Scheduled services from the United States and Canada are mostly routed through Dublin, Glasgow, London, or Manchester. A considerable number of new routes have been introduced to Belfast International to great fanfare in recent years. Zoom offers low-cost direct flights from Toronto and Vancouver, and Continental offers direct service from the United States out of Newark.

Frequent services to Belfast's two airports are scheduled throughout the day from London Heathrow, London Gatwick, and Luton (all of which have fast coordinated subway or rail connections to central London) and from 17 other U.K. airports. Flights from London take about one hour. Aer Arann flies twice daily from Cork to Belfast on weekdays. British Airways flies to George Best Belfast City Airport and Derry from Manchester and London's Heathrow and Gatwick. British Midlands, through its low-cost carrier BMI Baby, flies from Birmingham, Cardiff, Durham, Manchester, and Nottingham to Belfast International. Jet2 flies from Belfast International to Barcelona, Leeds, and Prague. EasyJet flies from Belfast International to 28 European airports, including, among others, Alicante, Amsterdam, Barcelona, Bristol, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Liverpool, Luton, Nice, Paris, Rome, Stansted, and Venice. Flybe, also known as British European Airways, flies from Belfast City to Aberdeen, Birmingham, Bristol, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Leeds, London Gatwick, Norwich, and Southampton, among others. At the end of 2007, Aer Lingus moved part of its operation from Shannon Airport to Belfast International, where it now operates eight routes to Amsterdam, Barcelona, Budapest, Faro, Geneva, London, Malaga, and Rome. The move represents a £100 million investment and was the first Aer Lingus hub set up outside the Republic of Ireland.

Carriers

Aer Arann (081/821-0210 or 0800/587-2324. www.aerarann.ie). Aer Lingus (0870/876-5000. www.aerlingus.com). British Airways (0845/773-3377. www.britishairways.com). British Midland Airways (0870/850-9850. www.bmibaby.com). Continental (0845/607-6760. www.continental.com/uk). EasyJet (0871/244-2366. www.easyjet.com). Flybe (0871/522-6100. www.flybe.com). Jet2 (0871/226-1737. www.jet2.com). Zoom (0870/240-0055. www.zoomairlines.com).

Airports

Belfast International Airport at Aldergove is the north's principal air arrival point, 30½ km (19 mi) north of town. George Best Belfast City Airport is the secondary airport, 6½ km (4 mi) east of the city. It receives flights from U.K. provincial airports, from London's Gatwick and Heathrow, and from Stansted and Luton (both near London). City of Derry Airport is 8 km (5 mi) from Derry and receives flights from Dublin, Glasgow, London, and Manchester.

Airport Information

George BestBelfast City Airport (028/9093-9093. www.belfastcityairport.com). Belfast International Airport at Aldergove (028/9448-4848. www.belfastairport.com). City of Derry Airport (028/7181-0784. www.cityofderryairport.com).

Transfers

Ulsterbus operates a bus every 10 minutes (one way £6, round-trip £9) between Belfast International Airport and Belfast city center, as well as between George Best Belfast City Airport and the city center (one way £2). Contact Translink for information on all buses. From the City Airport, you can also travel into Belfast by train from Sydenham Halt to Central Station or catch a taxi from the airport to your hotel. If you arrive at the City of Derry Airport, you may need to call a taxi to get to your destination. A direct bus service, the Airporter (028/7126-9996 www.airporter.co.uk) links Derry with both Belfast International and George Best Belfast City Airports (one way £17.50, round-trip £27.50).

Contacts

Delta Cabs (028/7127-9999). Eglinton Taxis (028/7181-1231). Foyle Taxis (028/7126-3905). Translink (028/9066-6630. www.translink.co.uk).