Ring of Gullion Way

Towering stones 2.7m high, mark the entrance to the Neolithic burial site. It is known as the ‘King’s Ring’ and can be dated between 4000 and 2500BC. Scant remains of another court-tomb, marked by a clump of "fairy thorn" are some 200 metres to the south.

During excavations in 1937 flint arrowheads and a Stone Age axe head were found in the burial chmabers.

Flagstaff has spectacular views over Carlingford Lough and is an excellent place to have your picnic

In 1601 Lord Mountjoy built a three story castle on a rocky hillock overlooking the Gap of the North in order to secure the area for the crown.

One of the earliest of the model villages associated with the Industrial Revolution Bessbrook is a small town outside Newry.

Bessbrook is named after Elizabeth or Bess Nicholson, wife of Joseph Nicholson whose family had carried on a linen business in the district from 1806 until 1845. The 'brook' is a stream which runs through the outskirts of the village.

Bessbrook was founded by John Grubb Richardson in 1845 as a 'model village', with spacious streets and squares surrounding a large linen mill owned by the Quaker Richardson family.

Among the principles on which the village was based was a philosophy of "Three P's": there should be no public houses, no pawn shops, and consequently no need for police.

At one time, Bessbrook linen was among the finest in the world, and the linen mill provided most of the employment in the village. Tenement houses were constructed for the mill workers, many of which were of such good quality that they are still inhabited today. Each house also had an allotment garden for the growing of vegetables, and the area of the village where they were situated is still known as 'The Gardens', although the allotments themselves have been replaced by further housing. Most of the buildings in the village are constructed of granite, which is abundant locally.

The city of Newry has a rich heritage and many fine buildings and public places. The twin waterways, the Canal and the Clanyre River, flow through the town along parallel channels. There are several attractions in the town for those with an eye for architecture or a hunger for historical facts.

Newry is one of the country's foremost shopping destinations with an array of traditional independent traders and multi-national retailers, Hill Street in the heart of the Newry is the focal point for shopping and holds a market every Thursday and Saturday.

Newry also has a vibrant nightlife with excellent restaurants and bars and a wide variety of accommodation exists in the town including bed and breakfast, guesthouses and four star hotels.

A pillar at Kilnasaggart is perhaps the oldest dated cross-carved stone in Ireland, having been inscribed some time around 700AD. An old Irish inscription on the eastern face has been interpreted as 'this place, bequeathed by Ternohc, son of Ceran the Little (died 714-6 AD) under the patronage of Peter the apostle.'