Ronan's Way car park & trails

The car park at Ronan's Way sits just outside Ballycastle and serves as the proper jumping-off point for some genuinely fine walking on the Causeway Coast. It's a working car park rather than a visitor attraction in the traditional sense, but that's rather the point - you park up and get straight onto the trails that fan out from here.

The walks themselves are the draw. You get access to coastal paths that curve around the cliffs and down to shingle beaches, with views north toward Rathlin Island when the weather cooperates. The trails vary in difficulty, so you're not locked into a single route. Some folks do the full loop in an hour, others potter about for three and still don't cover everything.

It's free to park and the paths are open 24/7, though you'll want daylight hours unless you're after something moody and atmospheric. Bring proper boots - the ground gets boggy after rain, and the coastal wind is no joke even when it looks calm from the car.

Walkers and families with older kids will get the most from this. Young children might find the longer sections tedious, and there's no cafe at the car park itself, so pack snacks. If you're basing yourself at Watertop Farm, just four miles away, Ronan's Way makes an easy morning's outing before heading back for lunch. It's the kind of place that doesn't announce itself loudly but rewards anyone who actually gets out and walks the paths.