Belfast, Derry & Beyond: Derry Day

The Belfast & Beyond group hopes to travel northward on Saturday 8 March to meet with our wonderful SoA members from the Derry & Beyond coffee group and you are invited! We will depart Belfast from Grand Central Station at 9.10am, but members are welcome to jump on the train at any station. You are also welcome to just join us for coffee at Hidden City Cafe, 2 London Street, Cathedral Quarter, Derry City, BT48 6RQ at 2pm.

Our plan is to have a mooch/lunch around Derry, taking in the sights of Little Acorns Bookstore before heading to the Hidden City Cafe on London Street where our Derry colleagues will join us for coffee. This will be their scheduled monthly meeting and a great opportunity for us all to connect face to face. The cafe is approximately a 20 minute walk or a return shuttle bus from Foyle Street to the train station so we will aim to leave the cafe by 4pm. We will then catch the return afternoon train home at 16:38 – all being well.

Whatever your mode of transport please RSVP so we can stay in touch with you, have an idea of numbers and save you a seat! This is a self funded event; members will pay for their own lunch/coffee/refreshments/transport. An adult day return Belfast to Derry is £24, which can be booked online or purchased on the day. Translink have a variety of fares and discounts which you may be eligible for so check those out on their website or if you are smart enough to have a SmartPass, it’ll be free!

With your help we would like to roll out local coffee catch ups on a more regular basis across Northern Ireland for 2025.  Are you based in Antrim or Down and would you like to host one in your local area? Then reach out to Elsa Woodmeade at localgroups@societyofauthors.org for more information.