At the tail end of a recent London trip, my partner and I decided to sneak in a weekend trip to Northern Ireland. We hopped on a short flight from London to Belfast, checked into an airport hotel for the night, and the next morning, we picked up our rental car and hit the road.

Our primary destination was Bushmills, a charming little village tucked away in the north. The drive took about an hour and you’re surrounded by the lush green Irish countryside.

After arriving in Bushmills, we made our way to the famous Giant’s Causeway. If you’ve seen photos of those iconic hexagonal basalt columns, you’ll know why this is a must-see. We hiked the Red Trail, which was an easy but stunning walk along the cliffs. It’s the kind of place where every angle feels like a postcard.

From the Causeway, we headed to nearby Portrush, a coastal gem known for hosting The Open Championship at Royal Portrush (or at least that’s what it’s known for in my golfing family). On a referral from a friend we stopped in The Harbor Bar for a few pints of Guinness (obviously). We were immediately welcomed by the bartender and the regulars and had a blast chatting about their lives in Northern Ireland.

Next up, we took a tour of the Bushmills Distillery, which is the oldest licensed distillery in the world dating back to 1608. The tour was really informative, and you learn about the whole process from grain to glass and what makes Irish Whiskey different from Scotch. At the end of the tour, we did a whiskey tasting and I learned how much I dislike Irish Whiskey. It was still a cool experience.

After our little distillery adventure, we went back to our room at the Bushmills Inn where we were also having dinner that night. It’s picturesque and quaint and they serve traditional meals with locally sourced ingredients. It was divine.

The next morning, we hit the road again, this time heading back towards Belfast. The drive along the coast is insane. We didn’t make it very far from Bushmills before we were already pulling over to check out Ballintoy Harbor which was one of the Game of Thrones filming locations.

One of the other highlights of the drive was stopping at the Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge. This suspension bridge connects the mainland to a tiny island that used to be used by fishermen. It’s not a trip I planned without at least one sketchy hike!

By the time we made it back to Belfast, it was July 12th, a major holiday in Northern Ireland, so a lot of things were closed. We popped into the Titanic Museum. It’s not your typical museum with artifacts for obvious reasons, it’s more of an immersive, walk-through that really brings the story of the Titanic to life. It was unexpectedly emotional and informative and we left with new insights into Belfast’s role in the ship’s history.

After a whirlwind few days in Northern Ireland, we wrapped up our trip with a bus ride back to Dublin to catch our flight home. Once again, Ireland did not disappoint and it was really interesting to be able to compare our experience to our time in the Republic of Ireland. Both are so magical and we can’t wait to return this fall!