Interactive museums, puddle jumping, pizza galore, golf, exceptional food and acting like Royalty, it was an action packed weekend exploring the city
Being a tourist in Belfast when you feel like you already know the city and surrounding areas well is a difficult task. I’ve worked in the city for almost 11 years and feel like, especially through my job, I’ve seen and experienced so much of it.
But Tourism NI set us the challenge of exploring Belfast as tourists with our young children, aged 7 and 4, and I have to admit, it really opened my eyes!
“Wow, look how many pink buses there are, let’s count them” ; How big does City Hall look at night? It’s class.” ‘Is that a real dinosaur fossil? ’ ‘It’s like New York mummy, look how big the buildings are?’ These are just some of the statements my children made as we explored Belfast; some made me chuckle, but it really made me look at things from their perspective.
We kicked off our weekend with lunch in Little Wing on Lisburn Road, which was a huge hit with the children and us adults alike. The food is fresh, tasty, and served with a smile by their brilliant staff, who were so attentive and ensured the children were kept entertained with colouring. They were also fascinated to watch their pizzas being crafted and put into the big wood-fired oven. It’s always a highlight for me, when you can see your food being created right in front of your eyes.
Bellies full, it was time to burn off some energy, and there was no better spot to explore than the Ulster Museum. The weather was miserable, but that didn’t stop the kids from enjoying a puddle jumping contest, walking through Botanic Gardens on the way to the museum. Thankfully, we were well equipped with wellies and waterproofs. It was even nicer to get into the warm museum and explore with a warm coffee in hand from their coffee shop.
My two had never been to the Ulster Museum before, so it was a great experience; they were particularly amazed by the giant dinosaurs and by the opportunity to examine the artefacts up close. There’s no better time to visit the Ulster Museum than this month, with the NI Science Festival running. There’s a huge programme of events for all ages, some you will need to pre-book, but they are free.
It was then time to check into our hotel for the evening. We stayed at the Clayton on Ormeau Avenue, which was a great central location in the city, the perfect base for exploring and shopping. The rooms were spacious and perfect for a family, and for being in the city centre, the noise at night was minimal, which I was pleasantly surprised by.
We were booked to dine in Fratelli’s on Friday night, and this was one of the highlights the children have talked about since. They got to enjoy the ‘Little Boars’ experience, which allowed them to create their own pizzas with a choice of two toppings. Complete with chef’s hat and apron, they set to work creating their own masterpieces, and this was such a win for us; they were happily amused at the table while we waited for our dinner without the need to reach for the emergency iPads to save the boredom. They also loved the activities on the menu to keep them occupied while their pizzas were in the oven.
I opted for the Chicken Parmigiana for the main, while my husband went for the steak. My main was lovely, really tasty sauce, the only downside was the size, it was huge, which meant I couldn’t finish it, but other than that it was beautiful. My husband complimented the steak as well, saying it was cooked perfectly. The kids’ pizzas were devoured, and I think that was also a testament to letting them ‘make’ them themselves; they enjoyed every bite.
Day two- more interactive museums, golf and the nicest meal ever
We kicked off our day with a beautiful breakfast in the Clayton hotel, everything was fresh and warm, we couldn’t fault it, the fruit and granola pots were a huge hit with us, and given how quickly they disappeared and needed replenishing by the staff on the buffet, it seems we weren’t the only fans.
From there it was off to a firm favourite of ours, and that was W5 at the Odyssey. We’ve been here a few times with the children, and I’m glad to say it’s a place they never tire of. There’s so much to explore; the interactivity of W5 is unbeatable in my eyes, not to mention the brilliant soft play and other climbing areas, which allow them to burn off some more of that energy. It’s the perfect rainy day activity, and you can honestly easily spend a few hours here, followed by lunch or a snack at the Coffee Lab. My children are huge pizza fans and couldn’t pass the pizza slice option for lunch, whilst I grabbed a ham and cheese toastie, and my husband selected the Spicy Chicken ciabatta. This was the perfect grab-and-enjoy lunch, which we needed before we headed to our next destination.
