Explore the wonder of the Giant’s Causeway with one of our tours along the North Coast of Ireland and embrace everything it has to offer.
Stop of at The Dark Hedges, Dunluce Castle, Bushmills Distillery, The Giant’s Causeway, Ballintoy Harbour and Carrick-a-Rede rope bridge.
The Giant’s Causeway is a cluster of approximately 40,000 basalt columns rising out of the sea along the Antrim Coast. These rock formations are a result of ancient volcanic fissure eruptions and are over 60 million years old. Now declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site, over one million tourists visit Giant’s Causeway each year to marvel at and photograph this natural wonder.
Legend has it that Irish warrior Finn McCool built the path across the sea to face his Scottish rival, Benandonner. There are several variations of the story from this point but each one ends with Finn dressing as a baby and scaring off Benandonner, who thinks the disguised Finn is actually the child of a much bigger giant and is too afraid to face his opponent. On his way back to Scotland, Benandonner tears up the path behind him, leaving just what exists today on the Antrim coast and the Scottish island of Staffa, which has similar rock formations.
While the legend makes for an interesting story, geologists have a different explanation for the creation of the Giant’s Causeway: volcanic activity. According to them, millions of years ago a volcanic eruption produced a lava flow that cooled quickly from both the top and sides, shaping the lava into hexagonal columns.
Fifty miles northwest of Belfast, off the Antrim Coastal Road, you will find one of the most unique and most photographed attractions in Northern Ireland: a row of trees known as the Dark Hedges. Planted by the Stuart family back in the 18th century, these beech trees are now overgrown and intertwined, creating a tunnel along the stretch of Bregagh Road that once led to Gracehill, the Stuart family manor. Roughly 150 beech trees were originally planted in 1755 with only about 80 now remaining.
Legend has it that the trees are haunted by a mysterious ghost called ‘the Grey Lady’ who weaves in and out of the trees at dusk. In addition to being a popular subject to artists, the trees also serve as a frequent backdrop for wedding photographs and have been use for scenes in the show Game of Thrones, representing the Kings Road.
Surrounded by 100-foot cliffs on all sides, Dunluce Castle commands a dramatic location on the North Antrim Coast. One of the most picturesque castles in Northern Ireland, it may date as far back as the 14th century, although records only confirm its existence back to 1513, when it belonged to the MacQuillen clan. Later the headquarters of the MacDonnell clan, the castle was surrounded by a village until a fire wiped it out in 1641.
Today, the mainland courtyard of the castle leads downhill to a narrow crossing where you’ll find buildings dating back to the 16th and 17th centuries. Dunluce Castle is thought to have been the inspiration for Cair Paravel in C.S. Lewis’ Chronicles of Narnia and has been the site of movies such as Jackie Chan’s The Medallion. On a clear day, you can see across the sea to Islay.
Bushmills Distillery is the oldest working distillery in Ireland. Founded in 1608, it has been known as the Old Bushmills Distillery since 1784. A fire destroyed the distillery in 1880, but it was rebuilt, and the 1890s proved to be a heyday for the company as it won numerous prizes, including the only gold medal for whiskey at the 1889 Paris Expo.
Visitors to the distillery can take a guided tour and then leave with a bottle of Distillery Reserve 12-year Single Malt Whiskey, only available from the gift shop. Tours start at the mash house, where the distilling process begins, and continue on to the still house, where whiskeys are distilled three times. The tour concludes in the bottling hall, where whiskey is bottled before being sent all around the world.
Explore the picturesque Ballintoy harbour, known for its charming pier and historic caves. The area around Ballintoy offers exceptional walking, with stunning scenery steeped in history and folklore.
Ballintoy Harbour is still a working harbour for local fishermen, who are well regarded for their skills as boatsmen due to the dangerous waters. Due to its location and natural defenses, Ballintoy Harbour is one of the best locations to see the fury of Atlantic storms up close. Watching the basalt islets that abound in the area allow you to see the areas of the most dangerous swells and tidal currents.
Weather dependant Ballintoy can be described as beautiful, peace and tranquil or as mentioned above strong winds can whip up larges and dangerous waves. Either allow for stunning visual and great photo opportunities. One of the hidden gems along the Antrim Coast you can often see kayak’s and boats in the water.
Considered one of the world’s scariest bridges, the Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge is not for the faint of heart. Spanning a chasm that is almost 100 feet deep and nearly 70 feet wide, this Northern Ireland bridge connects Carrick-a-Rede Island to the mainland and attracts a quarter of a million visitors every year. The original structure was built by fishermen more than 300 years ago, and as recently as the 1970s, the bridge had only one handrail and large gaps between the slats.
The current bridge is less than 10 years old and is made of wire and Douglas fir. There is no record of anyone falling off the bridge, but it is not uncommon for visitors to get cold feet after crossing once, requiring a boat to bring them back to the mainland. Aside from the treacherous structure, the surrounding area is designated an Area of Special Scientific Interest due to its unique flora and fauna.
At more than 800 years old, Carrickfergus Castle is one of the best preserved medieval structures in Ireland. Located in the town of Carrickfergus about 10 miles north of Belfast, it was built between 1177 and 1195 by the Norman lord John deCourcy. Additions to the castle were made in 1216 and again in 1226, when the walls were extended to completely encircle all of the rock where the castle stood. Over the centuries, the castle was used as protection against attacks from the Scots, Irish, English and French. Later, it was used as a garrison during the First World War and as an air raid shelter during World War II.
Ownership of the castle was transferred from the army to the government of Northern Ireland in 1928, and at that time, many additions to the castle were removed in order to restore it to its original appearance. Exhibits in the castle today attempt to show what life was like during medieval times.
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