do
- Giant’s Causeway, County Antrim
- Walls of Derry, City Centre, Londonderry
- Ulster-American Folk Park, County Tyrone
- Devenish Island Monastic Site, Lough Erne, County Fermanagh
- St Patrick’s Trian Visitor Complex, Armagh
- Ulster Museum, Belfast
- St Patrick’s Day Celebrations, throughout Ireland (March)
- Mount Stewart House and Gardens, County Down
- Armagh Planetarium, Armagh
- Carrick-a-rede Rope Bridge, County Antrim