Dundrum is a village and small port on Dundrum Bay. On a hill-top are the beautifully maintained remains of a great castle which was an important fortress of the abortive Norman Earldom of Ulster. The earliest castle, of motte-and-bailey type, was taken from de Lacy...
Narrow Water Castle at the bottle-neck of the Newry Water which runs into Carlingford Lough was built after the restoration of Charles II, to protect the commercial town of Newry and its strategic hinterland of Down, Armagh, and Louth. It stands on the site of...
It was in the Mournes I learnt that there is no better way to know the nerve of a mountain than by walking up a stream to its source. And by that I mean walking in the stream. Every step is a watery one, and...
Loughside, mid-way up the western shore is Sketrick Castle. This large, four storey tower house guarded the causeway to Sketrick Island and was actively involved in warfare in the 16th century. The immediacy and need for the defence is vitally evident in this watery landscape....
Thanks to being retained for parish worship for much of the 17th and 18th centuries, more remains of Grey Abbey church than of many other Irish monasteries. Built on Strangford Lough, it is set in mature parkland and has an atmosphere of monastic calm. The...
This lovely town edges up the slopes of Slievemartin. It is sited in one of the most sheltered areas of Northern Ireland and Mediterranean plants grow along the seafront. The bell from the 6th century monastery founded nearby by St. Bronagh is preserved at the...
On either side of the road from Dublin to Belfast , just North of Newry , lie the little lake know as Loughbrickland and the pictureque village of the same name. Both are a must see attraction of your Ireland tours. In the original Irish...
Strangford is a tiny village in County Down. It is worth a visit on any tours of Ireland because ...
A quaint tiny village in County Down with a real hidden gem worth seeing on any Ireland tours. The village is built around an abbey founded in 1193 by Affreca. She was the daughter of Godred , King of Man , and the wife of John...
Guarding the mouth of the lough , Greencastle Fort sits in brooding isolation about four miles southwest of Kilkeel, and its views alone are worth a diversion on any Ireland tours. Almost a "must see" attraction. The fort is a comparatively well-preserved Anglo-Norman edifice , with a...