Ballygally Castle Hotel with its Haunted Rooms - NI
This haunted hotel is possibly one of the most haunted places in the world or at least in UK and it has a very scary story - this part of the hotel is closed to guests staying - but you can visit the tower where the ghost room is and see how the story unfolded. The haunted building has not been touched in the recent upgrades of the hotel - leaving the ghost room as it was.
The haunted hotel is an attraction for ghost hunters and guests have told of ghost screams. The hotel itself is in a beautiful sea side location and it is a fabulous hotel - thankfully the haunted room is slightly separated from the rest of the hotel. You have to go up a round tower to the top and into the tiny rooms and you get a feeling for what it was like to be locked in there. If tempted - do check out this Haunted Hotel in the UK (Ballygally just outside Belfast - Northern Ireland).
For those who might not be well aware of Ballygally Hotel - of the Haunted Hotel as it might be referred to - it is an old castle that has been turned to a hotel and is located in the village of Ballygally in county Antrim, Northern Ireland, and even though it is more known as a hotel, people still visit it - or the tower - in order to check those haunted rooms which are found there and which are separated from the hotel itself.
There are different things that make this castle a different experience - that's of course apart from experiencing the feeling of the ghosts :-) - such as its location; Ballygally Castle overlooks the sea on the Ballygally Bay. The castle is strongly Scots influenced in style featuring corbelled cylindrical tourelles with conical roofs on top. The castle was built with high walls, steep roof, dormer windows and corner turrets; the walls are five feet thick with loopholes for muskets and a water stream used to ran through the outer hall to provide water in the case of siege.
This is one of the different and rare experiences that we have been through while visiting a castle or a hotel, but actually a lot of people agree on the fact that it is one place which they love to visit for the idea of being referred to as haunted and for the fact that the visit paid for it is actually different - not just an old thing to watch and go through.
Since it is now used as a hotel, the Ballygally Castle is one of the oldest 17th century buildings in Northern Ireland that is still used until these days as a residence and is also believed to be one of the best haunted places in Ulster.
The Haunted Castle; a lot of people are asking why it has been given that name. Being considered a haunted place goes back to the ghosts which are believed to be living in the place with the most active of them all is known as Lady Isobel Shaw who used to knock on the doors of the rooms and disappear - yes, it would be scary to be staying at a room like that - this lady was reported to die after throwing herself from the window when her husband locked her in the room and left her starving. Another famous ghost in this castle is called Madame Nixon who used to live in the castle in the 19th century and who could be heard walking around the place in her silk dress.
The question we keep asking ourselves is is it possible that people could think about booking a room in this hotel or castle if they know that it is known as the haunted hotel and is believed to have ghosts living in it? and we never knew whether the answer would end up being a yes or else will be a no.
There are different stories reported about this hotel which are related to guests seeing ghosts or feeling them and running to the lobby in fright and those which are related to finding rooms in a mess after getting them prepared for guests. The most important thing to mention and the one thing we consider the most important is the small room in the corner turret of the castle which is known as the Ghost Room and which is closed and not part of the hotel.
It is interesting to get to this castle - or hotel - and reach the room through this tower to see those pictures and stories written on the wall about the history of the place when it comes to those stories related to the ghosts, but we didn't try to sleep in the hotel to tell you about any other kind of experience there!
There are other different trips we have made to Ballygally before which will be considered close to the Ballygally Hotel - the Haunted Hotel - which include the Ballygally and Ballintoy trip ( We have also visited this hotel before to check one of the doors that appeared in the Game of Thrones movie ( and we also enjoyed the Ballygally Beach which is near the castle (
Are you up to such an experience with some ghosts in it?
Some of the best locations around Ireland / Northern Ireland and further afield. A travel blog/vlog of the hidden treasures that are on our doorstep.
Newtownabbey Tourist Attractions: 6 Top Places to Visit
Planning to visit Newtownabbey? Check out our Newtownabbey Travel Guide video and see top most Tourist Attractions in Newtownabbey.
Top Places to visit in Newtownabbey:
Jordanstown Loughshore Park, Belfast Zoo, War Years Remembered, Sentry Hill Historic House, Ballyrobert Cottage Garden and Nursery, Hazelbank Park
Visit our website:
Places to Stay on the Island of Ireland
Whether it's a friendly B&B, a quirky hostel or something more unusual that you're after, Ireland has you covered. Special thanks go to Ireland's Blue Book (irelands-blue-book.ie) and B&B Ireland (bandbireland.com), and to all the locations used:
Delphi Lodge, Newforge House, Hayfield Manor Hotel, Butler House, Marlfield house, Gort na Mona, Lawcus Farm Guesthouse, Park Hotel Kenmare, Shelbourne Hotel, The Merchant Hotel, Castle Leslie, Ashford Castle, Bellinter House, The Dean Dublin, Monart Spa Hotel, Ard na Sidhe Country House, Ballynahinch Castle Hotel, The Dylan Hotel, Cnoc Suain, Donegal Thatched Cottages, Belle Isle, Generator Hostel, Ballyvolane House, Clissmann Horse Caravans, Finn Lough Resort, Teapot Lane, Clare Island Lighthouse and Ballygally Castle!
