Overview
Limavady is a market town of roughly 11,300 people in County Londonderry, on the River Roe and under the basalt peaks of Binevenagh. It makes a practical base for the Causeway Coast and Glens, with the country park on its doorstep and the strands of the north coast within a short drive. If your time is short, give it to the Roe Valley Country Park and Benone Strand and treat the town itself as the place you sleep and eat.
History
The name comes from the Irish Léim an Mhadaidh, ‘leap of the dog’, after a legend of a hound clearing the Roe. Finds suggest settlement as early as the 5th century, and the area later fell under the O’Cahan clan. In 1610 Sir Thomas Phillips received a charter to build a new town, laying out the cruciform street pattern still visible today. Linen weaving drove the early economy, and a royal licence to distil whiskey was granted in 1608.
The original Limavady Distillery was founded in 1750 by John Alexander on the family lands. Later owners pushed output to 1.2 million litres a year by 1890 before the distillery closed in 1915 amid industry rationalisation. The town went on to host RAF Limavady from 1941, and in 1987 it was the landing place of Richard Branson’s trans-Atlantic hot-air balloon.
In 2021 master distiller Darryl McNally, a descendant of the 18th-century operators, revived the Limavady Irish whiskey brand in partnership with WhistlePig. Planning permission for a new £10 million facility on the McNally family farm at Magilligan was granted in May 2024. Designed by Organic Architects with Gerard McPeake, it keeps views of the River Roe, Binevenagh and the Atlantic. A soft opening is slated for late 2026, with full production expected in early 2027.
What to see and do
Roe Valley Country Park
Just south-west of town, this is the best of Limavady: a 3.6 km circular trail along the River Roe, with riverside walks, salmon and trout fishing, canoeing and rock-climbing, a restored water-wheel and the volunteer-run Green Lane Museum on the linen and farming trades. There is a wheelchair-accessible café, AL’s Coffee, a disabled-angler’s jetty, and dogs are welcome on leads. For the full walking detail, the museum and visitor-centre opening times, and the river’s industrial heritage, see the dedicated Roe Valley Country Park and River Roe pages.
Binevenagh Nature Reserve
About 2 km north, the basalt cliffs give long views over Lough Foyle and into County Donegal. The 5 km Binevenagh Loop is well marked and climbs to the summit, with kittiwakes and guillemots on the cliffs.
Benone Strand
Crindle Stables (Myroe)
Around the town
- Jane Ross House on Main Street, where the collector noted down the melody that became ‘Londonderry Air’.
- The birthplace of William Massey, a 19th-century prime minister of New Zealand, on Irish Green Street.
- Annual events: the Danny Boy Jazz and Blues Festival, the Roe Valley Folk Festival, the Stendhal Festival of Art and the NI Super Cup.
The new distillery
Planned tours will run through copper pot stills, a mash house using 100% Irish barley, and barrel rooms maturing the spirit in ex-bourbon and Pedro Ximénez sherry casks. A heritage exhibition is to display artefacts from the 18th-century operation, including a replica chimney stack and the 1608 royal licence, with a shop selling the Single Barrel Single Malt already sold online. Tours are expected from early 2027, pre-booked through the distillery’s website once confirmed. Until then there is nothing to visit on site, so don’t make the trip to Magilligan for the distillery alone.
Game of Thrones and the coast
Downhill Beach, a short drive from Limavady, stood in for Dragonstone in Game of Thrones (Season 2), the cliffs below Mussenden Temple framing the fictional stronghold; a plaque on the beach explains the filming. From there a signpost leads to Mussenden Temple, a replica of Rome’s Temple of Vesta, and the Downhill Demesne for a longer heritage walk.
RAF heritage
In the Second World War the town was home to RAF Limavady, an airfield central to Atlantic patrols. Its story is kept at the Ballykelly heritage centre nearby.
Nearby attractions
- Benone Beach and Dunes – more of the sandy coastline, good for wind-surfing and coastal walks.
- Mussenden Temple and the Downhill Demesne, a short drive along the coast road.
- River Roe walks from the distillery’s farm grounds.
Events calendar (2026–27)
- Danny Boy Jazz & Blues Festival – late June, local and international acts on the main square.
- Roe Valley Folk Festival – early August, a weekend of traditional music, workshops and craft stalls in the country park.
- Stendhal Festival of Art – September, contemporary visual art across the town’s streets and galleries.
- NI Super Cup – May, a one-day football tournament drawing teams from across the province.
- St Patrick’s Day beach rides – 17 March, horse-riding excursions from Crindle Stables.
Practical information
- Getting there: Limavady is on the A2 coastal route, 70 km north-west of Belfast. The nearest railway station is Londonderry (Derry), about 30 km north on Northern Ireland Railways; the nearest airport is Belfast International, about 80 km away. Regular buses connect the town to Derry and Coleraine. The historic line forms part of the Belfast and Northern Counties Railway.
- Parking: free car parks at Roe Valley Country Park, Crindle Stables, Benone Strand and in the town centre. The new distillery will have its own visitor car park once open.
- Accessibility: the main country-park loop, the disabled angler’s jetty and AL’s Coffee are wheelchair-friendly, and a mobility scooter can be hired on site.
- Opening hours: check the Causeway Coast and Glens tourism site and the Limavady Distillery site for the latest visitor-centre, museum and café times.
- Currency and language: prices are in pounds sterling (£). English is the main language, with Irish place-names widely displayed.
- Accommodation and food: B&Bs, guesthouses and hotels around town, with pubs and restaurants serving local dishes and, from 2027, the revived Limavady whiskey.
Check the Causeway Coast and Glens website before travelling to confirm trail conditions in the country park and the status of local heritage sites.