Caravan Parks In Ards And North Down | MOTORHOMEingLife

The borough has a good mix of private and public sites. On the Ards Peninsula, Ganaway Touring Park between Millisle and Ballywalter offers around 40 hardstanding pitches, each with individual electric hook-up and Irish Sea views, and Windsor Caravan Park at Millisle sits close to the beach. Across Strangford Lough, the National Trust’s Castle Ward Caravan Park near Strangford and the Camping and Caravanning Club site at Delamont Country Park near Killyleagh are excellent natural settings with electric hook-up pitches. Which suits you depends on whether you want the open Irish Sea coast on the peninsula or the sheltered, wooded lough shore with its estates and country parks a short ferry hop or drive away.

Yes. The licensed private parks along the coast offer touring pitches with electric hook-up, and several have hardstanding, individual pitch electric and full washroom facilities. Ganaway Touring Park gives each of its pitches a hardstand and individual electric hook-up with washrooms, hot showers and a chemical disposal point. The public sites, Castle Ward Caravan Park and the Delamont Country Park club site, also provide electric hook-up pitches and a motorhome service point. If you want everything close to the pitch, ask when you book, because the best serviced pitches go first in summer. The council motorhome service point at the Commons in Donaghadee adds fresh water and waste disposal by day, though you cannot stay there overnight.

The council runs no public caravan parks and does not allow overnight stays on its land, including the Commons at Donaghadee, and roadside overnighting is discouraged. So free or wild camping is not really an option here. The good news is there are genuinely good public-access sites in natural settings: the National Trust’s Castle Ward Caravan Park on the wooded west shore of Strangford Lough, and the Camping and Caravanning Club site at Delamont Country Park near Killyleagh, both with electric hook-up. Otherwise the borough has around two dozen licensed private caravan parks along the coast. Use the council pages to check licensed sites and the Donaghadee service point, and always book ahead rather than relying on turning up.

Late May through September gives the mildest weather and the best beach and lough conditions, but July and August are the busiest, so book electric-hook-up pitches ahead and expect the beaches and the Portaferry ferry to get busy. June and September are quieter and often just as bright, which many tourers prefer. Spring is fresh and good for the coastal path and the National Trust gardens, with Strangford Lough alive with birds. Winter is cool, wet and windy off the Irish Sea, with many touring parks closed, so ring ahead. Whenever you come, this is an exposed coast, so pack for wind, choose sheltered pitches if storms threaten, and keep an eye on the marine forecast.

Yes, with sensible planning. The A2, A20 and A21 into Bangor, Newtownards and down the peninsula are good, mostly wide roads that carry large motorhomes and outfits towing caravans, and Belfast’s motorway network is close. Parks like Ganaway Touring Park and the Delamont club site have hardstanding pitches suited to bigger rigs. The catch is the peninsula shore lanes and village centres like Portaferry and Greyabbey, which narrow in places, and the Portaferry ferry slip, which needs care with a long outfit. Keep a big rig on the main roads, scout the final approach to any park, and check the ferry can take your length before relying on it to reach Castle Ward and the west shore.

You have two options. The touring parks, including Ganaway Touring Park, Castle Ward Caravan Park and the Delamont Country Park club site, have chemical disposal points for your toilet cassette, grey-water disposal and fresh-water taps. In addition, the borough council runs a motorhome service point at the Commons in Donaghadee that handles fresh water and waste-water and chemical disposal by day, which is handy if you are touring between parks, though you cannot stay there overnight. Empty and refill at these rather than roadside or at beach car parks. Bangor, Newtownards and Comber are your resupply hubs for water, fuel and food before heading down the quieter peninsula. Never tip waste near the lough, which is a protected marine reserve.

