Leisure
Tara Lodge, Belfast
Tara Lodge is a boutique property in Belfast located in a peaceful side street off the cosmopolitan Botanic Avenue in the Queens Quarter. A fifteen minute walk will take you into the heart of the Belfast where you can experience all this vibrant, up and coming city has to offer. From high street stores and premier theatres to excellent golf courses and Ulster rugby, we have it all.
After a long day of exploring the city of Belfast, you can return to the comfort of your four star room with five star welcome. Relax and unwind in our stylish hotel rooms adorned with fine fabrics, crisp white bed linen and the most comfortable bed imaginable. Atmospheric lighting for every mood add the salubrious surroundings of our 4 star rooms.
Highly regarded by TripAdvisor as one of the best places to stay in Belfast, Tara Lodge is the ideal base camp for any shopping expedition. Here are some of our highlights.
Shopping
Belfast has much to offer for the avid shopper. From high street stores, to exquisite boutiques, to one off, locally owned shops we have it all. Here are some of our highlights:
Avoca: Located right in the heart of the city on Arthur Street, Avoca is a pure delight. With fresh baked bread and designer women's wear collections, as well as exciting homewares, children's toys and books and gifts it’s a pleasure to visit. There's a food hall too, jammed with tempting goodies and a large and very popular Avoca Café to chill out in between all that shopping.
St Georges Market: St George’s Market, built in the 1890’s is one of Belfast’s oldest attractions. Enjoy live music, fresh hot food stalls aplenty and many stalls offering the best of local foods, arts and crafts. Fri 6am – 2pm, Sat 9am – 3pm and Sun 10am – 4pm. A place to meet old and new friends while enjoying the sights, smells and sounds.
Victoria Square: Old and new sit comfortably side by side in Victoria Square, Northern Ireland’s biggest and brightest new shopping centre. The dazzling glass dome is also a viewing gallery where you can look across the Belfast rooftops. Home to Northern Ireland’s first House of Fraser store, you will also find the prestigious brands Hollister, Pumpkin Patch, All Saints, Firetrap and Hardy Amies.
Lisburn Road, BT9: Belfast’s own ‘Style Mile’ where you can enjoy shopping with distinction. Drop into one of the many coffee shops and cafes or enjoy a fine dining experience at a restaurant. With a plethora of shops and boutiques the Lisburn Road, Belfast has something for everyone. Find out more at thelisburnroad.com.
Castlecourt: From high street fashion to scrumptious food, CastleCourt has everything you need for the perfect day out. With more than 80 stores and 15 great fast food outlets to choose from, the only question is where to begin. Stores include Debenhams, Gap, Warehouse, Dune and Burtons to name a few.
Sawers: A family run business since 1897, Sawers has always prided itself on stocking an extensive range of food and offering the level of customer service synonymous with the ‘olden days’. Stockists of a vast variety of food products ranging from continental cheeses, local fresh seafood, gourmet gifts and bespoke hampers it’s a foodie delight.
Golfing
Belfast is home to quite a few, excellent city golfing courses. Including Belvior Park with its rolling parklands through 136 arces of mature woodland, to Malone with 18 holes over 330 acres of undulating park land countryside and Temple golf course with wonderful views of Belfast City Centre there is much to entice any golf enthusiasts.
Of course Belfast is ideally located between the two famous Northern Ireland golf courses – Royal County Down and Royal Portrush. Royal County Down is located in one of the world’s most naturally beautiful links settings in the Murlough Nature Reserve. Set against the magnificent backdrop of the Mountains of Mourne, the links stretches along the shores of Dundrum Bay, zigzagging back and forth to provide a different vista from virtually every hole. It offers two courses – the 18 hole Championship course and the shorter Annesley course.
Royal Portrush golf club is home to one of the best and most challenging links golf courses in the world. The only club in Ireland to have hosted the Open Championship, its two courses the Dunluce Links and the hidden gem, the Valley links, offer a challenging course, in often testing conditions.
Both courses are no more than one hour’s drive from Belfast so stay with us, enjoy luxury accommodation and drive to the short journey to experience world class golf courses in the most rugged surroundings.
Entertainment
SSE Arena: The Odyssey Arena is a large sports and entertainment centre situated in Titanic Quarter, Belfast. Home to the Belfast Giants ice hockey team, the Arena plays host to many famous names throughout the year. W5, whowhateherewhenwhy – is located in the Odyssey Pavilion where there is also a cinema and a bowling alley to ensure a fun filled day out for all the family. There is also an extensive range of bars, restaurants and cafes.
Grand Opera House: The Grand Opera House was designed by the most prolific theatre architect of the period, Frank Matcham. This premier theatre presents an outstanding programme of drama, dance, opera, comedy, musicals and family shows throughout the year including The Calender Girls, The Sound of Music, Fiddler on the Roof, as well as many local productions. Guests can enjoy dinner in the Hippodrome or a coffee and quick bite in Luciano’s Café.
Lyric Theatre: The Lyric Theatre in Belfast makes a unique and vital contribution to the community as the only full-time producing theatre in Northern Ireland. The theatre was re-opened in 2011 after an extensive fund raising campaign which made the £18million rebuild possible. Recent productions include Playboy of the Western World, Macbeth and Arthur Millers’ The Crucible. Relax with a coffee in the Lyric Café Bar overlooking the River Lagan.
Cinema
Belfast offers quite a few cinemas all showing the latest releases. The closest cinemas to us are the Movie House on Dublin Road and the Odyssey Cinema located in the entertainment complex the Odyssey Arena.
However we are delighted to be just 5 minutes walk away from Queens Film Theatre (QFT) showing the very best in new and classic world cinema. Why not check the listings out and you might just come across an old diamond of a film that you haven’t seen in years. Always involved in the one of the many arts festivals in Belfast, this is a must for you film buffs.
Ulster Rugby
Ravenhill Stadium, home to the Ulster Rugby squad is just 20 minutes walk away or just a few minutes in a taxi. A great way to spend an evening in a friendly, but charged atmosphere watching some world class rugby. Better wrap up warm though!
Local Attractions