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Voykit pocket guide · United Kingdom
Cushendall
Cois Abhann Dalla
Base here 2 nights with a car: five of the Nine Glens are within 20 min. Without a car, one night on the bus is the limit.
Cushendall is a 1,200-person village on the Antrim coast, at the mouth of the River Dall and the doorway to five of the Nine Glens. It is a base, not a sight: the Curfew Tower takes ten minutes, the glens take two days. Buses run six times a day on weekdays, so a car changes the trip completely.
- Country
- United Kingdom
- Local name
- Cois Abhann Dalla
- Best months
- May–Jun, Sep
- Avoid
- Jul–Aug (busy coast traffic), Nov–Feb (short days, many closures)
- Stay
- 2 nights
Checked 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change; anything marked (check) is not confirmed.
Essentials
- Currency
- GBP
- Money
- Currency is the pound sterling (GBP, £). Cards and contactless work almost everywhere; some places are card-only.
- Daily spend
- Budget £45–70 excl. bed · Mid £70–120 excl. bed · High £120+ excl. bed (estimate; check)
- SIM and data
- EE, Vodafone (merged with Three in 2025) and O2 run the networks; prepaid SIMs sell in supermarkets, phone shops and airport vending machines, no registration needed.
- Emergency
- Police, fire, ambulance 999 or 112 · Police non-emergency 101 · NHS non-urgent 111
- Plugs
- Types G · 230 V · 50 Hz · Three-pin Type G only; European, US and Australian plugs need an adapter. Bathrooms have two-pin shaver sockets only.
- Tipping
- Restaurant with table service: 10–12.5% if no service charge is on the bill; check before adding more.; Pub or bar: Not expected; 'and one for yourself' offers the bartender a drink.; Taxi: Round up or 10%.; Hotel porter: £1–2 per bag.; Tour guide: £5–10 per person for a day tour; free walking tours expect £10–15.
- Water
- Tap water is safe everywhere. Free refills are common; restaurants will bring tap water if you ask.
- Toilets
- Public toilets are scarce and some charge 50p–£1 or are card-only. Stations, museums, department stores and pubs (if you buy a drink) are the fallback.
What things cost
| Item | Price |
|---|---|
| Coffee or tea in a café | £3–4.50 |
| Pub main course | £12–20 |
| Seafood main at Harry's | £16–26 |
| Pint of beer | £5–6 |
| Ulsterbus Ballymena to Cushendall, single | £5–7 |
| Glenariff Forest Park car park | £5 |
| eSIM or data SIM, about a week | £8–15 |
Desk estimates, checked 2026-09; check locally.
Get in
By air
- BFS · Belfast International
- About 1 h 15 min by car via M2 and A26 to Ballymena, then A43; bus connections need a change at Ballymena.
- BHD · George Best Belfast City
- About 1 h 30 min by car; train to Ballymena then Ulsterbus 150.
- LDY · City of Derry
- About 1 h 30 min by car along the A2 coast road.
Typical fares
- Ulsterbus 150 Ballymena → Cushendall
- about 45 min, £5–7 single
- Taxi Cushendall → Ballymena
- £35–50
- Car hire, one day
- from about £45
Show 7 more sections and the pocket cardHideGet around, See and do, Sleep, Phrase card, Etiquette, safety and scams, One and two days, Sources, Pocket card
Get around
You need your own wheels for the glens: the main roads have a sparse bus service. Ulsterbus 150 links Ballymena (rail from Belfast) with Cushendall in about 45 min, six times Monday–Friday and three times Saturday; bus 162 runs four times Monday–Saturday from Larne via Carnlough and Glenariff. Driving is on the left; the coast road A2 north to Cushendun and Torr Head is narrow with passing places.
See and do
Known for
- Curfew Tower
- Glenariff and the Waterfall Walkway
- Nine Glens of Antrim
- Ossian's Grave in Glenaan
Day trips
| Where | How | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Glenariff Forest Park | A43 south to Waterfoot, then Glenariffe Road | About 20 min by car |
| Cushendun and Glendun | A2 north, or the old Ballybrack road through Glencorp | About 10 min by car |
| Torr Head and Fair Head | Torr Road north from Cushendun | About 40 min by car |
| Giant's Causeway and Bushmills | A2 coast road via Ballycastle | About 1 h 15 min by car |
| Larne and The Gobbins | A2 south via Glenarm and Carnlough, or bus 162 | About 50 min by car |
| Belfast | A2 to Larne then M2, or A43 to Ballymena then M2 | About 1 h 15 min by car |
Sleep
- Village centre (Mill St and Bridge St)
- Pubs, Harry's and the takeaways on foot; B&Bs in 18th-century townhouses. Best for a car-free night.
