History and Heritage

In the village that is home to the world’s oldest distillery, between the Giant’s Causeway and Royal Portrush Golf Club, The Bushmills Inn has been outstandingly successful in recreating its origins as an old Coaching Inn and Mill House.

 

It all started in 1608

The main part of our Restaurant used to be the coach house and stables of the original Coaching Inn and forms the oldest part of the Hotel, probably dating back close in time to 1608 when ‘Old Bushmills’ was granted the world’s first ever licence to distil whiskey. The main Hotel however was built in the 1820s as part of a major redevelopment of the town by the local landowner Sir Frances Workman Macnaghten. The Inn quickly became a haven for saddle sore visitors on their way to the Giant’s Causeway - it was here they would stop to sample the whiskey that made this charming village internationally famous. In the early 1890s, and with the arrival of a tram link to the Giant’s Causeway, the Hotel fell into decline. Over the next century the Inn was variously used as a boarding house, a private dwelling, a factory for making bicycles and, on the top floor, a residence for chickens!

 

Redeveloped to its former glory

It was only in 1987 that extensive development works were undertaken and ten years later 22 additional bedrooms were incorporated in the adjoining ‘Mill House’ on the banks of the River Bush. In 2009 a further large scale development was undertaken which brought the hotel to its current status of 41 spacious bedrooms and luxurious suites and included a new courtyard garden, state of the art conference facilities, exclusive Still Room Cinema and Garden Room extension to the Restaurant.

Since its opening, the Bushmills Inn has come to epitomise the true spirit of Irish hospitality and is regularly featured by travel writers and television presenters from all over the world, as well as continuing to win many esteemed awards for both the Hotel and Restaurant.