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The Antrim Coast may be timeless in its beauty, but today its picturesque ports are enjoying the fruits of restoration and development at places as various as Ballycastle, Glenarm and Carrickfergus.

With its boundaries naturally defined by the sea, the River Bann, the extensive lake of Lough Neagh, and the River Lagan, County Antrim has always had a strong sense of its own clearcut geographical identity. This is further emphasised by the extensive uplands of the Antrim Plateau, wonderful for the sense of space with the moorland rising to heights such as Trostan (551m) and the distinctive Slemish (438m), famed for its association with St Patrick.

The plateau eases down to fertile valleys and bustling inland towns such as Ballymena, Antrim and Ballymoney, while the coastal towns ring the changes between the traditional resort of Portrush in the far north, the ferryport of Larne in the east, and historic Carrickfergus in the south.

In the spectacularly beautiful northeast of the county, the most rugged heights of the Plateau are softened by the nine Glens of Antrim, havens of beauty descending gently from the  moorland down through small farms to hospitable villages clustered at the shoreline, and connected by the renowned Antrim Coast Road.

Between these sheltered bays at the foot of the Glens, the sea cliffs of the headlands soar with remarkable rock formations which, on the North Coast, provide the setting for the Carrick-a-Rede rope bridge and the Giant's Causeway. From the charming town of Ballycastle, Northern Ireland's only inhabited offshore island of Rathlin is within easy reach by ferry, a mecca for ornithologists and perfect for days away from the pressures of mainstream life.

Local Attractions and Information

Antrim town Lough Neagh cruises +44 (0)28 94 481312

Antrim town Shanes Castle +44 (0)28 94 428216

Antrim town Tourism Information +44 (0)28 94 428331

Ballycastle Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge +44 (0)28 20 731582

Ballymena Tourism Information +44 (0)28 25 660300

Ballymoney (Dervock) Benvarden Garden +44 (0)28 20 741331

Ballymoney Leslie Hill Open Farm +44 (0)28 27 666803

Bushmills Antrim Coast and Glens +44 (0)28 20 731582

Bushmills Irish Whiskey-World's Oldest Distillery +44 (0)28 20 731521

Carnlough AlwaysIreland Activity Holidays +44 (0)28 28 885995

Carrickfergus Castle +44 (0)28 93 351273

Carrickfergus Waterfront +44 (0)28 93 366455

Carrickfergus Andrew Jackson Centre +44 (0)28 93 366455

Dunluce Castle Visitor Centre +44 (0)28 20 731938

Giants Causeway +44 (0)28 20 731855

Giants Causeway & Bushmills Railway +44 (0)28 20 741157

Glenariff Forest Park +44 (0)28 21 758232

Larne Carnfunnock Country Park +44 (0)28 28 270451

Larne Ferryport +44 (0)28 28 872100

Larne Tourism Information +44 (0)28 28 260088

Lisburn Irish Linen Centre & Lisburn Museum +44 (0)28 92 663377

Lisburn Tourism Information +44 (0)28 92 660038

Portrush Tourism Information +44 (0)28 70 823333

Rathlin Island Ferries +44 (0)28 20 769299

Rathlin Island Visitor Centre +44 (0)28 20 763951

Templepatrick Patterson's Spade Mill +44 (0)28 94 433619