The Tara Lodge plays a clever trick: it looks and feels like a hotel, when in fact it is basically a very classy bed and breakfast. This is no bad thing: rather than attempting to offer the usual average hotel facilities that you really don't need in this great location (restaurant, bar, spa etc) the Tara Lodge concentrates on offering classy city centre accommodation with great breakfasts and really special staff.

The hotel has two floors of rooms with a small annexe. It's all new build, and has recently been refurbished to a very high standard. The rooms aren't big, but don't feel small, with excellent fittings and fixtures new from late 2007. Flat screen TV, a comfy bed and a simple but well executed bathroom.

The rates compare very well with the mainstream chain hotels in the city, and this is far better than the Holiday Inn or Hilton. It's also handy to reach, just round the corner from Botanic railway station. Catch any Portadown train from Syndenham station (adjacent to Belfast City Airport) or Belfast Central (where the Dublin Enterprise train arrives).

The hotel is located just off Botanic Avenue, a small but bustling street with great places to eat, drink and shop. Be sure to have a late night Clements Coffee, a post-night-out Irish breakfast at Maggie Mays and make sure you spend an hour or so browsing No Alibis, Ireland's best crime bookstore.