A great deal for a compact area. Strangford Lough is an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and a marine reserve, alive with wintering birds and seals, and the Portaferry to Strangford ferry crosses its narrows. On its shore sits Mount Stewart, one of the finest National Trust houses and gardens in Northern Ireland, and Castle Ward with its Game of Thrones film locations. On the North Down side, Bangor and Donaghadee offer harbours, a lighthouse, seafront walks, a famous ice cream parlour and boat trips to the Copeland Islands. The North Down Coastal Path links Bangor with Crawfordsburn Country Park and Holywood. Add the peninsula beaches at Millisle and Ballywalter, and there is easily a week of days out here.

For July, August and the school holidays, book electric-hook-up pitches several weeks ahead, because the coastal and lough parks fill quickly and the popular ones sell out first. The National Trust and Camping and Caravanning Club sites at Castle Ward and Delamont are well used and worth reserving early, especially at weekends. June and September are easier, and you can sometimes get a few days’ notice midweek, but with no council overnighting to fall back on, ringing ahead always saves a wasted drive down the peninsula. If a particular type of pitch matters, such as a hardstanding sea-view or a fully serviced pitch, reserve early and say so, as the best spots go first. Most parks take direct online or phone bookings.

Yes. The Portaferry to Strangford car ferry crosses the narrows of Strangford Lough and takes cars, motorhomes and outfits towing caravans, and it is far quicker than driving the long way around the lough to reach Castle Ward and the west shore. It is the smart move if you are basing on the Ards Peninsula but want to visit the Trust sites and country parks on the far side. Do check current sailing times, fares and any length limits before you rely on it with a big outfit, and take care on the slipway, which can be tight and tidal. Arriving early on busy summer days avoids queues, as the ferry is popular with day-trippers as well as tourers.

The area has a mild, breezy maritime climate moderated by the Irish Sea and Strangford Lough. Summer highs sit around 18°C with cool nights near 11°C and long daylight, with warm bright spells between showers. Spring and autumn are fresh, in the low teens by day, with autumn wetter and windier as storms build. Winter is cool at about 8°C, wet and windy, with occasional frost but rarely heavy coastal snow. The constant is wind: the Ards Peninsula is exposed and storms roll in fast off the sea even in summer, so choose hardstanding and sheltered pitches when weather threatens, peg awnings firmly, and pack proper waterproofs whatever the season. The lough side is generally more sheltered than the outer coast.

Yes, there are several good sandy beaches, especially on the outer Ards Peninsula. Millisle has a popular family beach with a paddling pool, and Ballywalter and Groomsport add more sand and rock pools, all within reach of parks like Ganaway Touring Park and Windsor Caravan Park. The North Down coast around Bangor has coves and the coastal path rather than long beaches, but it is lovely for walking. The sheltered Strangford Lough shore is more about birdlife, seals and quiet coves than swimming beaches. Do watch the Irish Sea wind, tides and currents, keep an eye on children near the water, and check for any lifeguard cover in the main season, as not every beach is patrolled.

Generally yes, this is a dog-friendly coast and most touring parks welcome well-behaved dogs kept on leads. The North Down Coastal Path, the peninsula beaches and the country-park trails are excellent for walking, though some popular beaches have seasonal dog restrictions in summer, so check the local signs. Parks like Ganaway and the Delamont club site are used to visitors with dogs, and the National Trust sites welcome dogs in many outdoor areas. Always confirm each park’s policy and any limit on numbers when you book, keep dogs under close control around livestock and the ground-nesting and wading birds on Strangford Lough, and bring waste bags. With a little care it is an easy area to tour with a dog.

Very much so. The borough sits right next to Belfast, only about 30 to 45 minutes from the city on the A2 and A21, so you can enjoy a quiet coastal pitch and still day-trip into the city for the Titanic Quarter, the museums and the shops. Base near Bangor on the North Down coast to shorten the run, and you can even take the train from Bangor into central Belfast, leaving the outfit on the pitch. From the same base you reach Strangford Lough, the National Trust estates and the peninsula beaches. Keep a big outfit off the tightest city streets and use park-and-ride or the train, and you get the best of both a seaside and a city break from one pitch.

