It is all about the right time and place.  Belfast has been described as one of the most romantic cities in Europe.  Ok, it’s not Paris but there are traits in Northern Ireland that inspire and provide a real thrill when out and about.

We have some great suggestions and offers so come back every Friday or register for the newsletter.

Or leave some comments to suggest anywhere you have already tried.

The bar is unique in its ownership as it is owned by The Belfast Unemployed Resource Centre.

The Resource Centre’s managers had always relied on various grants to fund its work.

In the 1995 Jimmy Hawk came up with the idea of generating their own funds by going into business.  The chosen business was a pub and why not a pub.

John Hewitt, the late poet, socialist and Freeman of Belfast officially opened the Resource Centre on Mayday 1983, hence the name of the bar.

If you managed to secure a £2 flight from BMI baby then it’s good news all round.

Belfast’s shopping centre is packed at the best of times so Christmas shopping isn’t going to be any less of a hustle and bustle.

Places to Stay

Nothern Ireland is truly a place to discover during 2009.

“Traffic-choked”, “tacky” and “charmless”. Just a few of the less than
complimentary words used in a new travel guide to describe three of
Ireland’s best known towns.
The latest edition of the Lonely Planet says Newcastle in County Down is
“garish” whilst Larne in County Antrim is “lacking in charm”.

It adds that Bundoran, on the southern shore of Donegal Bay, is “one of
Ireland’s tackiest holiday resorts”.

Mourne country…. but Newcastle is described as “garish”

But the guide, which is renowned for being brusque, gives a favourable
mention to the cities of Belfast, Londonderry and Dublin.

Often dubbed the backpackers bible, Lonely Planet says the seaside
resort of Newcastle, at the foot of the Mourne Mountains, enjoys a
superb setting and is a good base for exploring.

But it adds: “Shame about the main street. On summer weekends it’s a
garish, traffic-choked strip of raucous amusement arcades and fast-food
outlets.”

South Down Democratic Unionist Party Assembly member Jim Wells said he
agreed with the sentiments but pointed out the guide must have been
written before recent improvements.

“Sometimes the Lonely Planet guide goes over the top, but not on this
occasion,” he said.

“The council is aware of the problems and is spending a king’s ransom in
addressing the issue.

The guide says Bundoran is “tacky”

“It is spending millions, £6m I think, in upgrading the promenade along
the sea front.

“Half is done and the other half, when complete, will transform the area
and be the catalyst for much needed regeneration across the centre.”

Travel along the Antrim coast, and you come to a what the guide
describes as “poor old Larne”.

It says there is “no reason to linger” in the town, a sentiment refuted
by the town’s mayor John Matthews.

“Larne is a vibrant working city, it’s not some twee part of industrial
archaeology. It’s individual, it’s got character,” he said.

Mr Matthews adds that the town boasts “one of the best leisure centres
in Northern Ireland” as well as superb sporting facilities and a
theatre.

DUP East Antrim MP Sammy Wilson agrees that at first sight, Larne does
appear unattractive, but he urges people to go beyond the “raised
motorway and high towers” on the approach to the town.

“If you do look beyond that, there’s very quaint Victorian parts of
Larne. It is the entrance to the Antrim coast as well,” he said.

Across the border in the Republic of Ireland, is Bundoran, described by
the Lonely Planet as “a kitsch assortment of half-baked fairground
rides, flashing arcades, fast food diners and overpriced B&Bs”.

It says the seaside resort is “nonetheless riding a new wave of
popularity as one of Europe’s premier surfing spots”.

The comments have outraged local hotelier and Fianna Fail councillor
Sean McEniff who says: “Bundoran is not tacky and I think the fairground
is absolutely magnificent.

“It is not some small resort, it is like a mini Blackpool and tourism is
booming. I am adding an extra 40 bedrooms to my hotel because of the
demand and all the other hotels are the same.”

He insists accommodation is of a high standard and the town so clean
“you could eat your breakfast on the streets of Bundoran”.

Despite the criticisms, the guide’s co-ordinating author Dublin-born
Fionn Davenport has words of praise for the often maligned city of
Belfast.

He says massive investment combined with optimism engendered by the
peace process have transformed it into a “boom town”.

“Its old bombs and bullets reputation has given way to a designer
Belfast,” he says, typified by “hip hotels” and elegant restaurants.

Mr Davenport says Ireland is a “compelling contradiction” of the
traditional and the modern and points out that the book is guide to
where people would want to visit.

“That’s the thing we’re trying to convey,” he said.

“If you want a glowing positive… view of Ireland, pick up any tourist
brochure and that’s what you’ll get. You’ll never get a critique,
never.”

The wild craggy mountains, splendid lakes and sweeping coastline make it
an ideal playground for watersports enthusiasts, walkers, cyclists,
hikers, rock climbers and sailors.

But there are lots of things to keep those after a dose of culture
enthralled, too. From boisterous oyster festivals to authentic horse
fairs, and from ancient castles to elegant country houses, this
spectacular part of Ireland is packed with things to do.

The six counties of Antrim, Armagh, Down, Fermanagh, Londonderry and
Tyrone are just waiting to be explored.

Discover great deals on accommodation in Northern Ireland!
Related Links
We have some suggested links that we have put together
Antrim Tourism
County Antrim Tourism website
Visit Armagh County Armagh Tourism website
Armagh and Down Armagh and Down Tourism website
Belfast Visitor and Convention Bureau
Belfast Tourism website
Causeway Coast and Glens
North Antrim Coast website
Derry Visitor and Convention Bureau
Londonderry Tourism website
Discover Northern Ireland
Discover Northern Ireland website
Fermanagh Lakeland Tourism
County Fermanagh Tourism website
Northern Ireland Tourism Board
Northern Ireland Tourism Board website

The BBC has learned there are plans to build a hotel at Belfast City
Airport.
It follows news that the airport is also considering an extension to its
runway.

