BELFAST INSIDER
What’s the craic Belfast 👋
With just 3 days to Halloween, Derry is getting ready to celebrate 40 years of spooky festivities.
While everyone is getting ready for spooky season, sometimes, it’s just a good lunch deal that makes your day.
We’ve got some interesting new updates which includes a new way to enjoy your afternoon tea in a 1963 double decker.
THE DIGEST: Belfast in Brief
Only the good news, promise.
🎃 Derry’s Halloween Festival Turns 40!
With Halloween just around the corner, Derry is gearing up for five days of spooky celebrations, and this year marks a special milestone: 40 years of Derry Halloween!
What began as a community celebration in 1986 has grown into one of the biggest Halloween festivals. From 28th October to 1st November, the historic Walled City will come alive with illuminated streets, live performances and characters inspired by local folklore.
The best part, there's more than enough mischief to keep all ages busy. What better way to celebrate Derry Halloween at 40!
If you’ve never experienced the famous Halloween parade, this might be the year to change that.
💬 Would you join the Halloween parade, or is it all a bit too spooky for you?
🚌 Belfast is getting its Afternoon Tea in a 1963 Double-Decker!
Picture yourself settling into a classic double-decker bus, sipping tea, enjoying a slice of cake and watching Belfast roll by. Now that’s a tea date with a view!
That’s the idea behind Belfast Original Tea Tours (BOTT), which is celebrating its first birthday after a year of bringing a rather lovely idea to life. Its 1963 Routemaster has been restored and transformed into a mobile tea experience, and the team is finally ready to welcome customers aboard.
Forget the usual café table for a moment. This is your chance to pair a cuppa and cake with a wee spin around Belfast.
💬 Who’s the first person you’d invite for tea on a double-decker bus?
🏠 Budget 2026 Offers Relief for Northern Ireland Households
If you’re one of the 61% of households in Northern Ireland that relies on heating oil, you’ll know that keeping warm through winter comes with a bill of its own.
Thankfully, through Budget 2026, the Government is removing the 4% import tariff on kerosene, which is used in heating oil. It’s also cancelling plans to add 5p to fuel duty until June 2027 and removing import tariffs on more than 100 food products, including chocolate and fruit juice.
Although these changes might not automatically mean lower prices for households, it’s a welcome development.
💬 What would make the biggest difference to your household bills this season?
🏪 LOCAL BUSINESS SCOOP
Openings, Closures & Buzz Around Town
🏨 A New Hotel Is Coming to Belfast’s Most Photographed Street
Commercial Court is already a go-to spot for a night out, but imagine being able to grab dinner, enjoy a drink and then head upstairs to your hotel room without leaving the street!
That’s the idea behind a new 25-bedroom boutique hotel planned for the famous Cathedral Quarter Lane. With a bar and restaurant on the ground floor, the development could give visitors another reason to linger a little longer, whether they’re in Belfast for a weekend away or simply looking for somewhere new to eat and drink.
The plans have now been approved, but there’s no opening date yet. For now, we’ll have to wait and see what this new addition brings to one of Belfast’s most recognisable streets.
💬 Would you stay in a boutique hotel right in the heart of Belfast’s Cathedral Quarter?
🍦 A Belfast Ice Cream Favourite Is Closing After 45 Years
Remember the places you visited as a child and later returned to with your own family? For generations of South Belfast locals, Barnams Café has been one of those places.
The Lisburn Road favourite will serve its final customers at 5pm on Saturday, 31 October. Owner Aki McCullough says rising rent has made it impossible to keep going, and despite putting the café up for sale in 2022, no one has come forward to take over.
From breakfasts and cakes to more than 24 flavours of ice cream, Barnams has been part of local life for 45 years. Aki says it breaks her heart that the café won't be continuing under new ownership.
If you've been meaning to pop in for one last scoop, this might be the weekend to do it.
💬 Is there a Belfast café or shop from your childhood you'd be heartbroken to see close?
🍺 Want your business featured? [Get in touch →]
Your Weekend Lineup
🎟️ WHAT’S HAPPENING:
If your excuse for staying home this weekend is “there’s nothing happening in Belfast,” now is the time to reconsider.
Here are a few things happening around Belfast from Thursday through early next week:
Thursday 29 October
Friday 30 October
Saturday 31 October
Sunday 1 November
Monday 2 November
Tuesday 3 November
Wednesday 4 November
💛 COMMUNITY SPOTLIGHT
PICTURE: BRIAN LINCOLN
💛 A Little Piece of Home for Belfast’s Spanish-Speaking Families
Imagine moving to a new place and wanting your children to grow up speaking the language you grew up with, surrounded by others who share that part of your world.
That’s how Raíces NI began, with a few Spanish mothers meeting in a park so their children could make friends and speak Spanish together.
Four years later, it has grown into a registered charity bringing around 20 families together every Sunday at Shaftesbury Community & Recreation Centre. While the children learn Spanish, spend time with a teacher and build friendships, parents get to catch up over coffee and find a sense of community, too.
💬 Share this with someone who might love to be part of a community like this.
Foodie Finds 🍴
🍽️ Your Lunch Plans Might Just Be Sorted for £10
£10 for a buffet with 14 hot dishes and three salads? Now, that’s the kind of lunch deal that gets our attention!
The Morning Star has you covered from Monday to Saturday, whether you’re in the mood for a plate piled high with hot food or fancy mixing things up with a few salads. And with 14 hot dishes to choose from, you might find yourself going back for seconds… or thirds! 👀
💬 What’s going on your plate first?
📸As Spotted
🐦 Belfast’s Winter Visitors Are Back!
Thousands of starlings are turning the sky above Albert Bridge into their own evening show, and it’s quite the sight!
As dusk falls, the birds swoop and swirl together before settling down for the night. This incredible display, known as a murmuration, is one of Belfast’s most magical seasonal sights.
So, if you’re near Albert Bridge as the evening draws in, keep your eyes on the sky. You might just catch the show yourself!
💬 Have you ever stopped to watch Belfast’s starlings put on a show?
🗳️ POLL OF THE WEEK
💬 YOUR VOICE
Belfast is full of stories, and we know our readers are often the first to spot them!
Seen something interesting around town? Heard about a new business opening or know someone doing something worth celebrating?
We’d love to hear about it. Just reply to this email and share the details with us.
👋 Until next week
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Also, ensure you visit somewhere on our list this week, and let’s know how it goes.
Have a great week.
💛 Team Belfast Insider