Things to do in Downpatrick
And where to stay, the best time to visit, what a day costs, and the traps to skip.
Best time to visit Downpatrick
• a note or something on ✦ an occasion worth the trip
Best months, with long days, full opening, golf in swing and no March crowds or winter closures.
Worst months, with the shortest days, thinnest museum and railway hours and no racing.
St Patrick's week brings full hotels and the best atmosphere of the year, so book everything early.
Quiet, with the heritage railway Santa trains as the family offset in late December.
What's on
- St Patrick's Day celebrations, Downpatrick 17 March
Cross-community parade plus the Saul to cathedral pilgrimage, festival service and wreath laying at the grave.
- Ulster National late March or early April
The feature jumps race of the Downpatrick year at the racecourse, opening the spring Grand National sequence.
- Downpatrick Racecourse June Festival June, two days
The June racing highlight at the racecourse, with evening racing in the warmer months.
- Downpatrick Racecourse Ladies Day late August
The summer dress-up raceday at Ireland's oldest racecourse, following a July Family Day.
- Saints and Scholars Concert mid-March
A free ticketed concert in Down Cathedral in the run-up to St Patrick's Day.
Best things to do in Downpatrick
The Saint Patrick Centre
The only permanent Patrick exhibition in the world, and the context that makes every other local site make sense.
Down Cathedral
A working cathedral on Cathedral Hill, with the reputed grave of Patrick in its graveyard and the best view in town.
Down County Museum
A free museum in the old gaol, covering 9000 years of County Down and the hard story of the gaol itself.
Saul Church
A small, quiet church on the site said to be Patrick's first church, reached through drumlin lanes from town.
Inch Abbey
Substantial Cistercian ruins in a sheltered hollow on the Quoile, usually empty and reached best by heritage train.
Downpatrick & County Down Railway
Volunteer run vintage trains through drumlin countryside to Inch Abbey, with a museum and signal cabin at the station.
Ballynoe Stone Circle
A large Neolithic stone circle down a hedge lined lane, with no centre, no queue and usually no other visitors.
Struell Wells
Holy wells and stone bath houses in a hidden valley east of town, a small and strange site linked to Patrick.
Where to stay in Downpatrick
Town Centre / Cathedral Hill
Patrick-focused trips without a car
Walk to the Centre, cathedral, museum, railway and every in-town restaurant, in a town that goes quiet early.
Ballydugan
couples and wedding guests with a car
A countryside pocket two miles out with the country house and the restored mill, plus lakeside self-catering.
Killyleagh and Strangford
Lecale touring and food-led stays
Small lough villages with the best food within reach and inn stays, a short drive from the Patrick sites.
Newcastle
resort holidays that include Downpatrick
A full seaside resort at the foot of the Mournes with the grand hotel, spa hotels and many more evening options.
Castle Ward estate
budget outdoor stays with a car
Pitches and pods inside the estate, with the trails and lough shore as your garden.
Think twice about
- Car-free Lecale villages as a base
Buses are thin and taxis must be booked, so without a car you will be stranded after dinner. Base in town or Newcastle instead.
Best restaurants in Downpatrick
The Smugglers Table
A small, refined Killyleagh kitchen on a short seasonal menu, the clear top table within reach of Downpatrick.
Murphy's Bar and Restaurant
A traditional Market Street bar serving the town's most consistently praised pub food, in generous portions.
AJ's Diner
A crowd pleasing diner of burgers, grills and shakes, the safe answer for families and groups that cannot agree.
Denvir's
Classic inn food served all day in the coaching inn bar, where a long lunch easily becomes an early dinner.
The Barn Bar and Country Kitchen
A village bar and country kitchen on the pilgrim route, the lunch built into guided St Patrick's Way walks.
Daily Grind
The town's best rated cafe, for breakfasts, lunches, coffee and bakes on St Patrick's Avenue.
Cafe Q
The town's second good cafe, with coffee, breakfasts and lunches and a loyal local following.
Oakley Fayre
A long standing local cafe for an Ulster fry, lunches and traybakes, feeding the town well and cheaply.
Outdoor things to do in Downpatrick
St Patrick's Way
A guided pilgrim walk linking the Centre, Inch, Saul and Struell, with a passport to stamp along the route.
