Antrim Coast in October

Hello! My husband and I are planning our first trip to Northern Ireland in late October and have booked 4-5 days in Coleraine with the hope of seeing the Antrim Coast. However, now I’m looking on the Translink website and it appears that buses don’t run beyond the end of September. We were really hoping not to have to rent a car but we’d love to see the Glens of Antrim, the Giants Causeway, and other places of beauty.

Can anyone help with this? Am I reading the Translink schedule incorrectly? Is there a bus company aside from Translink? Or another means of transport besides the train which seems quite limited? Taxis perhaps?

Hi Cheryl, Thanks for the post about your upcoming plans to visit Northern Ireland for your first time!

Translink runs the bus and train services in Northern Ireland, so it would be the best way to get around by public transport. I find the Transport for Ireland journey planner the most convenient for finding services to places of interest, and then use the Translink website for the timetables and booking tickets. For instance, the 402 service runs from Coleraine to the Giant's Causeway, with its new timetable dates from September to June next year. 🚌

To get to Carnlough, near the Glens of Antrim area, it would be a couple of buses via Ballymena, the 218 and the 128. Again, the timetable shows times up until the end of June 2027. Another option is from Coleraine to Cushendun, and again the Transport for Ireland journey planner lists the services available. 

It is also possible to get to Belfast itself and use the hop-on hop-off bus from there to get to some of the popular attractions. 

Regarding private hire/taxis, Yell has a website of operators in the area that may be able to help.

Hi Cheryl,

Don’t worry — you certainly don’t need to abandon the idea of visiting the Causeway Coast just because you’re not hiring a car.

The public transport situation does become more limited towards the end of the season, particularly for some of the services designed around visitors, so you’re right to check this before you travel. However, it’s worth putting your exact October dates into the Translink Journey Planner, as not all services simply stop at the end of September. The Giant’s Causeway is certainly doable without a car, and Coleraine is a good base for exploring the Causeway Coast by public transport. Bushmills and Portrush are also straightforward to reach.

The difficulty comes when you want to see several of the smaller coastal attractions and the Glens of Antrim in the same day, as the bus connections become much less frequent. For the Glens and some of the more remote parts of the coast, I would seriously consider booking a local taxi/private driver for a day. With two people, it can be quite reasonable if you arrange a price in advance, and you have the advantage of being able to stop where you want rather than trying to fit everything around bus times. There are also local tour operators who offer private Causeway Coast and Antrim tours.

If you let me know your approximate dates in late October, I’d be happy to suggest a realistic 4–5 day itinerary from Coleraine without hiring a car, including the Giant’s Causeway, Dunluce Castle, Ballintoy, Carrick-a-Rede, the Antrim Glens and some of our less obvious scenic spots. There are definitely ways to have a wonderful trip here without driving! 😊

Regards

Alison 

Hi Alison,

Thanks for adding your take on Cheryl's Antrim Coast trip! 

As you say, some places are tricky to get to just by public transport, especially when trying to combine attractions in a single day. A combination of bus, train and private hire/taxi sounds like wonderful advice. 💚