Northern Ireland • Travel Guide
Jesús and I visited the coast of Northern Ireland in September at the invitation of some of our best friends, Andy and Rachel Graham, and their beautiful family. We all stayed with at their beautiful apartment in Portrush, and spent 4 days with them and their best friend (+our dear friend) Laura, exploring all their favorite places along the coast! It was such a privilege.
Northern Ireland is a quiet, calm, breathtaking place - it holds a special place in my heart with it’s insane natural beauty and the memories we now have of taking it all in with people we love.
See below for a list of general travel tips, recommendations, and images - to help inform your next trip to the coast of Northern Ireland!
General Advice:
Rent a car! It’s pretty hard to see the coast otherwise.
Plan to hop around. Most of the towns surrounding Portrush are pretty small and can be seen/enjoyed in an afternoon or day.
The nature is where it’s at! Although the coffee scene is amazing here and we had such great food, I’d definitely say that Northern Ireland is a place for people who love to explore nature! Had we been there longer, I would have wanted to branch out further to see even more natural beauty!
If you’re a Game of Thrones fan, there are multiple filming locations to check out here! Just sayin’. We didn’t realize until the end of our trip that Mussenden Temple, Dunluce Castle and Balentoy Habour (all places that we visited) were just a few locations that GOT used in filming.
Try the Guinness (it IS different, and better, than in the states) and try some fish and chips. please.
Spots to check out:
Coffee:
Babushka (Portrush)
Lost & Found (Portstewart and Coleraine locations)
Breakfast/Brunch:
Babushka (Portrush)
Lost & Found (Portstewart and Coleraine locations)
Lunch/Dinner:
Chequers (Portrush) - for fish and chips!
Ramore (Portrush)
Bushmills Inn Restaurant, Bar & Loft
Maegden (right by Giants Causeway) - grilled cheese pop up. It’s soooo good!
Drinks:
The Harbour Bar (Portrush) - Have a Guinness here. It’s a special little place.
Shopping:
BTS Concept Store (Coleraine) - such a stunning shop!!
Sights:
Downhill Beach (below Mussenden Temple)
Giants Causeway - Go right when it opens to avoid a huge crowd!
What to Pack!
I’d highly recommend bringing along a raincoat because it rains so much here! I love our new coats from Stutterheim and would highly recommend the brand to a friend. The quality is undeniable, and they have a nice bit of warmth to help with layering in the cold rain. Mine is their Mosebacke coat and Jesús has their Stockholm coat!
I brought a handful of versatile layering options, to try and pack light, since this was our first of 3 stops in Europe! I wore these the most often during our 4 day stay in Ideland: 2 long sleeve button-ups from Tradlands (in black and clay) which paired great with my raincoat, this Modern Citizen sweater, some Madewell wide-legged crop pants, and black Everlane Jeans (which I wore the most). All in all: Northern Ireland in Sept. is a bit chilly - so layered warmth and comfort took priority.
Comfortable walking shoes! I wore my Reebok Club C 85 sneakers the whole time we were in Northern Ireland and they were perfect. Had we been there longer, I would have brought along my weather-proof Blundstone boots which are also great for hiking.
Portrush
Portrush
Portstewart
Lost & Found (Portstewart)
Lost & Found (Portstewart)
Portstewart
Lost & Found (Coleraine)
Lost & Found (Coleraine)