The borough has a good mix of private and public sites. On the Ards Peninsula, Ganaway Touring Park between Millisle and Ballywalter offers around 40 hardstanding pitches, each with individual electric hook-up and Irish Sea views, and Windsor Caravan Park at Millisle sits close to the beach. Across Strangford Lough, the National Trust’s Castle Ward Caravan Park near Strangford and the Camping and Caravanning Club site at Delamont Country Park near Killyleagh are excellent natural settings with electric hook-up pitches. Which suits you depends on whether you want the open Irish Sea coast on the peninsula or the sheltered, wooded lough shore with its estates and country parks a short ferry hop or drive away.

Yes. The licensed private parks along the coast offer touring pitches with electric hook-up, and several have hardstanding, individual pitch electric and full washroom facilities. Ganaway Touring Park gives each of its pitches a hardstand and individual electric hook-up with washrooms, hot showers and a chemical disposal point. The public sites, Castle Ward Caravan Park and the Delamont Country Park club site, also provide electric hook-up pitches and a motorhome service point. If you want everything close to the pitch, ask when you book, because the best serviced pitches go first in summer. The council motorhome service point at the Commons in Donaghadee adds fresh water and waste disposal by day, though you cannot stay there overnight.

The council runs no public caravan parks and does not allow overnight stays on its land, including the Commons at Donaghadee, and roadside overnighting is discouraged. So free or wild camping is not really an option here. The good news is there are genuinely good public-access sites in natural settings: the National Trust’s Castle Ward Caravan Park on the wooded west shore of Strangford Lough, and the Camping and Caravanning Club site at Delamont Country Park near Killyleagh, both with electric hook-up. Otherwise the borough has around two dozen licensed private caravan parks along the coast. Use the council pages to check licensed sites and the Donaghadee service point, and always book ahead rather than relying on turning up.

Late May through September gives the mildest weather and the best beach and lough conditions, but July and August are the busiest, so book electric-hook-up pitches ahead and expect the beaches and the Portaferry ferry to get busy. June and September are quieter and often just as bright, which many tourers prefer. Spring is fresh and good for the coastal path and the National Trust gardens, with Strangford Lough alive with birds. Winter is cool, wet and windy off the Irish Sea, with many touring parks closed, so ring ahead. Whenever you come, this is an exposed coast, so pack for wind, choose sheltered pitches if storms threaten, and keep an eye on the marine forecast.

Yes, with sensible planning. The A2, A20 and A21 into Bangor, Newtownards and down the peninsula are good, mostly wide roads that carry large motorhomes and outfits towing caravans, and Belfast’s motorway network is close. Parks like Ganaway Touring Park and the Delamont club site have hardstanding pitches suited to bigger rigs. The catch is the peninsula shore lanes and village centres like Portaferry and Greyabbey, which narrow in places, and the Portaferry ferry slip, which needs care with a long outfit. Keep a big rig on the main roads, scout the final approach to any park, and check the ferry can take your length before relying on it to reach Castle Ward and the west shore.

You have two options. The touring parks, including Ganaway Touring Park, Castle Ward Caravan Park and the Delamont Country Park club site, have chemical disposal points for your toilet cassette, grey-water disposal and fresh-water taps. In addition, the borough council runs a motorhome service point at the Commons in Donaghadee that handles fresh water and waste-water and chemical disposal by day, which is handy if you are touring between parks, though you cannot stay there overnight. Empty and refill at these rather than roadside or at beach car parks. Bangor, Newtownards and Comber are your resupply hubs for water, fuel and food before heading down the quieter peninsula. Never tip waste near the lough, which is a protected marine reserve.

