After the prolonged unrest of last century, Northern Ireland is enjoying political stability and economic growth, allowing cultural tourism to develop and prosper. David Roberts, Director of Strategic Development at Tourism NI, explains,
“Northern Ireland’s heritage is a cornerstone of our tourism offering. For more than a decade, Tourism NI and our partners have been working together to drive investment in high quality heritage experiences and accommodation which are attractive to visitors. Our research has shown that the ‘culturally curious’ segment of visitors represents great potential for being attracted to Northern Ireland in the future.”
He states, “Historic buildings can provide exciting, place-based visitor experiences which can encourage longer stays in one place and more local exploring. Tourism NI is delighted to have Murlough Country House as a provider of high quality accommodation.”
This Georgian house set in six acres of gardens against a backdrop of the Mourne Mountains is available as a luxury holiday rental. The mountains provided the inspiration for Narnia in the novels of the Belfast-born author C. S. Lewis.
Murlough Country House is surrounded by Ireland’s first National Nature Reserve. On one side of its gardens are wetlands; on the other side, a sandy beach. It’s hard to believe Belfast is only 30 miles to the north and Dublin 90 miles to the south. The sand dunes were extensively used by the United States Army during the Second World War.
Next to the house is the village of Dundrum which has become the gourmet capital of South County Down. The Buck’s Head is now famous as a dining destination. Head Chef Alex Green says, “All our food is farm or sea to plate.” His family’s farm is three miles from the restaurant. Nowhere in Ireland is further than 57 miles from the coast.
Mourne Seafood Bar is another gastronomic attraction in the village. As its name suggests, this restaurant specializes in local delicacies such as Carlingford oysters and Strangford Lough mussels.
No Irish village is complete without a pub. The Dundrum Inn is great for a pint of Guinness or the local Kilmegan Cider. The pub is 190 years old which is recent when compared to the 12th century Dundrum Castle overlooking Dundrum Bay or the local prehistoric Slidderyford Dolmen standing in a field of potatoes.
Writing and photographs by Stuart Blakley
https://murloughcountryhouse.com https://thebucksheaddundrum.co.uk https://www.mourneseafood.com/restaurants/dundrum/ https://dundruminn.com
