Tall Ships: Event Highlights
Opening times:
Thursday 13 August 12noon-9pm
Friday 14 August 12noon-9pm
Saturday 15 August 10am-9pm
Sunday 16 August 10am-4pm
*Terms and Conditions of Entry
apply.
Please note that no
ships will be open to the public on Sunday but the majority of
ships will be open from Thursday to
Saturday.
The festival will take place within Belfast’s Harbour over five
main sites: Clarendon Dock, Pollock
Dock, Queens Quay and Albert Quay with entertainment also being
provided at Custom House Square.
Due to the nature of the event and the site it is anticipated that
visitors will be continually moving along the Quayside allowing all
spectators unobstructed views of the Tall Ships.
Fireworks
Thursday 13, Friday 14 and
Saturday 15 August.
Each evening a burst of colour will
light up the river lagan and Belfast Lough, which will bring the
day’s events to a close at approximately
9.10pm.
Yakolev
Displays
Friday 14, Saturday 15 and Sunday 16
August. (Times to be advised on the day)
Look to the skies and be amazed as these unique aircrafts wow you
with a sparkling aerobatic performance of manoeuvrability and
grace.
Queens Quay will have something for the whole
family! Featuring a continental market, funfair rides for
younger family members, displays by the Northern Ireland Fire and
Rescue and BBC’s Headroom. Street entertainers will be performing
throughout the site. More...
Clarendon Dock will feature a dedicated family
activity zone with fun, exciting activities including a climbing
wall and dive tank. This site also boasts arts and crafts and
displays for the whole family with live music. A continental market
will also be located here. More...
The Albert Quay site will
host a larger funfair for those more daring, a continental market
with walkabout entertainers adding carnival atmosphere to the site
as well as The UK Strongest Man Competition. More...
Pollock Dock will host operational naval
vessels as well as other interactive demonstrations throughout the
event.
Boat Tours: The Lagan
Boat Company and The RIB Water Taxi
Service enable you to get up close and personal to the Tall
Ships - click on above links for further information.
Custom House Square
will feature live music running late into evening. During the
day there will be family entertainment with involvement from a
variety of local community groups, while in the evening the
stage will be set for a variety of musicians from across the
world. Evening concerts are ticketed; these can be purchased
at a cost of £12 from the Belfast Welcome Centre.
Book
here now.
Information Points
There will be various information points throughout the
site. The Tall Ships
programme will be available to purchase at several
locations at the event.
Other Activities
The Titanic Dock &
Pump-House Visitor Centre and Café will operate from
10.00 to 18.30 for all 4 days. There will be tours from 11.00 to
18.00 at 30 minute intervals. All guides in period
costume. Usual prices. We have extended the £1 off
offer we currently have with Lagan Boat, Belfast City SightSeeing
to include SS Nomadic. Simply show your ticket to obtain the
£1 off.
The Movie Birth of a Legend will be shown at
12.00 noon and 16.00 each day This award-winning
drama-documentary narrated by Charles Dance and starring Damian
O'Hare as the ship's Co. Down-born chief engineer Thomas Andrews,
the film recounts the story - and fate - of the Harland & Wolff
shipyard workers who built Titanic and its White Star sister ship
Olympic. Cost as current tour cost £5 per adult.
SS Nomadic – Daytime Opening, Tours
& Evening Performances
Don’t miss out on your opportunity to visit the S.S. Nomadic;
Titanic’s Little Sister and the last of the once mighty White Star
Line. The ship will be temporarily opened from 10th –23rd August to
mark the visit of the Tall Ships to Belfast.
Visitors can enjoy tours, talks, exhibitions/artefacts, as well
as a souvenir shop and the Lough life Children’s Art Workshop.
Tickets are priced at £5 per adult, £3 per child or senior
citizen (14- / 60+) and £12 for a Family ticket (2 adults and 2
children).
Tickets are valid between 10am – 6pm each day and can be
purchased in advance from the Belfast Welcome Centre (Donegall
Place) or by calling 028 9024 6609. Tickets can also be purchased
on the day beside the ship which will be situated in Hamilton Dry
Dock on the Queens Road (Just behind Odyssey Arena).
We regret that there is no disabled access onboard and the ship
is limited to 300 guests on board at any one time.
In addition the vessel will open its doors on the evenings of
13th, 14th and 15th of August for a special performance of a
‘Titanic’ play performed by students from Dominican College
Fortwilliam.
Tickets are priced at £10 per adult and £5 per child or senior
citizen and must be purchased in advance from the Belfast Welcome Centre (Donegall Place
- 028 9024 6609).
Click here to visit the Tall Ships 2009 Virtual Visit
Gallery.
When viewing the virtual tours, be sure to check out the
Full Screen option for maximum impact!
Belfast Harbour Commissioner's Office
Corporation Square
Belfast BT1 3AL
Belfast Harbour Office, the offices of the Harbour Commission
shows the importance of the port of Belfast in the 19th
Century.
The first section of the building was opened in 1854 and a
subsequent extension designed by William Henry Lynn in the style of
an Italian palazzo was completed in 1895.
The interior of the building is perhaps even more impressive
than the exterior and is well worth a visit. Of particular
interest, on entering the building, are the marble mosaic floors in
the ground floor reception area and in the first floor lobby. Also
noteworthy are the impressive stained glass windows depicting
industry, commerce and enterprise, together with the coats of arms
of the many ports and cities with which Belfast traded in the
past.
Belfast Harbour Commissioner’s Office is open to the public as
part of the Tall Ships event.
There is a Blue Badge Guide on hand to provide information on
this notable and historic building and self guided tours are
available.
Opening times:
Saturday 12 noon – 5pm
Sunday 12 noon – 2.30pm
Entrance is FREE
Belfast Tall Ships Sail out in Style
Belfast and Northern Ireland’s biggest ever event comes to its
penultimate and most dramatic end as the magnificent Parade of Sail
dissipates at 12 noon on Sunday 16th August.
Over 40+ ships from the Tall Ships fleet will be mustard into
position that will allow viewing from both sides of Belfast
Lough. The organisers of Belfast Maritime Festival expect
hundreds of thousands to say farewell to the 1,000 crew as they
head to a variety of ports across Europe
Those wishing to view this spectacular site can choose from a
variety of locations from both sides of the Lough. As well as
coming down to the main event site which will be opened from 10am
to 4pm.
The fleet will begin to depart from the Port of Belfast from
approximately 12.30 and it is estimated to take 1½ hours for the
ships to leave. The impressive vessels should experience a
good westerly breeze and are expected to pass Bangor at around
2pm.
Due to expected numbers police and road service advise those
travelling to view at key vantage points to give themselves plenty
of time.
Travellers are advised to use Translink and NI
Railway Services and to check the Translink website and DOE travel
website for further details. http://www.translink.co.uk/
Car users
Special traffic management arrangements will be put in place along
key coastal routes. Car users should expect delays along both
sides of Belfast Lough and are asked to leave plenty of time for
their journey. Car drivers are asked to follow traffic
directions, be considerate where they park and follow the rules of
the road.