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A Route Built for Lingering

The Causeway Coastal Route runs for roughly 130 miles between Belfast and Derry, hugging the Antrim coastline for most of its length. You could drive it in a single long day, and plenty of people do, but you would spend the whole time watching the road rather than the view. Give it two or three days instead, and it becomes one of the most rewarding journeys in the British Isles: sea on one side, glens and basalt cliffs on the other, and a string of villages small enough to walk end to end in twenty minutes.

The route is signposted throughout, mostly following the A2. It is a proper coastal road, not a motorway with a sea view, so expect narrow sections, tight bends and the occasional tractor. That is part of the appeal.

From Belfast Lough to the Glens

Leave Belfast heading north along the lough, and your first stop comes quickly. Carrickfergus Castle sits almost on the water's edge, a Norman fortress with more than 800 years of history and walls you can walk along. It is an easy introduction to the scale of what follows.

Beyond Larne the coast turns wilder. The road climbs and dips through the nine glens of Antrim, each one dropping down to the sea in its own way. Glenarm makes a good first proper pause, with its walled garden and a harbour that feels almost too tidy to be real. A few miles on, Carnlough has a small stone harbour and a handful of cafés — a sensible place for coffee before the road gets twistier.

Harbours, Glens and the Torr Head Detour

Cushendall is the largest of the villages on this stretch, with a curved beach and a couple of pubs that fill up on summer evenings. Cushendun, just beyond, is quieter and stranger — a cluster of whitewashed, Cornish-style cottages built by a Victorian architect, set where the river meets the sea.

Just past Cushendun, look for the sign for Torr Head. This single-track detour adds perhaps 40 minutes and is not for nervous drivers, but it delivers the finest views on the whole route: the Mull of Kintyre across the water, the sea below, and on a clear day the coast of Scotland seemingly within reach. Rejoin the main road at Ballycastle.

The Basalt Coast: Rope Bridge, Causeway and Castle

From Ballycastle, the landscape changes character. The cliffs here are volcanic in origin, and the road runs along the top of them.

• Carrick-a-Rede — a rope bridge slung between the mainland and a tiny island, originally used by salmon fishermen. Cross early or late in the day to avoid queues.
• The Giant's Causeway — the hexagonal columns that give the route its name. Go at dawn or after 5pm if you want photographs without crowds, and check the tide times before you set out.
• Dunluce Castle — a ruined medieval fortress balanced on a headland, best seen from the road as you approach from Bushmills. The light in late afternoon is exceptional.
• Portrush — a proper seaside town with two beaches, an amusements strip and good fish and chips. A natural overnight stop.

Portstewart, Downhill and On to Derry

Portstewart is a gentle ten-minute drive from Portrush, with a long strand and a promenade that is pleasant for an evening walk. Beyond it, the coast road climbs to Downhill, where a clifftop temple sits perilously close to the edge above a vast sandy beach. The view from the headland takes in the whole north coast.

From there the road runs along Magilligan Strand, a five-mile beach that looks almost empty even in August. Follow the lough shore south and you arrive in Derry, where the city walls — among the finest surviving in Europe — make a fitting place to end the drive.

Practical Notes for the Drive

A few things are worth knowing before you set off.

• Allow two to three days. One day is possible but leaves no time to actually stop anywhere.
• Drive north to south if you can. Starting in Derry and finishing in Belfast keeps the sea on your left and makes pulling over for views far easier.
• Fuel up in the towns. Petrol stations are scarce along the glens and around Torr Head.
• Check the weather and tides. Coastal fog can arrive quickly, and the Causeway and Downhill are best at low tide.
• Book accommodation early for Portrush, Bushmills and Cushendall between June and September.
• Park considerately. Many of the best viewpoints have no car park at all — use the designated lay-bys rather than verges.

The route rewards patience more than speed. Stop often, walk a little, and let the coast set the pace.