I recently spent a long weekend in Northern Ireland, somewhere I haven’t visited since my first independent trip around the UK in 2011! I spent three days roadtripping the Causeway Coast. By far one of the best experiences was returning to the Giant’s Causeway. After hearing lots of stories about how crowded it can be with visiting tour groups during the day, I wanted my visit to be epic—so I went at sunrise! We had essentially the entire place to ourselves, and it was such a magical experience. Here’s how I made it happen.

What is the Giant’s Causeway?

The Giant’s Causeway is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the most popular attractions in Northern Ireland. To make it simple, it’s a section of interlocking, hexagonal basalt columns along the sea off the Antrim Coast. It was created by an ancient volcanic fissure eruption. Today, a lot is made of the various legends and myths in local folklore about how the Giant’s Causeway came to be. Supposedly the giant Finn McCool was challenged to fight a Scottish giant, and the Causeway was built for the two to meet. It was then destroyed after the Scottish giant ran away from the fight, destroying any chance of Finn McCool of following him. Whatever you believe, it’s a very cool geologic area in a beautiful part of Northern Ireland!

Arriving at the Giant’s Causeway

I specifically booked my accommodation for two reasons: it was just couple minutes’ walk from the Giant’s Causeway, and there was free parking. I woke up at 6:30am and was walking down to the stones at 7:00am. Sunrise was scheduled for about 7:30am, so I had time to get there before the sun came up.

There are several different parking lots at the Giant’s Causeway. However, parking is only available for those going to the Visitor’s Center. This is run by National Trust and costs £12.50 per person for adults. So even if you don’t want to go to the Visitor Center, you still need to pay for parking.

When the Visitor Center is open, there is a shuttle bus that runs from the parking lot down to the stones. This costs £1 per person each way. Otherwise, it’s about a 10- or 15-minute walk from the visitor center to the stones.

What to See at the Giant’s Causeway

Of course, the stones themselves are the main attraction here. You can walk out along the stones, all the way out to the tip where they meet the sea. You can climb up the mound of columns for great views, and sit in the Wishing Chair. Probably my favorite part was walking the trails on the surrounding cliffs for spectacular views.

I took the Red Trail from the stones, and walked all along to the end of the path. It used to continue further along the cliffs, but unfortunately it has been closed due to erosion and safety issues. The section you can walk is still incredible though! I then took the steps up to walk the Red Trail along the cliff.

The overhead views of the stones and the formation below was amazing! I loved having so much time here on my own to explore.

Getting There

The Giant’s Causeway is about 1 hour 15 minutes away from Belfast by car. There are multiple large parking lots, although parking is reserved for those going to (and paying at) the visitor center. I stayed so close to the Giant’s Causeway that I walked in the morning to get there before sunrise. If you are planning on visiting for sunrise, I’d highly recommend staying somewhere along the Causeway Coast.

You can also take Bus #402, which runs to/from Portrush and Ballycastle. The bus stops right on the road by the Giant’s Causeway, but doesn’t run early enough to get you there for a sunrise. In the busy summer months, there is also a Park-and-Ride that operates from Bushmills. Again, it won’t get you there in time for sunrise, but it’s a nice way to visit the Giant’s Causeway and not worry about parking.

Planning Your Trip

I stayed at Finn McCool’s Hostel, which was literally down the road from the Giant’s Causeway. While it wasn’t the greatest hostel, it had free parking and an unbeatable location within a 5-minute walk to the Giant’s Causeway. For the price I paid, I’d stay here again. You can search for hostels on Hostelworld, or hotels on Booking.com. You can also sign up to and search accommodation on Airbnb here.

The nearest airport is Derry/Londonderry, however there aren’t very many good flight options here. It’s best to fly into Belfast where there’s lots of budget airline flights. You can also fly into Dublin, which is 3-3.5 hours drive from the Giant’s Causeway—you could certainly tie it in to a bigger Ireland road trip. I use Skyscanner to find the best deals on flights. Considering travel insurance for your trip? World Nomads offers coverage for more than 150 adventure activities as well as emergency medical, lost luggage, trip cancellation and more. Interested in doing a tour? Here are a few options for you!

Visiting the Giant’s Causeway at sunrise was an amazing experience. It was a real highlight of my road trip around Northern Ireland! I hope this helps in planning a sunrise trip to the Giant’s Causeway.

Have you ever been to the Giant’s Causeway before? What was your experience like?

You might like my other posts on Northern Ireland:

A 3-Day Itinerary For The Causeway Coast In Northern Ireland

How Much Does It Cost To Travel Northern Ireland For 5 Days?

A City Guide To Belfast: What To Do, See, Eat, And Drink!

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