The Giants Causeway is located on the north coast of Northern Ireland, about 3 miles outside of the town of Bushmills and is Northern Ireland’s only UNESCO heritage site. The unique landscape of about 40 000 interlocking hexagon-shaped basalt columns, is one of the most famous sights along the Causeway Coastal Route. Depending on who you believe, the columns are a result of an ancient volcanic eruption or by a giant named Finn McCool who lived along the coast and placed the columns to get to Scotland’s mainland.

The Giants Causeway is free to visit and explore on your own and is only a short hike of about 20 minutes from the parking lot. There are also many more beautiful routes to explore, so I would recommend taking your time on-site to hike along the coastline. There is also a bus going from the visitor centre and down to the rock formation if you prefer. At the visitor centre, you can also purchase the “visitor experience” which includes an audio tour to learn more about the history of the Giants Causeway and how it came to exist.

You can get to Giants Causeway either by joining a tour or travelling there yourself. There is a parking space next to the visitor centre but it is reserved for those paying for the visitor experience. We personally joined a tour from Dublin (which also stopped by Belfast) taking us through a number of sights along the road up to Northern Ireland and Giants Causeway. Some of the highlights along the way were; the dark hedges and Dunluce castle, both featured in the TV series Game of Thrones.