Northern Ireland is a different country — literally, since it's part of the UK, uses the pound, and driving distances are in miles. It's also one of the most extraordinary places to visit in these islands. Belfast has transformed from a war zone into a genuinely fun city in 25 years. The Causeway Coast has geology so strange that people thought a giant built it. And you can drive across the whole country in three hours. Give it four to seven days.
Getting there and around
From Dublin, hourly Enterprise trains take 2 hours 20 minutes to Belfast Grand Central. From Dublin Airport, Aircoach and Translink buses cost £15-20. Renting a car is best if you want to see the Causeway Coast and Derry as well — book from Belfast, not Dublin (avoids cross-border insurance mess).
Currency — you can use euros in some border areas but everywhere sensible takes pounds. ATMs everywhere.
Belfast — 2-3 days
Titanic Belfast (£24.95) opened in 2012 in a striking angular building on the Titanic Quarter, where the ship was actually built. This is the best museum in Belfast — nine galleries, taking you from Belfast's industrial rise to the ship's construction, launch, and sinking. Book online. Allow 3 hours. The SS Nomadic (Titanic's original tender ship, restored) is included in the ticket, a 5-minute walk away.
Crumlin Road Gaol (£12) operated from 1846 to 1996 — held republican and loyalist prisoners during the Troubles. Guided tours only. The underground tunnel to the courthouse is genuinely eerie. Ends with the execution chamber.
Black Cab Tours (£40-50 per person, groups of 4-6) take you to the political murals in the Falls Road (nationalist) and Shankill Road (unionist) — separated by the Peace Wall which is still there. Your driver will be from one community or the other and give you their perspective — this is exactly the point. It's one of the most moving 90 minutes you'll have in Ireland.
Cathedral Quarter — where you eat and drink at night. The Duke of York (unmissable), Muriel's Café Bar, and the Dirty Onion (open courtyard, live music). Food at The Ginger Bistro, Deanes, or Ox (1 Michelin star). St George's Market on Fridays and Saturdays for street food and vinyl.
Causeway Coast — 2 days
Drive north from Belfast. The A2 coastal road is one of the best drives in Europe.
Giant's Causeway (£15) is a UNESCO World Heritage site. About 40,000 hexagonal basalt columns, formed 60 million years ago when a lava flow cooled and cracked. Yes, the columns really are hexagonal (mostly). Yes, they were formed geologically. But local legend says giant Finn McCool built it as a bridge to Scotland to fight rival giant Benandonner — and honestly, standing there, that seems just as plausible. Free access if you park elsewhere and walk in (the columns themselves aren't ticketed; the fee is for the visitor centre and parking). Best at 8 am or 5 pm.
Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge (£15.50, timed entry, book online). A 20-metre rope bridge 30 metres above a rocky chasm, connecting the mainland to a tiny island where salmon fishermen used to work. Terrifying if you're afraid of heights. Half-hour walk to the bridge from the car park.
Dunluce Castle (£6) is a 13th-16th century ruin on a sheer cliff — bit of the castle actually fell into the sea in 1639, taking the kitchen and seven servants. Featured on the cover of Led Zeppelin's Houses of the Holy.
Bushmills Distillery (£15 for standard tour) is the oldest licensed whiskey distillery in the world (1608). Tours run hourly. Book ahead in summer.
Dark Hedges — the beech tree tunnel used for the Kingsroad in Game of Thrones. Free, just a lane you can walk down. Park at the Hedges Estate car park and walk 10 minutes. It's genuinely beautiful, but arrive at dawn or dusk — coach parties fill it midday.
Derry / Londonderry — 1 day
The walls of Derry are the best-preserved city walls in Ireland (built 1613-1618, never breached). Walking the full 1.5 km circuit takes an hour with stops. Free.
Museum of Free Derry tells the story of the Bogside — the nationalist neighbourhood outside the walls, where Bloody Sunday happened on 30 January 1972. Small, moving, essential. £6.
The Bogside Murals — 12 large murals commemorating events of the Troubles. Walk from the Museum, self-guided.
Peace Bridge — the elegant curving footbridge across the River Foyle, opened 2011. Symbolic reconciliation of the two sides of the city.
Where to stay
Belfast — Bullitt Hotel, AC Hotel, or budget Airbnb in the Cathedral Quarter.
Causeway Coast — Portrush, Portstewart or Bushmills. Bayview Hotel in Portballintrae is right by the sea, and 10 minutes from the Causeway.
Derry — City Hotel or Bishop's Gate Hotel inside the walls.