Next up was Colin Glen, a place I have visited over the years but never realised they had a Trackman golf driving range. My husband and I are big golf fans, he plays as well, whilst I don’t really, but I do love a driving range. Our son is also recently taken up the sport so he was delighted to try this one out. We were greeted by the very friendly staff who gave us some clubs and a tasty basket of treats and showed us to our bay, which we had for two hours.
I was surprised how brilliant this was for the kids, aside from the usual Trackman features, where you can play some of the biggest courses in the world, there are really fun interactive kids’ games and challenges which proved really popular.
We really wanted to take a walk around the lovely trails around Colin Glen, but sadly, the weather was just not on our side. We will most definitely be back; it’s a great spot to entertain the whole family for a few hours.
Dinner on night two was a highlight for us all. We were booked into Home, which I have eaten in before, but it was many years ago. Even as we walked through the City centre, I was struck by my kids amazement at the lights and the size of City Hall saying it looked even bigger at night, and counting many pink Metro buses they could spot, it dawned on me that I walk through the city centre so often I never notice the little things anymore, it was nice to stop and appreciate them through the eyes of a child.
Home was a hive of activity as you would expect on a Saturday night in the city but again, somewhere I felt comfortable with the children. They, too, were well cared for by the exceptional staff who attended to their every whim. Both my husband and I couldn’t pass up the steak special with a gorgeous rocket and parmesan salad, plus chips and seasonal veg. While the children had chicken goujons and chips, and what I noticed immediately was just how fresh the children’s chicken was; you could tell simply by looking at it that they were handmade.
Both our steaks were cooked to perfection, I don’t think either of us wanted it to end. The steak itself was so flavoursome that it didn’t need any sauce to enhance the experience. We of course opted to share desserts and I can also highly recommend the sticky toffee pudding, it didn’t last long!
Day three- A Titanic adventure and feeling like Royalty
Our final day exploring started off with a visit to Titanic Belfast, again somewhere I have been lots for work, but I’ve not done the tour since it first opened. Admittedly, I was a bit sceptical about if the children would enjoy it, but I was really impressed. The children were given their own little map at the start and they had to tick off each of the characters they spotted along the way. This was such a fun activity, and some of the characters were harder to spot than others. But the highlight was the immersive experience with the Shipyard Ride, it was incredibly real, and it really brought you back in time to experience the sights and sounds of working at H&W. The exhibition is worth a trip for this alone.
Heading for home, we had to make one final stop just outside of Belfast to visit the stunning Hillsborough Castle and Gardens. Thankfully, the weather was much kinder and it was brilliant to let the children burn off some energy as we explored the stunning grounds. Despite the fact that it’s winter and a lot of the gardens aren’t blooming yet, it’s hard not to be impressed by the landscape. The children loved playing and exploring, and pretending they were King and Queen for the day at the Palace doors.
Having burnt off some energy, it was time to refuel for heading home, and we were booked in for lunch at The Parson’s Nose, which I had heard great things about but had never tried. A very cosy setting awaited us to warm up as we delved straight into the Sunday lunch menu, packed with favourites. I chose the Turkey and Ham Roulade whilst my husband went for the Roast Beef. My son had the children’s fish of the day, and my daughter had the children’s roast chicken.
We didn’t wait very long and were soon tucking into a beautiful Sunday roast, every bite was savoured! My son’s fish was huge and so fresh, he loved it, and it wasn’t at all greasy for battered fish, which was a big win in my eyes. Of course, we left a little room for dessert, and I’ve honestly never seen my chatterbox four-year-old daughter so quiet, she didn’t speak until her children’s sticky toffee pudding was devoured! We loved everything about The Parson’s Nose and will definitely revisit the next time we are in the area.
So maybe the next time you’re thinking of a weekend break, look a little closer to home and explore what’s right on our doorstep, I guarantee you’ll be impressed!
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