With its charming cafes, restaurants and traditional music pubs, not to mention its friendly people and dynamic theatre and arts scene, Belfast has become Ireland’s hottest ‘must-see’ city.
One travel writer summed it up, saying, “It has the vibe of a city and the warmth of a small town.”
Here’s just a taste of what visitors can enjoy.
GUIDED WALKING TOUR
Best to start off a visit to Belfast by learning about its intriguing history and culture. Conor Owens at Hidden Tours is probably the best man for the job. A natural story-teller, there’s seems nothing Conor doesn’t know about his native city, including many of its innermost secrets, whether it be narrow alleyways with mysterious symbols and writings on the walls to pubs with the largest selection of whiskeys, clubs with the best music, cafes with the most delicious chocolate or incisive political tours about the so-called ‘Troubles’ in Northern Ireland and a detailed analysis of the Peace Walls. His witty, intelligent, and thoughtful conversation brings small corners of Belfast to life.
ULSTER MUSEUM
Close to the historic Queens University, the Ulster Museum is the leading museum in the country, exploring past, present and future through impressive collections of art, natural science and history. Hundreds of fossils as well as the only dinosaur bones ever found in Ireland combined with costume and fashion, pottery, furniture and jewellery reflect the country’s evolution from the Stone Age to the modern era. Asian, African, European and Pacific art also adorn the museum, along with an Egyptian mummy named Takabuti. Watch out for the intriguing collection of centuries-old artefacts on the ill-fated Spanish Armada. A photographic exhibit now on, The Belfast Archive Project, features images of conflict and its social context across Ireland, Palestine/Israel, Turkey/Kurdistan and Bosnia since the 1980s. A painting exhibit focuses on the work of renowned wildlife painter, Julian Friers, who has created over 50 images of flora and fauna, past and present.
BOTANIC GARDENS
Located beside the museum, Botanic Gardens is where you’ll find tropical plants of all kinds, giant bird feeders, a beautiful rose display, an alpine garden, intricately-designed flower beds and various sculptures. The Tropical Ravine and Palm House feature exotic plants ranging from Killarney ferns to orchids, banana trees, cinnamon, bromeliad from the Americas, and some of the world’s oldest seed plants, some over 200 years.
Dating back to 1895 and located in the heart of the city, this ornate Victorian-era theatre has been in the vanguard of Belfast arts and culture for generations, welcoming numerous famous faces across the years including greats like Charlie Chaplin, Laurel and Hardy, Orson Welles, singers Luciano Pavarotti and Van Morrison and actors Anthony Hopkins, Sarah Bernhardt and Judi Dench. Such is the diversity of performances it hosts including drama, dance, opera, comedy, musicals and family shows, my companion and I went to a seasonal pantomime that proved to be a hilarious evening of entertainment. The theatre is also worth visiting for its Oriental style interior design, a unique example of the work of architect Frank Matcham.
CITY HALL
Opened in 1906 and classical Renaissance in style, Belfast’s largest civic building boasts beautiful stained-glass windows depicting Celtic myths and legends, such as the Cattle Raid of Cooley, as well as commemorating victims of the Great Famine and the First and Second World Wars. City Hall also has its very own museum depicting the development of the city in documents, photographs and video. One exciting addition is its augmented reality experience. Using a tablet, visitors can see books fly Harry Potter-like from shelves, watch animated characters in vintage clothing explain what they were doing hundreds of years ago and access three dimensional images of the city’s most famous landmarks. The grounds of City Hall are also worth a walkabout, featuring various sculptors and memorials including the Titanic Memorial Garden where bronze plaques are inscribed with the names of the 1,512 people who perished onboard the so-called ‘ship of dreams.’
LINEN HALL LIBRARY
Almost 300 years old having first opened its doors in 1788 in a former linen warehouse, this is the oldest library in Belfast and contains many invaluable books published over the centuries, a truly living archive of social and literary history. Its specialised collections include a theatre and performing arts archive featuring printed plays of the 18th century to collections of production programmes, a literary section focusing on writers from Northern Ireland from the 19th century onwards and a political one covering some of the most dramatic events with over 350,000 items including artefacts, books, pamphlets, leaflets and posters. The library also has a cosy cafe on the first floor, its design inspired by Irish mythology and folklore. It also hosts hundreds of exhibitions and events every year ranging from music to archaeology.
LYRIC THEATRE
A springboard for internationally acclaimed playwrights, poets and actors including Liam Neeson, the Lyric first opened in the home of its founder, Mary O’Malley, in 1951 before moving to its present location close to the Ulster Museum. Describing itself as “Northern Ireland’s premiere full-time theatre to produce its own productions from page to stage,” it not only hosts diverse performances on two separate stages but also helps train young actors and playwrights through its drama courses, strengthened by its links to the National Theatre and Royal Shakespeare Company, both at the theatre and in communities, schools and colleges across Northern Ireland. Upcoming productions this year include Oscar Wilde's The Importance of Being Earnest and a musical celebration of the work of Leonard Cohen.
