The most beautiful natural sites to discover Northern Ireland

A Unesco World Heritage Site, Giant's Causeway is Northern Ireland's best-known natural landmark and one of the island's most popular tourist attractions. It's a world-renowned natural wonder, featured on the cover of many guidebooks to the region, that won't disappoint. Come early to avoid the crowds.

The legend: "When the world was created and fashioned out of a shapeless mass, this is what was left of it: remnants of chaos." The words are those of novelist William Thackeray. For the early Irish, this sorcery had only one explanation: it was the work of a giant, Finn McCool, commander of the King of Ireland's armies. Finn was a very powerful man, capable of incredible feats of strength. His greatest rival was the Scottish giant Benandonner. To fight him, Finn invited him and built a road so that his enemy could not avoid the fight. But when the latter arrived, the Irishman realized that he was far bigger and stronger than he was. He asked his wife for advice. She disguised him as a baby, and when Benandonner entered, he saw the enormous child and imagined the size of the father. He took fright and ran back to Scotland, destroying the pavement behind him...

The site: a spectacular modification of the coastline following a basalt eruption several million years ago, now frozen into 40,000 columns. It's impossible not to stand in awe of this imbrication of stones as black as lava and as ochre as Tuscan slab, stretching out over the sea. At once rust-tinted steps, salt-capped thrones and columns marbled by the forces of the sea, all carved and adjusted by a master surveyor whose essence is not human, it's hard not to marvel at these otherworldly places and the dizzying cliffs that surround them. It makes you feel very small in the face of such a strange and impressive natural wonder.

Visiting tips: in high season, the site is very busy, so avoid it between 11am and 3pm. Admission includes parking, an audioguide and entry to the visitor center, where you can learn more about the history of the site and the phenomenon. If you find the ticket a little expensive and don't plan to stay very long, park further up or down the road and then walk back around the visitor center to the Causeway Hotel side: pedestrian access to the site itself is free. Another option is to follow the Causeway Path hiking trail, which follows the entire coastline of the region and takes 2-3 days to complete. Of course, you'll have to walk on the basalt columns, have fun climbing them and enjoy this unique and magical place. But to fully appreciate the scale of the site, take the elevated path that winds its way along the cliffs just above the Giant's Causeway, and get a real sense of the extraordinary nature of the phenomenon.

Visitor Centre: the Giant's Causeway Visitor Centre is ultra-modern and ecologically responsible. With its glass walls, basalt columns, state-of-the-art interior and green roof offering 360-degree views of the coastline, it's a must-see. A shuttle bus can take you from the Visitor Centre to the Giant's Causeway, but walking is recommended.

Torr Head: from Cushendun, follow the Scenic Coastal Road towards Ballycastle. The route is quite narrow, so caution is required. In fine weather, it's an enchantment for your eyes. It seems that we are alone at the end of the world and we see, on the whole, Scotland, the Mull of Kintyre and the island of Islay. Once you arrive at Torr Head, you have to park the car and walk a few minutes to the headland and its post of ruined coast guards, where the viewpoint on the cliffs, the countryside and the coastline is absolutely magnificent.

Fair Head: more to the northwest and following Fairhead Road, we arrive at the parking lot before these stunning cliffs. You will have to follow a trail about a few hundred meters on foot to reach its impressive rocks, which plunge into the sea from their 180 m. The views on the horizon are breathtaking. Here too, we need to be careful on the road. To have an idea of the vastness of Fair Head, you can also admire the panorama from Ballycastle.

Tollymore is one of Ireland's largest forest parks, crossed by the Shimna River. It was the first state forest in the country and offers beautiful walks on the northern slopes of the. It is particularly nice to enter the Bryansford Gate, impressive door with its granite turrets and Gothic style architecture dating back to 1786. The whole site covers 630 ha and, like many other places in Northern Ireland, it has grown to posterity thanks to the game Game of Thrones, which turned some scenes into it.

This open-air museum is a must-see attraction during a visit to the region in the summer. In a large natural park, the life and houses of the future emigrants to North America during the 18th and 19th centuries are reconstructed identically (with the materials of the time, of course). Along a marked route (which can take between two and three hours), you visit the blacksmith and the blacksmith, the milkmaid and her garden, the letter carrier and the post office, the printer in his store, the grocer and the grocery store, the banker in his bank... and all sorts of cottages inhabited by real people (actors in period costumes are waiting for you) who live in the skin of the inhabitants of yesteryear. The houses are not crammed together, and this is what makes the attraction so charming: discovering at the bend of a path, a field, a garden or a grove the farm or the cottage to be visited. We almost feel embarrassed to enter the courtyard where the chickens are pecking, or the well-ordered bedroom lit by a candle, as if it were a private home and not a museum! To finish, a whole street is reconstituted with the port of embarkation of the emigrants with the boat they are going to take (to visit also, with the passenger holds, striking!). In short, you will have understood, it is a playful and interactive visit. The ideal kind of museum for a family visit.

