Co. Down, North
County Down rings the changes in elegant style, from its affluent shoreline along Belfast Lough - the "Gold Coast" - through the rolling drumlin country which provides Strangford Lough's many islands, and on then past the uplands around Slieve Croob, with the view southward being increasingly dominated by the purple slopes of the Mountains of Mourne.
The Mournes soar to Northern Ireland's highest peak of Slieve Donard (850m), and provide excellent hill-walking and challenging climbing. When seen across Down's patchwork of prosperous farmland, however, they have a gentleness which is in keeping with the county's well-groomed style. In the same vein, Down is home to some of Ireland's finest gardens, notably Mount Stewart on the eastern shore of Strangford Lough, and Rowallane at Saintfield, while the selection of forest and country parks is also exceptional.
Within the contemporary landscape, history is much in evidence. St Patrick's grave is in Downpatrick, while the Ulster Folk and Transport Museum at Cultra near Holywood provides an unrivalled overview of the region's past. The coastline is much-indented, so much so that, when measured in detail, County Down provides more than half of Northern Ireland's entire shoreline. Within it, the jewel of Strangford Lough is an unmatched attraction for naturalists and boat enthusiasts, while Portaferry has one of Ireland's longest-established saltwater aquariums in Exploris.
In the south of the county, the increasingly prosperous town of Newry on the river inland from Carlingford Lough is – with Lisburn in County Antrim – one of Ireland’s two newest cities under a re-designation of 2003, Newry is responding with enthusiasm to its enhanced status, and the urban regeneration of this interesting canalside centre is intriguing to watch., while the Ship Canal down to the sea has been restored and was re-opened in 2006.
Local Attractions and Information
Bangor Events Office +44 (0)28 91 278051
Bangor Tourism Information +44 (0)28 91 270069
Bangor North Down Heritage Centre +44 (0)28 91 271200
Castle Espie Wildfowl and Wetlands Centre +44 (0)28 91 874146
Cultra Ulster Folk & Transport Museum +44 (0)28 90 428428
Downpatrick Down Cathedral +44 (0)28 44 614922
Downpatrick St Patrick Centre +44 (0)28 44 619000
Dromore Kinallen Craft Centre +44 (0)28 97 533733
Dundrum Murlough National Nature Reserve +44 (0)28 43 751467
Greyabbey Mount Stewart House +44 (0)28 42 788387
Hillsborough Hillsborough Castle Gardens +44 (0)28 92 681300
Kilkeel Nautilus Centre +44 (0)28 41 765555
Millisle Ballycopeland Windmill +44 (0)28 91 861413
Mourne Mountains Guided Wildlife Walks +44 (0)28 43 751467
Newcastle Tollymore Forest Park +44 (0)28 43 722428
Newtownards Kingdoms of Down Tourism +44 (0)28 91 822881
Portaferry Exploris Aquarium +44 (0)28 42 728062
Rathfriland Bronte Interpretive Centre +44 (0)28 40 631152
Saintfield Rowallane Gardens +44 (0)28 97 510131
Strangford Castle Ward +44 (0)28 44 881204
Strangford Lough Wildlife Centre +44 (0)28 44 881411
