The calm tenor of everyday life in Northern Ireland has long been overshadowed by media headlines about riots and bombs. While acts of violence and extremist groups are currently less visible than many might expect, observable divisions in civil society continue. Protestants and Catholics usually live in separate neighborhoods, attending separate schools, and patronizing different stores and pubs, even playing different sports. The split is sometimes hard for an outsider to discern, especially in rural vacation spots. On the other hand, it would be nearly impossible for a visitor to leave Northern Ireland without seeing curbs in cities and villages painted with the colors of their residents’ identity (orange or red, white, and blue for Unionists and green for Nationalists). The 1998 Good Friday Agreement, an attempt to lead Northern Ireland out of the Troubles, has been a mixed success. The Assembly, in Stormont in Belfast, has been suspended on a number of occasions and the lack of progress on various issues, such as the disarmament of paramilitary groups, frustrated peace efforts for many years, although the 2005 announcement from by IRA that they intend to disarm fully has restored a measure of hope to the process. The May 2007 power-sharing agreement has installed a government with the top two executive positions being filled by members of both sides of the conflict, which promises to make their country as peaceful as it is beautiful. And Northern Ireland is certainly beautiful.
Fishing villages dot the strands of the Ards Peninsula, leading to the rounded peaks of the Mournes and the National Park retreats of Newcastle. To the west lie the easily accessible Sperrin Mountains and the tidy-walled farms of the Fermanagh Lake District. Industrial Enniskillen rests just north, though travelers would do well to continue onward to Derry/Londonderry, a city rich in political and historical significance. Nearby lies Northern Ireland’s main natural attraction, the Giant’s Causeway. This volcanic staircase extends out into the Atlantic while hillside forts and castles loom on the cliffs above. En route to the pubs and clubs of Belfast you’ll pass by the waterfalls and valleys of the glorious Glens of Antrim.
Legal tender in Northern Ireland is the pound sterling. Northern Ireland has its own bank notes, which are identical in value to English and Scottish notes of the same denominations but not accepted ...more
Since the partition of 1920, the people of Northern Ireland have remained steadfast in their determination to retain their individual cultural and political identities, even at the cost of lasting peace ...more
The Ards Peninsula is bounded on the west by tranquil Strangford Lough and on the east by the rough Irish Sea. The shore of the lough from Newtownards to Portaferry is crowded with historic houses, decaying ...more
During the Ice Age, glaciers plowed through the coastline northeast of Antrim, leaving nine deep scars in the mountains. Over the years, water collected in these valleys, nourishing trees, ferns, and ...more
The Sperrin Mountains span a 40 mi. arc northeast from Strabane to Milltown to Downhill. The new Sperrin Way, an ambitious collection of waymarked trails, makes a portion of this land more accessible ...more
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For 52 years, we have published the world’s favorite budget travel guides, written entirely by students and updated every year. With pen and notebook in hand and a few changes of underwear stuffed in our backpacks, we spend months roaming the globe in search of travel bargains.
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