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Newry
Newry is a town straddling the boundary between County Down and County Armagh in Northern Ireland, five miles north of the border with the Republic of Ireland. In 2002 it was upgraded to a city but this is just ceremonial, and the place continues to feel like a medium-sized town, with a population of 28,000 in 2021. The northern counties are no longer units of governance, and since 2015 Newry been governed as part of Newry, Mourne and Down District.
Understand
[edit]Mountains obstruct the route from Dublin north along the coast into Ulster, but at Newry there's a gap, so roads (and later a canal and railway) head inland up the valley towards Portadown before swinging east into Belfast. The gap is a U-shaped glaciated valley that deepens into the fjord of Carlingford Lough, so there's also sea access. This was more of a curse than a blessing in the first millennium, since if there was one thing the Vikings enjoyed more than sailing into fjords, it was burning and pillaging the nearby settlements. The Normans put a stop to this, secured the area and founded an abbey. The town remained small until the 18th century when the growth of industry and transport made its position more important.
Ireland was divided into counties, which acquired local government councils in the 19th century, and Newry fell on the boundary of three. West of the river and fjord was County Armagh, east was County Down, and the town hall was symbolically built straddling the river. Five miles south was County Louth, which from 1921 belonged to a separate nation, the Republic of Ireland. Between them lay a higgledy-piggledy, porous and often dangerous border, with the main road checkpoint at Killeen, and for the rest of the 20th century this dominated Newry. There were killings and bombings during The Troubles from 1970, a heavy military presence, and a flight of industry and employment.
The turning point was the Good Friday Agreement of 1998, which largely ended The Troubles, and rendered the crossing from Louth to Armagh as trivial and hassle-free as the crossing from Armagh to Down. Traffic sweeps past on the N1 / A1 and all that denotes the border is a sign advising that speed limits are in miles per hour, or in kpm/h if you're driving south. The town now attracts cross-border traffic and is even a commuter town for Dublin, with trains taking little over an hour. The big uncertainty is the long-term effect of Brexit upon the border, as the Republic of Ireland remains within the EU.
Get in
[edit]
Newry is midway between Dublin and Belfast, so you can use either city's airport or ferry port and travel onward by train or bus. By car follow M1 / A1: there's a toll at Drogheda to the south.
The Enterprise Train runs hourly, taking 70 min from Dublin Connolly via Drogheda and Dundalk, and an hour from Belfast via Portadown. Commuter trains between Bangor, Belfast and Portadown extend to Newry in rush hour.
1 Newry railway station is a mile northwest of town centre. The railway comes into the station over the Egyptian Arch Bridge (it's supposed to resemble a pharaoh's head-dress, you'll need to use your imagination) and continues north over the 18-arch Craigmore Viaduct.
Goldliner Bus 238 runs every 20 min from Belfast Grand Central via Hillsborough and Banbridge, taking 90 min to Newry.
Expressway Bus X1 runs from Dublin Busáras and Airport (DUB IATA) to Newry, 90 min, and continues to Banbridge, Sprucefield Shopping Centre near Lisburn and Belfast. It's hourly daytime and every two hours through the night.
Ulsterbus 40 runs every couple of hours from Armagh, taking 50 min.
Ulsterbus 63 runs every couple of hours from Portadown, taking an hour to Newry.
2 Newry Buscentre is on The Mall in town centre.
3 Carlingford Ferry crosses the channel between Greencastle in County Down and Greenore in the Republic east of Dundalk. It sails hourly Apr-Oct 10AM-6PM and the crossing takes 15 min.
Get around
[edit]
Newry is relatively small and can be explored on foot, but you need wheels for outlying attractions.
Bus Éireann 160 plies between Newry, Killeen and Dundalk every couple of hours, taking 35 min.
Taxi firms in town include Clanrye (+44 28 3026 2222) and Taxiline (+44 28 3026 0888). Uber is also available.
National Cycleway 9 runs from Belfast to Lisburn, Craigavon, Portadown, Scarva and Newry. Route 91 branches west to Armagh, Monaghan and Enniskillen.
Alas, the narrow-gauge horse-drawn tram between Warrenpoint and Rostrevor was washed away in a storm in 1915 and never re-instated.
