Belfast City Airport Parking

Named after Northern Ireland's legendary footballer, George Best Belfast City Airport (BHD) is the third-busiest airport on the island of Ireland and Northern Ireland, handling over 2.7 million passengers each year. Known as Belfast City Airport until 2006, it was renamed after George Best on May 22nd 2006, when the late footballer would have celebrated his 60th birthday.

The airport has been a hub for independent regional airline Flybe since 1993 and the majority of flights out of BHD are Flybe services bound for cities across the United Kingdom. However, there are international flights available to destinations including Iceland, Belgium, the Netherlands, Spain and Portugal through a number of other operators.

The airport is located just 1.8 miles (2.9 kilometres) from Belfast city centre, off the A2 Sydenham bypass. It takes just 10 minutes to reach the airport by car from the city centre via the A2. BHD is less than 90 minutes’ drive from Londonderry and less than two hours' drive away from Dublin in the Republic of Ireland.

Public transport to the airport is available, with the Airport Express 600 service running throughout the week from Belfast city centre, with a reduced service on Sundays. The airport is adjacent to Sydenham train station and rail services run to Belfast Central and Victoria Street stations on a half-hourly basis during the daytime and on an hourly basis at night.

Taxis are also available to transport passengers between BHD and Belfast city centre.

Car

If you are driving to BHD from Holywood or Bangor, you can take the A2 all the way to the airport. From the city centre, drivers should take the Sydenham bypass, following signs for George Best Belfast City Airport. Anyone travelling by car from northerly destinations like Antrim and Ballymena can take the M2 and follow signs for the airport until they reach the bypass or the A2. If you are travelling by car from areas south of Belfast, the M1 will lead you into the city, where you can join the bypass.

The city centre traffic system can be a little confusing at times, but if you have a sat nav system, you can enter the post code BT3 9JH to get directions to the airport.

Bus

The Airport Express 600 bus service runs between George Best Belfast City Airport and the city centre every 20 minutes during the day, with a reduced service operating until around 9pm every evening. You can catch the bus at locations across the city, including Europa Buscentre, Loganside Buscentre and Donegall Square East.

The Airporter bus service also connects BHD with Londonderry, with 18 departures from the airport every day during the week, eight departures every Saturday and 10 departures every Sunday..

Save money on buses

If you are travelling into Belfast city centre from the airport by bus, you can purchase a Metro day ticket to ride the 600 service and any other buses in the city. You can purchase your tickets at the tourist information centre in the arrivals hall or the airport's 24-hour information desk.

Stay connected

While the WiFi at George Best Belfast City Airport has been completely free and unlimited since Ulster Bank first provided sponsorship of its network in 2014, passengers do need to re-enter their details every four hours to stay connected. The WiFi network is called 'Free WiFi City Airport'.

Prepare for the boarding process

If you or a member of your travelling party are on the autistic spectrum, there is a series of videos on the George Best Belfast City Airport website that explains the process of passing through the airport in detail. These videos are filmed from a young person's perspective and offer helpful reassurance to anyone flying for the first time or feeling unsure about what to expect. You can find the videos on this page of the airport's website.

Go mobile

George Best Belfast City Airport features scanners that are compatible with mobile boarding passes, so if you are travelling with an airline that offers mobile check-in and app-based boarding cards, you can use your phone instead of printing your flight tickets to save on paper and remove the danger of misplacing them.

More than 2.7 million passengers travel through the single terminal at Belfast City Airport each year on flights provided by six commercial airlines.

The majority of flights out of BHD are bound for cities in Scotland, England and Wales, but there are flights available to other European countries, such as Belgium, the Netherlands and Spain.

The floor-to-ceiling windows at George Best Belfast City Airport look out over the spectacular landscapes of Cave Hill Country Park, which makes time spent there that little bit more pleasant and relaxing.

Those views only open up once you've passed through security at BHD, but you can enjoy Italian coffee, locally sourced food, a well-stocked pub and takeaway sandwiches on either side of the turnstiles, not to mention free WiFi throughout the terminal.

Passengers requiring special assistance at the airport should contact their airline, travel agent or tour operator at least 48 hours before arriving at BHD. This information will be passed on to the airport's staff and assistance will be provided from arrival through to take-off.

Facilities at George Best Belfast City Airport include:

• ATMs

• Baggage enquiries

• Car rental

• Currency exchange

• Conference rooms

• Disabled seating and access

• Family and baby facilities

• Fast-track security

• Food and drink

  • Restaurants

  • Cafés

  • Bars

  • Breakfasts

• Information desks

• Internet kiosks

• Lost property office

• Lounges

• Meeting rooms

• Parking facilities

• Shopping

  • Newsagent

  • Duty free

  • Fashion retailer

• Smoking area

• Trolleys

• WiFi