- Coast Road south edge
- Caravan park and B&Bs 200 m apart, 10–15 min walk to the centre; quieter, sea-facing.
- Waterfoot and Glenariff
- 3–4 km (1.9–2.5 mi) south, at the foot of Glenariff; pubs and B&Bs, closer to the forest park.1.9–2.5 mi (3–4 km) south, at the foot of Glenariff; pubs and B&Bs, closer to the forest park.
- Cushendun
- 3 km (1.9 mi) north; smaller, one bar with food, good for Glendun and Torr Road.1.9 mi (3 km) north; smaller, one bar with food, good for Glendun and Torr Road.
Phrase card
| English | Say or show |
|---|---|
| Hello | Hellohel-oh |
| Thank you | Thanksthanks |
| Please | Pleasepleez |
| Where is the bus stop? | Where's the bus stop?wairz thuh bus stop |
| Can I pay by card? | Do you take card?doo yuh tayk kahrd |
| Cheers | Cheerscheerz |
Etiquette, safety and scams
Etiquette
- Greeting: Handshake at first meeting; 'hi' and first names quickly; avoid: Cheek kisses with strangers
- Conversation: Weather is a safe opener; understatement and self-deprecating humour; avoid: Asking about salary or class
- Queues: Join at the back; avoid: Pushing onto buses or trains before others get off
- Apologies: 'Sorry' is said constantly, even when not at fault; avoid: Taking it as an admission of blame
- Pubs: Buy rounds in a group; wait at the bar without waving money; avoid: Clicking fingers at staff
- Nations: Call Scots Scottish and Welsh Welsh; avoid: Calling the whole UK 'England'
Scams and watch-outs
- Bus 150 does not run on Sunday and the last weekday service is early evening: check the timetable before you commit to a car-free stay.
- The glen lanes are single-track with few passing places; do not plan to drive them after dark.
- Coast Road and glen car parks flood with day-trippers on summer weekends; arrive before 10:00.
- Mobile coverage has dead patches in the glens even where the map shows 4G or 5G.
Very low crime; the real risks are single-track glen roads, wet boardwalks at Glenariff and no mobile signal in the valleys. Tell someone your route before a hill walk.
One and two days
No timed day plan for Cushendall yet. Suggested stay: 2 nights. Build a day from the list below, mornings for the big sight.
- Curfew Tower
- Glenariff and the Waterfall Walkway
- Nine Glens of Antrim
- Ossian's Grave in Glenaan
Sources
Written by Voykit; facts cross-checked against these sources, last desk check 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change: check on the day.
- Discover Northern Ireland — Causeway Coast and Glens: discovernorthernireland.com/
- Causeway Coast and Glens Borough Council — Cushendall Caravan Park: www.causewaycoastandglens.gov.uk/see-do/caravan-parks/cushendall-caravan-park
- Glenariff Forest Park (nidirect): www.nidirect.gov.uk/articles/glenariff-forest-park
- Translink — Ulsterbus timetables: www.translink.co.uk/
- Wikivoyage: Cushendall, revision 5255428 (CC BY-SA 4.0): en.wikivoyage.org/w/index.php?oldid=5255428
Pocket card
Cut along the border and keep it in your wallet. Show the local-script lines to a driver.
CushendallCois Abhann Dalla
To this address, please
To this address, please
My hotel (write the name and address in the local script)
- Police, fire, ambulance999 or 112
- Police non-emergency101
- NHS non-urgent111
No embassy in the village: US consulate-general in Belfast, other embassies in London.
Tipping: 10–12.5% in restaurants if no service charge is added; not expected in pubs.
Voykit · checked 2026-09
Printed from Voykit (/cushendall). Written by Voykit; checked 2026-09. Estimates only: confirm prices, hours and entry rules on the day.