Titanic Belfast?

Three hours was plenty for me. I enjoyed the museum! The black cabs were also very good. We did them both in the same day and didn't feel rushed.

Three hours would be plenty. I think we did two. We did the Black Cab tour after our arrival in Belfast; continued on to Derry and spent a few days there, also going to County Donegal; went to Titanic Museum when we went back to Belfast and before train to Dublin.

Thank you...trying to map this out in a way that makes sense/minimizes driving but thinking I should flip plan a bit...

I currently have it set this way....
Day 1 land - drive halfway to Belfast (new grange or malahide on way) spend night south of belfast

Day 2 head straight to giants causeway, visit Dunluce, Bushmills and double back to Belfast for the night/ titanic hotel

Day 3 Titanic and something else? walking tour spend night in belfast/titanic hotel

Day 4 10am black cab, leave belfast by 1pm and head to Donegal where we spend two nights and then back to Dublin for three (still working on those activities/timing). In a perfect world we'd hit Clare/burren/cliffs of Moher before Dublin but doesn't feel realistic

MAYBE THIS IS BETTER

Day 1 land - drive halfway to Belfast (new grange or malahide on way) spend night south of belfast

Day 2 Titanic belfast then black cab spend night in belfast

Day 3 giants causeway, dunluce, Bushmills and back spend night in belfast. (would like to fit in Carrickfergus and more of coast but that seems ambitious?

Day 4 leave belfast earlier (9am?) -- more time for stops on way to donegal want to arrive around 4pm

We are traveling with limited daylight (December)

I would encourage you to reconsider if that "driving half way to Belfast" is really a very good idea on your arrival day. You will be operating on the left side of the road and with jet lag/sleep deprivation, I would suggest some options might be to either spend that night near the airport and drive to Belfast in the AM or to take a bus to Belfast from the airport, spend the night, and then rent the car there in the morning.

I would suggest adding the Carrick-a-Rede rope bridge stop as well as Dunluce Castle. Both of these are terrific stops, minutes apart and close to Giant's Causeway. As others have said, the Titanic Museum is awesome, 2-3 hours is plenty. The Black Cab tour is also a can't miss. Have fun!

Thank you for your addition....

I had the rope bridge on my original list but dropped for 2 reasons -- unlikely to actually do the walk given the time of year (December) and also unlikely to do the walk because one in out group has a height fear. that being said, is it worth a stop just for scenery? I know it won't be out of the way...

Out of way, but thoughts on Carrick Fergus? or, not really necessary if we are visiting Dunluce?

any thoughts on my order posted above....I'm really over thinking when to do what and will have book at least the black cab in advance.

We did Paddy Campbell's black cab first thing in the morning; the driver picked us up at our Hilton Hotel in Belfast. The black cab tour was great, I recall it lasting about 2 hours. The driver then dropped us off at the Titanic Museum for an extra 5 Euros. It's practical and easy to do both the black cab and Titanic the same day.

Personally, my wife and I liked BOTH Dunluce Castle and Carrick Fergus (we visited both, but on separate days). I would suggest doing, as we did, stopping at Carrick Fergus after leaving Dublin on your way to Northern Ireland. Dunluce is so close and easy to get to from Giant's Causeway that you should not miss it.

Regarding Carrick-a-Rede, for the reasons you mention, I would not stop there. The views are great as you approach and arrive at the bridge, but it's a good mile walk from the parking lot to get to the bridge. You may find yourself wondering why you walked that far if you weren't going across. The same views can be seen from pretty much anywhere along the coastline.

Last suggestion, (if you like Golf) we stopped at Royal Portrush Golf Club, located 3 miles west of Dunluce Castle. This is one of the stops on the British Open rotation, the course is ranked #12 in the world and they allowed us to walk the course free. The views over the coastal holes are magnificent!

I'm leaning toward my first ordered option (even though it makes less sense) as it requires one less leg of city driving/parking in and out of Belfast. That said, I think Carrickfergus would be tough to squeeze in....would require Carrick Fergus, Giants Causeway, Dunluce in one day? Unrealistic?

Thanks for the golf tip - I imagine my boys would love to see the course. My girls slightly. less so....

I'm considering switching Titanic Belfast hotel to one in the cathedral quarter to make things like dinner (and hopefully some local music) more convenient/walkable....need to decide asap for availability.

Yes, I think hitting Carrick Fergus, Dunluce and Giants Causeway in one day is unrealistic. It would become more of a "check off a list" vs. immersing yourself in the sites. I would probably drop Carrick Fergus then and go with Dunluce and Giants Causeway.

The Bushmill's Inn is a 4 star hotel that was our hotel for one night along the northern coast and we loved it. It's central to everything (including Game of Thrones settings) like Giants Causeway and Royal Portrush and has a wonderful restaurant.

Your order of stops looks great. We did almost 3 weeks touring all of Ireland and Northern Ireland and honestly the Antrim Coast and Belfast was a top 3 highlight.

Have a fun trip!

Thank you.....just trying to be realistic....

I'm jealous of your three weeks. I've done 4 in the summer and been to a lot of places but this is hitting some i've missed. unfortunately working against short daylight hours and the rookie mistake of thinking only 12/25 was a holiday.

also will consider Bushmills hotel -- just don't love packing up so much and it seems Belfast has lively pub/music scene that will still be open when we are there.