The later seat of the High Kings of Ulster, burial site of the patron saint and medieval capital of County Down, Downpatrick is an essential stop for those intetrested in saints, scholars and Irish Christian heritage.

Spend some time at the St Patrick Centre major multimedia exhibition and learn about Patrick’s life. Visit the ancient Down Cathedral beside St Patrick’s Grave and then walk down the historic Georgian Mall to Down Museum which displays artefacts from Patrick’s time.

Take a train ride on the only narrow guage steam railway in Ireland through St. Patrick’s Country with the Down Railway Museum to Inch Abbey where many of the legends of Patrick were written down in Medieval times.

Perhaps you will visit the first church in Ireland at Saul and the first holy wells at Struell with their healing waters, all within a mile of the town. Or you could climb nearby Slieve Patrick and see the largest statue of the Patron Saint in the World and trace his footsteps on St Patrick’s Trail to the River Slaney where he began his pilgrimage to Ireland.

Whatever you choose to do you will be enchanted with this hidden world which is St. Patrick’s town.

.