See
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- 1 Newry Cathedral (Cathedral of St Patrick and St Colman), 38 Hill St BT34 1AT, ☏ +44 28 3026 2586. M-F 8AM-5PM, Sa Su 8AM-6:30PM. Built 1825-29 in neo-Gothic style, this was the first Roman Catholic cathedral to open in Ireland after the penal laws were relaxed, so its construction attracted many European craftsmen. The masonry is local granite, the stain glass windows are German and the marble altars and statuary are Italian. The cathedral holds a relic of St Teresa of Calcutta (Anjezë Gonxhe Bojaxhiu 1910-1997), a muslin cloth stained with her blood and set in a cross.
- 2 St Patrick's Church, 25 Church St BT34 1HH, ☏ +44 28 3026 2621. Built circa 1578, which makes it the first Protestant church in Ireland after the Reformation, but it was rebuilt in 1866. Still in use by the Church of Ireland, it's a distinctive part of the town skyline, with four little spires at each corner of its clock tower, atop a hill east bank of the river.
- 3 Newry Town Hall, Bank Parade BT34 1DQ, ☏ +44 330 137 4032. Daily 9:30AM-1PM, 2-4PM. This was built in 1893 over the Newry (or Clanrye) River, the boundary between Counties Armagh and Down. The site was part diplomacy but also a creative use of space in a town divided by river and canal, and the building looks as if it belongs in Utrecht, if you can ignore the hills behind. (The bus station likewise spans the river.) The council offices have moved half-a-mile west to Monaghan Row, and the Town Hall now hosts the Arts Centre. This sometimes has art exhibitions but is mostly a performance venue.
- 4 Bagenal's Castle (Newry and Mourne Museum), Abbey Way BT34 2BY, ☏ +44 330 137 4992. Tu-Sa 10AM-4:30PM. How you can mislay an entire castle? A Cistercian Abbey was founded in Newry in 1153, with extensive lands. To the south was "The Pale", that part of Ireland directly ruled by the English monarchs. The abbey lands were literally beyond the Pale, but Edward III grabbed them anyway, dissing the abbey as "mere Irish, conversing only with such, and spending their rents and profits in abetting the said Irish". In the 16th century all monasteries were dissolved by Henry VIII. The lands were awarded to Nicholas Bagenal (1509-1591), who'd fled England as a wanted man for murder, but who rose to be Marshal of the Army in Ireland (and thrice fell and rose again). He demolished the abbey and built his own fortified house on the site. His direct family died out in the 18th century and his "castle" was sold to a merchant, becoming McCann's Bakery. Historians and map makers entirely lost sight of the place, though everyone at the bakery knew — the old human bones and medieval carvings were a clue. If only some historian had bought a bap here; but not until the bakery closed in the 1990s was the castle re-discovered. It's been partly restored and now houses the town museum. Free.
- 5 John Mitchel Statue continues to adorn St Colman's Park. Mitchel (1815-1875) was an Irish nationalist whose early life was around Newry. He acted as lawyer for Catholics set upon by Orangemen, and was further radicalised by the Famine. His writings were considered seditious; he was convicted of treason in 1848 and transported to penal labour in Bermuda, but escaped to the US. In New York he continued to campaign for Irish liberation but threw most of his energy into advocating slavery. No apologist he: he proclaimed slavery as a great benefit, for the slaves as well as their owners and the public wellbeing, and it would be even better if the Atlantic slave trade could be re-established so more of Africa could benefit. His logic was uncannily similar to that of English overlords declaring what should be done for the betterment of the Irish peasantry. He lost support after the US Civil War and returned to Newry in 1875, getting elected as MP but disbarred by his criminal record, and dying shortly thereafter. In 2025 the town held a mock trial, and the citizen jurors deemed that the statue should stay, it was penance enough for Mitchel to endure the rain and seagulls in the park for eternity.
- St Mary's is the other C of I church, a Gothic structure of 1810 facing John Mitchel's statue. The RC St Mary's is south side of town.
- 6 Derrymore House, Derrymore Rd, Bessbrook BT35 7EF. Grounds year-round dawn to dusk. This elegant thatched cottage was built in 1776 as a summer lodge. A pseudo-Georgian mansion was tacked on in the 20th century but demolished when the place was acquired by the National Trust. The Treaty Room is where the Anglo-Irish Treaty of 1921 was negotiated, but the interior is seldom open, you come for the extensive grounds and exterior view.
