Belfast: A Titanic Adventure...

Now for something a little different. I make no secret about the fact that I have a strong interest in the ill-fated Olympic-class liner RMS Titanic, which famously struck an iceberg and sank on her maiden voyage in April 1912. To this end, I've always wanted to visit the birthplace of the great ship: Belfast, the capital city of Northern Ireland. It was always planned as one of those "maybe one day" things, no doubt to be ticked off once the necessary time and funds allowed. I was therefore amazed on my recent 28th birthday to open my gift from Maisie and find that it was a three-day trip to Belfast. I couldn't have been happier with it as it's something I've always wanted to do. This is therefore the story of what I dub, our "Titanic Adventure". Join me now as we set sail on our voyage of discovery, on Monday January 6th.

It was a dark and dreary morning as we made our way to Birmingham Airport, a little before sunrise. After check in, we grabbed a pleasant breakfast in one of the cafes in the departure lounge as we waited for our flight to Belfast City. As we were called for boarding, we made our way down the steps and out to our aircraft: a De Havilland Dash 8 turboprop, operating on behalf of Flybe. After an energetic takeoff in persistent rain, we climbed steeply and a glorious Winter skyline opened up above the clouds...

Though quite noisy, the little Dash 8 was fairly comfortable as it took us steadily towards Belfast, cruising high above the Irish Sea. The plane was barely half full and it seemed that the majority of passengers were commuters. A trolley service was provided during the flight and this cup of tea was very much appreciated...

It was fairly "choppy" shall we say as we dropped down towards Belfast, with strong crosswinds doing battle with the plane. Once safely on the ground, we taxied to the stand before departing, back out into the rain. It was then a short walk to the pick-up where we'd grab an Uber for the ride into the city. I was excited to see our accommodation for the trip: the Titanic Hotel Belfast, though I wasn't prepared for the level of history which the building encompasses. As we pulled up outside it was barely 10:30am so we did wonder if we should just drop the bags and go for a walk. To our surprise however our suite was available and so we trotted upstairs to take a moment before heading out to explore. The Titanic Museum was in view from our window, under dreary skies. I also quite liked the poster of RMS Olympic...

The Titanic Hotel Belfast is based within the original Harland and Wolff headquarters and encompasses the former drawing offices where all of the White Star Line ships were drawn. History is rife throughout the building; it's like a living museum with the odd modern touch. Our bedroom was accessed by passing through the Presentation Room, a wonderful open space where customers of H & W would be brought to see and discuss design progress on their chosen vessels...

We had afternoon tea booked at Malmaison in the city centre and so it was soon time to head out to grab another Uber. Coming down the grand staircase I noticed several offices in the main corridor and it wasn't long before we were stood in Thomas Andrews' very own office. I was in awe. Thomas Andrews was of course the nephew of H & Ws then chairman William Pirrie and would become the chief designer of "Titanic". Andrews travelled as part of Harland & Wolffs 'guarantee group' on "Titanic": a group of skilled engineers taken on the maiden voyage of each vessel to document and repair any faults found: and tragically lost his life during the sinking. The entire guarantee group were lost with the ship. Moved wasn't the word. That room...

Andrews' uncle: Pirrie: had an office just across the way, which we also visited. I was so moved by the whole experience so far. I think it's just so amazing to think that we've walked where they walked, in the corridors and offices in which they worked. You can't get much closer to the history than that. Anyway, we were soon back out in the strong gales and on our way to Malmaison where afternoon tea was enjoyed...

A few hours later, stuffed and with the belt undone a notch, we wandered into the city centre to take in some shops. The stroll back to the impressive Titanic Quarter alongside the River Lagan is very pleasant. We took it steady, taking in the chilly January air. As we approached the hotel, we passed little SS Nomadic: a tender to "Titanic": which sits drydocked in the vicinity of the hotel and museum. We would visit her tomorrow as part of our 'White Star Premium Pass' experience...

After some time in the room to change, we wandered back down the impressive grand staircase for dinner. The staircase is quite something too...

There are two evening eateries at the Titanic Hotel: the Wolff Grill and Drawing Office II. Drawing Office II is the hotel bar and, as its name suggests, is one of the two former drawing offices. We opted to have a bar meal here as it was just so beautiful. The impressive arched roof with its many windows was of course to allow in as much light for the draftsmen as possible. Again, to take it in, the plans for the White Star Liners were drawn here in this room. It is quite remarkable and I must take my hat off to the Titanic Hotel for being so sympathetic in their restoration...

A meal and a few very nice cocktails later, it was time for bed after a great first day in Belfast. Soon enough, Tuesday rolled around and breakfast was served in the Wolff Grill. Very nice it was too: a great start to the day...

In the past we have also stayed in the Titanic Hotel Liverpool. The Liverpool hotel is a converted rum warehouse which tips its hat lovingly towards "Titanic", whos port of registration was of course Liverpool. The Belfast hotel is steeped in history and, if you're going to try a Titanic-themed hotel, this is the one for you. Today we would take in Titanic Belfast: the purpose-built museum dedicated to telling the story of the famous liner. The museum opened in 2012 (100 years since the loss of "Titanic") and is a hugely popular attraction in the Titanic Quarter. Various galleries are included, from the story of Belfast itself to the design, build, launch, fitting out and sinking of "Titanic". The final section shows film of the "Titanic" wreck, following the discovery by Robert Ballard in 1985. I've included a couple of shots from the museum that I thought would be of interest here, although you need to go yourself to do this place justice...

