How To Reach Belfast, Northern Ireland United Kingdom
How to Reach Belfast, Time to Reach Northern Ireland United Kingdom by Bus, Train, Flight, Air, Texi, Cab, Timing and Schedule
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Ulsterbus (a division of Translink, Northern Ireland's public transport operator) operate the intercity bus network in Northern Ireland, linking most major towns and cities. Services are well-used and, in most cases, reasonably priced. The most frequent service is to Londonderry/Derry. Bus Éireann jointly operate cross-border services with Ulsterbus and operate almost all intercity routes in the Republic of Ireland. Bus Éireann offer a €15 single fare and €22 return fare from Dublin Busaras (bus station) and Dublin Airport to the Europa Buscentre in Belfast (currently unavailable to purchase online); Ulsterbus offers similar specials in the opposite direction. There is also a daily bus to Cork, via Athlone and one to Galway via Cavan.
Under the Eurolines banner, Ulsterbus offer 2 daily services to Glasgow and Edinburgh, and 2 daily services to London via Manchester and Birmingham. All of these are via the fast ferry Stranraer. Connections are available via National Express to virtually every destination in mainland Great Britain.
For less independent travellers, you can also book day trips from Dublin to Belfast on Wednesdays, Saturdays and Sundays. This includes a bus trip to Belfast followed by a black taxi cab ride through the two neighbourhoods and a visit to the peace wall. See Belfast Taxi Tours for info.
Local bus travel in Northern Ireland can be expensive outside of Belfast, but services are frequent and reliable. Belfast itself is small enough to walk anywhere comfortably.
There is also a bus based Park and Ride facility available, see National Park and Ride Directory
Despite decades of underinvestment and service cutbacks, Northern Ireland Railways (a division of Translink, Northern Ireland's public transport operator) manages to maintain a small but increasingly reliable passenger rail network around the province, with four 'domestic' lines radiating out from Belfast. Great Victoria Street Station is in the centre of Belfast on, as the name suggests, Great Victoria Street. Just yards from the Grand Opera House and beside the Europa Hotel, the Great Victoria Station is part of a combined bus/rail station, the bus centre being called Europa Bus Centre. Look for the sign above the door to access the station from Great Victoria Street, Great Northern Mall. The so called "Central Station", is not very central at all - it's about half a mile from the city centre but is close to Belfast Courts, the Waterfront Hall and bus routes to east Belfast. Service is most frequent and reliable on the Portadown - Belfast - Bangor corridor, on which new trains offer frequent and fast suburban service. The line to Londonderry/Derry is exceptionally beautiful as it passes along the north coast after Coleraine, however travellers should note that the railway line is slower (two hours or more) than the equivilent Ulsterbus Goldline express coach (one hour and forty minutes). Contact NIR for information on tourist passes for exploring Northern Ireland by bus and train: with integrated bus and train stations in most major towns, the province is easily explored without a car. Services to Dublin (with connections to other destinations in the Republic of Ireland) is offered by the Enteprise, a modern, comfortable, but relatively slow train jointly operated by Northern Ireland Railways and Iarnrod Eireann (which operates trains in the Republic of Ireland). Journeys between Dublin and Belfast take two hours and twenty minutes, and there are up to eight trains a day, offering two classes of service. The train takes a less direct route than the road, but offers some superb views and is still generally quicker than equivalent buses. Cheap day returns are available to those willing to book online . Standard fare is £25 one-way when purchased on the day of travel.
George Best Belfast City Airport (IATA: BHD) is just two miles from Belfast's city centre, with magnificent views of the city of Belfast or Belfast Lough on approach and departure. The airport principally serves routes to domestic UK and Ireland, however bmi has extensive worldwide connections the Star Alliance Network. Alternatively, NIR trains serve the airport at Sydenham station twice an hour on the Portadown/Belfast/Bangor line. Upon arrival, ask at the airport information desk for a free shuttle ride to the station. If arriving by train, the courtesy bus may be requested just inside the airport perimeter across the bridge from Sydenham station. A single fare to Belfast Central, Botanic, City Hospital or Great Victoria Street costs £1.60. A single to Bangor costs £3.80 Belfast International Airport (IATA: BFS) is further from Belfast than City Airport, lying closer to the towns of Templepatrick and Antrim, but offers significantly more international destinations. United Airlines has connections available to destinations throughout the Americas and beyond. Aer Lingus to Amsterdam, Barcelona, Faro, Lanzarote, London-Heathrow, Malaga, Milan Malpensa, Munich, Nice, Paris Charles de Gaulle, Rome Fiumincino. British Airways codeshare with Aer Lingus to London, and offer international connections from Heathrow. bmibaby to Birmingham, Cardiff, Manchester and Nottingham East Midlands Easyjet to Alicante, Amsterdam, Barcelona, Berlin Schoenefeld, Bristol, Edinburgh, Faro, Geneva, Glasgow, Ibiza, Krakow, Liverpool John Lennon, London Gatwick, London Stansted, Malaga, Newcastle, Nice, Palma, Paris Charles de Gaulle, Prague, Rome Ciampino, Venice Jet2 to Blackpool, Chambery, Dubrovnik, Gran Canaria, Ibiza, Jersey, Leeds Bradford, Malaga, Murcia, Palma, Pisa, Tenerife South and Toulouse United Airlines to New York (Newark) The terminal is served up to every 30 min from 5:35AM-11:20PM by the 300 Airport bus (£7 single, £10 return). Depending