Belfast International. The long runway that never shuts.
Aldergrove has the runway, the hours and the private terminals that the city airport does not. It is the field for a heavy aircraft, a night movement, a golf week on the Causeway coast or a run south across the border.
The airport
Belfast International at a glance
- CodesBFS / EGAAAt Aldergrove in County Antrim, about 13 miles north west of Belfast.
- Main runway07/25, 2,780 metresLong enough for any business jet in service and for narrow bodied airliners.
- Second runway17/35, 1,891 metresA crosswind strip, used when the wind demands it.
- Hours24 hours, 365 daysNo night curfew on movements, which is the main operational difference from the city airport.
- Private terminalsSeparate from the main terminalWoodgate Aviation has run a private jet terminal and hangar here for many years, and Global Trek Aviation also handles corporate movements.
- RoadsM2 to BelfastThe airport road joins the A57 and then the M2, which runs into the city.
- OwnerVinci AirportsThe larger of the two Belfast airports by passenger numbers.
- The alternativeBelfast City, about 15 miles awayMuch closer to the centre, shorter runway, restricted hours. See Belfast City.
Choosing between the two Belfast airports is almost always a question of aircraft type and time of day rather than distance. Tell us both and we will say which we would use.
Journey times
From Belfast International by road
| To | Quiet roads | Busy periods |
|---|---|---|
| Belfast city centre | 30 to 40 minutes | 40 to 60 minutes |
| Titanic Quarter and the harbour | 35 to 45 minutes | 45 to 70 minutes |
| Hillsborough and Lisburn | 30 to 45 minutes | 40 to 60 minutes |
| Royal Portrush and the Causeway coast | 55 to 70 minutes | 70 to 95 minutes |
| Royal County Down, Newcastle | 65 to 85 minutes | 85 to 110 minutes |
| Londonderry | 70 to 90 minutes | 85 to 110 minutes |
| Enniskillen and Lough Erne | 85 to 105 minutes | 100 to 125 minutes |
| Dublin city centre | 110 to 140 minutes | 140 to 190 minutes |
Realistic ranges, not promises. The M2 into Belfast is slow inbound before 09:00 and outbound from 16:00. The run to Dublin is straightforward on the A1 and M1 with an open border and no checkpoint, but the last twenty minutes into the city are the slowest part of the whole journey.
Why clients choose it
Hours, runway and somewhere quiet to land
Aldergrove was built as a bomber station and later carried transatlantic traffic, which is why a regional airport has nearly two thousand eight hundred metres of runway. For private movements that matters twice over. Almost nothing is too heavy for it, so a long sector west does not need a technical stop somewhere else, and the field runs through the night, so a late finish in Belfast does not become an unplanned overnight.
The other reason is geography. Northern Ireland is small and the roads out of Aldergrove are good in every direction, so the two championship links at Portrush and Newcastle, the Causeway coast, the Fermanagh lakes and the film locations that have made the province a production base are all inside a comfortable drive. If your day is entirely in the city centre and your aircraft is a midsize jet arriving at a civilised hour, Belfast City will put you at your hotel sooner, and we will tell you so.
On the day
Where the car waits and how we meet you
Private arrivals use one of the private terminals on the field rather than the main passenger building, each with its own road approach, gate and lounge. We contact the handling agent for your movement, agree the gate and where the car should stand, and position it before the aircraft lands. Where the airport permits it for that flight, the car can be brought to the aircraft. Permission is the airport's to give, so we confirm what has been approved.
For a scheduled arrival your chauffeur meets you in the main terminal with a name board. Night arrivals are routine here and we plan them properly: a chauffeur who has rested, a car already on the field, and a route that does not depend on a road closed for overnight works. Flights are tracked on both legs, so a late landing simply moves the car.
What we handle
Details that matter in Northern Ireland
Golf weeks, cross border days and movements at difficult hours.
- Flight tracking on both legs, with cars held for night and early morning movements
- Coordination with the private terminals and handling agents, including ramp access where it is permitted
- Cross border runs to Dublin, Adare and the west of Ireland planned as one journey with one chauffeur
- Golf itineraries between Portrush, Newcastle and the city, with vehicles that actually take four sets of clubs
- Production and location work across the province, where the call sheet moves and the car has to move with it
Coverage
Our cars, and cars we arrange
Odyssey owns its cars and employs its chauffeurs in London and Manchester. In Northern Ireland and the Republic we work with operators we know and have used before, to our brief and under our booking, so you keep one contact and one number on both sides of the border. Golf and production itineraries usually want a V-Class rather than a saloon, and a party of eight is two cars, not one at a squeeze: see group travel. If you need the aircraft as well, we arrange that: see private jet charter.
Onward
Where Belfast passengers go next
Other airports
Aircraft that suit the field
Request a quote
Tell us the movement
Date and time, tail number or operator, passengers, luggage including golf bags, and where you are going. If the day crosses the border, say so. Nothing is booked or charged online.
Prefer to talk? +44 2030 048300 or WhatsApp, at any hour.
Questions people ask
About Belfast International transfers
Can the car come to the aircraft?
Where the airport and the handling agent permit it for your movement. Otherwise the car is at the private terminal door. We confirm before you land.
Belfast International or Belfast City?
The city airport is far closer to the centre and better for a short business day. Aldergrove wins on runway length, on 24 hour operation and on a quieter arrival, and it is the better field for the Causeway coast.
Can you drive us to Dublin?
Yes. The border is open and there is no checkpoint. It is around two hours to the centre of Dublin in normal conditions, and we quote it as one journey rather than two.
Is it really open all night?
The airport operates 24 hours a day, every day of the year. Handling, customs and immigration still have to be arranged for your flight, which your operator does.
Can you arrange the aircraft as well?
Yes. See private jet charter.
