Northern Ireland

GoT locations in north draw more visitors that those in Croatia, Malta and Spain

The Dark Hedges in Ballymoney, Co Antrim was the most visited location for Game of Thrones fans
The Dark Hedges in Ballymoney, Co Antrim was the most visited location for Game of Thrones fans The Dark Hedges in Ballymoney, Co Antrim was the most visited location for Game of Thrones fans

FANS of hit TV show Game of Thrones have visited locations associated with the series in Northern Ireland more than anywhere else around the world.

Figures from HolidayCottages found that three locations from the show in the north were visited by fans ahead of places such as Croatia, Spain, Malta and Iceland.

According to the research, the Dark Hedges in Ballymoney, Co Antrim proved the most popular location for visitors with the location mentioned in almost 40 per cent of reviews on TripAdvisor.

An iconic road in the series, the Dark Hedges feature in Season 2 when Arya Stark, who has escaped from King’s Landing, and others travel north along the road to join the Night’s Watch.

This Co Antrim location was followed closely followed by Ballintoy Harbour, which drew 39 per cent of visitors.

This was followed by Castle Ward in Co Down, which drew 32 per cent of visitors and Tollymore Forest Park, which drew13 per cent of fans.

Outside of Northern Ireland, the most visited location was Fort Lovrijenac in Durbonik followed by San Juan de Gazatelugatxe, Vizcaya in Spain.

Mdina Main Gate and San Aton Gardens, both in Mdina in Malta and the Azure Window on the Island of Gozo. were also popular while 3.6 per cent of fans visited Thingvellir National Park in Iceland.