Lecale Way
A waymarked long distance walk from the cathedral grave along the Castle Ward shore of Strangford Lough.
Castle Ward
An 820 acre National Trust demesne with over 34 km of trails, a two faced house and a farmyard on the lough shore.
Quoile Pondage Nature Reserve
A flat, free reserve of reedbeds and open water on the town edge, the best short walk from the centre.
Ardglass Golf Club
A clifftop links where the Irish Sea is in play on at least eight holes, with a castle clubhouse in Ardglass.
St Patrick's Golf Club
The town's own hilly parkland course, with views to the Mournes, the lough and on clear days the Isle of Man.
Spa Golf Club
A spacious parkland course near Ballynahinch with a driving range and a famous Mourne panorama from the 17th tee.
Murlough National Nature Reserve
Boardwalks through a 6000 year old dune system to a four mile beach under the Mourne Mountains.
Best hotels in Downpatrick
Slieve Donard
Newcastle's grand Victorian resort hotel with spa and pool, the only true luxury stay within reach of Downpatrick.
Ballydugan Country House
A host led country house near town, loved for its gardens, fires and a breakfast built on its own kitchen garden.
Denvir's of Downpatrick
A coaching inn from 1642 in the town centre, with six rooms, a traditional bar and every sight a short walk away.
The Mill at Ballydugan
Rooms in a restored 1792 flour mill and its granary, with a beamed restaurant, open fire and a lakeside setting.
The Burrendale Hotel, Country Club & Spa
A full service Newcastle hotel with pool, spa and Mourne views, the mid range resort alternative to Slieve Donard.
Dufferin Coaching Inn
A historic inn guesthouse in Killyleagh, a minute from the village's two best places to eat on Strangford Lough.
Castle Ward Caravan Park
Pitches and basic pods inside the Castle Ward estate, with woodland around you and the lough shore as your garden.
Is Downpatrick expensive? What a day costs
| Budget | £55 a person |
|---|---|
| Classic | £95 a person |
| Splurge | £190 a person |
A day of food, drink, sights and getting around, before the room
What to book ahead
- Downpatrick & County Down Railway: a few days ahead
- Down Arts Centre: a few days ahead
- Downpatrick Racecourse: a few days ahead
- St Patrick's Way: weeks ahead
- Ardglass Golf Club: weeks ahead
- St Patrick's Golf Club: a few days ahead
- Spa Golf Club: a few days ahead
- Slieve Donard: weeks ahead
- Book Denvir's, Ballydugan and the Mill weeks ahead for St Patrick's week, big racedays and summer weekends.
- Book heritage railway themed trains, Ardglass tee times and The Smugglers Table at weekends ahead.
- Put the big touring day on Saturday, as Sunday and Monday bring museum closures and shorter hours.
Is Downpatrick safe?
- No area needs avoiding as a base for safety, but keep to lit main streets late at night in the quiet centre.
- Do not leave valuables visible in cars at isolated rural site car parks.
- Never swim in the Strangford Narrows, and use lifeguarded beaches in season. Emergency number 999.
Downpatrick travel tips: tourist traps to skip
- Do the Saint Patrick Centre before the grave, or the plain granite slab will feel underwhelming.
- Do not try Downpatrick in ninety minutes from a coach tour, as the Patrick story needs Saul and Struell too.
- Skip the Market Street chains, as independent pubs and cafes nearby are rated far higher.
Getting around Downpatrick: public transport and more
- In town everything is walkable, but Saul, Castle Ward, golf and the coast need a car or a booked taxi.
- Translink 215 runs roughly hourly from Belfast in about 50 to 70 minutes, and there is no passenger rail service.
- Book taxis well ahead for Killyleagh dinners, racedays and late returns, and reconfirm on the day.
- Walk Lecale lanes facing traffic with a torch after dark, as there are no footpaths or lighting.
Who Downpatrick suits
| Solo travellers | Good |
|---|---|
| Groups of friends | Good |
| Couples | Good |
| Bachelor parties | Not ideal |
| Families | Great |
| Bachelorette parties | Not ideal |
Make Downpatrick your trip
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