What to Know Before You Visit Northern Ireland

As a Northern Irish person, my advice is: 1. Don’t discuss politics or religion, even if people raise it. 2. Refer to Northern Ireland as such. But be cognisant of the fact that some will refer to it as “the north”, “Ulster”, “the province” etc. 3. Be aware that we spend pounds, not euros. We accept Bank of England and Scottish notes. Some places will accept euros but we do not use euros as our currency. 4. Think of NI as a halfway house between GB and Ireland culturally. 5. Don’t listen to the media’s depiction of NI. We are not a war zone, nor are we constantly at loggerheads. It’s a peaceful society, with people getting on with their lives. So do not anticipate a negative time. 6. In terms of places to visit of course Belfast but also the north coast and north west. When visiting Belfast do more than taxi tours most of us didn’t live that lifestyle.

Little tip: if you’re heading to England, Wales or Scotland after being in Northern Ireland, it’s best to go cashless whilst you’re here (I live in Belfast). A lot of places across the water will not accept anything but Bank of England notes, even though Scottish and Northern Irish notes are legal tender.

As a Belfast native, I watched your videos before going to Canada and USA last summer and it is great surprise to see you enjoying yourself over here! Anyone getting an ulster fry make sure it has potato bread and soda bread. If anyone needs tips, especially for the best pints let me know!

Lovely to see your review of Northern Ireland. As someone who grew up here during the Troubles, I am thrilled that tourists want to visit this part of the world. Other places of interest might include the Ards Peninsula - maybe not as dramatic as the North Coast but still worth a visit. The Saint Patrick’s trail is worth a look. Portaferry - get the ferry to Strangford & go for some seafood. So much to see.

Thanks! All was fascinating and informative.

Just visited Belfast and Giants Causeway and Dunlace Castle and was amazed at how beautiful the Coastal area was!! Great video!

My home away from home. Heading back in the autumn on visit 25 or 26. Yes, that's right. We LOVE it there. Great video!

I love your travel advice and videos! But it's equally fun to watch your boys grow up! Love your family!

Loved visiting Belfast and finally meeting all my Irish relatives living there. Really enjoyed discovering my Irish roots.

Been watching your videos for years, was cool seeing you film outside my work.

Hey Mark, awesome video

Great vid!

Mark, you always do a fantastic job of presenting our little country - appreciate it!

Born and living in NI my whole life, this is a great video on how to visit our wee country and be respectful too ! Especially the smaller details like Great Victoria station being the best, to making sure to get an Ulster fry or a chippy, I really enjoyed the video and would urge people to give Northern Ireland a visit sometime soon : ) (P.S I’d also recommend glenariff’s mountain trail for the views, it’s just off the causeway coastal route! )

My 8 yr old is watching your videos while making lists of places she wants to visit. Thank you for your insight and valuable information.

This was cool Mark. I def will make it over to Ireland one of these days!

Ahhh! I'm headed there next month. I just missed you. We need your travel itinerary so your people can follow you : ) Thank you for the great content!

Mark great review on my home country. I hope to bump into you next time you are here

1:07 it's not part of Great Britain, Great Britain is just the big island consisting of England, Scotland and Wales, but NI is part of the UK.

Love your review, I lived here all my life and you'll not find warmer friendlier people in the world. I would say a visit to the Fermanagh lakes and the caves is a must. Enniskillen is a great base to enjoy exploring the surrounding area. And a visit to the Ulster American Folk Park outside Omagh is worthwhile to really see the shared heritage.