Belfast Hidden Tours: Walking, Whiskies & Whispers | BWW 2023

Name: Belfast Whiskey Week 2026
Start: 2026-07-24
End: 2026-08-01
Location: Belfast

Filed: 15 Jul 2023
By: Belfast Whiskey Week
Read: 5 min
Ref: BWW/23/820

There are few better ways to know a city than to walk its streets with someone who loves it — and on the afternoon of Thursday 27th October 2023, Belfast Whiskey Week's Event 81 did exactly that. Led by the charismatic Fionnuala and Conor of Belfast Hidden Tours, this three-hour walking tour wove together the uisce beatha of Ulster, the seanchas of Belfast's industrial past, and the warm hospitality of some of the city's finest hidden hostelries. It was, in the truest sense, a festival event that could only have happened here.

About This Event

Both Fionnuala and Conor take turns to bring our Festival Goers the chance to walk through Belfast; sampling our local whiskies, Festival Food and visiting great pubs. This Bespoke walk combines Belfast Hidden Tours' love of Whiskey Heritage, Belfast Histories and some great hidden places that need to be explored and not forgotten. Be prepared to listen attentively; don’t miss the stories of those individuals and businesses that have built the Belfast Industry through the last few hundred years. Industrial Whiskey and Heritage is brought to life by well versed guides who have a great sense of humour and pride in their City! This walking tour will also include one of our collaborative Whiskey Donuts from “Oh Donuts” and/or bespoke food from “Tribal”. Timeslot: 3pm-6pm Start Time: 3pm Duration: 3hrs Venue: Multiple Locations Drinks: 5 Drams Type: Walking Tour Walking: Be Prepared to Walk around Belfast. Some of the areas & venues may not be fully accessible, please contact us @belfastwhiskeyweek on socials, or via email on marketing@belfastwhiskeyweek.com or 07773675179 (8am-8pm) to discuss. Disclaimers Please note that individual dietary requirements are not being catered for with any food at this event. Each Brand/Distillery and Collaborative Partner have agreed to our Min/Max Pour Policy. Please Respect this, and enjoy your festival responsibly. Festival Participants who are deemed to be too inebriated, or are not respecting themselves, will not be permitted into events and venues. ALL Hosts/Ushers/Collaborators and Venue Staff have the right to refuse participants without question and recourse. Please Drink Responsibly. All events are only available to those 18 years old and over. Do not purchase tickets if you are under the age of 18. Be prepared to produce ID if required. Venue staff & ushers may ask you to provide ID when showing your valid tickets. You may be refused enter to events if you can’t prove your age. Some venues may change, if they do, you will be notified. All events are subject to changes out of the control of the festival organisers. Any issues, please contact us @belfastwhiskeyweek on socials, or via email on marketing@belfastwhiskeyweek.com or 07773675179 (8am-8pm) to discuss. NO Refunds will be given. Please only buy tickets if you are prepared to attend the event. Tickets are transferable. If you are going to transfer tickets please email, marketing@belfastwhiskeyweek.com

Looking Back

At three o'clock on a October Thursday, a group of eager festival-goers assembled — coats buttoned, senses primed — ready to let Belfast reveal itself one dram at a time. Fionnuala and Conor, both gifted storytellers with an obvious and unforced pride in their city, took turns guiding the group through streets and laneways that most visitors — and more than a few locals — had never properly noticed. That is the particular magic Belfast Hidden Tours brings to its work: the sense that the city is whispering something important, and that you only need to slow down and listen to hear it.

Over the course of three hours and five drams, the tour moved through Belfast's layered whiskey heritage with the kind of depth that no tasting room could replicate. Guides spoke of the distillers, publicans, and blenders who shaped an industry across centuries — names and stories drawn from the duchas of the place itself, grounded in real streets and real trades. This was not a rehearsed script but a living, breathing account of how whiskey and Belfast grew up together, and how that relationship is being rekindled today. For those keen to explore the geography of that revival beyond the tour, the Belfast Whiskey Week Whiskey Map offers a fine companion.

The food, as ever, added a welcome dimension to the experience. A collaborative whiskey donut from Oh Donuts turned out to be exactly as joyful as it sounds — sweet, indulgent, and oddly perfect alongside a peated dram — while bespoke bites from Tribal gave the afternoon proper sustenance. It was thoughtful, playful festival food that matched the spirit of the event without trying to overshadow it. The combination of walking, whiskey, and a well-placed bite made for a rhythm that kept energy and conversation flowing throughout.

What distinguished this particular tour from a conventional whiskey tasting was its insistence on place. Every dram was anchored in a location, a story, a reason to be here rather than anywhere else. The hidden pubs and courtyards that served as waypoints were not chosen for convenience — they were chosen because they mattered, because they carried the weight of history in their timbers and tiling. Those who had attended an earlier Belfast Hidden Tours session during the festival knew what to expect; for those arriving fresh, it was a revelation. And for anyone who missed it entirely, the related Walking With Marty event offered another compelling way to experience Belfast's whiskey story on foot.

By six o'clock, when the group dispersed into the amber light of a Belfast evening, there was that particular warmth that comes not just from whiskey but from shared discovery — sláinte raised in good company, in a city that deserves to be known this well. Belfast Hidden Tours remains one of the most genuine and generous presences in the festival's programme, and this 2023 edition was a reminder of why walking tours, done right, are among the most enduring things Belfast Whiskey Week does.