Situated on the Northern coast of County Antrim, Northern Ireland, is a world heritage site, a unique result of volcanic activity discovered in 1692 and now attracting over 700,000 visitors each year. Giants causeway is an coastal phenomenon of around 40,000 connecting polygonal basalt columns protruding out of the sea, formed around 60 million years ago.

The area has been subject to many myths over the years, however the most well known, and still believed by some, is the story of Finn McCool, the man who built giants causeway to enable him to walk across the sea to fight his Scottish counterpart. The legend continues that he picked up part of Ireland in order to throw it at his rival but he missed and the piece of land ended up in the Irish Sea giving the island which is now known as the Isle of Man.

The area was designated a UNESCO world heritage site in 1986 as a cultural and natural site and is therefore protected from development. The site is owned and run by The National Trust.

The visitor’s centre, perched upon a cliff overlooking the site, is run by Moyle District Council . It is here that you can watch a short video before wandering to the site.

The area as a whole has around 15km of walking paths, many split up into smaller, more manageable 2km round trips. You may also catch a glimpse of some of the huge variety of sea birds that reside at giants causeway.
The surrounding area also offers some attractions for visitors such as the breathtaking, if a little scary, Carrick-a- Rede rope bridge, which can be walked to along a coastal path from the visitors centre.

Not far away from giants causeway you can complete a trip to Antrim with a visit to Ireland’s oldest whiskey distillery at Bushmills. Here you can watch whiskey being made and even sample a drop too.

In 1608 the original grant was given by King James I to Sir Thomas Phillips to distil whiskey by royal licence in County Antrim. In 2008 Bushmills celebrated 400 years of distilling whiskey in the area with a Special Limited Edition of the now globally renowned Irish Whiskey.

The whiskey is made in the same traditional way as they did in the area all those centuries ago.