Travelling to The Open

On Sunday, Royal Portrush will throw open its doors on the first morning of The 148^th Open and fans will flock to catch their first glimpse of the picturesque Dunluce Links.

With Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy both set to tee it up and the Spectator Village a treasure trove of things to see and do, the club will be busy from the off.

Therefore, it is vital to plan ahead and make best use of all the transport options.

Here is a run-down of how you can get to the Championship:

Rail

The vast popularity of The 148th Open has forced the hand of transport providers to make more tickets available to spectators.  

Translink has announced that more train tickets to Royal Portrush will now be available to book online to meet customer demand.

During the week of The Open, there will be additional early morning trains from Belfast with ticket pre-booking available online on selected services, along with additional evening services from Portrush and Coleraine.

There will also be enhanced capacity on normal timetabled services to Portrush.

An hourly service will operate to/from Derry-Londonderry and Coleraine terminating at Coleraine, where a bus service will be available to transport passengers to Portrush.

A rail shuttle bus service will operate from Portrush to Coleraine Station, where passengers will be able to board trains back to Derry-Londonderry.

Rail timetables, ticket options and online pre-booking will be available on the Translink website Translink.co.uk/The148thOpen.

Bus

There are several routes you can take to Royal Portrush, from as far afield as Belfast and close in as Coleraine.

From Belfast, spectators can use the regular 218 Goldline coach service while additional special coaches will operate between Europa Buscentre to Portrush with pre-booking available online.

The 234 Goldline will operate from Derry-Londonderry to Coleraine with an easy transfer to the local 140 bus service to Portrush. The 140 will run at ten-minute intervals on Championship week and go between Coleraine, Portrush and Portstewart. It will also stop at major caravan sites.

Goldline will also operate a weekday timetable on Saturday 20 and Sunday 21 July, with services running more regularly than usual at weekends.

Car

There is no parking at Royal Portrush and spectators will need to utilise The Open Park & Ride facilities.

On Sunday 14 July, the gates open at 9am and the first service departs for the course at 8am. The last service back leaves at 8pm.

Next week, the gates open at 7am everyday – aside from the first two days of play, when they open an hour earlier at 6am – with the first shuttle service leaving 15 minutes before.

The Open Park & Ride facilities are established to cater for spectators travelling by road with pick up/drop off locations close to the entrance of the event. This will significantly reduce the amount of vehicle movement through the town and minimise congestion in busy areas, although traffic volumes will be higher in the area.

A number of weekly car park passes are available at £60, while minibus parking is available at £25 per day and coaches at £40. 

Guests with mobility impairments or specific accessibility requirements are advised to telephone The Open Ticketing Team in advance on +44 (0) 1334 460010.

Air

All airports manage scheduled flights and the arrival and departure of private jets.

Belfast International Airport is located approximately 46 miles (74 km) from Royal Portrush Golf Club. Please contact Belfast International Airport directly on +44 (0)28 9448 4848 for further information. 

Belfast City Airport is located approximately 61 miles (98 km) from Royal Portrush Golf Club. Please contact Belfast City Airport directly on +44 (0)28 90 939093 for further information. 

City of Derry Airport is located approximately 29 miles (47 km) from Royal Portrush Golf Club. Please contact City of Derry Airport directly on +44 (0)28 7181 0784 for further information.

Dublin Airport is located approximately 156 miles (250 km) from Royal Portrush Golf Club. Please contact Dublin Airport directly on +353 1 8141111 for further information.

An official Helicopter Landing site will be in operation at The 148th Open.

Bike

A cycle path will be available close to Royal Portrush Golf Club. This will be signposted from the existing cycle paths on the way to Portrush.

Sea

Larne is the closest port to Royal Portrush with a passenger ferry service from Great Britain.

P&O Ferries operates the shortest, fastest and most frequent Irish Sea crossings, from Cairnryan to Larne in just two hours.

There are both public transport and car hire options available at Larne for passengers travelling on foot. P&O Ferries also operates a Liverpool to Dublin route.

Royal Portrush is approximately 52 miles (83 km) away from Larne Port, and 160 miles (260km) away from Dublin Port.

Stena Line operates ferry services to Belfast from Cairnryan and Liverpool. Royal Portrush Golf Club is approximately 60 miles (96 km) away from Belfast Port.

Stena Line are also offering coach and ferry travel packages from Glasgow, Ayr and Kilmarnock to The 148th Open.