Stays · Destination Guide
Cold-water wrecks, tidal walls and basalt coastlines at Northern Ireland's wild northern edge
Accommodation listings are not available for this destination yet. Use the local planning notes to choose your base.
The most flexible plan is to fly into Belfast International (BFS), Belfast City (BHD) or City of Derry (LDY), collect a car and base near Portrush, Portstewart, Bushmills or Ballycastle. Belfast offers the broadest route choice within Northern Ireland; City of Derry can be the shortest road transfer for Portrush when its smaller network matches the trip. Dublin Airport (DUB) is a credible long-haul alternative with a much larger international network, but it adds a cross-border drive and travelers must still satisfy UK immigration requirements for Northern Ireland. Visitors arriving by ferry from Great Britain can enter through Belfast or Larne and continue north by road.
Rathlin Island is reached separately from Ballycastle on the public passenger ferry. The fast Kintra II crossing takes about 30 minutes but does not carry luggage, bicycles or pushchairs; Spirit of Rathlin takes about 40 minutes and accepts those items. Public-ferry tickets do not include diving. Local scuba boats depart from mainland harbors according to the operator's program, weather and tide.
A rental car is the most practical choice for divers because Portrush, Portstewart, Bushmills, Ballintoy and Ballycastle form a spread-out coast, and a charter may change departure harbor. Drive on the left.