Ballintoy

Ballintoy ( _ga. Baile an Tuaigh, lit. "townland of the ruler of the tuath") is a small village in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It is located alongside the B15 coast road, km to mi|28|spell=Commonwealth north-east of Coleraine, km to mi|8|spell=Commonwealth west of Ballycastle and between it and Bushmills. The village is located about one kilometre from Ballintoy Harbour, a small fishing harbour located at the end of a very small, narrow, steep road down Knocksaughey hill which passes by the entrance to Larrybane and Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge. The harbour is host to a Dawn Service on Easter Sunday each year.

There has been no significant development within the village in the past and, as a result, Ballintoy's population has slowly declined and was only 165 people in the 2001 Census. The village has modest commercial and social facilities including tourist accommodation, restaurants, several small shops, and two churches. The best known church is the distinctive white Ballintoy Parish Church on the hill above the harbour. The village was originally built around a single street separating the inland pastures from the strip fields running towards the sea. Two of the village’s oldest hotels and pubs, the Carrick-A-Rede Hotel and the Fullerton Arms, still stand on this street. The village is in the area covered by Moyle District Council.

Places of interest

*Bendhu House - a listed building on the road down to the harbour which was built by the artist Newton Penprase
*The remains of Dunseverick Castle are nearby and the village is only a short drive from the Giant's Causeway.
*Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge is just outside the village. The bridge links the mainland to the tiny Carrick Island. It is thought salmon fishermen have been erecting bridges to the island for over 300 years. The bridge spans m to ft|20 and is m to ft|30 above the rocks below. It is a major tourist attraction with 140,000 visitors in 2005.

References

* [http://www.ninis.nisra.gov.uk/ NI Neighbourhood Information Service]
* [http://www.moyle-council.org/ Moyle District Council]
*Draft Northern Area Plan 2016
* [http://www.culturenorthernireland.org/town_Home.aspx?co=16&to=313&ca=0&sca=0&navID=1 Culture Northern Ireland]

External links

* [http://www.northantrim.com/ballintoy.htm Ballintoy website]

ee also

*List of villages in Northern Ireland
*List of towns in Northern Ireland