What to do in Northern Ireland: 6 tips
In our opinion, a trip through Ireland is not complete without a visit to Northern Ireland. Although the two countries are similar in nature, you can also explore Northern Ireland with a few days’ longer travel. We have selected 6 things to do in Northern Ireland.
Tip: check out our free Google Maps travel guide Ireland where you can find an overview of the various stops on the route through Northern Ireland and Ireland.
Belfast and Titanic Belfast
Belfast is the capital of Northern Ireland and the starting point for your journey through the north. The city itself is not very big, but has a number of pleasant streets with pubs that serve typical Irish food. Be sure to taste your first whiskey here during your roadtrip Ireland and Northern Ireland.
On the edge of the city you will find Titanic Belfast, a complete museum with everything about the famous Titanic. Did you know that this ship was made in Belfast in 1904? We didn’t visit the museum itself because we thought it was quite pricey. If you walk around the outside, you will also learn plenty about the history of the Titanic.
The Gobbins Cliff Path
There are a number of popular walks on the coast, including The Gobbins Cliff path hike. Reservations in advance are necessary. The walk often fills up quite quickly. Unfortunately we were unlucky! You can also navigate to the viewpoint, but you will have to park your car somewhere along the road.
Whitehead
Are you unlucky like us and is the walk to The Gobbins fully booked? Then briefly visit Whitehead with its colored houses along the coast. There are also a number of walks in this area, including to the lighthouse that you can see from Whitehead.
Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge
Almost in the north of Ireland, the walk to the Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge – or actually via the bridge to an island -is located. You also have to make a reservation for this walk (and pay of course), but we did this just in advance and there was still plenty of room. The walk is not difficult at all and can be completed by anyone with any level of mobility.
Giant’s Causeway
We thought the Giant’s Causeway was a special place: the black hexagonal stones stand out strongly against the sea in the background. If you come by car, you will have to pay to park. We happened to have a hostel nearby so we could walk to the Giant’s Causeway. Furthermore, you can do everything for free, such as visiting the hiking trails and the viewpoint. You can enter the information center for a fee, but we didn’t do that.
Dunluce Castle
At the edge of the cliffs you’ll find the ruined Dunluce Castle. You can walk around it (for a fee) or just around it (free). We only walked around the castle and got a good impression.
After Northern Ireland you can continue your journey to Ireland and drive parts of the Wild Atlantic Way and Ring of Kerry!
