7 best day trips from Belfast

Day trips compared

The day trips

95 km · About 1 hour 30 minutes by car

1.Giant's Causeway and the Causeway Coast

Some 40,000 interlocking basalt columns step into the sea at the Giant's Causeway, Northern Ireland's only UNESCO World Heritage Site. Day tours along the Causeway Coastal Route usually add Carrick-a-Rede rope bridge, Dunluce Castle and the Dark Hedges.

Getting there

Car or coach tour; train to Coleraine or Portrush then local bus

Best for

First-timers, Families, Couples

12 km · About 15 minutes by train

2.Ulster Folk and Transport Museums

At Cultra, an open-air museum of rebuilt cottages, farms, shops and a whole Edwardian town recreates rural and small-town life in Ulster, with costumed guides. Across the road, the transport museum displays locomotives, trams and cars.

Getting there

Train from Belfast to Cultra

Best for

Families, Culture

18 km · About 25 minutes by train

3.Carrickfergus Castle

One of the best-preserved Norman castles in Ireland stands on a rock jutting into Belfast Lough, begun around 1177 by John de Courcy. The town beside it has a harbour and a promenade.

Getting there

Train from Belfast to Carrickfergus

Best for

Families, Culture, Quiet stays

50 km · About 1 hour by car or 1 hour 15 minutes by bus

4.Mourne Mountains and Newcastle

The seaside town of Newcastle sits below Slieve Donard, Northern Ireland's highest mountain, at the edge of the granite Mournes. Walks range from the beach promenade and Tollymore Forest Park to the full summit climb.

Getting there

Car, or Ulsterbus from Grand Central Station to Newcastle

Best for

Couples, Quiet stays, Families

25 km · About 35 minutes by car

5.Mount Stewart and Strangford Lough

Mount Stewart is a National Trust house with some of the most admired gardens in the UK, on the shore of Strangford Lough, a large sea inlet rich in birdlife. The lough-side villages of Portaferry and Strangford are linked by a short car ferry.

Getting there

Car, or bus to Newtownards then local bus

Best for

Couples, Quiet stays, Culture

165 km · About 2 hours 10 minutes by train

6.Dublin

Ireland's capital has Trinity College and the Book of Kells, the Guinness Storehouse and Georgian squares. It is a long but manageable day trip, and some travellers combine both cities in one holiday.

Getting there

Enterprise train from Belfast Grand Central to Dublin Connolly

Best for

First-timers, Culture, Nightlife

40 km · About 40 minutes by car

7.Game of Thrones Studio Tour

At Linen Mill Studios in Banbridge, the official studio tour displays original sets, costumes and props from the series, much of which was filmed in Northern Ireland.

Getting there

Car, or coach tours and shuttle buses from Belfast

Best for

First-timers, Families

Day-trip tips

• Leave early: most trips are more relaxed with a morning departure and a return before dinner.
• Buy tickets from machines at Glider stops before boarding, or use contactless where accepted.
• NI Railways trains from Grand Central Station and Lanyon Place serve Cultra for the Ulster Folk Museum, Carrickfergus and Bangor, and the Enterprise service runs to Dublin in a little over two hours.
• For trips over about 150 km, an overnight stay or an organised tour saves a lot of travelling.

Questions travellers ask