Nature Trails and Mixed Routes - Tourism and Trails: Cultural, Ecological and Management Issues - page 86

Case Study: Causeway Coastal Route (CCR), Northern
Ireland ( Continued )
and forts (see Figure 3.9). According to a travel section of the Independent
newspaper in 2009, the CCR was chosen as the best coastal route in the
UK, on par with the Garden Route in South Africa and the Pebble Beach/
Carmel Coastal Drive in California, USA.
The CCR was part of the Causeway Coast and Glens Masterplan
(2004-2013), and the route (including two additional inland ways) was
developed in conjunction with 10 local authority regions through
which the route passes (from Derry City Council in the north-west, to
Newtownabbey Borough Council on the northern edge of Belfast). In
total, there are today 400 waymarks along the route and a number of
inland secondary loops as shown in Figure 3.9. Visitors can enjoy cul-
tural heritage and natural scenery at 15 highlighted 'stops' identified
along the route. These all have the potential to act as points of inter-
vening opportunity, either as major or minor nodes/attractions.
While it is a driving route, several principal attractions divert visitors
off the route itself. The main natural and cultural node located midway
along the CCR is the Giant's Causeway, the only World Heritage Site in
Northern Ireland. It was inscribed in 1986, at the same time as Stone-
henge in England. Situated on the province's north coast, this marvel of
40,000 solidified basaltic hexagonal columns formed from the lava flow
of an ancient volcanic eruption, protrudes out of a cliff face and forms a
section of the seashore. It has held the fascination of visitors and early
writers as far back as the mid-1700s. Some early visitors between 1883
and 1949 traveled to view the attraction using Europe's first hydro-electric
tram, which operated from the coastal resort of Portrush to the Causeway.
The Giant's Causeway has been an integral market brand for
Northern Ireland's tourism. The hexagon was adopted as the logo of the
Northern Ireland Tourist Board (NITB), and the Giant's Causeway has
been a popular image on promotional material over the years. Since early
records began in the 1970s, when the NITB first collected statistics at
visitor attractions, the causeway has consistently been in the top three
attractions in Northern Ireland; most years it has held the top spot. There
has been a long history of commercial activity at the Giant's Causeway.
Early pictures reveal souvenirs sold from small huts, as well as interpreta-
tion and guiding services being offered to elite visitors, all located on the
service road leading down to the causeway itself. A modern visitor center
was partially destroyed by fire in 2000. Temporary facilities were erected
pending a new center being built - a wood-framed structure serving as
a souvenir shop. Unfortunately, a protracted period of time ensued
before government plans, which had been in place since 2003, were