Northern Ireland, part of the UK, has a beautiful countryside, rugged northern coast and wonderful cities such as Belfast and Bangor. As we flew over the Emerald Isle, I was surprised at how truly verdant it is. Rolling lush hills glowing in the most beautiful shades of emerald green with little beige dots that turned out to be sheep. The focus of this blog is the North Coast and Bangor, but we also included a bit of info on the Ulster Folk Museum. We have a separate blog focusing just on Belfast.
We visited the North Coast in 2013 and Bangor in 2015. This is Jimmy’s homeland. He was born in Belfast, but his family moved to Canada when he was eight. His father moved back and lived in Bangor until his passing at end of 2015.
North Coast
We took a tour bus to the North Coast from Belfast. The coast is not far from Belfast, but it is an all-day excursion.
Itinerary:
- Depart Belfast at 9:15am
- Carrickfergus Castle (photo opportunity)
- Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge (fee to cross payable to National Trust)
- Bushmills Whiskey Distillery Visitor Centre
- Giants Causeway Site and Visitor Centre (stay approx. 1 hour 45 minutes)
- Dunluce Castle (photo opportunity)
- Drive through Cushendall, Glenariff and Cushendun villages
- Return to Belfast at approximately 6:30pm
I cannot begin to tell you just how beautiful this part of Ireland is. The pastoral fields, interspersed with swaths of lavender, the North Sea, the cliffs, the animals…it is nature at its best.
One of the most unique sights in the world is The Giant’s Causeway. It is an area of about 40,000 interlocking basalt columns, the result of an ancient volcanic eruption. It is located in County Antrim close to the town of Bushmills.
The Giant’s Causeway was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1986, and a national nature reserve in 1987 by the Department of the Environment for Northern Ireland. In a 2005 poll of “Radio Times” readers, the Giant’s Causeway was named as the fourth greatest natural wonder in the United Kingdom. It is a really cool destination for photography.
Jimmy used to come here as a boy with his family. They could only dip their feet into the water, which was ice cold year-round. He remembered how as a child, he really did believe this was the land of the Giants.
Food is available at the Giant’s Causeway visitor center, or at this nearby charming country pub, The Nook. If you stroll around the area, you will see some cows lounging on the grass.
There are several cottages and B&Bs in the area if you decide to spend more time there.
Dunluce Castle a now-ruined iconic medieval castle, bears witness to a long and tumultuous history. The earliest written record of the castle was in 1513. In the 17th century Dunluce served as the seat of the Earl of Antrim. Since that time, the castle has deteriorated and parts were scavenged to serve as materials for nearby buildings. It is another great destination for a photo or video shoot.
The trip to the North Coast would not be complete without stopping in at Bushmills Distillery. They have tours of the Distillery and, of course, a tasting room. Our favorite whiskies are Irish and American Bourbon (and we didn’t influence each other, we both came to that conclusion separately). It was quite a treat to try 16 and 21-year-old fine Irish whiskey. Wow. Smoother than cognac.
This video below provides an overview of the fun we had visiting the North Coast.
Bangor
Our trip to Bangor was for a sad occasion; it was to attend the funeral of Jimmy’s dad in December, 2015. This quiet little sea side town was his father’s home for his last 20 years.
It is a picturesque town with a rich history. It functions as a commuter town for the Greater Belfast area. Tourism is important to the local economy, particularly in the summer months, and plans are being made for the redevelopment of the seafront.
The laying of the railway in 1865 meant that inexpensive travel from Belfast was possible, and working-class people could afford for the first time to holiday in the town. Bangor soon became a fashionable resort for Victorian holidaymakers, as well as a desirable home to the wealthy. Many of the beautiful houses overlooking Bangor Bay date from this period.
Bangor did have a decline in tourism once foreign travel became more affordable, but the city is planning on revamping the coastal town to attract more tourists. We both thought the town was charming and can see how this could be good attraction again.
Where to Eat?
Bangor has a few high-quality restaurants, including Michelin-rated, The Boathouse. The restaurant was closed for a while, but at the time of this writing (2017) it is listed as open again. The meal we had was superb. The food was well sourced and cooked perfectly.
We also ate at The Salty Dog Hotel and Bistro, which is close to the boat house by the bay. Reasonably priced and tasty, but not fine dining. The pasta and mussels were very good. The staff was extremely pleasant, but it seems that it would be difficult to find people in Northern Ireland that are not pleasant. They are friendly and helpful wherever you go.
Where to Stay?
We stayed at Shelleven House, a 4-star Victorian B&B very close to the waterfront. The host used to work at Culloden Estate and Spa, a highly respected 5-star resort between Belfast and Bangor, so he is well versed in quality food and service. The breakfast was excellent quality, well prepared and delicious. Note: As of April, 2016 the B&B is under new ownership, but based on the website, it seems that the new owners will provide the same quality of service.
Ulster Folk and Transport Museum
The Ulster Folk and Transport Museum is half way between Bangor and Belfast. It is a fascinating place that shows how people lived at various periods in Northern Ireland using replicas of the actual homes and their interiors. The museum ranks among Ireland’s foremost tourist attractions.
The Folk Museum houses a variety of old buildings and dwellings which have been collected from various parts of Ireland and rebuilt in the grounds, brick by brick.
170 acres are devoted to illustrating the rural way of life in the early 20th century. Visitors can stroll through a recreation of the period’s countryside complete with farms, cottages, crops, livestock, and visit a typical Ulster town of the time featuring shops, the blacksmith and other artisan shops, churches, a bar, a movie theatre, town homes and more.
Jimmy came here on a school trip in his youth and never forgot the impression it made on him. It really is fascinating to see how people lived at different times. I, too, love seeing the recreations. It reminds us how easy our life is now.
The Museum has a tea room where you can purchase hot and cold meals, and there is a wonderful gift shop that sells Shetland Wool scarves for only £10-20.
The Transport Museum houses the largest railway collection Ireland.
Did you know the airplane ejection seat was invented in Northern Ireland? It was invented by engineer James Martin, who was born in Crossgar, County Down.
Jimmy’s father worked at The Short Brothers airplane manufacturing plant in Belfast. The airplane above is one of the first prototypes of VTOL (Vertical Take-Off and Landing) made by Short Brothers. Jimmy thinks his father may have worked on this very one. Northern Ireland has an extensive and often unappreciated role in aviation history. Today, Northern Ireland is home to four of the top 100 aerospace and defence suppliers in the world.
The museum also has a collection of cars and buses, plus artifacts from the past such as these cool items that some of us may remember from our youth. We both highly recommend visiting this museum if you are in the Belfast area. You can easily spend a day here – we rushed through in half a day and didn’t see everything.
Enjoy your travels to Northern Ireland!
For more photos please visit Wonderland Photography.