Further out
[edit]- 7 Ballymacdermott Court Tomb is from 4000 to 2500 BC. It's on Bernish Rd and accessible free 24 hours.
- 8 Killeavy old churches are atmospheric ruins on Ballintemple Rd - "Killeavy" (Cill Shléibhe) means mountain church. The west church is 11th century, the east is 15th. A monastery was founded here by St Monnina in the 5th century.
- 9 Slieve Gullion is a mountain of 573 m / 1880 ft rising sharply southwest of town. Its Irish name Sliabh gCuillinn has a long mythological derivation or a short prosaic one: it means "steep hill". It's the central stump of the Ring of Gullion, the collapsed and fractured walls of an ancient volcano caldera, though the present peak is geologically more recent. It's usually climbed from the car park on the west flank, allow 4 hours and expect much mud. Great views from the top when it's not raining. Near the summit is a small lake with two burial cairns. The larger southern cairn is a passage tomb from circa 3000-3500 BC, the smaller northern cairn may be Bronze Age: both were damaged in World War II when the mountain was a US Army training range. Also on the slopes above Killeavy Castle (see "Sleep") is a ruined medieval convent. You can hike the 58 km trail round the lesser hills of the entire Ring, but most visitors are content to drive the 6 mile loop road.
- 10 Moyry Castle is the scenic stump of a 17th century bastion.
- 11 Warrenpoint is a village 7 miles south of Newry at the head of Carlingford Lough. It has accommodation and eating places. Narrow Water Castle is a 16th century turret, which you can't go in. By the castle was the Warrenpoint Ambush of 1979, when 18 British soldiers were killed. A narrow channel separates Warrenpoint from Omeath in the Republic: a bridge is under construction, but the ferry no longer sails.
- 12 Rostrevor is a village a couple of miles further east along the coast. It's got accommodation including a caravan park, and eating places. The Mourne Mountains rise to its east, with a woodland of sessile oak. The Invisible Tree at the woods entrance is a 200-year-old oak which was notoriously omitted from a 2019 environmental assessment for a local development application. Higher up, the Cloughmore Stone is a teetering 50-ton granite boulder, a glacial deposit. Some half a dozen nearby peaks are easy hikes, such as Slieve Martin. The Fairy Glen is the valley rising north to Kilbroney, where there's a ruined 12th-century church and graveyard. (Local fairies were the Brooneys, an unpleasant species.) The lane continues north to Hilltown, giving access to hikes in the west Mournes such as the Hen, Cock and Pigeon route.
- 13 Kilfeaghan Dolmen is four miles east of Rostrevor, on a lane above A2 just west of Lisnacree. It was constructed some time before 1000 BC, with a capstone weighing the best part of 40 tons. But the dolmen is low-set and resembles a municipal sculpture, or a block stone to stop stolen cars being driven into the portals of the underworld.
- 14 Kilkeel is a fishing village, where you can visit the lobster hatchery, open M-Sa 10AM-5PM. The ruined church is 14th century. There's accommodation in Kilkeel, and shops for stocking up before heading into the wilds. "Baron Kilkeel" is a title conferred on Prince Harry in 2018 when he married Meghan Markle (remember her, the one who was going to diversify British royalty?) The village is also said to be the burial place of William Hare, as in Burke and Hare who in 1827 / 28 supplied remarkably fresh corpses to the Anatomy Rooms of Edinburgh. Both men were from Ulster and it's possible Hare sought to return, but he was last seen fleeing from Dumfries towards England and his later years are unknown.
Do
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- Live music: Newry has several small independent bands. Ask around for who's worth catching and where.
- Sean Hollywood Arts Centre puts on various shows. It's within Town Hall, box office +44 330 137 4032
- Newry Arts Festival is nowadays held in June.
- Newry Musical Feis is a series of events between Feb and May, often as competitions for young performers. It includes ballet & theatre dance, Irish dance, Irish trad music, other music, and speech & drama.