The Murlough Nature Reserve offers many hikes and is a paradise for all birdwatchers. It is a rare and 6,000-year-old dune area with superb views of the Mourne Mountains. There are many wildflowers and several species of butterflies.

This superb bucolic bay with perfect curves unfolds languorously at the exit of the village of Ballintoy. The azure of the sea licks the immense white sand beach which is itself bordered by a gigantic mosaic of green grass and scrub... The site, which runs for 2.5 kilometers is visible from the main road. It is one of the wonders of this region, as much for its geological, botanical and archaeological particularities. You will have understood it, Whitepark Bay, it is a delicious stroll in perspective.

This pleasant peninsula is located north of Carrickfergus and reaches the port of Larne. The atmosphere is special and typical, apart from the rest of the country, although it is not an island. In the north, a ferry for Larne navigue every hour in the summer. The Muck Island, off the Mini mini port, is home to the largest site of bird nesting in Northern Ireland. The coast and its basaltic cliffs (the Gobbins) were the place of a sordid event in 1641, when the English soldiers of the Carrickfergus garrison threw the inhabitants into the sea. A very pleasant beach is located in the north (Brown Bay) and various walks are possible from the Whitehead car park. From the coast, we have a magnificent view of Belfast from Blackhead Path and its lighthouse. You should not miss Gobbins Cliff Path, which allows you to discover the beautiful cliffs of the peninsula.

This golden sandy beach is one of the most beautiful in Northern Ireland. It stretches between Portstewart and Castlerock and offers splendid views over Donegal and the north coast. It is a very popular place for boaters and families in the beautiful days, and walkers the rest of the year.

This beautiful forest park spans 1 000 hectares. A 10 km road allows you to cross it and enjoy spectacular views of the surrounding hills. At the entrance to the site begins a hike for the Slieve Gullion Hill, from which you can see the whole county. At the top are some megalithic cairns.

The Glenariff Forest Park covers 1 185 ha and is famous for its postcard, Servicio-Na-Laragh. It is less than 1 km from the entrance, after a wooden path that winds over the river. Other routes are marked (4 paths up to 9 km) in the humid forest rich in biodiversity, alternating gorges and valleys, waterfalls and rocks. Departure also from the Moyle Way which crosses the mountain to Ballycastle (25 km).

On the south-east coast of the village, just a little hundred meters from the last houses, these caves formed more than 400 million years ago. There is a small way to go and the fans of the Game game Game of Thrones will take a look at it, as it was one of the shooting sites in Northern Ireland.

Located in the heart of West Belfast, Colin Glen Forest Park is the city's green lung (100 ha), comprising woodland and meadow, waterfalls and ponds set around a river and undulating ground rich in biodiversity. Small paths lead to both sides, with explanations on the vegetation, birds and fauna related to a wet environment) along the way. Legends and myths are rooted in these woods along the river. An interesting idea for a walk with children.

This natural park is a worthwhile excursion in the countryside east of Derry. It has wonderful old mills and money-laundering meadows, remnants of the flax industry, once flourishing in the valley. It was the first hydroelectric plant in Ulster (it opened its doors in 1886). Roe Valley is a popular place and walkers can learn about biodiversity and local history during the various courses. The centre visitor is a ecomuseum that explains the fauna and flora of the region.

55 ha of forest whose main attraction is the highest waterfall in Ulster. Marked and constructed paths, wooden bridges that circulate in a tree and moss vegetation.

Just 20 minutes from the city center is this unspoiled and protected natural area with its caves and cliffs, its biodiversity and prehistoric sites, its circular fort and its hill that is said to resemble Napoleon's nose! Cave Hill is 368 meters high and, on a clear day, it is possible to see the Mourne Mountains, Strangford Lough and the important buildings of Belfast. For walks, there are signposts from the castle parking lot. It is possible to walk to the zoo, the castle and Cave Hill.

Benone Beach is one of the longest in Ireland with its 11 km of white sand that starts in Magilligan (Foyle Estuary) to the west, to Downhill to the east. All sports activities are carried out as well as horse riding.

This coastal road over 10 km allows to reach Portrush and go to White Rocks along the coast. He is part of the Causeway Coast Way, which stretches over 52 km to Ballycastle.

A viewpoint where not miss stop to admire the views, the Donegal hills of Antrim and north-east coast.

The forest covers 85 hectares around a beautiful lake with rare collections of trees (such Sitka Spruce, a specimen of conifer). Various walks are marked, a real delight! The gardens were designed by landscape designers and have been maintained since XVIII < sup > th < /sup > century by passionate preservatives.

A beach renowned for its range of white sand, bordered by dunes, some of which, to the Bann estuary, are oldest dated in Ireland.