ISSUE #004 · 26 OCT–1 NOV 2026
Halloween fireworks, bats after dark and a ghost story you help steer.
IN THIS ISSUE
What’s on this week 7 picks
Anytime 1 to save
New & coming soon 2 places
Quick poll 1 question
I've spent a good bit of this week travelling around Northern Ireland and meeting the people behind some places worth knowing about.
One stop involved four plunge pools: 12°C, 9°C, 6°C and 3°C. I felt like Goldilocks working my way down the line. I made it into the 3°C one. I wouldn't call it just right.
Working my way down to 3°C
I'm exploring a few ways to make experiences like these easier for readers to try. More on that soon.
Last week's poll told us something useful, distance is stopping a lot of you from making plans.
Off The Drink Club is for you, and I want you to have a say in what we find.
So this week, tell us where you're based. Your answers will help me look harder for good things closer to home, alongside the places worth the drive.
Take a few seconds to vote in the poll below. Your answers really do help shape what comes next.
First, here's what made the cut this week.
WHAT’S ON THIS WEEK
95 checked · 7 made the cut · 26 Oct–1 Nov
★ PICK OF THE WEEK SAT 31 OCT · DERRY
Catch Derry Halloween’s finale
Free · All ages · City culture
Derry Halloween fireworks over the Foyle, with the Peace Bridge in the foreground.
Derry Halloween turns 40 this year, and Saturday’s finale is the centrepiece: a carnival parade along Queen’s Quay, then fireworks over the Foyle. Earlier in the week, you can walk the Awakening the Walled City Trail or try a short printmaking workshop with Bonehead Printers.
Sat 31 Oct · parade approx 7pm · fireworks approx 8.15pm
Queen’s Quay / River Foyle · Derry
Free · no ticket needed · weather dependent
Also on: Walled City Trail · Wed 28–Fri 30 Oct · 6–9pm · free (timed ticket for the enhanced City Walls section)
Also on: Bonehead Printers workshops · Wed 28–Sat 31 Oct · Garden of Reflection · £5 + booking fee · ages 5+
MIDWEEK
SELECTED DATES 26–31 OCT · NEAR KILKEEL, CO. DOWN
Walk with alpacas near Kilkeel
£12.50 · Family · Meet the animals
Meet, feed and walk alpacas on Cranfield’s Adventure Trail, with a treasure hunt along the way. At around 75 minutes, it’s a proper outing rather than a quick photo stop, and it’s suitable for wheelchair users.
Selected dates 26–31 Oct · approx 75 mins · pick a session when booking
Cranfield Alpacas, 35–37 Cranfield Road · near Kilkeel, Co. Down
£12.50 adult or child 2+ · £5 under 2 · £40 family (2 adults, 2 children)
Booking required · arrive 10 mins early · no pets
THU 29 OCT · BANGOR, CO. DOWN
Step inside Bangor’s art studios
Free · Open studios · Local art
Bangor’s Late Night Art opens up local studios and galleries on Thursday evening, with artists showing what they’ve been working on. At Boom! Studios, see the Darkness exhibition, browse an artists’ market and look around the working studios. A free evening that might introduce you to a new favourite local artist.
Thu 29 Oct · 6–9pm
Boom! Studios, 80A Main Street · Bangor, plus other city-centre venues
Free · drop in · no booking needed
Can’t make it? Next one: Thu 26 Nov · 6–9pm
THU 29 OCT · BELFAST
Walk the Blue Lights locations
£14 · Walking tour · TV locations
See Belfast through Blue Lights rather than the usual city-tour checklist. Led by the Northern Ireland Tourist Guide Association, this 90-minute walk links the TV drama to the real streets and places used in filming, starting at City Hall.
Thu 29 Oct · 11am · approx 90 mins
Belfast City Hall · meeting point on your booking confirmation
£14pp · booking required · choose the 11am session
THU 29 OCT–SUN 1 NOV · BELFAST
Choose your own ghost story
£15 · Ages 13+ · Interactive
The Thirteen Chairs puts you inside a ghost story rather than in front of one, with the audience helping choose what happens. An unusual Halloween night out at Cahoots Theatre in Belfast.