on traffic, the journey to Belfast's Laganside and Europa Buscentres takes about 45 minutes. Taxis should cost no more than £25-30 to Belfast City Centre. There is also a more expensive and slower route available by taking the (hourly service M-Sa) Ulsterbus 109A service to Antrim from the stand outside the airport, leave the bus at Antrim Bus station (£2.40 one way if bought on board and £2.50 if bought at the tourist info point inside the airport; Sep 2012). Take a train from Antrim to Belfast Great Victoria Street (£5.20 one way). In return, the views are greater when taking the train. Train times to be found on timetables at station, you can also get by train to Londonderry/Derry, Ballymena/Ballymoney and Coleraine/Portrush/Castlerock by train also just ask what platform they are departing from trains usually run every other hour to Londonderry/derry and to Belfast Great Victoria Street
Belfast by Train:
Despite decades of underinvestment and service cutbacks, Northern Ireland Railways (a division of Translink, Northern Ireland's public transport operator) manages to maintain a small but increasingly reliable passenger rail network around the province, with four 'domestic' lines radiating out from Belfast. Great Victoria Street Station is in the centre of Belfast on, as the name suggests, Great Victoria Street. Just yards from the Grand Opera House and beside the Europa Hotel, the Great Victoria Station is part of a combined bus/rail station, the bus centre being called Europa Bus Centre. Look for the sign above the door to access the station from Great Victoria Street, Great Northern Mall. The so called "Central Station", is not very central at all - it's about half a mile from the city centre but is close to Belfast Courts, the Waterfront Hall and bus routes to east Belfast. Service is most frequent and reliable on the Portadown - Belfast - Bangor corridor, on which new trains offer frequent and fast suburban service. The line to Londonderry/Derry is exceptionally beautiful as it passes along the north coast after Coleraine, however travellers should note that the railway line is slower (two hours or more) than the equivilent Ulsterbus Goldline express coach (one hour and forty minutes). Contact NIR for information on tourist passes for exploring Northern Ireland by bus and train: with integrated bus and train stations in most major towns, the province is easily explored without a car. Services to Dublin (with connections to other destinations in the Republic of Ireland) is offered by the Enteprise, a modern, comfortable, but relatively slow train jointly operated by Northern Ireland Railways and Iarnrod Eireann (which operates trains in the Republic of Ireland). Journeys between Dublin and Belfast take two hours and twenty minutes, and there are up to eight trains a day, offering two classes of service. The train takes a less direct route than the road, but offers some superb views and is still generally quicker than equivalent buses. Cheap day returns are available to those willing to book online . Standard fare is £25 one-way when purchased on the day of travel.
Belfast by Air:
George Best Belfast City Airport (IATA: BHD) is just two miles from Belfast's city centre, with magnificent views of the city of Belfast or Belfast Lough on approach and departure. The airport principally serves routes to domestic UK and Ireland, however bmi has extensive worldwide connections the Star Alliance Network. Alternatively, NIR trains serve the airport at Sydenham station twice an hour on the Portadown/Belfast/Bangor line. Upon arrival, ask at the airport information desk for a free shuttle ride to the station. If arriving by train, the courtesy bus may be requested just inside the airport perimeter across the bridge from Sydenham station. A single fare to Belfast Central, Botanic, City Hospital or Great Victoria Street costs £1.60. A single to Bangor costs £3.80 Belfast International Airport (IATA: BFS) is further from Belfast than City Airport, lying closer to the towns of Templepatrick and Antrim, but offers significantly more international destinations. United Airlines has connections available to destinations throughout the Americas and beyond. Aer Lingus to Amsterdam, Barcelona, Faro, Lanzarote, London-Heathrow, Malaga, Milan Malpensa, Munich, Nice, Paris Charles de Gaulle, Rome Fiumincino. British Airways codeshare with Aer Lingus to London, and offer international connections from Heathrow. bmibaby to Birmingham, Cardiff, Manchester and Nottingham East Midlands Easyjet to Alicante, Amsterdam, Barcelona, Berlin Schoenefeld, Bristol, Edinburgh, Faro, Geneva, Glasgow, Ibiza, Krakow, Liverpool John Lennon, London Gatwick, London Stansted, Malaga, Newcastle, Nice, Palma, Paris Charles de Gaulle, Prague, Rome Ciampino, Venice Jet2 to Blackpool, Chambery, Dubrovnik, Gran Canaria, Ibiza, Jersey, Leeds Bradford, Malaga, Murcia, Palma, Pisa, Tenerife South and Toulouse United Airlines to New York (Newark) The terminal is served up to every 30 min from 5:35AM-11:20PM by the 300 Airport bus (£7 single, £10 return). Depending on traffic, the journey to Belfast's Laganside and Europa Buscentres takes about 45 minutes. Taxis should cost no more than £25-30 to Belfast City Centre. There is also a more expensive and slower route available by taking the (hourly service M-Sa) Ulsterbus 109A service to Antrim from the stand outside the airport, leave the bus at Antrim Bus station (£2.40 one way if bought on board and £2.50 if bought at the tourist info point inside the airport; Sep 2012). Take a train from Antrim to Belfast Great Victoria Street (£5.20 one way). In return, the views are greater when taking the train. Train times to be found on timetables at station, you can also get by train to Londonderry/Derry, Ballymena/Ballymoney and Coleraine/Portrush/Castlerock by train also just ask what platform they are departing from trains usually run every other hour to Londonderry/derry and to Belfast Great Victoria Street