Bellarena means ‘beautiful sand’ – French belle and Latin arena – and the name does the work the village can’t, because there isn’t much to the place itself. It lies on the A2 between Limavady and Coleraine. What there is, all around it, is the reason to come: the basalt wall of Binevenagh on one side, the Roe estuary and Lough Foyle on the other, and a little railway halt that drops you into the middle of it.
Arriving by rail
Bellarena is a scenic small stop on the Derry–Belfast line, and the railway runs close to the Roe estuary with the cliffs rising on the inland side. The original station opened in 1853; the current two-platform halt, on the other side of the level crossing, opened in March 2016. Check Translink’s station page for train times and facilities.
A park-and-ride project has been proposed but is not confirmed as built, so check current station parking before planning to leave a car there. Otherwise arrive on foot, get dropped off, or rely on the train at both ends.
The demesne garden
The Bellarena demesne garden, looked after by the Northern Ireland Environment Agency, sits on the north bank of the River Roe a few miles north of Limavady. It’s the surviving garden of a mid-17th-century estate – William Gage, a Northamptonshire gentleman, took the lease of the land (then called Ballymargy, Baile an Mhargaidh, ‘town of the market’) from the Bishop of Derry, and the later, prettier name stuck. The garden is described as having mature specimen trees, a walled garden with an old glasshouse, a garden house and an 18th-century folly tower. Public access arrangements have not been confirmed, so check with the Northern Ireland Environment Agency before you go, and do not enter if it is closed.
Binevenagh above the village
The big scenery is up on the Binevenagh scarp, a Game of Thrones filming location and the heart of the AONB. The Gortmore viewpoint, with its statue of the sea-god Manannán Mac Lir, is the easy win. Gortmore viewpoint is on Bishop’s Road, above Magilligan, and looks out towards Lough Foyle and Donegal. It has its own parking, separate from the station, and you will need to arrange onward transport from Bellarena if you arrive by rail. Higher up, Binevenagh Lake is a forest reservoir perched near the cliff-edge, a calmer counterpoint to the drop just beyond it.
The airfield below is home to the Ulster Gliding Club, which flies the sea breezes coming up off the scarp. Check with the club for current flying days and tandem flights.
Just north-east, Benone is a separate coastal stop below the cliffs, with a long beach. Follow local signs and notices on the beach and keep clear of vehicles.
Golf coming
In July 2025 the Galgorm Collection announced a £30 million championship links course, Bellarena Golf Links, on the coast between Limavady and Coleraine. It is still in development, so it’s one to watch rather than book, and no opening date should be assumed.
Practical notes
The A2 coastal road links Bellarena to Derry and Coleraine by car. For food, pubs and supplies, Limavady is the nearest proper town, so bring what you need. From Magilligan, just up the coast, the Lough Foyle car ferry crosses to Greencastle in Donegal, which turns a coastal day into a two-county one; check the current service before you plan around it.
Treat Bellarena as a base, not a destination: come in by train, see the cliffs from Gortmore, and run the A2 west to Benone before you leave.