Belfast ? City break with teens

[Gobimanchurian]

Looking to break the school holidays up with a long weekend somewhere with 17 year old teenagers. We did Edinburgh a couple years back and it was a massive hit.

Scouring sky scanner for cheap flights and Belfast looks reasonable, with an Air Bnb there.

Welcome any thoughts, things to see, parts of the city to stay, would teens like it?

Or other city break suggestions welcome!

I am going there for a city break with DD soon so I am watching with interest. I posted about it (with different username) a few weeks ago and got positive responses and ideas about things to do.

We did 2 nights in Belfast and 3 nights in Dublin. Apart from the Titanic museum in Belfast, the dc much preferred Dublin. It’s quick and easy to take the train between the two.

Belfast must-sees, dos and eats! www.mumsnet.com/Talk/_chat/5017238-belfast-must-sees-dos-and-eats

Belfast is a great city, so friendly, good food, so much history. And lots of games of thrones related things if your teens are interested in that!

Also- if Edinburgh was a hit, Glasgow is lovely!

@Gobimanchurian we did Belfast a few years ago, and are going to Edinburgh this coming Easter - can you share Edinburgh tips please?! :-)

For Belfast we did:
Titanic Experience - your ticket gives you entry the SS Nomadic moored outside, well worth visiting.
Went to an ice hockey match (we are ice hockey fans, but don't usually follow Belfast Giants).
Went down the Falls Rd and looked at the murals and Peace Wall. I'd actually have liked to have spent more time there, and also maybe got a Black Cab Tour. It's somewhere I'd like to go back to.
We walked out to The Big Fishh* which was a nice walk out of the city centre.

We also had a few days on the coast at Ballycastle (we had a car, got the ferry from Birkenhead) and went to the Giant's Causeway, Carrick-a-Reed Ropebridge and the Dark Hedges trees from Game of Thrones. I've never seen GoT, but we kept running into fans, in costume, everywhere we went. I wanted to go to Derry, but it was the week after the bomb that killed the journalist Lyra McKee, and tourists were being discouraged to go to the city at that time.

I loved NI. I'll go back.

Does anyone know if the Black Cab Tours can be done more cheaply?

I do really wnat to see the Peace Wall etc but they are over £100!

We got a guidebook and drove round a bit. I suspect a tour would be better informed and know how to get to where we wanted to go better.

We do have a hire car so may try that. No idea why that didn't occur to me, even though I was wondering where we would park the car whilst in the cab...

@IbizaToTheNorfolkBroads

Thanks for sharing your Belfast tips!

Re Edinburgh... We were only there for the weekend with 3 teens 2 adults. Calton Hill was hands down the highlight. We went teatime (Sept) and saw the sun set over Edinburgh, incredible views. I could have stayed up there for hours. I'll try to attach a pic.

There's a windy steep road where Harry Potter was filmed which is cool (Grassmarket
Area)

We did the Mary King's Close tour, mine were all younger history loving teens then (horrible histories fans). Castle obvs (we didn't go in, just walked around).

Portobello beach a short drive out of Edinburgh was beautiful and unspoilt, had breakfast in a cafe on the front.

Loved it.

I've just found one that's £60 plus £10 per additional passenger. Booking direct rather than through viatour or something.

That's where I got the £100 from - I was adding the extra passengers!

On the subject of otehr places to go, with the DC in tow we have done Glasgow and Liverpool (and Manchester with one when he was 17).

Glasgow was really a stop off as we were off somewhere else so didn't spend too much time there but we went to the museums on the river, we went up the tower thing nearby and went to a football match. We would have done more had we stayed longer! (I'm from Glasgow and love it )

Liverpool was really good - lots to do : museums on the waterfront, ferry cross the Mersey. up to the top of the Cathedral.

Manchester we went specifically to visit the People's History Museum but we also took in the football museum (which is really good), Salford Quays and wandered over to look at Old Trafford.

We did York too but they were little then so more Jorvik and stuff like that.

All four were good.

I went to Belfast last year. I wasn't overly impressed.

We did the hop on hop off double decker bus tour. It was much cheaper than the black cab tours.

Ah ok. I'd seen some that were more pp.

Oh, forgot that we also did a tour of Anfield at Liverpool which was good.

@Piggywaspushed we live in south west of greater Manchester and haven't been to either of those, and Liverpool is only 40 mins away. Perhaps we should stay local and be tourists in our own hood!

Be cheaper!