A great deal for a compact area. Strangford Lough is an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and a marine reserve, alive with wintering birds and seals, and the Portaferry to Strangford ferry crosses its narrows. On its shore sits Mount Stewart, one of the finest National Trust houses and gardens in Northern Ireland, and Castle Ward with its Game of Thrones film locations. On the North Down side, Bangor and Donaghadee offer harbours, a lighthouse, seafront walks, a famous ice cream parlour and boat trips to the Copeland Islands. The North Down Coastal Path links Bangor with Crawfordsburn Country Park and Holywood. Add the peninsula beaches at Millisle and Ballywalter, and there is easily a week of days out here.

For July, August and the school holidays, book electric-hook-up pitches several weeks ahead, because the coastal and lough parks fill quickly and the popular ones sell out first. The National Trust and Camping and Caravanning Club sites at Castle Ward and Delamont are well used and worth reserving early, especially at weekends. June and September are easier, and you can sometimes get a few days’ notice midweek, but with no council overnighting to fall back on, ringing ahead always saves a wasted drive down the peninsula. If a particular type of pitch matters, such as a hardstanding sea-view or a fully serviced pitch, reserve early and say so, as the best spots go first. Most parks take direct online or phone bookings.

Yes. The Portaferry to Strangford car ferry crosses the narrows of Strangford Lough and takes cars, motorhomes and outfits towing caravans, and it is far quicker than driving the long way around the lough to reach Castle Ward and the west shore. It is the smart move if you are basing on the Ards Peninsula but want to visit the Trust sites and country parks on the far side. Do check current sailing times, fares and any length limits before you rely on it with a big outfit, and take care on the slipway, which can be tight and tidal. Arriving early on busy summer days avoids queues, as the ferry is popular with day-trippers as well as tourers.

The area has a mild, breezy maritime climate moderated by the Irish Sea and Strangford Lough. Summer highs sit around 18°C with cool nights near 11°C and long daylight, with warm bright spells between showers. Spring and autumn are fresh, in the low teens by day, with autumn wetter and windier as storms build. Winter is cool at about 8°C, wet and windy, with occasional frost but rarely heavy coastal snow. The constant is wind: the Ards Peninsula is exposed and storms roll in fast off the sea even in summer, so choose hardstanding and sheltered pitches when weather threatens, peg awnings firmly, and pack proper waterproofs whatever the season. The lough side is generally more sheltered than the outer coast.

Yes, there are several good sandy beaches, especially on the outer Ards Peninsula. Millisle has a popular family beach with a paddling pool, and Ballywalter and Groomsport add more sand and rock pools, all within reach of parks like Ganaway Touring Park and Windsor Caravan Park. The North Down coast around Bangor has coves and the coastal path rather than long beaches, but it is lovely for walking. The sheltered Strangford Lough shore is more about birdlife, seals and quiet coves than swimming beaches. Do watch the Irish Sea wind, tides and currents, keep an eye on children near the water, and check for any lifeguard cover in the main season, as not every beach is patrolled.

Generally yes, this is a dog-friendly coast and most touring parks welcome well-behaved dogs kept on leads. The North Down Coastal Path, the peninsula beaches and the country-park trails are excellent for walking, though some popular beaches have seasonal dog restrictions in summer, so check the local signs. Parks like Ganaway and the Delamont club site are used to visitors with dogs, and the National Trust sites welcome dogs in many outdoor areas. Always confirm each park’s policy and any limit on numbers when you book, keep dogs under close control around livestock and the ground-nesting and wading birds on Strangford Lough, and bring waste bags. With a little care it is an easy area to tour with a dog.

Very much so. The borough sits right next to Belfast, only about 30 to 45 minutes from the city on the A2 and A21, so you can enjoy a quiet coastal pitch and still day-trip into the city for the Titanic Quarter, the museums and the shops. Base near Bangor on the North Down coast to shorten the run, and you can even take the train from Bangor into central Belfast, leaving the outfit on the pitch. From the same base you reach Strangford Lough, the National Trust estates and the peninsula beaches. Keep a big outfit off the tightest city streets and use park-and-ride or the train, and you get the best of both a seaside and a city break from one pitch.