Booking your Belfast car hire in advance will save you time and even some money - shop around for cheap Ireland car hire deals. If you're flying to Belfast you'll be touching down in one of two airports. These are Belfast International Airport and Belfast City (George Best) Airport.

Belfast International Airport is Northern Ireland's main airport and operates daily flights to the UK, Europe and further afield and serves a number of airlines including Bmibaby, EasyJet, Jet2.com, Teleticket, Continental, Zoom and Manx2.com. It's located about 18 miles from Belfast city centre and is really easy to get to via the M2 motorway.

Although smaller, the George Best Airport, formerly known as Belfast City Airport, is also very important and serves daily flights to various destinations in the UK. This airport has a single runway and is located about 3km (2 miles) east of Belfast city centre. It's easily accessed via the A2 national road.

Whichever airport you're flying into, make your way from the baggage reclaim area to the Arrivals Hall – the arrival areas in both airports are located on the ground floor of the terminal building. All the car hire desks can be found here.

If you've booked your car hire with us you'll have received a booking confirmation voucher. This will state the car hire company you're booked with and the location of the car hire desk. Once you've finalized all the necessary car hire details, you'll be given the keys and directed to your car hire – there may even be a commuter bus to the car park, and then off you go.

Hiring a car is definitely the best way to see Northern Ireland. It gives you the freedom and flexibility to explore all the sights and scenery at your leisure. Other benefits include getting to areas off the beaten track that aren't accessible by public transport. All areas are well signposted and there are also plenty of stops along the way, so bring a picnic!

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