Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Getting In & Getting Around
Planes
Belfast is served by two airports.
George Best Belfast City Airport
is smaller and nearer
to the city center, but has very few international flights - it mostly serves flights from else-
where in the U.K. and France.
Belfast International Airport
is larger and significantly further away from town, but it
takes direct flights from all over the world. You can get into central Belfast via a regular
bus service (roughly 45 minutes, depending on traffic), or by taking a cab, which should
cost about £25.
Trains
Trains run between Belfast and Dublin several times each day (a journey of about two and
a half hours), other than that the trains in Northern Ireland mainly go to industrial cities and
not major tourist destinations. The main station is
Belfast Central Train Station
along the
River Lagan and just a couple of miles southwest of the harbor.
Buses and Ferries
The bus/ferry combination is one of the best ways to reach Belfast from other UK cities
such as Glasgow and Edinburgh. The bus drives straight onto the ferry, which then docks in
the harbor. There are also plenty of municipal busses within Northern Ireland which have
broader coverage than the trains. Northern Ireland is compact enough that
tour buses
can
take you pretty easily to any of the major destinations in the area.
Car Rental
In most of Ireland, it's not a great idea to rent a car because of the low quality roads and
erratic behavior of other drivers. In Northern Ireland, however, the roads tend to be more
reliable and the drivers are less unpredictable. If you do plan to rent a car, though, make
sure you're comfortable driving on the left!
Getting Around in Belfast
