5 Best Sights in Northern Ireland

A narrow single-track road lined by twisted beech trees whose numbers are steadily being diminished by gales and climate change, the Dark Hedges is a bit anticlimactic even for fanatical Game of Thrones--location tourists hoping for a classic selfie. The avenue of trees was originally planted in the early 1770s by the Stuart family, wealthy local landowners. Tours have been suspended since 2020 due to Covid-19 restrictions; for further information visit  www.darkhedgesestate.com.  

Since its role as Kingsroad in Game of Thrones, the Dark Hedges has become the most visited of the Irish sights linked to the TV series, attracting tens of thousands of visitors annually. With its foreboding atmosphere, the road—more an unprepossessing single-track lane with a few twisted beech trees—has become a backdrop for Instagram antics. It has also been filmed for scenes in Transformers: The Last Knight (2017), which has added to its movie-buff status. In the early 1770s when the Stuart family built their house called Gracehill, they lined the avenue with two rows of 150 beeches to impress visitors. The road now comes with a preservation order in a place that is so crowded with "location tourists" that it is closed to all but local traffic; few would have guessed some years ago that their narrow country lane would be so popular with film and TV directors that it would become a victim of overtourism. Parking on either the Bregagh Road (the Dark Hedges road itself), which is off Ballinlea Road, is prohibited. The surrounding fields are privately owned and not open to the public; visitors are asked to respect the trees and not to deface or mark the bark. The road is prone to flooding in the winter so the best time to visit is in spring when, if you catch the right day, the area is alive with birdsong and the melodic warbles of finches, tits, robins, and blackcaps.

Get there early in the morning or leave your visit until later in the day when it is quieter.

There is parking (£2 per car) at the Dark Hedges Experience visitor center, open 10 am--3 pm, Monday--Friday and 10 am--4 pm on the weekends; parking is free if you are a customer of the hotel. You can find information in the center on the history of the site, alongside merchandise from the Game of Thrones series such as T-shirts, hoodies, candles, and fridge magnets. Tours are held, but times vary and it is best to check with the center or with the Causeway Coast and Glens tourist office in the main street of the village of Armoy, a 10-minute drive. The center and car park is a 5- to 10-minute walk from the Dark Hedges road.

Thrill seekers love this revived dramatic cliff walk in east County Antrim. Cut into the towering rock on the eastern side of Islandmagee Peninsula, the path is linked with a new metal staircase and is one of Northern Ireland’s best-kept secrets. Originally built in 1902 by the railway magnate Berkeley Deane Wise, in its heyday it was as popular as the Giant's Causeway but fell into disrepair and closed to the public after World War II. Today it merits a government-approved acronym, ASSI, for Area of Special Scientific Interest, and is noted for its noisy colonies of puffins, razorbills, fulmars, peregrine falcons, and guillemots. On a clear day, panoramic views across the North Channel stretch from the Scottish Outer Hebrides in the north to the English Lake District in the south. Legends associated with the Gobbins include mythical figures such as Gobbin Saor, a giant who lived in the cliffs. An exhibition room with interpretation, a café and crafts shop, and a tourist information point are located at the site.

On occasion, due to stormy weather, the path is closed to visitors. Call in advance to make sure it is fully operational.

The road to Silent Valley Reservoir Park leads to mountain views and excellent photo ops. Also here is a visitor center with an informative exhibition explaining the history of Silent Valley. Look into the Locals Room, which celebrates the men who worked on the building of the reservoir as well as the Mourne Wall. You can also pick up information on a walking and heritage trail of 1.8 km (just over 1 mile) or the more strenuous Ben Crom Dam Walk, which is 10 km (6 miles).

After returning to Ireland in the year AD 432, Ireland's patron saint seems to have popped up everywhere on his peregrinations. You can explore places associated with him along St. Patrick's Trail, a 92-mile signposted driving route linking 15 historic and ecclesiastical sites across the beautiful drumlin hills of Counties Down and Armagh. Pick up a trail map at the tourist office in Armagh or Downpatrick, and at major attractions on the route you qualify for two-for-one entry.

Covering 1,300 acres and entered through Gothic gateways, Tollymore Forest Park has been thrust into the spotlight because of its starring role in the TV series Game of Thrones, standing in for the Haunted Forest, the Wolfswood near Winterfell, and the Kings Road near Castle Black. The arboretum at Tollymore has the widest range of tree species of any park in Ireland. Apart from the better-known oak, birch, beech, and Sitka spruce, the eucalyptus from Australia and Tasmania stand out and bring a cheerful note. Game of Thrones fans can book a Tollymore guided locations trek held at 10 and 3 each day for £8 (this does not include the entrance fee to the forest park). The tour, lasting an hour and 45 minutes, is an immersive experience; Stark cloaks are provided at no extra cost. Alternatively, you can do the trek yourself without an official guide.