"A Menu from RMS Titanic"

After an hour or so exploring the various galleries and taking in lots of "Titanic", we headed downstairs for a drink before our 1pm guided tour. This was included as part of the White Star Premium Pass and was very informative. There were people from all across the world on the tour, which I think highlights the global fame of "Titanic" and her importance to tourism in Belfast. Comically, Myself & Maisie both chuckled as we were led from the museum into our hotel which, to our surprise, was part of the tour! I like that though because I do feel that, if you weren't staying there but were a "Titanic" fan as it were, then you'd miss so much history by not visiting the hotel. Here, our guide explains the history of Drawing Office I, which is now used for weddings and conventions. Another beautifully restored room...

After visiting the office areas again (I could never get tired of it!) we were taken out onto the former slipways where "Olympic" and "Titanic" were built side by side. At the end of the slipways is the River Lagan, where the hulls were launched prior to fitting out. "Titanic" herself was launched in May 1911...

Here is a shot looking at the ships from pretty much the same location. "Olympic" stands with her hull painted white, with "Titanic" to her left...

Looking back towards the starshaped museum with its bow corners, original narrow gauge tracks can be seen in the ground with the Titanic Hotel to the left...

The tour was very informative and well worth the hour. Plenty of additional facts were given that I'd not come across before about the ship that the press once declared was "practically unsinkable". One of the best (I feel) photographs of "Titanic" is the final one (see below). "Titanic" was photographed for the last time on April 12th 1912 and she would sink during the early hours of April 15th. She was a beautiful ship: elegant lines and so graceful. To think that man created something so beautiful in a time where machinery and technology was still very much finding its way. Inspiring...

Our next port of call after the museum was SS Nomadic, completed in 1911 to serve as a tender to "Olympic" and "Titanic". "Nomadic" would ferry passengers and mail from the port of Cherbourg in France to the liners moored offshore. Capable of carrying 1000 passengers when fully loaded, "Nomadic" ferried some of the most famous passengers to "Titanic", including millionaire John Jacob Astor, the richest man on board. She is now the last remaining White Star ship, making her even more important to the "Titanic" story. I'm pleased that she now has a home in Belfast...

Looking from the deck of "Nomadic" towards the museum and hotel...

The bow of little "Nomadic"...

"Nomadic" is another time capsule, full of history. The only shame is that her previous owners in preservation have removed things such as her engines as these would have been impressive to see. After visiting "Nomadic" and completing our experience, we wandered back to the hotel to take the weight off for a while...

For our dinner we decided to once again take in Drawing Office II: I could never get tired of this room. Imagine if your local pub looked like this...

Time for more cocktails. An Old Fashioned seemed highly appropriate...

The bar was a little busier tonight. The first weeks of January don't seem like a busy time for the hotel, although the museum was busy. After a pleasant evening in the bar we returned to our room for some shut-eye. On Wednesday 8th January we were homeward bound, but not without one more thing to tick-off the list. With blue skies above, we trotted down the road alongside the current Harland & Wolff yards. Yes, they're still in business but they don't occupy the old offices anymore. The two huge yellow cranes: Samson and Goliath: dominate the skyline...

Near the dock of HMS Caroline we found the Thompson Dry Dock, although no apparent sign of anyone around. We found our way into a pleasant little café in the old pumphouse building and bought a bottle of water. I asked the young lad serving about the drydock and he enthusiastically said "oh yes, it's six pounds". Gladly, I paid the money and he pointed us through a one-way fire exit back outside. It was an odd experience and I couldn't help but think they were missing a trick, albeit perhaps only for 'serious' "Titanic" visitors. I was very pleased to see that you can still enter the dry dock itself. It's quite a space and a lot to take in...

Here is "Olympic" drydocked in 1912. The pumphouse building looks tiny in comparison to "Olympic"s intimidating 45,000 ton bulk standing alongside...

The Thompson Dry Dock was built in 1904 and is 850 feet long and 100 feet wide. The dock was just about long enough to hold the Olympic-class ships, thus giving a true representation of their size and scale. 26 million gallons of water had to be pumped out (via the pumphouse) in order to bring a ship that size safely down onto the keel blocks for painting, fitting out or repair. Here is me, showing the scale of the dock. It's hard to imagine standing underneath something as huge as "Titanic"...

The same keel blocks are in place now as held "Titanic"...

An awe-inspiring place and so glad that we asked the question...

A little more info on the dry dock as we walk back towards the pumphouse...

The pumphouse and dry dock. Well worth a visit...

Another Uber took us from the Thompson Dry Dock to the city centre for a final shop and a Starbucks before walking back to the hotel to collect our bags...

Our teatime flight home was boarded as darkness fell. Another Dash 8 would take us back to Birmingham, albeit in much more pleasant weather...

As the wheels left the runway behind, the plane turned herself away as we took one final look down at rush hour Belfast. It had been a fantastic trip and I am so, so grateful to Maisie for allowing me to finally tick-off that bucket list experience. Belfast is truly the home of "Titanic" and it would be lovely to visit again one day. This post really doesn't do justice to the experience we had but I hope it at least gives you all an insight. Go there, do everything: it's just wonderful. The Titanic Quarter is not only a memorial to the 1500 people that lost their lives aboard "Titanic". It is also a fitting reminder of the hope that those people had: the hope of a new life, the dream of America and their imaginations entwined with this beautiful ship. RIP "Titanic", that unsinkable dream. Experience it for yourselves now. Visit Belfast...