If Northern Ireland had a greatest-hits county, this would be it. A world wonder, nine glens and a whole coast of castles — here are the fifteen best days out in County Antrim.
Three ways to slice it — the Causeway Coast in the north (the big-hitters, from the Giant's Causeway to Rathlin), the Glens of Antrim down the east (waterfalls, caves and a cliff path), and the county towns inland and south (Carrickfergus, Antrim, Ballymena and their castles). Pick a corner and make a day of it.
Every entry has a full guide. Tap through any place below for our complete guide with prices, opening times, parking and the local know-how — and it's all on the free map.
Three need booking ahead.Carrick-a-Rede and the Gobbins are timed tickets (and the Gobbins is a guided cliff walk), and the Rathlin ferry fills up in summer — sort those before you travel.
Rainy-day proof — even when the coast is wet, Belfast Zoo, Glenarm Castle's estate and the castles give you plenty under cover or worth the drizzle. Antrim rarely runs out of things to do.
Film fans — the Dark Hedges, Cushendun Caves, Ballintoy and Dunluce all star in Game of Thrones. You can loop several into one very scenic day.
Forty thousand basalt columns stepping down into the sea — Northern Ireland's only UNESCO World Heritage Site and the county's crown jewel. The giant Finn McCool gets the credit; geologists say cooling lava. Either way, clambering the hexagonal stones with the Atlantic booming around you is one of those days children remember as adults. The shore is free, dawn to dusk; the ticket covers parking, the exhibition and the audio guide.
Half a dayStones free · NT members freeOn-site parking is pre-book
An avenue of gnarled 18th-century beech trees that arch into a tunnel over the road — one of the most photographed spots in the country, and famous the world over as the Kingsroad in Game of Thrones. It's free, quick and genuinely magical, especially in early-morning mist. Park at the nearby car park or the Hedges Hotel and walk in — the avenue itself is closed to traffic.
About 30 minsFree · Game of ThronesPark nearby & walk in — no driving the avenue
A single-file rope bridge slung across a chasm to a tiny island, said to hang almost 100 feet above the Atlantic — cross it and you've earned the story for life. The clifftop walk out is a stunner, with views to Rathlin and, on a clear day, Scotland. Allow about an hour and a half for the walk, the wobble and time on the island. Best for surefooted families and older children.
~1.5 hoursTimed tickets · NT members freeBook ahead — summer slots sell out
A ruined medieval castle perched right on the cliff edge, on its own sea stack — you cross a bridge and walk straight into it. Drum towers, big sweeping sea views, a cove and cave below, and a visitor centre that tells the story well, including the night the kitchen is said to have fallen into the sea. It's a Game of Thrones backdrop too. Most families do the whole site in about an hour.
45 mins – 1 hourSmall charge · free parkingExposed cliff edges — keep small children close
The county's classic seaside resort — golden sand at East and West Strand, and Curry's (the old Barry's) amusement park, a rite of passage for generations. Walk in free and spend on tokens: the Big Dipper, the dodgems, the ghost train, the waltzer, plus a big loud arcade that doubles as the dry plan if a shower blows in off the sea. Derry Girls fans will recognise the Big Dipper.
1–3 hoursFree entry · tokens per rideSeasonal, roughly Easter–September
The pretty village of Bushmills is home to the world's oldest licensed whiskey distillery — and a pocket-sized heritage railway that trundles two miles along the very edge of the coast to the Giant's Causeway, dunes and open sea out one window, the River Bush out the other. Train-mad small children and their grandparents come off wearing the same grin. Ride down, walk the stones, ride back.
~1 hour there & backAround £8 adultSeasonal — check the timetable first
Northern Ireland's only inhabited offshore island — a short ferry from Ballycastle into a slower, wilder world. In spring and summer the RSPB West Light seabird centre is alive with thousands of puffins, guillemots and razorbills wheeling off the sea stacks. Add the upside-down lighthouse, seals in the harbour and roads with more birds than cars, and it's a magical full day.
