Belfast is a beautiful city on the north-west coast of Northern Ireland. The sad legacy with the bloody war between Catholics and Protestants seems to have finally been broken by ongoing peace negotiations between the two camps and Belfast’s reputation as an important city of Europe is growing rapidly.

Belfast is in a fine setting, surrounded by high hills, river valleys and the sea. It has much in common with other breezy cities across the Irish Sea such as Manchester and Liverpool.

It dates back to the middle Ages and though it was bombed severely in the Great War, it has maintained much of its great heritage. Belfast’s reputation grew rapidly in the 19th century industrial revolution in Ulster and there are still a lot of impressive buildings from that era. The development of industries like linen, rope making and shipbuilding dramatically increased the size of the town. The world's largest dry dock is here and the shipyard's giant cranes tower over the port.

Today much of the city centre is pedestrian, with benches where you can sit and listen to street musicians. There are various lavish Victorian and Edwardian buildings with elaborate sculptures over doors and windows.