The brilliant Belvoir Forest Park is fine place to escape the hustle and bustle for a while.
Home to one of the most popular walks in Belfast, this is a working forest within the city that links to the Lagan Valley Regional Park.
If you’re after a lovely forest ramble, you’ve found it!
Below, you’ll find info on everything from parking and opening hours to what to look out for while you’re there.
Some quick need-to-knows about Belvoir Park Forest in Belfast
Although a visit to Belvoir Forest Park is fairly straightforward, there are a few need-to-knows that’ll make your visit that bit more enjoyable.
1. Location
The Belvoir Park Forest is just over 4 miles from Belfast City Centre and still within the city’s confines. The main entrance is from the car park opposite Tesco in South Belfast, just off the A55.
2. Opening hours
Belvoir Forest Park is open 24 hours a day all year round.
3. Parking
The main entrance to the forest park is at the car park off the Outer Ring Road – A55 – but there are several entrances. If you want to park and walk, The Lagan towpath via Shaw’s Bridge is popular, as is the Galwally Avenue entrance.
About Belvoir Park Forest
First opened to the public in 1961, Belvoir Park Forest is a park within a working forest and was covers 75 hectares along the banks of the River Lagan.
It was originally an estate owned by the Hill family, and their house sat on the spot where the car park is now.
The buildings scattered around the Park were farm buildings built at the same time.
Historical Buildings
Just a short walk from the car park, you arrive at the 12th Century Norman motte (a raised piece of ground on which castles were built), and this dates to John de Courcy when he invaded Ulster.
Also dating from this time is the Ice House, built into the motte’s side.
Stroll along the Lagan towpath to Shaw’s Bridge which was built to ferry Cromwell’s gunners across the river. You can also see the ruined Irish Ringfort.
The remains of an ancient village and a medieval graveyard with gravesites dating to the 14th century are well worth a visit too.
The Arboretum
The Hills sold the estate to the Batesons, who planted over 35 tree species and created an arboretum in the Park around 1839.
Many of these trees are now unrecognised.
The Belvoir Forest Park walks
Map via the NI Forest Service
There are several walking trails in and around Belvoir, as you can see from the map above.
The trails are waymarked and each is relatively easy to follow. Here’s an overview:
- The Arboretum Path: 0.6 miles/1km (look for the blue arrows)
- The Lagan Trail: 1.5 miles/2.5km (look for the red arrows)
- The Meadows Trail: 1.9 miles/3km (look for the red arrows)
Things to do nearby
One of the beauties of Belvoir Forest Park is that it’s a short spin away from many of the best places to visit in Belfast.
Below, you’ll find a handful of things to see and do a stone’s throw from Belvoir Park:
- Ormeau Park(10-minute drive): Beautiful park in the southeast of Belfast with several trails
- Lady Dixon Park (10-minute drive): Home to the magnificent Belfast International Rose Garden
- Belfast City attractions (15-minute drive): Titanic Belfast, the Ulster Museum, Belfast Zoo, Cave Hill, Divis and Black Mountain and Belfast Black Cab tours
- Food in the City (15-minute drive): There’s plenty of excellent restaurants in Belfast. Or, for something casual, there’s some great cafes for breakfast in Belfast and there’s lots of lovely spots for brunch in Belfast, too
Keith O’Hara has lived in Ireland for 35 years and has spent most of the last 10 creating what is now The Irish Road Trip guide. Over the years, the website has published thousands of meticulously researched Ireland travel guides, welcoming 30 million+ visitors along the way. In 2022, the Irish Road Trip team published the world’s largest collection of Irish Road Trip itineraries. Keith lives in Dublin with his dog Toby and finds writing in the 3rd person minus craic altogether.