400 patterned banners at 262 sites across the city has been unveiled as part of Belfast's new look city dressing .

Featuring 12 themed patterns, the eye-catching banners aim to provide a sense of welcome as well as making Belfast`s streets more colourful and attractive. They are themed on patterns unique to Belfast including the Dome of City Hall, the stain glass window of Clonard Monastery and Harland and Wolff`s iconic cranes.

The City Dressing Plan has been developed by Belfast City Council in partnership with Belfast Visitor and Convention Bureau, Belfast City Centre Management, DRD Roads Service and the Department for Social Development.  Costing £81,000, the quirky banners will be sited in the centre of Belfast and on arterial routes into the city. They will be hung from now until November, and will remain on site for three years. New patterns will be introduced at Christmas and throughout 2012 and 2013.
 
To support the initiative and encourage visitors to find out more about the concepts as well as explore the areas represented, Belfast Visitor and Convention Bureau has launched a new ‘patterns of the city` section  at www.gotobelfast.com/patterns

The 12 unique banner patterns are each inspired by a particular landmark or element within the city. These include Queen`s Bridge, the starlings that flock around Albert Bridge, City Hall dome, Harland and Wolff cranes, the rose window at Clonard Monastery, Titanic propellers, the Mulholland organ at Ulster Hall, leaves of trees found in city parks, St Anne`s Spire of Hope, the seahorse from the Belfast City coat of arms, street name plates and gable walls.

City Presentation has been identified as a key theme in the Belfast Integrated Strategic Tourism Framework 2010 – 2014, which aims to grow visitor numbers by 40% to 2.38 million in 2014.