- Newry Canal: Hike or bike along it, and you can even sail along its lowest stretch. It was built 1731-41 to bring coal from Tyrone via Lough Neagh to Newry and the sea at Carlingford Lough, though it mostly carried grain and general goods. It was managed as badly as it was built, and fell into disrepair even before the railways took away its business in the 1850s. The inland section from Newry to Portadown and Lough Neagh is long abandoned, but has a good firm towpath for hiking or cycling with multiple access points. Enough water trickles down its reedy bed for angling and for wildfowl. It lies parallel to Newry River, forming an island strip which in town broadens into Sugar Island. The lower broader section (known as the "ship canal") runs 5 miles south from Newry to Victoria Lock where it joins the tidal river. This stretch has been restored for navigation, craft maximum is 61-m length by 10-m beam by 3.4-m draught with no height limit.
- Omniplex Cinema is on The Quays.
- 1 Newry Leisure Centre is on Cecil St west side of town. There's a gym, sports complex and 25-m swimming pool.
- Football: 2 Newry City AFC play soccer in the NIFL Championship, Northern Ireland's second tier. Their home stadium The Showgrounds is on the east river bank a mile south of town; it has a nominal capacity of 7900 but is restricted to 2275. City play in the same colours and at the same ground as their predecessor Newry City FC, who went bust in 2012 - their most famous player was goalkeeper Pat Jennings (b 1945), later of Watford, Spurs and Arsenal.
- Warrenpoint Town FC play six miles south. They were promoted in 2025 so they too play in the Championship.
- Gaelic games: County Down GAA play Gaelic football and hurling at Páirc Esler (capacity 25,000) on Warrenpoint Rd about a mile south of town.
- Fiddlers Green Festival is held in Rostrevor in July.
Buy
[edit]New Variety Market is on Thursday and Saturday 9AM-5PM, east bank of the river off St Mary's Street.
Newry's modern retail strip is along the west bank of the canal. Downstream of William St / Bridge St, where the canal broadens into Albert Basin, is The Quays. The strip upstream to the next bridge at Mill St is The Buttercrane. All the big "High Street" names are here, ie the ones you seldom nowadays see on High Street.
Dalmolly retail park is a mile north of town at the junction of A27 and A28.
Newry draws many cross-border shoppers. Sometimes this is driven by VAT differences on goods, and sometimes by swings in currency, whenever the Republic's euro buys more against the UK pound.
Eat
[edit]- Grounded, 25 Merchants Quay BT35 6AH, ☏ +44 28 3083 3868. M-F 5AM-11PM, Sa Su 7AM-10PM. Coffee shop, also does burgers and similar fast food, and close to the bus station.
- Art Bar Funkel, 3 Monaghan St BT35 6BB, ☏ +44 28 3025 1935. M-Sa noon-9:30PM, Su 1-8PM. Bright modern place with Med-style food.
- Sapori Italiani, 16 The Mall, Bachelors Walk BT34 1BG (50 yards north of bus station), ☏ +44 28 3025 2086. Th-Su 5-10PM. Quality Italian fare, big portions.
- Guru, 3 Kildare St BT35 1DQ (by town hall), ☏ +44 28 3005 3659. M-Sa 5-10PM, Su 12:30-9PM. High standard of Indian food.
- Friar Tuck's is a burger cafe on Sugar Island north of town hall, open daily 10AM-11PM.
- The Shelbourne, 69 Hill St BT34 1DG, ☏ +44 28 3026 2002. M-Sa 8AM-5:30PM. Large cafe-bakery for daytime meals.
- Rostrevor Inn, 33-35 Bridge Street, Rostrevor BT34 3BG, ☏ +44 28 4173 9911. Atmospheric pub built in 18th century, often has live music. With restaurant and seven en suite rooms. B&B double £130.
Drink
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- The Bridge Bar, 55 North St BT34 1DD, ☏ +44 28 3026 1777. M-Th 3-11PM, F-Su noon-1AM. Pleasant pub with three bars, beer garden at back.
- The Phoenix, 2 Upper Water St BT34 1DJ, ☏ +44 28 3026 2378. Th 5PM-1AM, F-Su noon-1AM. Sports bar with lots of screens for watching.
- McSwiggan's, 59 Lower North St BT34 1DD, ☏ +44 28 3026 2494. Su-F 12:30PM-2AM, Sa 10:30AM-2AM. Great range of drinks, live sports, Friday nights is karaoke.
- Nan Rices, 7 Francis St BT35 8BQ. M-F 2PM-1AM, Sa Su noon-1AM. Friendly bar with trad music Friday nights.
