Belfast

i am going to visit N. Ireland for the weekend spending one night in belfast and then onto giants causeway & bushmills for a 2nd night.

Can anyone advise on good central hotel for shops & going out for dinner/ drinks at night in belfast?

and then any hotels recommended in the north of the country around bushmills/ giants causeway county antrim?

any advice or recommendations appreciated

thanks

Days Inn just off Gt. Victoria St beside the Europa or the Holiday Inn on Ormeau Road have both been great any time I've been there. They're both very central and reasonably priced.

not sure about Belfast but stayed in the Brown Trout Inn last summer and it was great - about 20 mins to the Giants Causeway - 15 mins to Bushmills.
No affilliation to the hotel just happy customer.

jurys inn is great. actually is quiet cheap. tony romas is good for food. its just up by queens. very jealous

There's a good choice of good value restaurants nears Queens University.

We stayed in a Holiday Inn Express on University Street (3 star, cheap & cheerful, you get what you pay for, free off-street parking) so it was short walk to University Road where there was a great selection of restaurants

We got a great deal with lastminute.com at The Hilton. It's a few minutes walk from the centre but very close the main shopping complex Victoria Sq. Fantastic hotel.

Saw JurysInn and Days Inn when we were there and they are more central. Possibly not as nice but probably cheaper.

We had nice drinks/food at Cafe Vaudeville.

I can reccomend the Tarar Lodge, We have stayed there and so have family, it a great location and the staff are very helpful at reccomending where to eat or arranging taxis.
They are reasonably priced and infor can be found on www.taralodge.com

addob

If you decide to stay in Jury's Inn make sure you get room away from the main street as we stayed there a few weeks ago and the windows didn't fit properly and it I thought the traffic was driving through the room all night with the odd fire or ambulance siren screaming through the room as well so as you can imagine not much sleep that night.

thanks guys.

i have ended up booking the days hotel for €75 for a double room with breakfast and free parking on a sat night. think that is really good value for a hotel that is very central.

now to book somewhere near the giants causeway?

Too late but I just had to get the recommendation in for the Radisson. It is a four star but it can be very reasonable plus the rooms are comfortable and well-furnished, it is quiet, an easy walk from the city, the breakfast is excellent, the staff are friendly and the broadband is free. For somewhere not to stay I avoid the Holiday Inn (not the Express) which is just across form the BBC offices, very central alright but it tends to be noisy (particularly favoured by people in Belfast for the weekend clubbing) and I found the staff there for the most part a trial. It was too expensive for what you got.

Anyone recommend a good family hotel near Belfast (maybe up to 30 min away) ? Looking to stay mid week (in Feb) and make a trip or two into Belfast (incl IKEA).

Have three kids so some place with a pool.

thanks,
-pm

just to let you know how i got on,
days hotel was ok for a standard hotel. good location and free parking. breakfast was fine. and i slept well.

then i stayed in the bushmills inn in bushmills and that was excellent. probably one of the best hotels i have every stayed in. really comfortable and intimate hotel. great bar and great restaruraunt. breakfast was also lovely. we got it for £98. Room would normally be £140.

I would really recommend this hotel for a weekend break or something. Not to mention the area/ landscape which is truly spectacular. the coast road from belfast is an excellent scenic option and the bushmills distillery tour was very enjoyable.

overall i was really impressed with northern ireland as a tourist spot and i will be back for sure (and not just for my shopping in Sainsburys!)

picassoman said:

Anyone recommend a good family hotel near Belfast (maybe up to 30 min away) ? Looking to stay mid week (in Feb) and make a trip or two into Belfast (incl IKEA).

Have three kids so some place with a pool.

thanks,
-pm

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Having stayed in Belfast a few times with two young children, can't recommend the Malone Lodge Hotel enough. Nice rooms in the hotel if you're travelling with one young child (as we did once - and they provided the travel cot, sheets, etc.) OR you can book a one or two-bedded apartment in their annex next door or down the road (they have two) for the same price as a double in the hotel (for the one bed apt). Last time we booked the two bed apt as granny travelled with us. It was enormous - nice living room with kitchen, bathroom, one bedroom with a king bed and another with a king and a single and loads of room for a travel cot. We stayed in the annex next door to the hotel which was ideal for having dinner at the hotel or just a short walk down the road there is a great Italian and Tony Roma's (great ribs). No leisure facilities for kids - although we were out the days we were there and the kids are young so you should look at that again if you're going. This place is great for couples too - they offer nice B&B & dinner pkgs.