In May 2024 we revisited the Giants Causeway (GC) for the first time in many years. There is a confusing range of logistical/cost options/issues for a visit and, since 6 of the 10 reviews currently here predate the opening of the Visitor Centre (VC) in 2012 which created a new situation, and the others don’t address the options, it seems worthwhile trying to clarify matters as of our visit. I concentrate on those for arriving by car but some will also apply to those traveling by Bus/Train/Coach/Bike. 

a. Any visit to the GC itself is free - the beaches and cliff paths are open to all without any payment. The complexities/costs relate to the VC and to car parking.

b. The National Trust’s (NT) large and architecturally stylish modern VC is in a nicely hidden grass-topped building on the cliffs around 1km from the beach where the actual Causeway is situated. Although it might seem so from the positioning of its front doors, this does NOT have to be visited to get to the GC footpaths and, if you do, you will have to pay. Otherwise, just walk round or up and across its grass roof! Each person going inside for ANY purpose has to buy a “Visitor Experience” (VE) Ticket whose price “includes reserved on-site parking, guided tours with our award-winning storytelling team, use of hand-held audio guides, access to the Visitor Centre's exhibition and interpretation area, the shop, café, accessibility aids and use of all facilities” (inc its Toilets! Though there are other external toilets nearby - details unknown). The VE price varies according to season -  current “Peak” (Mar - Oct approx) is £15.50 per person.

c. Note also that a car with e.g 3 occupants needs 3 VE tickets if all are going into the VC even though there is only 1 car park space required! Rather than paying £46.50 for 3 VE tickets you could drop 2 passengers outside the parking area and get your “parking” for £15.50 - BUT you will then only have ONE VE entry ticket…. The other 2 would have to miss out the VC etc (I won’t go down the road of whether you might “share” the “wristband ticket” in series!). A number of parking alternatives exist at varying distances from the GC but, even if you park elsewhere and thus don’t have to pay for the VC parking, everyone still has to pay full price per person IF they want to enter the VC building.

d. The nearest other place to park is the Causeway Hotel adjacent to the VC. It charges £10 per vehicle and an equivalent voucher is provided towards purchases at the Hotel. The Hotel is “Historic”, dating back to 1886 when visitors first started arriving in large numbers. Like the VC, it sits inside the WHS boundary and is “owned” (but not run) by NT. Your £10 spent with them does not entitle you to any of the VE facilities. We didn’t use it but met people who had and were happy with the deal - if you don’t want the VC facilities it seems a good one IMO, as you are probably going to buy a coffee or 2 somewhere anyway and this gives you a chance to explore the hotel’s “Victorian ambience”! I have no idea how busy its parking gets and whether they sometimes have to close it to non residents. If you stay at the hotel (B+B c£200p room pn and up) you get “complementary” VE and even shuttle bus tickets!!!

e. The NT has another car park titled “Causeway Coast Way” intended for walkers around 500m east of the VC which charges £10 per car for up to 1 whole day (pay by phone only), so is better than the VC if you have multiple occupants and don’t want any VE aspect. A footpath from it leads to the GC cliff paths from where you can walk down/round using the "Shepherd’s Steps" (see later).

f. Another option is to park for free at Dundarave Car Park in the village of Bushmills 2+ miles from the GC VC. A “Park and Ride” service operates from there between Mar/Oct – “go to the Bushmills Visitor Information Centre at the car park…….and…take advantage of the 'Green Ticket' savings, which reduce adult ticket prices to £11 per adult and £5.50 per child, which includes your bus ticket and Visitor Experience tickets”. That makes you dependent on bus schedules of course (which I can’t discover!). Nb this bus is different from the “regular” 401 bus from Coleraine which passes through Bushmills on its way to the GC. You could of course park there for free, give up on the bus and VE and walk up to the GC but a better place to do that is probably from the nearby (and also free) Ballintrea Salmon Rock Beach Car Park taking the coastal path.

