Walk in through the gates at Cultra and the modern world drops away behind you. Down the cobbled street of the old town a costumed shopkeeper nods hello from a green Victorian doorway, gas lamps stand at the kerb, a red pillar post box waits on the corner, and the whole place hums with the feel of a working town from a hundred years ago. Duck into a printer's or a chemist's and someone in period dress is often at the counter, ready to tell you what's what.
Beyond the town the site opens out into rolling countryside, and this is where the Folk Museum really breathes. Whitewashed thatched cottages sit in flowering gardens along the lanes, farmhouses and a school and a church scattered across the hillside — each one a real building, taken down brick by brick from somewhere in Ulster and rebuilt here stone for stone. Step inside a cottage and there's usually a turf fire glowing in the hearth, the smell of the smoke in the air, and traditional crafts on the go. It's a big, hilly, walkable site, so it rewards a proper wander.
Then, just across the main road, the Ulster Transport Museum tells a different story — the story of getting around and getting on. The Irish railway collection fills a hall with locomotives and carriages you can stand right beside; the road galleries run from horse-drawn to the gleaming stainless-steel DeLorean, the car built in Belfast and made famous on screen. And the Titanica exhibition traces how this small corner of the world built the ships and aircraft that carried the name around the globe. One thing to know before you set off: the Folk Museum and the Transport Museum are now two separate museums with two separate tickets, so pick your day accordingly — or make a proper outing of it and do both.
Plan your visit
Two museums, two tickets — plan which you're doing
The big thing to know: the Folk Museum and the Transport Museum used to share one ticket, but they now run separately, each with its own admission — so decide before you go, or budget for both. Each is £12 for an adult, £7.45 a child, £9.45 concession, under-5s free, with family tickets from £24. Both are closed on Mondays (except bank holidays) and open Tuesday to Sunday. You can pay on arrival, but the museums suggest booking online to be sure. Prices and hours can change, so confirm on the day.
Ballycultra TearoomToilets & Changing PlacesWheelchairs & scooters to bookCostumed folk & craftsDogs on lead outdoors
Separate tickets now:
There's no combined Folk + Transport ticket any more. If you want to see both in a day you'll need two admissions — check each museum's own opening times before you travel, as the Transport Museum keeps shorter winter hours.
Before you set off
What to wear & bring
👟Comfy shoesThe Folk side is a big hilly site with lots of walking between buildings — you'll clock up the steps.
🧥A coat for the outdoorsMost of the Folk Museum is open air. Rain just makes the turf fires and cottage interiors all the cosier.
🚼Buggy or carrierPaths cross grass, gravel and cobbles — an all-terrain buggy copes best, and a carrier suits the steeper lanes.
🥪A picnic if you likeThe Ballycultra Tearoom does hot and cold food, but there's plenty of open ground for your own.
Good to know
Everything before you go
Cost
Each museum is separate: adult £12, child £7.45, concession £9.45, under-5s free; family tickets from £24 up to £35 depending on the mix of adults and children. Members and registered-disabled visitors go free. Pay on arrival or book online. Confirm current prices on the day.
Opening days
Both closed Mondays (except NI bank and public holidays), open Tuesday–Sunday. Folk Museum broadly 10am–5pm. The Transport Museum runs summer hours (roughly March–September, Tue–Sun 10am–5pm) and shorter winter hours (Oct–Feb, with later 11am weekend openings) — check its own page before a winter trip.
What you'll see
Folk Museum: a recreated old town of shops, houses and a church, plus rebuilt rural cottages, farms and a school across open countryside, with costumed folk and traditional crafts. Transport Museum: the Irish railway collection, road transport from horse-drawn to the DeLorean, and the Titanica ship- and aircraft-building exhibition.
Food
The Ballycultra Tearoom on the Folk side does hot and cold refreshments with table service during museum hours. Picnicking is easy on the open grounds.
Toilets
Toilets throughout, including a Changing Places facility with a hoist and shower at building 24 on the Folk site.
Dogs
Dogs are welcome in the outdoor spaces on a short lead. Assistance dogs (guide, hearing and service dogs) are allowed inside the exhibit buildings too.
Parking
Free parking in the main car park, with overflow parking at the bottom of the hill.
Getting around
Most of the site is accessible, though the Folk Museum is hilly and a small number of historic buildings have steps and can't be reached by wheelchair. Two mobility scooters, two electric and two manual wheelchairs can be reserved ahead by email.
How long
Most visitors spend around 2.5–3 hours on one museum; make a full day of it if you're doing both. There's no time limit — wander at your own pace.
Questions
Before you go
Is it one ticket for both museums?
No — not any more. The Folk Museum and the Transport Museum now run as two separate museums with two separate tickets. If you want to see both in a day, you'll need to buy admission to each. Each is £12 for an adult.
What's the difference between the two sides?
The Folk Museum is the open-air one: a recreated old town and rebuilt cottages, farms and a school with costumed folk and turf fires. The Transport Museum, across the road, holds the trains, the road-transport galleries, the Titanica exhibition and the DeLorean.
How much walking is there?
A fair bit on the Folk side — it's a large, hilly site and the buildings are spread across open countryside, so wear comfy shoes. The Transport Museum is more compact and mostly indoors.
What if it rains?
The Folk Museum is atmospheric in the rain — turf fires lit, cottage interiors warm and glowing. And the Transport Museum is almost entirely indoors, so it's the perfect dry-day option if the weather really sets in.
Can I bring the dog?
Yes — dogs are welcome in the outdoor spaces on a short lead. Assistance dogs are allowed inside the buildings as well.
Is there food?
The Ballycultra Tearoom on the Folk side serves hot and cold food during opening hours, and there's plenty of open ground for a picnic of your own.
Getting there
153 Bangor Road, Cultra, Holywood, County Down, BT18 0EU — about three miles east of Belfast, with free parking on site.
The Ulster Folk Museum grew from an idea that ordinary life was worth keeping — the homes, shops, trades and farms that were quietly vanishing as the twentieth century pushed on. Rather than photograph them, the museum did something bolder: it took real buildings down where they stood across Ulster, moved them to the Cultra hillside and rebuilt them stone for stone, then filled them with the fires, tools and costumed folk that bring them back to life.
Across the road, the Transport Museum gathers the other half of the story — how people and goods moved, from the horse and cart to the railways that stitched the country together, and on to the DeLorean, the stainless-steel car built in Belfast in the early 1980s and later made famous on screen. Together, run by National Museums NI, the two sites let you walk from a turf-fired cottage to a gleaming sports car in a single afternoon.