Tollymore Forest Park: Walks, Bridges and Where to Stay
Northern Ireland’s first forest park sits on the northern slopes of the Mournes, and its stone bridges over the Shimna are the most photographed thing in County Down. Here’s what each waymarked trail actually involves, and the 29 places we list within ten miles of the gate.
Published 18 August 2026
Tollymore opened on 2 June 1955 as Northern Ireland’s first state forest park, and it has been the default Sunday walk for half of County Down ever since. The name comes from the Irish Tulaigh Mhór, the large hill or mound, after the two wooded rises inside the boundary, Slieve Neir and Slieve Snaran, known locally as the Drinns.
What sets it apart from the other Mourne forests is the architecture. The Shimna River runs through the middle of the park and is crossed by sixteen bridges, the earliest dating to 1726. Add a Gothic barn at the entrance, a clifftop hermitage above the water and a scattering of follies, and you get a walk that feels designed rather than merely waymarked, because it was.
The three waymarked trails
Tollymore’s routes are colour-coded and all start from the same car park, so you can upgrade or bail out at the bridges. These are the official distances.
| Trail | Distance | Time | What you get |
|---|---|---|---|
| Red: River Trail | 5.2 km | 1½–2 hrs | The Shimna upstream to Parnell’s Bridge, the Hermitage, a ten-metre cascade, then back along the Spinkwee over the park’s oldest bridge |
| Black: Mountain Trail | 8.8 km | 3–4 hrs | Mixed conifer and broadleaf, crossing the Shimna at Boundary Bridge, with the Mourne summits opening up |
| Black 1: Drinns Loop | +4.8 km | add 1½ hrs | An extension round the two wooded hills to the Curraghard viewpoint over Newcastle and Dundrum Bay |
If you only have a couple of hours, take the Red. It carries the bridges, the hermitage and the cascade, and it is the one that makes people book a second night. The Black earns its length in views rather than features, worth it on a clear day, less so in Mourne drizzle.
When to go, and where to park
The car park fills early on dry weekends and bank holidays, and there is a charge per vehicle. Arriving before ten or after three is the difference between a space and a lap of the road. Autumn is the park’s best season. The broadleaf along the Shimna turns properly, and the river runs high enough to make the cascade worth the detour, which it isn’t in a dry August.
- Underfoot: forest track and river path, well surfaced on the Red, rougher and rootier on the Black. Boots rather than trainers after rain.
- Dogs: fine on a lead, and the river gives them somewhere to cool off. We list dog-friendly places to stay across Northern Ireland if you’re bringing one.
- Buggies: the first stretch along the Shimna is manageable; the full Red loop is not.
Staying nearby
Newcastle sits two miles down the road and is the obvious base, but the glamping is spread through the foothills rather than the town. We list 13 sites within five miles of the park and 29 within ten, which covers Bryansford, Castlewellan and the Kilkeel side of the range.
Glamping near Tollymore Forest Park
Everything within ten miles of the park gate, best-rated first. Distances are as the crow flies. The Mourne roads wind.
See all 29 sites (23 more not shown here).
Northern Ireland skews hard toward hot tubs: of the sites we list province-wide, more than half advertise one. If that’s the trip you’re planning, glamping with a hot tub in Northern Ireland is the faster filter, and pods are the most common build here by a distance.
Pairing it with the rest of the Mournes
Castlewellan Forest Park is four miles away and works as the other half of a weekend, a lake circuit and the Peace Maze rather than bridges and river. Between them they make a two-day trip without moving the car more than once.
For the high ground, the Mourne Wall and Slieve Donard start from Newcastle itself. We cover the options in walks in Northern Ireland, including which ones are realistic without a full hill day.
Common questions
- How long does the Tollymore river walk take?
- The Red River Trail is 5.2 km and signed at an hour and a half to two hours. Add time if you stop at the Hermitage and the cascade, which most people do.
- Is there a charge for Tollymore Forest Park?
- There is a car parking charge per vehicle at the entrance. Walking in costs nothing.
- Can you take dogs to Tollymore?
- Yes, on a lead. The Shimna gives them somewhere to swim on the river trail.
- What is the closest town to Tollymore Forest Park?
- Newcastle, County Down, about two miles east. Bryansford village is closer still, right by the northern entrance.
Keep reading
- Northern IrelandWalks in Northern Ireland: The Mournes, the Causeway and the GlensThe best walking in Northern Ireland by region, the Mourne Wall and Slieve Donard, the Causeway Coast Way, the Glens of Antrim and the forest parks, with stays near each.
- Northern IrelandCastlewellan Forest Park: The Lake, the Peace Maze and the WalksWhat to do at Castlewellan Forest Park in County Down, the lakeside circuit, the Peace Maze, the arboretum and the mountain-bike network, plus glamping within ten miles.
- Northern IrelandThings to Do in Northern IrelandA practical guide to Northern Ireland by region, the Causeway Coast, the Mournes, the Glens of Antrim, Strangford and the cities, with where to stay in each.
- Northern IrelandStrangford Lough: What to Do and Where to StayA guide to Strangford Lough and the Ards Peninsula, Mount Stewart, the Portaferry ferry, the seals and birds, Castle Ward, and the glamping within reach.