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About Belfast City (George Best) Airport

Introduction to Belfast City

George Best Belfast City Airport is a compact, single-terminal airport just 2–3 miles from Belfast city centre, right beside the harbour. It handles around 2–2.5 million passengers a year, with frequent flights to key UK and European cities. It’s known for being very quick to get through: the airport reports one of the shortest average security times in the UK – under six minutes – but still recommends arriving around two hours before departure so you’re not rushing. Most car parks are within a 3–10 minute walk of the terminal, so even the cheaper long-stay options stay fairly convenient.

1. How to get to Belfast City Airport?

You’ve got a few straightforward ways to reach Belfast City Airport:

Bus & coach

• Airport Express 600 – The dedicated Airport Express 600 runs between the airport and Belfast’s Grand Central / Europa Buscentre, right in the city centre. It typically takes about 10–15 minutes and runs every 20 minutes or so at busy times.
• Long-distance coaches + 600 bus – If you’re coming from elsewhere in Northern Ireland or the Republic, many coaches drop you at Europa Buscentre or nearby. From there, you simply hop on the 600 or take a short taxi ride to the airport.

Train + courtesy bus / walk

• There’s no station in the terminal, but Sydenham railway station sits near the airport on the Bangor–Belfast line.
• From Sydenham you can:
  • Use the courtesy bus: there’s an intercom at the bus stop by the footbridge; press it and the airport shuttle will collect you and take you to the terminal.
  • Or walk via the signed pedestrian route from the car entrance/footbridge – roughly 15–20 minutes depending on your pace.

This combo can work well if you’re coming by train into Belfast and want to avoid city-centre traffic.

Car

• The airport sits just off the A2 Sydenham Bypass, about a 10-minute drive from central Belfast in light traffic. You simply follow signs for the airport, which has its own dedicated exit.
• On site you’ll find:
  • Short Stay – a very short, mostly covered walk to the terminal.
  • Long Stay – the more cost-effective option, around a 5–10 minute walk.
  • Premier – closest to the terminal, with extra perks like fast-track security included.
  Pre-booking online usually secures better rates than paying on the day.

Taxi / private hire

• Airport-approved taxis operate from just outside the terminal; typical journey time into the city centre is around 10 minutes in normal traffic.
• For short hops from the city, or if there are 3–4 of you sharing, a taxi can be comparable to a few days’ parking. For longer trips or a week-long holiday, driving and parking often works out cheaper overall.

2. Choosing the right transport for you?

Whether you go for public transport, driving, or a taxi will depend on cost, convenience and how much “airport faff” you’re willing to tolerate. Belfast City is unusually close to town, which changes the equation a bit compared with more out-of-the-way airports.

Do a price comparison

Because the airport is so near the city, short taxi rides and the 600 bus can be very good value – but don’t automatically assume parking is always more expensive.

There are secure on-airport options (including long-stay) plus third-party operators you’ll see in our comparison tables. If you book in advance, daily rates can be surprisingly competitive, especially for trips of 3–4 days or more.

Check bus, train and taxi prices first by all means – then run a quick parking search above. It takes less than a minute and might show that driving isn’t as pricey as you think.

Delays

Think about what happens if your flight is delayed:

• With parking, you may pay an extra hour/day if you overstay. Annoying, but predictable.
• With buses/coaches:
  • Miss your booked service and don’t have a flexible ticket? You’ll probably be buying a brand new ticket at walk-up prices.
  • Late-evening or Sunday timetables can be thin, so you may find yourself waiting a long time or resorting to a taxi anyway.

Your car, by contrast, is always “parked and waiting” whenever you land.

Total costs

• A single cheap fare on the 600 looks great, but add in:
  • Taxis to/from the bus stop if you don’t live centrally.
  • Extra time off work to make public-transport connections.
• With parking, especially long-stay, the cost per person can be modest once you divide it between passengers.

Sometimes the “cheap” option stops looking so cheap when you include everything.

Stress & peace of mind

Are you going to lie awake the night before worrying if your 4am taxi will show up, or if you’ll make your train connection?
If that sort of thing gnaws at you, driving yourself and parking might actually be the calmer choice, particularly for early-morning departures.

Safety

Got a long drive at the other end of your trip, or fancy a G&T (or two) en route? In that case, public transport or an overnight hotel with parking (park, sleep, fly) might be the safer, more sensible option.

Convenience & luggage

With public transport you might be hauling bags:

• Through city-centre streets
• On and off buses
• Up and down steps or over footbridges (especially around Sydenham)

With parking, you load once at home and unload once at the terminal or car park. For families, groups, or anyone with mobility issues, that simplicity can be worth paying for.

Total time

At Airport Parking Shop we’re big fans of a bargain – but time matters too.

If public transport adds an extra hour or two to each end of your journey, that’s:

• More time getting up early or getting home late
• Less time actually on holiday

Factor that into your decision, not just the ticket price.

Where will you be dropped off?

• Bus 600 and most taxis drop you very close to the terminal entrance.
• With parking, you can get a similarly short walk from Premier or Short Stay; Long Stay and some third-party options will involve a 5–10 minute walk or short shuttle ride.

If anyone in your party struggles with walking or you’ve got multiple kids / car seats / bags, that last few hundred metres can make a big difference.

Which kind of parking is right for me?

So, you’ve decided to park at or near Belfast City – or at least want to understand the options before you decide. You’ll find the full detail in the Parking Options tab to the left, but here’s how it all fits together:

• Short Stay vs Long Stay vs Premier
  • Short Stay: closest for short trips, drop-offs and pick-ups.
  • Long Stay: usually the most cost-effective for anything over a couple of days, with a 5–10 minute walk to the terminal.
  • Premier: steps from the terminal and typically includes fast-track security passes – you’re paying for maximum convenience.
• How far in advance to book
  • We track how Belfast City prices tend to move when you book 1 day, 1 week or 1 month ahead, so you can judge whether to lock something in or hold off a little.
• Official vs third-party car parks
  • We explain what “official” and “off-airport” actually mean in practice here, and when each tends to be better value.
• Key features behind the headline price
  • Walking distance vs shuttle time.
  • Whether you keep your keys or hand them in.
  • EV charging, Blue Badge bays, height limits and security features (lighting, CCTV, patrols) that can make the difference between a true bargain and a false economy.
• Side-by-side comparison tables
  • For Belfast City we show the main car parks next to each other with distances, transfer times and key features laid out clearly, so you can see what you’re getting for your money at a glance.
• More pricing detail
  • Typical averages for short-stay vs long-stay vs premium.
  • How costs change as you move your booking closer to departure.
  • Official vs third-party averages, so you can instantly see when paying a bit more for an on-airport option makes sense – and when the independent providers win.

More Belfast City Airport info

If you want to go beyond transport and parking, our sister site Belfast City Airport Guide has more detail on:

• terminal layout and facilities
• shops, bars and restaurants
• live arrivals and departures
• taxis and car hire
• nearby airport hotels and local area info

It’s a handy place to plan the rest of your journey once you’ve sorted how you’re getting to the airport.