g. There are other establishments nearby which may or may not provide parking more cheaply or for free if you purchase something from them e.g on this map The Nook Restaurant and Finn McCool’s GC Hostel.  There is also the upper Bushmill Railway Station which, as per the most recent Web entry, charges £8 per car. I have no direct knowledge of any of them and you are on your own if you try them!!! Roadside or verge parking nearby seems impossible, dangerous and subject to fines.

h. Alongside the direct footpath between the VC and GC there is a paved road with a shuttle bus running up and down at an extra £1pp each way, even if you have paid for a VE ticket!! You can however use it even if you haven’t paid for a VE and you might want to if the weather is bad! If you are doing some walking after seeing the GC then a path continues eastwards, first following the shore and then climbing to join the Red Trail which ends at the Amphitheatre. You then have to return along Red Trail, climb Shepherd’s Steps and, either to do the Yellow Trail or continue to the VC along the cliffs. See all the Trails here.  

i. Members of the NT or any organization affiliated via INTO get their VE ticket, including Car parking of course, (and even their shuttle bus!) for free.

j. A further complexity is the “requirement” to pre-book the VE. In theory, to get a car park place at the VC you should have booked (and paid - other than members who avoid this by entering their membership ref when booking) on-line in advance to get an arrival time slot which “guarantees” a parking place. Pre-Covid the GC was getting 1 million visitors pa but has not returned to those levels. A large number, however, arrive on coaches (one can even get a day return tour from Dublin) so don’t need any parking and don’t stay that long. My understanding is that such tours do NOT usually include VC entrance or Shuttle but use a separate “group entrance” at the side of the VC which takes them directly through to the Shuttle bus stop and the road down to the GC - if you are booking a coach tour, and that is important to you then check the details. My impression was that, provided you have not chosen e.g mid day on a fine Sunday or bank holiday, you are unlikely to find the parking full even if you haven’t pre booked. As “booking” is only “recommended” I presume there must be ways for the “unbooked” of “holding” one’s car just outside the car park whilst one goes inside the VC to buy the required VE tickets.

k. Even on an early Thursday afternoon in May the Causeway itself was uncomfortably busy, though this cleared somewhat by 3pm …but still with occasional waves of coach parties arriving by shuttle. Best to target early or late? The VC car park “closes” at 5.30pm but you can still remove a vehicle via the “Exit” after that time - so why not make full use of a fine evening and have the place largely to yourself? The trails around the actual GC are a very worthwhile part of a visit, providing fine views and further geological sights. Just visiting the GC itself would, IMO, be missing out. (All/most Coach based visits will not allow enough time for such walks beyond the immediate GC area). We were told that, if we stayed out walking after the VC closed at 5.30, we could return our loaned audio guides in a bin provided for the purpose! Surprisingly, the sets do not require a deposit.

l. Finally, given its role within the options, is the VC Exhibition worth seeing? My view would be ..…hardly. As NT members we got our visit (and car parking) for free but I wouldn’t have wanted to pay £15.50 pp for it! It does have a rather nice relief model of the site and contains sections on the geology and its study/tourism history. There is also a rather childish video of the Myth of Finn McCool. We thought it generally rather thin on content in the spaces left over after the enormous shop and café. There are 2 Audio guide versions - “Standard” (with a lot on the legend) and “Geological”. We possibly made a mistake by taking 2 of the former but even the “Standard” version told us about the “ball and socket” (concave/convex) jointing in the rocks (as in my review photo) - or you can read this learned article!! Whether we would have missed the things it pointed out is hard to say – its 8 (?) “stop points” are clearly marked by posts along the lower trail. We also saw and heard a couple of “guided tours” but did not regret not being on them - rather crowded and “high” on McCool tales!! But we all vary regarding our concept of “Value” - if you had traveled halfway around the World, had long dreamed of visiting the GC and had done little preparatory reading then you might have a different view about spending a mere £15.50pp extra!! Incidentally - the VC contains a wall of tourism-related certificates and awards but not the UNESCO WH one - staff didn’t even know there was such a thing!