It is understood the airport wants to build a hotel close to the
terminal building, possibly on the site of the short stay car park.

The project is still on the drawing board, with a planning application
not yet submitted. An official announcement is expected after Christmas.

The airport’s plans for expansion are currently the subject of a
judicial review.

Local residents’ groups have gone to court to oppose plans to increase
passenger numbers.

The airport expects to handle about two million passengers this year and
business will be boosted next week with the launch of new flights by
Ryanair.

The airport is also considering the extension of its runway, which has
further angered local residents.

A spokesman for the airport said that as publicly stated in its
masterplan, it would continue to explore commercial development in
selected areas of the airport site.

Short Breaks Campaign 2006-2007

The new short breaks brochure for 2006/2007 has just been launched and alongside our dedicated short breaks website “ www.discovernorthernireland.com/shortbreaks it will act as the main fulfillment piece for all of our marketing activity over the coming months.

We would like to hear any comments from those of you who were targeted!

Target Audiences

In both our key markets of Northern Ireland and Republic of Ireland our marketing campaigns will target the following audiences who have been shown to have a higher propensity to take short breaks.

Session Breakers:

Northern Ireland Discovered is an independent online magazine promoting all things good in Northern Ireland!

This region is located in the centre of Northern Ireland, stretching from the Western shoreline of ‘that noble sheet of water’ Lough Neagh to the Tyrone/Donegal Border and is recognised as a designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty as well as being one of the most idyllic geographical areas of rural Ireland.

This region incorporates most of the County of Tyrone and the southern portion of County Londonderry and is bordered by the traditional market towns of Cookstown, Limavady, Magherafelt, Omagh and Strabane and also shoulders the ancient walls and monuments of Derry City.

Cookstown has the longest and widest street in Northern Ireland, One Mile Street with a variety of shops and businesses, providing a shopping experience to suit all tastes.

The range of shops is extensive; from small family stores to much larger chain stores. There is ample free parking providing a real paradise for shoppers.

On Saturdays, Cookstown’s main shopping area really comes alive with a bustling, vibrant street market which has a Royal Charter dating back to the 17th century.

On then to Dungannon where the landscape is nearly empty of men but is rich in prehistoric and Celtic remains with almost one thousand stones standing as a testament to the Stone Age people who passed along this way.

Visitors who enjoy taking in places of historical interest have an excellent choice as there are some well known Neolithic sites here.

One of which is the Beaghmore Stone Circles near Cookstown, which was only uncovered some 40 years ago, and consists of seven mysterious Bronze Age stone circles and cairns which were excavated from the surrounding bog land.

A further site is the chambered Cairn of Knockmany, which is at the top of a steep wooded hill north of Clogher.

The An Creagan Visitor Centre gives visitors information on archaeological and geological aspects of the county through exhibition and displays.

The Ulster History Park, near Gortin Glen Forest Park is well worth a detour if you are interested in this historical period.

Drum Manor Forest Park has some interesting wildlife and walking trails to explore and is a great place to visit.

All over Christian Ireland, from the 7th to the 12th century, crosses and High crosses were erected throughout the land at the time when Christianity was flourishing in Ireland.

There is a brilliant example of this peculiarly Irish art at Ardboe. Standing at approximately 18 feet high, Ardboe Cross is an impressive 10th century, Celtic cross which has carved on it 22 panels of biblical scenes from both the Old and New Testaments. This cross has been declared

‘the finest High Cross in Ireland’

In the village of Donaghmore, standing at the top of the main street there is another cross, but it is not as tall.

On top of Tullaghoge Hill there is a lovely view of the old kingdom of Tyrone and this was the chief crowning place of the Tyrone O’Neills

‘amid the clang of bucklers and a hundred harps’

Well worth visiting is the Ulster-American Folk Park at Castletown, Omagh which grew up around the cottage where Thomas Mellon was born in 1813.

The story of the House of Mellon is truly fascinating.

Thomas was five years old when his family emigrated to America, settling in Pennsylvania where he became a judge, banker and millionaire.

His son, Andrew, became secretary to the US Treasury, ambassador to London, chief architect in the steel town of Pittsburgh, and was probably the richest man in the world during this era.

Mellon money helped build the Waldorf Astoria, the famous Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, the locks and gates of the Panama Canal as well as the Folk Park in Omagh.

One of the Mellon dynasties had a love of English paintings and 140 Constable’s, 41 Gainsborough’s, 42 Hogarth’s and 35 Stubbs’s were given to the Yale Museum.

Archbishop John Hughes was born in 1797, the son of a gardener, and lived in a cottage a few miles away from Folk Park. He was to become the Archbishop of New York and the founder of St.Patrick’s Cathedral on Fifth Avenue.

He became a politician, pamphleteer and champion of the Irish Catholic immigrants and the cottage, which was his boyhood home, has been moved to the Folk Park and rebuilt stone by stone from where it originally stood.

Every September the Appalachian Music Festival is held in grounds of the park.

The ancestral home of Woodrow Wilson, the 28th President of the United States, is situated near Strabane and the farm is still occupied by Wilson’s who will happily give callers a tour of the house.

For more information on our services info@northernirelanddiscovered.co.uk

Northern Ireland Discovered is an independent online Travel Guide for Northern Ireland.