This museum has been developed over the last 40 years or so. It is on the lovely estate of Cultra Manor, on the A2 near Holywood, between Belfast and Bangor . Some trains stop here, and it’s also on a bus route.

As at the Ulster American Folk Park near Omagh, Co. Tyrone, and the Bunratty Folk Park in Co. Clare in the Republic, buildings have been transported stone-by-stone from other areas and re-erected here.

In the Folk section at Cultra there’s a village, which has grown into a town, and a variety of buildings, including a forge, a flax mill, and a watchtower. There’s a museum and photographic archive, and there are demonstrations of traditional farming, including threshing and harrowing.

You cross a bridge over the main Belfast-Bangor road to the Transport section, which includes the Irish Railway collection, a lifeboat, and other exhibits, including a full-scale model of the monoplane that was flown by Harry Ferguson in 1909. He’s much better known for his tractors, but Ferguson was the first man to fly in Ireland .

What’s enjoyable about visiting the Folk & Transport Museum is not just all the interesting buildings and other exhibits, but also the amount of space – and you can picnic anywhere. There’s also a tea room in Cultra Manor.

Mount Stewart on the eastern shore of Strangford Lough , which is most famous for its wonderful gardens created by Edith, Lady Londonderry, from 1921 on.

This was the home of Robert Stewart, Lord Castlereagh (1769-1822), who was Foreign Secretary of England during the Napoleonic Wars. Unlike many others, he was a good landlord and funded schools, built a chapel and homes for tenants, and a pier for local fishermen in front of the house. However, as he helped destroy the Irish Parliament and bring about the Act of Union (1801), he became a disliked, even hated, figure among many Irish nationalists. He committed suicide 18 months after succeeding his father as Marquis.

Mount Stewart is a National Trust property. The Bay Restaurant and lakeside gardens and walks are open all year, daily from 10 am ; closing hour varies with the season. The mansion is surrounded by an intricate series of colourful formal gardens, each in its own style, with paths taking visitors into the surrounding woodland. There are lovely views from the Temple of the Winds. House tours are given March through October.

Across the Lough from Mount Stewart , through Newtownards on the A22, is Comber and, five minutes away, Castle Espie, run by the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust. It has the largest collection of swans, ducks and geese in Ireland , with hides, gardens and woodland walks.

The town is charming. It is set on two low hills, and has lots of late Georgian and early Victorian buildings. It was the main county town in medieval times.

The present Cathedral was built in 1826 and incorporates parts of a 12th-century building. Although no one knows for certain if St. Patrick was really buried here ( Armagh also claims his final resting-place), the country’s patron saint is commemorated by a granite boulder in the churchyard marked with his name and by a huge statue on the top of Slieve Patrick, the hill across the valley. There are great celebrations here on March 17, St. Patrick’s Day.

Ego Patricius - The Saint Patrick Centre is next to the Cathedral and the Down County Museum , and tells the story of the saint and his legacy, using interactive techniques. It also houses temporary exhibitions and the town’s Tourist Information Centre. Here you can learn more about sites associated with the saint all over the country, as well as a variety of other information.

The Down County Museum is in the former 18th-century jail and among its exhibits are restored cells with life-size figures. It has temporary exhibitions, a teashop and gift shop.

Newry is named after a yew tree, said to have been planted by St. Patrick. It straddles the River Bann and the border with the neighbouring county, so its Town Hall is actually half in Co. Down and half in Co. Armagh.

It’s also at the head of “the Gap of the North,” a pass between two hills where in ancient times the men of Ulster swept through to attack the tribes of Leinster in the days of the Fianna (see pages 182-83). Its location has had disadvantages, as over the centuries the town was destroyed many times.

In 1578 the first Protestant church in Ireland was built on top of the steep hill close to the Town Hall by Sir Nicholas Bagenal, and his coat of arms can be seen in its porch.

In the 18th century, a canal was built between Lough Neagh and Newry, the first inland canal in Ireland . Built primarily for transportation of coal from the mines at Brackaville, soon to be known as Coalisland, the canal brought prosperity; its single swing-bridge has been carefully preserved and can be seen at the bottom of Monaghan Street .

Buried in the cemetery on High Street is John Mitchel (1815-75), author of the famous Jail Journal, an Irish revolutionary classic. He was transported to Australia in 1848 for treason-felony. He escaped to the United States in 1853, where he led a turbulent and contentious career as a journalist during the Civil War. Returning to Ireland and was elected (1875) to Parliament shortly before his death. There’s also a statue of him in the shopping center.

Newry is an interesting place to explore. Don’t miss River Street , where there’s a row of tiny houses with eagles over their doors; and Trevor Hill, where No. 1 is the oldest in the row of fine Georgian houses.

The Mountains of Mourne are probably the most famous in Ireland because of the Percy French song, Where the mountains of Mourne sweep down to the sea.

It’s a compact range of mountains, 15 miles long (24 km) and eight miles (15 km) wide, with only about 12 of the 60 or more individual summits rising above 2,000 feet (610 m). Slieve Donard at 2,796 feet (852 m) is the highest peak in the North. Whether approached from Newry on the A25 or B8, from Belfast on the A50 via Banbridge, or from the direction of the Ards Peninsula , they are equally beautiful.

The Mourne Mountain Walk follows the Glen River through woodland, crosses the Mourne Wall under Slieve Donard, and then joins the Brandy Pad, an old smugglers’ trail. Passing under The Castles (rock towers) close to the 400-foot-high (120-m) Diamond Rocks, it then follows the Trassey River . On the way you see sheep pens where strays were probably kept. Next the route joins a short section of the Ulster Way , and then leaves it to follow the Shimna River , passing through Tollymore Forest , with gorse banks, hazel coppices, young fir plantations and a mature wood of Douglas firs, then Curraghard viewpoint, before returning to the car park.

The National Trust maintains coastal and mountain paths to Slieve Donard and neighboring Slieve Commedagh. From Bloody Bridge , you can follow the Brandy Pad to Slieve Donard or enjoy the Mourne Coastal Path.

Cranfield Beach is in an absolutely beautiful setting at the mouth of Carlingford Lough, with the Mountains of Mourne forming the perfect backdrop. It’s off the main A2 Rostrevor-Kilkeel road, and worth the detour.