x-default

©David Soanes Photography/Getty Images/Flickr RF

Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge

Top choice in County Antrim


This 20m-long, 1m-wide bridge of wire rope spans the chasm between the sea cliffs and the little island of Carrick-a-Rede, swaying 30m above the rock-strewn water. Crossing the bridge is perfectly safe, but frightening if you don't have a head for heights, especially if it's breezy (in high winds the bridge is closed). From the island, views take in Rathlin Island and Fair Head to the east.

There's a small National Trust information centre and cafe at the car park.

The impetus for the crossing first came from fishermen, who would stretch their nets out from the tip of the island to intercept the passage of salmon migrating along the coast to their home rivers.

Now firmly on the tour-bus route, Carrick-a-Rede has become so popular that the National Trust has introduced ticketed one-hour time slots to visit the bridge. Book your ticket online in advance, especially during high season. Mornings tend to be quieter; the coaches arrive in the afternoon.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby County Antrim attractions

1. Kinbane Castle

2.33 MILES

On a limestone headland jutting out from the basalt cliffs, with stupendous views of Rathlin Island and Scotland, this castle, now ruined, was built in…

2. Marconi Memorial

4.79 MILES

In the harbour car park, a plaque at the foot of a rock pinnacle commemorates the day in 1898 when Guglielmo Marconi's assistants contacted Rathlin Island…

3. Rathlin West Light Seabird Centre

5.03 MILES

This Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) centre offers spectacular views of a thriving seabird colony, where every summer thousands of…

4. Giant's Causeway Visitor Experience

6.68 MILES

Built into the hillside and walled with tall black basalt slabs that mimic the basalt columns of the Causeway, the Giant's Causeway Visitor Experience…

5. Giant’s Causeway

6.68 MILES

This spectacular rock formation – Northern Ireland's only Unesco World Heritage site – is one of Ireland's most impressive and atmospheric landscape…

6. Boathouse Visitor Centre

7.11 MILES

South of the harbour, this combined visitor centre/museum details the fascinating history, culture and ecology of Rathlin Island, and can give advice on…

7. Dark Hedges

7.26 MILES

Planted by the Stuart family in the 18th century as the formal entrance to their property, these shadowy, gnarled, entwined beech trees are now among…

8. Old Bushmills Distillery

7.32 MILES

Bushmills is the world's oldest licensed distillery, having been given permission to produce whiskey by King James I in 1608. The whiskey is made with…