A full dayFerry ticket · seabird centreBook the summer ferry ahead — it fills up
The "Queen of the Glens" — a lush wooded valley with a boardwalk Waterfall Walk that threads past three tumbling falls through a mossy gorge. The three-mile scenic trail is one of the loveliest family walks in Ireland, with a café and a play area up top. Boots or wellies after rain — and the waterfalls are at their thundering best exactly then.
A jaw-dropping Edwardian cliff path bolted onto the black basalt cliffs of Islandmagee, crossing a tubular bridge with the sea crashing right below your feet. It's a guided walk of about two and a half hours — dramatic, a bit strenuous and unlike anything else in the county. Booking is essential, sturdy footwear is required and there's a minimum height, so it suits older children and up.
~2.5 hours, guidedTicketed guided tourBook ahead · minimum height · not for little ones
A set of 400-million-year-old red sea caves at the edge of the pretty Cornish-style village of Cushendun, at the foot of Glendun. Game of Thrones fans will know them as the spot where Melisandre's shadow was born. Free, atmospheric and a lovely five-minute walk from the village — which happens to do excellent ice cream. An easy, magical stop on the Antrim Coast Road.
30–60 minsFree · Game of ThronesCheck the tide — the caves flood at high water
The family seat of the Earls of Antrim, with one of Ireland's finest walled gardens and a big family programme through the year — a lawn maze, a tearoom, a farm shop and events from spring right through to its famous Christmas experience. The pretty conservation village of Glenarm and its little beach sit right below. A gentler, greener day out on the Antrim Coast Road.
2–3 hoursGarden ticket · café & farm shopGarden opening is seasonal — check before you go
One of the best-preserved Norman castles in Ireland, standing guard over Belfast Lough for more than 800 years. Children can climb the massive keep, explore the battlements and cannons and meet the figures that tell its long story, and there's a harbour and marina to wander afterwards. Right in the town, easy to reach, and a brilliant hands-on history stop for all ages.
1–2 hoursSmall charge · in the townSteep old spiral stairs — mind small climbers
A beautiful set of restored 17th-century ornamental gardens on the edge of Antrim town — formal parterres, a long ornamental canal, woodland walks and the Clotworthy House arts centre and café. Free to wander and lovely in any season, it's also home to the Enchanted Winter Garden light trail come Christmas. An easy, gentle, no-cost day out with plenty of room for children to roam.
1–2 hoursFree · gardens & caféThe Christmas light trail is ticketed & separate
On the wooded slopes of Cavehill, with cracking views out over Belfast Lough, the zoo is home to more than a hundred species — Barbary lions, red pandas, penguins, meerkats and a big Asian elephant house. It's a proper hilly walk around (buggy-friendly, but you'll want the brakes on the way down), and one of the county's most popular family days out whatever the weather.
Half a dayPaid entry · over 100 speciesSteep site — wear comfy shoes
The craggy remains of an extinct volcano rising out of the Braid valley — and, by tradition, the hillside where a young Saint Patrick tended sheep. It's a short, steep, rewarding scramble to the top for huge views across mid-Antrim, and a place of pilgrimage every Saint Patrick's Day. Free, wild and quietly special — a proper leg-stretch to round off a County Antrim tour.
1–2 hoursFree · big viewsSteep & rocky near the top — not for buggies
The Causeway Coast: the Dark Hedges first thing, Dunluce Castle before lunch, then the Giant's Causeway from late afternoon when the coaches have gone.
The Glens: the Waterfall Walk at Glenariff, ice cream and the caves at Cushendun, then the long scenic drive back down the Antrim Coast Road.
Castles & town: climb the keep at Carrickfergus Castle, then the free gardens at Antrim Castle, or up Cavehill to Belfast Zoo.
Keep exploring
Every place in this list — and about 2,000 more across Northern Ireland — is on our free map, with full guides, live events and what's-on near you.
