Ireland (Lonely Planet, 9th Edition) - Fionn Davenport [575]
Dungiven Castle ( 7774 2428; www.dungivencastle.com; 145 Main St, Dungiven; s/d £55/100; ) The ancestral home of the O’Cahan clan has been given a luxurious Laura Ashley makeover and now offers a lovely romantic getaway in a most unexpected spot. Don’t be put off by the car park and ugly buildings on the street side – the far side of the castle is another world, looking out across beautiful gardens to the Sperrin Mountains.
Getting There & Away
The half-hourly Maiden City Flyer bus 212 between Derry and Belfast stops in Dungiven, as does the 146 from Limavady (£3.50, 25 minutes, five daily Monday to Friday).
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COASTAL COUNTY DERRY
Magilligan Point
The huge triangular spit of land that almost closes off the mouth of Lough Foyle is mostly taken up by a military firing range, and is home to a once-notorious prison. Still, it’s worth a visit for its vast sandy beaches – Magilligan Strand to the west, and the 9km sweep of Benone Strand to the northeast, the latter providing a superb venue for kite buggies and mini land yachts. On the point itself, watching over the entrance to Lough Foyle, stands a Martello tower, built during the Napoleonic Wars in 1812 to guard against French invasion.
Benone Tourist Complex ( 7775 0555; 59 Benone Ave; campsites £10, caravans £13-16; 9am-10pm Jul & Aug, to dusk Apr-Jun & Sep, to 4pm Oct-Mar), adjacent to Benone Strand, has an outdoor heated pool, a children’s pool, tennis courts and a putting green. Note that dogs are not allowed on the beach from May to September.
The Lough Foyle Ferry ( in the Republic 074-938 1901; www.loughfoyleferry.com; car/motorcycle/pedestrian £10/5/2) runs between Magilligan Point and Greencastle in County Donegal all year round. The trip takes 10 minutes and runs hourly from 8am Monday to Friday and 9am Saturday and Sunday, departing on the hour from Greencastle, 15 minutes past from Magilligan. The last ferry is at 9.15pm June to August, 8.15pm May, 7.15pm April and September, and 6.15pm October to March.
Downhill
In 1774 the eccentric Bishop of Derry and fourth Earl of Bristol, Frederick Augustus Hervey, built himself a palatial home, Downhill, on the coast west of Castlerock. It burnt down in 1851, was rebuilt in 1876, and was finally abandoned after WWII. The ruins of the house now stand forlornly on a cliff top.
The original demesne covered some 160 hectares, which is now part of the National Trust’s Downhill Estate ( 2073 1582; adult/child £2.50/1.70, parking £3; temple & facilities 10am-5pm daily Apr-Sep, grounds dawn-dusk). The beautiful landscaped gardens below the ruins of the house are the work of celebrated gardener Jan Eccles, who became custodian of Downhill at the age of 60 and created the garden over a period of 30 years. She died in 1997 aged 94.
The main attraction here is the little Mussenden Temple, built by the bishop to house either his library or his mistress – opinions differ! The randy old clergyman continued an affair with the mistress of Frederick William II of Prussia well into old age.
The main access is from the car parks at the Lion’s Gate and Bishop’s Gate on the coast road. A more peaceful alternative is the pleasant, 20-minute walk to the temple from Castlerock village, with fine views west to the beach at Benone and Donegal, and east to Portstewart and the shadowy outlines of the Scottish hills. Begin at the path along the seaward side of the caravan park; halfway there, you have to descend into a steep-sided valley and climb the steps on the far side of the little lake. On the beach below the temple, the bishop used to challenge his own clergy to horseback races, rewarding the winners with lucrative parishes.
On the main road 1km west of the temple, opposite the Downhill Hostel, the scenic Bishop’s Road climbs steeply up through a ravine and heads over the hills to Limavady. There are spectacular views over Lough Foyle, Donegal and the Sperrin Mountains from the Gortmore picnic area,