Antrim Coast, NORTHERN IRELAND
Airing Date: Apr 7th, 2007
The drive along the
Antrim Coast is only 130 kilometres and passes through some extremely beautiful countryside, starting with the
Glens of Antrim, nine valleys running from the Antrim Plateau to the ocean. The Glens are full of villages and walks.
A stop you must make on your trip is the
Carrick-A-Rede rope bridge. A 1 mile walk along a cliff leads out to the bridge, where the cliff spans a chasm 30m deep over white water and black rocks, and leads out across the pass 20m from end to end to
Sheep Island.
It was once made of slats of wood and one rope railing, which was used by fishermen to carry salmon home. The bridge used to be put up every winter by fishermen, but today, the army steps in and lowers the bridge into position from helicopter at the end of winter.
Another place to stop is
Bushmills where you'll find the famous
Old Bushmills Whiskey Distillery. The Victorian architecture of the Distillery dates from 1885 when it was rebuilt due to a fire. Built on the banks of St. Columb's Rill, it offers the visitor guided tours of the distillation process throughout the day.
The Old Bushmills Distillery is the world's oldest licensed whiskey distillery having received its licence to distil in 1608. In 1608 Sir Thomas Phillips was granted a licence to distil whiskey by James 1 of England, however, mentions of distilling traditions in the surrounding environs date back to 1276.
Located nearby to the Distillery is
Drumkeerin B&B, where the landlady, Mary McFadden won the UK's Landlady of the Year. Located just 2 miles from the village of Bushmills is
The Giants Causeway. Guided walks of The Giants Causeway are organised throughout the summer months and can be booked through the visitor centre.
The fascinating pattern that you will see in the causeway stones formed as a result of rock crystallization under conditions of accelerated cooling, this usually occurs when molten lava comes into immediate contact with water. The coastal scenery adjacent to the Causeway is some of the most beautiful and awe inspiring that you are likely to find anywhere in the world. It's also inspired the legend of the giant
Finn McCool.
Like something out of a Tolkien fantasy, the ruins of
Dunluce Castle have a desolate, awe-inspiring grandeur as they rise dramatically from a precipitous basaltic rock standing over a hundred-feet sheer above the wild and chill northern sea.
Separated from the mainland by a deep chasm crossed only by a narrow bridge and penetrated below by a long cave, this precarious rocky outcrop occupied a position of great strategic importance that was fought over for centuries, eventually becoming, in the sixteenth century, the principal stronghold of the McDonnells, "Lords of the Isles" and rulers of far-flung territories along the western Scottish seaboard. The castle is located on the Antrim coast, 2 miles west of Bushmills.
Costs & Contacts:Thai Airways International - Fly return to London from $ 2010 ex west coast and $ 2060 ex east coast. Prices correct at 8/3/07. Prices include surcharges, fees & taxes, subject to fluctuation. Conditions apply.
BMI - fly return to Belfast from $ 310 ex London. BMI - Ph:
1800 221 625.Prices correct at 8/3/07. Prices include surcharges, fees & taxes, subject to fluctuation. Conditions apply.
Dooley Car Hire - from $40 a day based on 7 day rental for Ford Fiesta or similar. Prices correct at 8/3/07. Subject to fluctuation. Conditions apply.
Ten Square Hotel - from $410 Superior room, $510 Deluxe room, $610 Bradley suite. Includes full Irish breakfast.
Prices correct at 7/4/07. Subject to fluctuation. Conditions apply.
