Northern Ireland is always a great place to visit at any time of year, as well as gorgeous scenery, charming country pubs and lively cities, there's a warmth to the welcome that's unbeatable. With Belfast and the Causeway Coast highlighted as its must visit locations. You can ticked off a few locations in one visit; you can be in the heart of Belfast city in the morning, grabbing brunch in a chic cafe, then standing atop a mountain in glorious solitude just a couple of hours later.
City Break
Belfast has emerged as a hugely popular city break destination over the past few years, with a series of interesting new attractions and world-class restaurants. It's not a challenge to burn off those calories that you gain eating its lovely dishes. Belfast is a relatively compact city, and perfect for exploring on foot. The Cathedral Quarter in particular is just begging to be rumbled around, with cobbled streets weaving between historic pubs and secret courtyards.
Titanic Belfast is short walk from the city, and one of the most popular attractions in Northern Ireland. Inside the striking build you'll walk through the story of that fateful night in 1912.
Just a short hop from Belfast is Lisburn, a gorgeous little city with a rich heritage. Take a walk its streets and be sure to visit the Irish Linen Centre & Museum, set in the 17th-Century Market House. The city of Armagh has two cathedrals, both of which are named St Patrick's, see the ceiling of the Roman Catholic church it's shrouded with beautiful mosaics.
To the north, Derry-LondonDerry is the second biggest city in Northern Ireland, with a vibrant cultural scene. Get a sense of its history in the Museum of Free Derry, before seeing the 12 murals of the People's Gallery. For a great prospective, walk the city's walls, a 1.5km trail dating back to 1619.
The Arts and Culture
Explore the huge selectio of exhibits, sculptures and museums that chronicle Northen Ireland's art and literary heritage. CS Lewis (Author of The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe) was born in Belfast in 1898. There are several places within the city with connections to him. You can see the plague making his birthplace at 47 Dundela Avenue, and there is a great walk from CS Lewis Square, featuring large-scale monuments to the famous characters that appear in the The Chronicles of Narnia, such as Mr Tumus and Aslan.
Seamus Heaney (winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature ) was born in Castledawson, Co Londonderry before moving to Bellaghy, now home to the Seamus Heaney HomePlace. Inside, you'll find a series of exhibits relating to the man and his poetry, a recreation of his Dublin study along with photographs of Heaney in his youth alongside those feature in his poems.
Lisburn's Castle Gardens offers a great stroll, where you can will find a monument to local man Sir Richard Wallace, whose collection of art makes up the bulk of the Wallace Collection in Marylebone, London. In nearby Armagh, the Robinson Library is an elegant Georgian building filled with rare books, such as Jonathan Swift's own copy of Gulliver's Travels, complete with his annotations. If you want a bit of guidance you can book street art walking tour and see the ever-changing artwork that pop up all over the cities.
Game of Thrones fans can see a visit the Northern Ireland as a pilgrimage. The show was shot in Titanic Studios in Belfast, as well as at locations all around the region, Northern Ireland is all things Westeros. Castle Ward Estate is the location for Winterfell in the show, there are nine filming locations on site, all relatively close together. One of the best-known landmark is The Dark Hedges in Co. Antrim. This beautiful avenue of beech trees was planted in the 18th century.
Foodie Paradise
From tiny village cafes to internationally renowned Michelin-starred restaurants, Northern Ireland is home to an incredible amount of top-notch food. A lot of this is credited to the ingredients grown all over the region, from the tastiest pork raised in the Lakelands to the seaweed foraged from its shores. Its Abernethy butter is met with acclaim and renown the world over, it is adored by chefs and used in top restaurants. Made in traditional churns in the hills of Co. Down, Abernethy is the perfect butter, its creamy, rich, salty and full of flavour.
A good way to learn about Northern Ireland foodie scene is to book a guided food tour. Tour operator Taste and Tour, offers foodie tours of the city of Belfast. Where they introduce you to some of the best spots in the city, starting things off in the historic St Geoge's Market, where you'll meet local food producers and sample their produce, from hand-blended teas to Broughgammon goat. There are cookery classes you can take to learn how it is done and create our Irish meals.
While Northern Ireland is renowned for its whiskey, over the past few years there has been a rise in the creation of other spirits. Its Jawbox gin is a favourite among mixologists, and you will find it here in many bars. You can try it in The Garrick, an enticing Belfast institution that's been popular since its inception in 1870. You can take a tour of gin distilleries too, including Shortcross Gin in Co. Down, which is open to visitors.
The Old Bushmills Distillery is just a short distance from the Giant's Causeway. It is the oldest working distillery in Ireland, and home of one of the world's favourite whiskeys. A tour will lead you through the journey of its creation, but it's the tasting at the end that most people come for.
Go Out into Nature
The produce grown locally is almost as beautiful as the surroundings, there are around 150 islands in the still waters of the Lough Erne, some with historical ruins. If you want to get out into the country-side, there are a multitude of places to blow you away (some more literally than others). Head along the Causeway Coast and you will find ever-changing back-drop of incredible scenery.
The Giant's Causeway is a good place to start. The first Unesco Heritage Site in Northern Island, this is one of those landmarks that needs to be seen to be believed. Its 40,000 hexagonal basalt columns line the shore, jutting out like honeycomb. Though technically the result of volcanic eruptions 60 millions years ago, the myths around the area are far more captivating.
Legend has it that Finn McCool is responsible for the landmark, after he flung chunks of the Antrim coast into the sea to reach the Scottish giant Benandonmer. Make your way along the coast and you'll be met with dramatic cliffs and views, stunning little beaches and coves.
It might not always be swimming weather, but there's a certain charm to visiting in the winter, when the crowds are thinner and there's an almost stark beauty to the surroundings.
There are some incredible walks along the Causeway Coastal Route, including one that will fill you with either adrenaline or terror, depending on your constitution. The Carrick-a-Rede rope bridge swings 100ft high over crashing waves, linking cliffs and the island of Carrick-a-Rede. You will need nerves of steel to make your way across, but if you can summon the courage you'll be met with stunning views, as birds fly beneath your feet.
While the coastal scenery is gorgeous, there are a number of pretty little towns and villages along the way, which are well worth exploring, such as Ballintory and Cushendun. Portstewart has a warm and charming vibe, as well as one of the best seafood joints.
Visit the Mourne Mountains, the undulating series of peaks were the influence for the Chronicles of Narnia. Lewis described the Mournes as a landscape "which, under a particular light, made him feel that at any moment a giant might raise his head over the next ridge". Even without the Lewis connection, the Mournes are undeniably captivating, and a day spent conquering their peaks is a day well spent.