Tollymore Forest Park is the big draw — vast trails and famously used as a Game of Thrones filming location. Castlewellan Forest Park adds lakeside paths and a castle to the mix. For hands-on adventure, the area's climbing walls and outdoor activity centres keep older kids and adults busy.
Families are well set up here. Beaches and the Mourne Way are free. Monkeez@TheMill covers wet afternoons for young children, and Funny Farm Adventures is a reliable sunny-day pick.
The best days out near Newcastle
Mourne Trail Riding Centre
Mourne Mountain Adventures
Castle Park Newcastle Go Karts & Crazy Golf
Tropical World Crazy Golf
Slieve Donard Resort & Spa
Mourne Way
Mourne Golf Club
Royal County Down Golf Club
Sauna Ice Balance
Active Adventures NI
Mourne Mountains crags
Coco's Adventure Playground Newcastle
Newcastle Beach
Tropicana Newcastle
Mourne Coastal Route
Newcastle to Murlough Boardwalk
Newcastle Golf Centre
Spa & Wellness at Burrendale Hotel
Mountview Garden Centre
Newcastle Yacht Club
Murlough National Nature Reserve
Folly's Bridge (Tollymore Forest)
Tollymore Mountain Centre Climbing Wall
Tollymore Forest Park Play Park
Tollymore Forest Park (GoT filming)
Tollymore Forest Park
Bloody Bridge Coast Trail
Funny Farm Adventures
Lower Cove (Mournes) Crag
Tollymore National Outdoor Centre Trails
Hotrock Climbing Wall (Tollymore NOC)
Tollymore National Outdoor Centre
Monkeez@TheMill
Rafiki's Treehouse
Dundrum Castle
Castle Farm NI
Whitewater Brewery
Blue Lough (Annalong Valley)
Life Adventure Centre
Wild Mourne Wellness
Drumena Cashel
Castlewellan Forest Park & Castle
Mount Panther Estate
Mountpanther Farm Park
Segway NI Castlewellan
Mount Pleasant Equestrian Centre
Lough Shannagh
Tyrella Beach
What's on near Newcastle
- 1AugThe Idiot Sandwich Returns! — Castlewellan LibraryCastlewellan Library
- 1AugAlpaca Adventure Trail, CranfieldCranfield Alpacas
- 1AugAlpaca Field Walk Experience37 Cranfield Road
- 5AugEvening of Mediumship, NewcastleHugh McCanns
- 5AugStorytime and colouring — Castlewellan LibraryCastlewellan Library
- 5AugRhythm & Rhyme — Downpatrick LibraryDownpatrick Library
Days out in Newcastle — your questions
What are the best days out in Newcastle?
Tollymore Forest Park tops most lists — it's huge and famously used as a Game of Thrones filming location. Castlewellan Forest Park and its castle grounds are worth a full afternoon. For activities, Life Adventure Centre and the climbing walls at Tollymore Mountain Centre are standouts. Funny Farm Adventures is great if you have young children in tow.
What free things are there to do in Newcastle?
Quite a lot. The Mourne Way is a free long-distance walking trail through mountain scenery. Newcastle Beach is right in town. Murlough National Nature Reserve and the Newcastle to Murlough Boardwalk make for a lovely coastal walk. Drumena Cashel is a free ruin worth a short detour. The Mourne Mountains crags are also free to explore.
Where can you go on a rainy day near Newcastle?
Monkeez@TheMill is the clear pick for young children on a wet afternoon — it's soft play under cover. Mountains of Mourne Activity Centre and Geology Rocks Adventure Tourism are also worth checking for indoor activities near town. The climbing walls at Tollymore Mountain Centre are another option for older kids and adults.
What's good for young children near Newcastle?
Monkeez@TheMill is the soft play pick for toddlers and younger kids. Funny Farm Adventures is a farm-based outdoor funpark that tends to go down well with the under-10s. A little further afield, Mountpanther Farm Park and Seaforde Gardens & Tropical Butterfly House are both popular with families and make easy day trips from Newcastle.
More about Newcastle
Newcastle sits right at the foot of Slieve Donard, the highest mountain in Northern Ireland, which rises steeply behind the town and gives it one of the most dramatic settings on the whole island. This is the edge of the Mourne Mountains, the range that inspired Percy French's famous song "The Mountains of Mourne."
On the town's doorstep is Tollymore Forest Park, Northern Ireland's first forest park and a filming location for Game of Thrones, with the Shimna River running through it to the sea. Add a long sandy beach and promenade and Donard Park at the mountain's foot, and it is one of the best family bases in the country.