Mcconaghy'S Souvenir Shop

Kristin McDowell , Graham McDowell’s wife visiting the shop during THE OPEN

Happy New Year to all our loyal customers and look forward to serving you in the Bushmills shop in 2019 . Thanks for your continued support Tommy

While handing out leaflets today at the causeway I met Manuel Pellegriwi West Ham United manager who took one of my fliers to read

We have some Christmas Cards for sale for Billy Parish Church Funds. The Causeway School has has close links with Billy Church in the past. I recall lighting ‘Tilly Lamps’ as a boy, with my uncle at the school on a Sunday afternoon for church services.

Upon my daily visit to The Causeway today, it came to my attention the difference between the 2 photographs below. A few months ago.....at the same place there was no sign detailing prices to visit The Giants Causeway. Recently at the tunnel, a sign has now appeared detailing current prices. Visitors approached me today, somewhat confused with how the signage was worded. 🤔🤔🤔🤔 In short, the sign infers that all visitors must pay. The fact that access is free to the Causeway co...ntinues to be in small print. Why therefore is it not made clear, in bold print, for all to see, that access is FREE !!!!!!!!
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Important please read !

McConaghy’s will have a stand at the Battle of the Boar & Wildlife event tomorrow. Shop open as normal for Salmon & Whiskey festival in Bushmills

The National Trust and their charges at the Causeway are intentionally expensive to encourage people to take up National Trust membership. The National Trust do not appear to be required to advertise charges clearly like any other business. Perhaps their charity status exempts them. There is an abundance of entries on social media in which visitors describe being tricked into believing that they have to pay to visit the Giant's Causeway. I remain hopeful that the National T...rust will change their ways and advertise that the cost of parking a car is £11.50. I continue to speak with people who tell me that National Trust employees have wrongly advised them that everyone within a car, in addition to the driver, must pay if they want to visit the Giant's Causeway. Is it too much to ask that the National Trust treat visitors with the respect they deserve and tell them that car passengers only have to pay if they wish to enter the Visitors' Centre. Their website and the prices they advertise only list prices to visit the 'whole property'. The inference being that the Giant's Causeway is part of the whole property. This misselling is compounded further by them telling visitors they can save £1.50 if they arrive by public transport.
I continue to try to get the message out with the help of many readers of this page that the Giant's Causeway itself is completely FREE to visit as it is not owned by the National Trust.
The Giant's Causeway should be more affordable to visitors in my view. The National Trust received a huge amount of public and charity funding to build the new Visitors' Centre. I understand that they are soon to put up signs to give recognition to the £3 million that the Heritage fund paid and the £9.25 million the NI Tourist Board paid towards the Visitors' Centre.
What's new with the National Trust - they now have a trolley on wheels outside selling tea, biscuits, muffins and non refrigerated sandwiches. You will recall that McConaghy's at the Causeway use to sell drinks and sandwiches. Our sandwiches were kept in a fridge. There is still no sign of the urgently needed toilets!
The Giant's Causeway continues to be outstandingly beautiful. Why not call into McConaghy's (at the top of the town in Bushmills), if you are passing through. Our ice cream is as delicious as it always has been. I love listening to visitors praising our beautiful landscape. Kind regards Tommy.
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Thanks to Trevor McKendry who brought the Irish Cup to the shop in Bushmills.

It has been 1 year since The National Trust gave us notice to leave our shop and still NO TOILETS !! Please remember to go through the tunnel for free to visit the stones rather than paying £11.50 to the Trust I will be at the Causeway this weekend advertising the shop in Bushmills if you need any questions answered. A few pictures to take us back down memory lane of my grandparents family .

Hi, the past few weeks have given me a chance to think about why the National Trust wanted to terminate McConaghy’s lease, why we were given the absolutely minimum amount of notice and why they treated me and my family with such contempt.
I think I have got it. I have always felt that the National Trust signage is intended to mislead both local and international visitors into paying to walk down a public right of way to see the Giant’s Causeway. Their formidable team of sol...icitors would rely on the fact that the small print on one of their signs states that access to the Giant’s Causeway is not restricted.
I have and continue to visit the Causeway frequently not least to enjoy the scenery but also to advise all visitors that visiting the Giant’s Causeway is free. I do not take exception to being called a nuisance by the National Trust or having members of their staff recording when I visit or taking photographs of me. When I am there I also take the opportunity to tell visitors that my daughter has opened McConaghy’s, next to the Distillers Arms, Main Street, Bushmills.
As I was saying – the National Trust did not like me, members of my family or our local part time staff going to great pains to ensure very valued visitors to the North Coast were treated fairly. To us this meant we told anyone who would listen that they only need to pay if they wanted to access parking facilities or access the visitors centre. We also told them about that the very poorly signed toilets they could use without entering the visitors centre. It continues to be poorly signed and is often found locked.
The Trust told the Lands Tribunal that they had an urgent need for more toilets, that there was nowhere else they could build such, and that their visitor numbers were increasing year on year at a rate that no one could have predicted.
I am still not convinced by their arguments. However, the Lands Tribunal was.
You will see from the photo where McConaghy’s use to be that that the urgently needed toilets that they started building in January have not been completed. They are not in operation. No doubt they have encountered an unforeseen problem!
The other photo shows that the National Trust have now fenced off another right of way that use to be referred to as lovers lane. I will continue to be a so-called nuisance to the National Trust until such time that they put up clear and unambiguous signage. Made to meet the same standards that every other business is required to do.
I have spoken to the DOE since my last post. It is great to see that the National Trust have removed the bollards they erected on a DOE road without any authority. Still no explanation as to why the Trust thought they had that right.
The photo which does not do my hat justice is just me being a happy ‘nuisance’ on the wishing chair. No prize for guessing what I was wishing.
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Today gave me the opportunity to meet many old customers. They came down to Bushmills looking for McConaghy’s at Bushmills. It was good to catch up. They said the ice cream tasted as good as ever, including our ice cream filled Easter eggs. My visit to the Giant’s Causeway was ruined when I saw the National Trust had put up barriers on the DOE road which leads to the Causeway. They continue to infer that they own this DOE road. Many visitors thought they had to pay even if they do not go into the Visitors Centre. Just a reminder access to the Giant’s Causeway is FREE. We are blessed to have such a beautiful place on our doorstep.

I continue to enjoy walking the Causeway protesting silently. Hoping for good weather over the weekend. Continuing to see old and new customers at McConaghys Bushmills. Special ice cream filled Easter eggs on sale - delicious maybe see some of you over the weekend. I have had a very courteous visit from the police about parking issues at the causeway. I helped them as much as I could. Maybe the National Trust are over reacting !! Meeting American friends tomorrow to give them a guided tour of the Causeway if you see me wearing my vest say 👋 hello . Tommy

Treat yourself this Easter to our famous McConaghy,s Easter egg ice cream 🍨. A lovely chocolate egg topped with our delicious dairy whipped ice cream , marshmallows and choice of sauce . ❤️☘️

I will be at the Causeway over Easter wearing my new vest handing out leaflets advertising new shop in Bushmills. My protest will continue. Tommy 👌🏼

New shop opened today . We had a brilliant first day thanks to everyone for their well wishes and cards and to my family for their help & support in getting the new shop open . Thanks Julie x