Bangor or Coleraine

[WeeWeegieChick]

My kids and I moved here from Scotland and we've finally settled on either Bangor or Coleraine. Tell me pros and cons of both. I don't know anyone here so no one to ask for advice.

We’ll need a bit more info /context… what ages are the kids (ie will you be looking for a school/things to entertain them)? Do you want to be near Belfast, are you thinking of living in the town or might you go outside it a bit, are you restricted by work etc? Is this a long-term/permanent move or just for a short while? Do you drive or will you be relying on public transport?

I don’t know much about Bangor but being near the city is definitely a plus.
I grew up in Coleraine, I feel the town has gone downhill in recent years, especially the town centre, hardly any shops left and it just looks a lot scruffier.

The pros are:
-cleaner air and more greenery than a city
-near some pretty amazing beaches
-affordable house prices
-fairly quiet and peaceful as long as you have a house in a nice area and avoid the rougher housing estates (I suppose that’s the same as anywhere)
-pretty safe, not much serious crime
-quite nice for young kids

Cons:
-not much to do for teenagers or adults, and not much culture. There are a few average restaurants, a cinema and a small theatre that puts on maybe 2 shows a year worth seeing if you’re lucky, that’s about it. No galleries, no nice bars or clubs (there are some in the nearby seaside towns, but only like 3 or 4 and I’m not even sure what still exists). As teenagers we spent most of our time loitering in the park and at bus stops and underage drinking.

-Not very many job opportunities and very limited choice for professional careers, the job I do now doesn’t even exist there

-whilst there are lots of nice friendly people, as a whole it has quite an insular, small town mentality and can be quite cliquey.

• like all of NI there’s the sectarian thing, though not much overt trouble as such

So there are some pros and I do get nostalgic when thinking about all the memories, but I wouldn’t choose to live there as an adult. I left as soon as I turned 18 and so did many of my friends.

I actually live in Scotland now and much prefer it, I’m not sure why you’d move from Scotland to NI tbh.

Fleeing domestic abuse

Bit late to this, but I know the north down area quite well - are there any particular things you wanted to ask about?

Bangor is pretty run down these days too, there's a big redevelopment planned for the seafront area but no-one is holding their breath in that one as it's been in the planning for about 40 years now!

Proximity to Belfast is really useful if your kids are older, Bangor has good transport links for socialising or work. Also probably makes job hunting easier, as more opportunities within commuting distance.

School places can be a bit hard to come by though, what ages are your kids?

Bangor every time

It has to be Bangor. No place is perfect, but I would struggle to name anything positive about Coleraine... but my experience there is limited. Wishing you all the best with the move

Hi @WeeWeegieChickI know both places really well and currently live in Bangor. If I’d the option I’d actually choose towns/villages near those two. Near Bangor is Donaghadee which is a lovely wee town and still close to Belfast. However if I could afford it, I’d choose Portrush every time. It has some lovely bars and restaurants, fantastic blue flag beaches and the accompanying water sports plus the north coast is stunning.
I hope you find somewhere to be safe and happy.