DRAFT
The Northern Ireland peace process has brought about a significant rise in the number of tourists visiting Belfast. As with most European cities, the main attractions in Belfast itself are easy to walk to, so what about places to visit beyond the city?
Why hire a car in Belfast?
- Limited lines — look at any major city in England or central Scotland, and you will usually see a network of rail lines fanning out, including local and long-distance services. There are only four railway lines heading out of Belfast, two of which only provide suburban connections to Larne and Bangor respectively. A regional service operates as far as Derry (Londonderry), whereas the enterprise service continues down to Dublin.
- Giants Causeway — this is surely the most impressive natural feature on the Emerald Isle, and is only a short drive from Belfast. However, bus trips are available, so there is no need to get a hire car just to visit Giants Causeway.
- Inland — the railway routes in Northern Ireland generally stay close to the coast, so to go anywhere inland, especially to visit the various points of interest around Lough Neah, you will need a rental car, or you will have to rely on slow bus services.
- Blue Stack mountains — head across into Co Donegal for some superb scenery on Ireland’s Northwest coast, again, well beyond the reach of scheduled services.
- Poor public transport — although Northern Ireland has seen a lot of investment in recent years, little of this has gone on to public transport services, apart from upgrades to the railway fleet (Translink). No new lines have been built, and unlike many cities in northern England, there is no form of tram in Belfast. The city remains car dependent, and it has relatively few good routes to explore by bike.
Why not?
- There are few reasons not to get a hire car in Belfast, unless you just want to stay in Belfast itself, or perhaps take the train to Derry (Londonderry).
- Coastal routes — the train hugs the coast in many areas, offering some good scenic views, especially between Coleraine and Derry (Londonderry), and South of Newry most of the way to Dublin.
- Celtic cousins — instead of just visiting Northern Ireland, why not combine the trip to Belfast with a visit to Glasgow, or even tack on Edinburgh and Dublin at each end? This is an easy rail trip, with plenty of flights available from throughout Europe at either end if you extend to the Scottish and Irish capitals. The train south of Ayr towards Stranraer is particularly scenic, and you also get to include a short ferry crossing on the Irish Sea.
Conclusion — public transport options in and around Belfast are relatively limited, and the best attractions are landscapes rather than cities. This makes our verdict lean heavily towards recommending getting a hire car.
Verdict — yes (strong)
Note — it is easy to pick up a hire car at either Belfast International or Belfast George Best city airport. If you don’t plan on getting a hire car, you’re better off flying into Belfast city airport, which is much closer to central Belfast. You can even take a short walk to nearby Sydenham station to start early rail journeys within Northern Ireland, although for just getting to the city centre, it is quicker to take a taxi or shuttle bus. Belfast city airport is a wider network of domestic flights from the rest of the UK, whereas Belfast International has more flights from mainland Europe.