Eloisa, Mexico. My Northern Ireland Tourism Project
When I signed up for the Europe gap year program, I had no idea I’d end up hiking through Northern Ireland with a camera in hand, trying to convince active travelers that you don’t need a car to have an epic adventure. But that’s exactly what happened, and honestly? It was one of the best experiences of my life.
The project was pretty straightforward on paper: create 2 Instagram reels and blog posts for Tourism Northern Ireland. The target? Active maximalists – basically people who want to pack as much adventure as possible into their trips. The twist? Show them how to do it all using public transport.
We had two different trips to capture:
● A 2-night adventure exploring multiple spots
● A single day out on the rambler bus (bus that offer scenic routes and travel options)
Sounds simple enough, right? But making content that actually inspires people to get off their phones and onto a mountain is harder than it looks.
Look, I didn’t have much experience on how to film stuff. I wasn’t that active, I got better at it. I learned when to film, how to keep my shots steady while walking, and most importantly, how to capture the actual feeling of being somewhere, not just what it looks like.
Before this project, I couldn’t have told you much about Northern Ireland. But spending weeks here, actually hiking the trails and exploring the coast, completely changed my perspective.
I got to see The Causeway Coast where everywhere you look is beautiful. Random trails I’d never heard of? Often the best parts of the trip. This place has so much to offer, and it’s wild how many people skip it when they’re traveling through Europe.
I’ll be honest – I was surprised to find that public transport isn’t as widely used in Ireland as I expected. Coming from the mindset that all of Europe had amazing public transport systems, it was eye-opening to realize that wasn’t the case here. But the good news? The system is actually improving, and that made this project even more meaningful.
Getting to show people that you can explore Northern Ireland by bus and train felt important. A lot of travellers assume they need to rent a car, but the routes are getting better, and there’s something special about being part of that shift. I was basically introducing people to a way of traveling that many didn’t know was possible here.
Plus, there’s something kind of freeing about not worrying about parking or directions. You just show up, get on the bus or train, and go. It made the whole adventure more accessible, which is exactly what we wanted to show.
One of the coolest parts was chatting with locals along the way. There was this lovely local business called My Pie and I found the owners to be great people and everyone is always friendly and welcoming giving you tips on where you could go or simply sparking up a conversation here which is something so great and that you rarely see these days. This didn’t just make the trip better – they made the content better too. Real recommendations from real people are way more valuable than anything you’ll find in a guidebook.
Part of the brief was to showcase local businesses, which meant stopping restaurants, local hotels, and family-run places instead of chains. This was actually one of my favorite parts. You get better food, better service, and better stories. Plus, it feels good to know your money is going directly to someone’s livelihood rather than some corporate account.
Traveling with the other people from the gap year program was its own adventure. You’re hiking together, figuring out bus schedules together, getting lost together. Those shared experiences – like the time we nearly missed our bus because we were too busy taking photos at a viewpoint, or when we all got soaked in a random rainstorm and just laughed about it – those became some of my best memories.
There’s something about traveling that brings people together fast. You skip all the small talk and jump straight into real conversations because you’re all experiencing the same thing.
This was my first time really traveling independently, and it was both scary and exciting, as opposed to my experience when I went to college. You had the freedom to just figure things out without the pressure of doing things a certain way or following a preset system. Here you got to make your own system and learn to deal with things when they don’t go to plan, learning to be flexible.
Some days were smooth sailing. Other days, we got on the wrong bus or the weather forced us to change plans completely. But those “mistakes” often led to the best stories and the most unexpected discoveries.
If you’re thinking about doing something similar – a gap year program, a content creation project, or just traveling independently – here’s what I learned:
Just go for it. I have lost so many opportunities because I doubted myself or left it to the very last second to make a decision and I have come to the fact that there is no wrong decision you may fail, you may succeed but what you will definitely do is grow as a person and learn from what you do.
Embrace the chaos. Not everything will go according to plan, and that’s okay sometimes it turns out better. An example I can think of is when I was filming some of my best content came from moments that were completely unplanned.
Talk to everyone. Seriously, chat with locals, with other travelers, with anyone who seems friendly. These conversations will teach you more than any guidebook ever could.
Don’t stress about making everything perfect. I wasted so much time in the beginning trying to get the “perfect shot” and editing things to death. People respond more to authentic, real content anyway besides sometimes quantity beats quality.
Say yes to opportunities that scare you a bit. do not back out of thing because of fear as my friend once told me its better to things scared than not do them at all
In the end, we created content that (I hope) shows people that you don’t need a massive budget or a car rental to have an amazing adventure in Northern Ireland. You just need curiosity, decent hiking boots, and a willingness to figure things out as you go.
The reels turned out pretty cool, the blogs captured the experience, and more importantly, I came away with skills, experiences, and friendships that I’ll carry with me way beyond this gap year.
Looking back, this project pushed me out of my comfort zone in the best way possible. I improved my filming and editing skills, sure, but I also learned how to be more independent, more adaptable, and more confident in my ability to figure things out.
Northern Ireland surprised me, the project challenged me, and the whole experience reminded me why I wanted to take a gap year in the first place – to do things I’ve never done, go places I’ve never been, and become someone I wasn’t before.
If you’re considering a gap year or wondering if you should take on a project that seems a bit over your head – do it. You’ll figure it out along the way, and that’s kind of the whole point.
