You come in under the Barbican — a grey stone gateway with castellated turrets, gothic and a little theatrical, more like the entrance to a castle than a forest. The road drops down toward the Shimna River, and from there it's the water that leads you on: clear and quick over the rocks, crossed and re-crossed by a run of old stone bridges, each one a little different, some of them well over two hundred years old.
Follow the river and the surprises keep coming — stepping stones, arched footbridges, little grottoes and caves worked into the banks, a stone hermitage tucked in above the water. The trees are the other half of it: this is one of the oldest arboretums in Ireland, so alongside the native oak and pine you'll pass giant redwoods and cedars brought from the far side of the world. Look up through them and the Mourne Mountains rise straight out of the treetops.
Paths are colour-coded and marked from the car park, so you pick your day: a gentle half-mile loop past the big trees, a three-mile riverside wander, or a proper climb up into the hills if legs are willing. Game of Thrones filmed its haunted forest here, north of the Wall — walk it and you'll see why. Bring a flask, take your time, and let the river set the pace.
Plan your visit
Just turn up — it's open every day
The forest is open all year, 10am until sunset, so there's no booking and no ticket to walk in. Walking in is free; the charge is for parking — £5 per car for the day (£2.50 a motorbike), and it's free if you arrive on foot or by bike. Everything starts from the main car park: the information point, the trail maps and the toilets. Worth knowing there's no café inside the park itself, so it's a good idea to bring what you need — Newcastle is only five minutes down the road for after.
Toilets at the car parkFour waymarked trailsSnack van (confirm on the day)Dogs welcome on leads
Good to note:
Tollymore is home to red squirrels — keep dogs on leads and don't feed the wildlife, as the Forest Service has flagged squirrel pox in the park. The car park can fill fast on bright weekends, so an earlier start pays off. Toilets are at the car park only, none out on the trails.
Before you set off
What to wear & bring
👟Good shoes or welliesThe main tracks are firm, but the riverside and hill trails get rooty and muddy, especially after rain.
🧥A coat, whatever the skyRain here just means the Shimna runs full and the whole forest smells green — it's grand under the trees.
🥪A flask and a picnicThere's no café inside, so pack your own — there are lovely spots by the water to stop.
💷£5 for the car parkBring the parking charge for the day; free if you come on foot or by bike.
Good to know
Everything before you go
Cost
Free to walk in. Parking is £5 per car for the day, £2.50 per motorcycle; free on foot or by bicycle. Larger charges apply for minibuses and coaches. Confirm current rates on the day.
Hours
Open every day of the year, 10am until sunset. There can be short closures in severe winter weather — worth a quick check before setting off in a storm.
Trails
Four colour-coded routes, all starting and ending at the car park: the Blue arboretum path (about half a mile), the Red rivers trail (around three miles), and longer Black mountain trails (five miles and up) for stronger walkers. Maps at the information point.
What you'll see
The Shimna River and its run of ornamental stone bridges; the gothic Barbican gateway; grottoes, caves and a stone hermitage; one of Ireland's oldest arboretums with exotic trees; and Mourne Mountain views. Game of Thrones filmed here.
Food
No café inside the park. A snack van is often at the car park — confirm on the day. Newcastle, five minutes away, has plenty of cafés and shops.
Toilets
At the main car park, with wheelchair access. None out on the trails, so go before you set off.
Dogs
Well-behaved dogs are welcome. Keep them on a lead — the forest is home to red squirrels and other walkers.
Getting around
The main drive and forest roads are firm and buggy-friendly; the riverside and mountain trails are natural and uneven, better for an all-terrain buggy or a carrier than an umbrella stroller.
How long
Allow two to three hours for a good river-and-trees loop; longer if you take on a mountain trail or bring a picnic.
Questions
Before you go
Is Tollymore free?
Walking in is free — the only charge is for parking, £5 per car for the day (£2.50 a motorbike). If you arrive on foot or by bike, there's nothing to pay at all.
Do I need to book?
No. It's open every day, 10am to sunset, and you just turn up and walk in.
Is there a café or food?
No café inside the park. There's often a snack van at the car park, but it's worth bringing a flask and picnic to be sure — Newcastle is only five minutes away for after.
Can I bring the dog?
Yes — well-behaved dogs on leads are welcome. Keep them close, as the forest is home to red squirrels the Forest Service is protecting.
Is it good with a pram?
The main drive and forest roads are firm and buggy-friendly for a stroll and the big trees. The riverside and mountain trails are natural and uneven — an all-terrain buggy or a carrier copes far better there.
Which walk should we do?
For an easy family outing, follow the shorter arboretum and river loops near the car park to take in the bridges and big trees. Save the longer mountain trails for a day with stronger legs.
Getting there
Bryansford Road, Newcastle, County Down, BT33 0PW — a couple of miles from Newcastle toward Bryansford village, at the foot of the Mournes. Pay-and-park on site.
Tollymore opened as a forest park on 2 June 1955 — the first of its kind in Northern Ireland. But the estate is far older than that. The arboretum was begun back in 1752, which makes it one of the oldest in Ireland, and the ornamental bridges, follies and gateways along the Shimna were built by the estate's landlords through the 1700s and 1800s to make the walk through their grounds feel like a story unfolding.
The Barbican gate went up around 1780, in the same gothic taste as the grottoes, the hermitage and the arched stone bridges — one of them, the Old Bridge, is said to date to 1726. In more recent years the forest found a new audience: it stood in as the haunted woods north of the Wall in Game of Thrones, and featured in the film Dracula Untold. Six hundred-odd hectares of it now belong to everyone, open dawn to dusk, at the foot of the Mournes.