Planning my September 2024 trip and considering Portrush for 2 nights, based on Rick Steven’s book. However I’m reconsidering since receiving some recent feedback.
Has anyone been to Portrush this year and can update me regarding if there are many restaurants, bars, etc.?
Thank you!
We visited for a couple of hours on a day trip out of Belfast (that was our base for 3 nights) that also included Giant’s Causeway. That was enough for me. We had a car. I move quickly generally. So others might enjoy a longer stop.
There are restaurants and bars in Portrush. In fact it is quite tourist oriented.
I will say that I love the Bayview Hotel a little further down the coast at Port Ballintrae. Lovely hotel on the bay with gorgeous views. We walked to Giants Causeway, Dunluce Castle, Bushmills, and even Portrush from there. (Portrush was a pretty long walk). The hotel restaurant is well known locally.
I won't repeat my comment from yesterday. Maybe things changed since a year ago...
We just returned from RS 14 day tour of Ireland. We spent one night in Portrush and enjoyed a delicious group dinner at the Elephant Rock Restaurant. Have hotel accommodations too.
It’s a beautifully decorated building on the water.
www.elephantrockhotel.co.uk.
We stayed in Portrush one Monday night in May. The town was dead and most of the restaurants and shops around the main bay were closed. I'm not sure if that was a function of the day of the week or the fact we were ahead of tourist season.
We loved visiting the Giant's Causeway and the Carrick-A-Rede Rope Bridge that day. Both involve a lot of walking.
Anvershiel House was the B&B we stayed in, mentioned in a Rick Steves guidebook. We had no clue it was a "no host" B&B. We never laid eyes on a soul until we ran into a couple other customers at breakfast. You check in with a remote-access key, never meet a host, and must fix your own coffee, tea and breakfast, moving back and forth from small refrigerators in the breakfast room and a larger fridge around the corner. It was the least personal B&B I've ever stayed in. They did have a few on-site parking spots.
PS:
Cameron Hewitt, decades-long writer and tour specialist for Rick Steves and his books, just posted a series of his best and worst of Ireland on his Facebook page. It's well worth reading as he has just finished a long stint in Ireland.
His worst five concluded with Portrush. "5. Portrush on a Rowdy Saturday Night. This past-its-prime beach resort on the Antrim Coast has a certain faded charm. I had the bad luck to arrive on a summer Saturday evening, when the streets were heaving with local beachgoers. I waited in a long line for the absolute worst fish-and-chips of my life...and soon after, was trying to enjoy a boardwalk stroll when I looked down to see drunk teenagers taking turns vomiting into the sand. I'm sure, in better times, I'd have enjoyed Portrush. But not this time."
Read all his posts here: https://www.facebook.com/HewittCameron