Discover more at ireland.com
A tour around Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland has alot to offer the tourist/backpacker. In my slide show (excluding Belfast) I have included interesting places to visit in County's Antrim, Down, Fermanagh Tyrone, Derry and Armagh. I will show you towns,castle ruins, a stately home in Fermanagh and a forest park. Of course I wasnt able to include every place.
Door 6 - Fullerton Arms, GOT Location in Northern Ireland
When it comes to Northern Ireland and the places which one could visit there then coming to the point where mentioning those locations where Game of Thrones scenes were filmed or even those where the doors are located, is considered beneficial.
We have to mention that there are two different types of GOT locations out there; those which are more of touristic destinations in Northern Ireland and which are more of outdoor areas, and those hotels, restaurants, pubs, and bars in which the 10 doors that appeared throughout the episodes are located - in this video, it is about hitting a destination related to the second type of location.
Door number 6 which focuses on House Targaryen also focuses on Drogon-Daenery's most aggressive and fearsome dragon. This door which is found in the Fullerton Arms Hotel was carved from the fallen trees of the Dark Hedges, where some other scenes from the movie were filmed in as well and which is considered one famous historical destination in Northern Ireland (
The interesting thing about this location - the Fullerton Arms Hotel - is that not only the door will be attracting tourists and visitors to it, but there is also a dining room set and prepared inside the hotel in the world of Game of Thrones, complete with the banners and its own replica iron throne - so you could also reserve your dinner at this place (
Every single door appearing in the movie will be related to specific characters and scenes in the movie, so you should be a fan and one who have seen all the different episodes in order to understand what you are seeing in real - but again, this would be only visited by those who are fans of the movie and have seen it because otherwise they will not be even interested in coming to check it in the real world in the first place.
This is not the only door for us to visit while tracking them all, but we have seen door number 3 in the Percy French Restaurant in Newcastle, county Antrim ( we have seen door number 4 in Blakes of the Hollow traditional Irish Victorian pub that has been open for more than 125 years ( we have checked door number 8 that is located in Mary McBride's Bar ( we checked door number 9 in Ballygally Castle Hotel that is also famous for the haunted room found in it and which is the reason why it is sometimes referred to as the Haunted Hotel ( and we have also seen door number 10 in the Dark Horse Bar in Belfast Commercial Court - a famous place for those willing to visit Belfast - (
The doors which we haven't been to yet and still didn't check are door number 1 which is located in the Cuan in Strangford, door number 2 which is situated in Fiddler's Green in Portaferry, door number 5 which is located in Frank Owens in Limavady, as well as door number 7 which is found in Gracehill House in Stranocum. We are making our plans to complete the journey and reach all these doors to complete the whole set.
Checking the doors might be an interesting thing for those who didn't even watch the movie because they are really pieces of art which one will enjoy looking at but those who have seen the movie will get to understand the shapes and the carvings. On the other hand, it is not important for the people to watch the movie if they are visiting the other locations that appeared in the movie because they also happen to be important when it comes to the tourism of Northern Ireland.
Connolly Cove paid a visit to several Game of Thrones locations in Northern Ireland - since it is almost all filmed there - and even though we will always consider the Dark Hedges our favorite, we still loved all those other places as well. We have been to the Binevenagh Mountain ( we have also visited Toome Canal in Toomebridge, county Antrim ( we have been to the Cushendun Caves which we consider a miracle on its own because it was created from the weather changes ( we visited the location on Lough Neagh where GOT scene was filmed - this is considered the longest lake in Ireland or even Britain - ( we have also been to Portstewart Strand ( as well as the Downhill Beach in Castlerock (
We are caring much about completing the list of GOT locations which we could visit and transfer our experience back to you; have you been to any of these places before?
Some of the best locations around Ireland / Northern Ireland and further afield. A travel blog/vlog of the hidden treasures that are on our doorstep.
Bushmills Inn, Co. Antrim, Ireland, hotel room tour
The Bushmills Inn is a charming 17th century lodge in the heart of Northern Ireland's Causeway Coast. Here I share a look inside one of the luxury four star hotel's rooms
Filmed with GoPro Hero4 Silver. Adventures All Around stayed as a guest of Visit Ireland and the Bushmills Inn and travelled with British Airways.
Northern Ireland “World’s best coastal road view - Antrim Coast” | Best driving road in the world
Antrim Coast Road-Belfast-Northern Ireland-United Kingdom
Portrush, Northern Ireland: Seaside Resort
More info about travel to Portrush: Portrush is Northern Ireland's favorite resort, filled with family-oriented amusements, fun eateries and cheap and cheery B and Bs.
For more information on the Rick Steves' Europe TV series — including episode descriptions, scripts, participating stations, travel information on destinations and more — visit
Experience five star luxury at the Culloden Estate and Spa
Is This The Weirdest Museum Ever? - The Worst Travel Show Ep. 2
The Worst Travel Show - Bunny Museum and Hamburger Mary's (episode 2)
Subscribe:
Kyle visits what may be the oddest museum in all of North America, before chowing down on a greasy burger at a restaurant that moonlights as a drag club (or is it a drag club that moonlights as a restaurant?).
When it comes to deciding on what to eat, where to sleep and what to check out while travelling, there are way too many online reviews to sift through. The WORST Travel Show is here to set the record straight!
Let Kyle know where he should visit next!
#worsttravelshow #losangeles #travel