New Titanic hall is sure to excite

New Titanic Exhibition Hall in Belfast is a grand structure.

Nothing excites me more than events and stories surrounding the Titanic. So these days I'm very excited about the opening of a new attraction in Belfast which will bring the mighty ship back to life - in our minds, at least.

In just a few days, a new visitor's attraction called "Titanic Belfast in Northern Ireland" will open in that charming city where the "unsinkable" ship was built and from where she set sail on her ill-fated maiden voyage on which she struck an iceberg in the North Atlantic and dropped to the bottom of the ocean, where her skeleton remains still lie.

Our friends over at Tourism Ireland sent word yesterday that the finishing touches are being put on a new six-storey Titanic exhibition hall which officially opens March 31 and will feature lots of Titanic memorabilia. The unique structure of the Titanic hall - 3,000 shards make up the building’s impressive exterior while its plaza includes the world’s largest outdoor map of the northern hemisphere, tracing Titanic’s route across the Atlantic - and the fact the story of the Titanic still evokes interest these many years after she sunk, will make this Belfast attraction a must see this summer.


In Belfast you can visit the dockyard where Titanic was built.

 The Titanic hall features nine interpretive and interactive galleries that explore the sights, sounds, smells and stories of Titanic, as well as the city and people that made her. Visitors will learn about the construction of RMS Titanic and the wider story of Northern Ireland’s industrial and maritime heritage.

Over 50,000 advance tickets have been sold to the new hall, which just proves that lots of people like me remain fascinated about the great ship. People from as far away as Canada and New Zealand have booked passage to this new museum. While in Belfast, you can also visit the old Thompson dry dock where the Titanic was built and the city has plenty of other reminders of the great ship's brief but romantic history.

A 15-tonne ‘Titanic’ sign – the same weight as Titanic’s main anchor – dominates the building as visitors approach. Laser-cut and made from eight, 30mm-thick solid steel plates, the 4.5m-tall, 15m-long sign is the same length as the private promenades that were available on RMS Titanic’s most expensive accommodation, the First Class Parlour Suites.

In conjunction with the opening of the new Titanic Belfast visitor attraction, the Titanic Belfast Festival will take place from March 31 until May 2012 and will include plays, tours, exhibitions and talks all themed around the Titanic. Commemorations for the lives lost on the anniversary of the ship’s sinking will take place from April 14 to 15.

So make time this year to get to Belfast and see this permanent Titanic exhibition.

For more information, go to http://www.discoverireland.com/