Thu 29 Oct–Sun 1 Nov · choose a performance when booking
Cahoots Theatre, Cityside Retail & Leisure Park, 100–150 York Street · Belfast
£15 adult · £12 child/concession · £8 student · £40 family · ages 13+ · booking required
WEEKEND
SAT 31 OCT · DAVAGH FOREST, CO. TYRONE
Look for bats after sunset
£7 · All ages · Real wildlife
Head into Davagh Forest as night falls, with staff and bat detectors to help you listen for local bats. You’ll hear which species live in Northern Ireland and how light pollution affects them. If the weather’s against you, it switches to bat crafts and indoor learning instead.
Sat 31 Oct · 5.30–6.30pm
OM Dark Sky Park and Observatory, Davagh Forest · Co. Tyrone
£7pp · all ages · booking required · dress for outdoors
SUN 1 NOV · DAVAGH FOREST, CO. TYRONE
A heritage walk under dark skies
£25 · Night sky · Local heritage
Stars and Stones Explored is a guided walk of around three miles through Davagh’s landscape, mixing local heritage with the night sky. A picnic is included, with astronomy observing if the weather allows. Wrap up for walking outdoors in the dark.
Sun 1 Nov · 4–7pm · approx 3-mile guided walk
OM Dark Sky Park and Observatory, Davagh Forest · Co. Tyrone
£25pp incl. picnic · booking required · observing weather permitting · bring a torch
ANYTIME
Save this one · bookable any time, no date to miss
SATURDAYS YEAR-ROUND · PORTADOWN, CO. ARMAGH
Try your hand at blacksmithing
£35 · Try it yourself · Heritage craft
Ever wondered what it feels like to work at an anvil? At Moneypenny’s Forge, in old stables beside the Newry Canal, beginners learn traditional blacksmithing and try making something useful, like a hook or bottle opener. One to save for a free Saturday.
Saturdays year-round · arrange your taster date in advance
Moneypenny’s Forge, Portadown, Co. Armagh
£35pp · booking essential · check age suitability with the organiser
No parking at the forge · access via the canal towpath
NEW & COMING SOON
Two places worth knowing about beyond this week's event calendar.
01 · COMING DECEMBER · BELFAST
Christmas films from your car
A drive-in cinema is coming to Boucher Road Playing Fields this December, with Christmas films on a giant screen, sound through your car radio and snacks on site. Tickets are sold per car rather than per person, making it an interesting option for a group night out. Tickets go on sale 1 November, with screenings expected to begin in early December.
Discover the drive-in cinema →
02 · NOW OPEN · BELFAST
Padel, pizza and ice baths
FEAT4 has opened on Boucher Road in south Belfast, bringing five indoor padel courts, a pizza kitchen and café. There's also a sauna, ice bath, Pilates and sports recovery on site. It's designed as somewhere to spend time with friends, not just play a match. Check court availability before heading over.
QUICK POLL
WHEREABOUTS ARE YOU?
- Belfast & around (Lisburn, Newtownabbey)
- North Down & Ards (Bangor, Holywood, Newtownards)
- Antrim & Causeway Coast (Ballymena, Larne, Coleraine)
- Derry & Strabane
- Tyrone & Mid Ulster (Omagh, Dungannon, Cookstown)
- Fermanagh (Enniskillen, Lisnaskea)
- Armagh, Banbridge & Craigavon
- Newry, Mournes & South Down (Newry, Newcastle, Downpatrick)
- Republic of Ireland (Donegal, Monaghan, Louth, Cavan)
- England, Scotland, Wales or elsewhere (tell us where!)
PASS IT ON
Know someone who’d enjoy one of these? Forward OFF THE DRINK CLUB, and tell us which outing caught your eye.
BREAK THE DEFAULT.
There's more to going out than going for a drink.
OFF THE DRINK CLUB is a free weekly Northern Ireland newsletter.
No endless listings. Just a handful of things genuinely worth doing.
— ISSUE #004 —