- McGuigan’s, 48 Monaghan St BT35 6AA (opposite Railway Bar), ☏ +44 28 3026 8066. Daily 11:30AM-2AM. Sports and music bar.
- Railway Bar, 79 Monaghan St BT35 6AY, ☏ +44 28 3026 2498. Daily 11:30AM-midnight. Lively bar with trad music Thursday nights.
- The Bank, 1 Trevor Hill BT34 1DN, ☏ +44 28 3083 5501. Daily 11:30AM-1AM. Extensive bar and bistro with six function rooms and nightclub.
- Rostrevor south along the coast has lively pubs. Try any or all of Kilbroney Bar & Grill, Cloughmore Inn, Fearsons, Rostrevor Inn and Killowen Bar, all central.
- Distillery: Killowen makes whiskey, gin, poitín, rum and liqueurs. It's along the coast road between Rostrevor and Kilkeel.
Sleep
[edit]- 1 Mourne Country Hotel, 52 Belfast Rd BT34 1TR, ☏ +44 28 3026 7922. Low-rise place two miles north of town centre, looks like a Young Offenders Institute but decent enough for what you're paying. Saturday nights are C&W gigs. B&B double £135.
- Canal Court Hotel, Merchants Quay BT35 8HF (200 yards north of bus station), ☏ +44 28 3025 1234. Boxy modern building but comfy, value for money, and handy for town and transport. Has conference facilities. B&B double £140.
- 2 Newry Premium B&B (Aidan's Guesthouse), 3 Liska Manor BT35 8BL, ☏ +44 7809 54056. Cosy welcoming B&B. B&B double £110.
- 3 Lismore House, 118 Quarry Lane BT35 8QP, ☏ +44 28 3026 1984. Pleasant B&B off the old Dublin Rd south edge of town. B&B double £110.
- 4 Flagstaff Lodge, 11 Forkhill Rd BT35 8LZ (B113 off A1), ☏ +44 28 3026 3871. Clean comfy place with good food by A1 two miles south of town centre. They often host weddings and similar events. B&B double £150.
- 5 Killeavy Castle, 12 Ballintemple Rd, Newry BT35 8LQ, ☏ +44 28 3044 4888. Mansion built 1810-20 as a cod-medieval castle, now an upscale hotel and spa. People sometimes book the whole place for weddings. B&B double £200.
- Whistledown Hotel, 3 Seaview, Warrenpoint BT34 3NH, ☏ +44 28 4175 4174. Victorian seafront hotel with 21 rooms en suite, it's the food and service that earn the great reviews. B&B double £120.
- Lough and Quay on Marine Parade Warrenpoint is a small mid-range hotel overlooking the harbour.
- Kilbroney Caravan Park is in Rostrevor, open Apr-Oct.
- 6 Mourne Lodge, Bog Road, Atticall BT34 4HT (3 miles above Kilkeel), ☏ +44 28 4176 5859. Clean friendly hostel near the entrance to Silent Valley. Dorm £20 ppn, rooms £75 ppn.
- 7 Carrickdale Hotel, Dromad A91 PR63 (N1 jcn 20), ☏ +353 429 380 900. Just over the border into Louth, but close to Newry, this spa hotel gets great reviews for comfort and service. B&B double €160.
Connect
[edit]To call a number in Northern Ireland from the Republic, use area code 048 with no country code. The +44 28 versions given above also work but incur international rates.
Newry and its approach roads have 4G from the British EE and Vodafone, and 5G from O2 and Three.
They also have 4G from the Republic's Three and Vodafone; Eir Mobile peters out at the south edge of town. Check which nation's network your mobile has latched onto, in case of roaming charges.
Go next
[edit]- The Mourne Mountains rise close to town, but are low hills hereabouts.
- Newcastle is a better base for the highest of the Mournes, including Northern Ireland's highest peak Slieve Donard.
- Armagh is the ecclesiastic capital of all Ireland, with two cathedrals and a prehistoric "fort" that was more likely a religious centre.
- Dundalk, south across the border in the Republic, is little more than a transport hub. Continue south for historic Drogheda and the Boyne Valley.
| Routes through Newry |
| Belfast ← Banbridge ← | N  S | →  continues as   → Dundalk → Dublin |
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