Anyone who restored any old machine back to its former glory immediately has my respect. This…read moreorganization is actively restoring and preserving local history and a small section of the railway line up to the old abbey on the outskirts of Downpatrick, on some occasions you can get a ride on the steam engines which is great for kids and adults too. Its living history not from a textbook or stuck in a museum, these are working engines and preserving skills that would otherwise not be needed and be lost. Worth checking when trains are running for a visit.

The Centre is a innovative exhibition which tells the fascinating story of Ireland's Patron Saint…read more Through Patrick's own words, information is provided on the arrival of Christianity in Ireland and its development through his mission. A series of interactive displays allow visitors to explore how Patrick's legacy developed in early Christian times and reveal the fabulous artwork and metalwork which was produced during this Golden Age. The exhibition also examines the major impact of Irish missionaries in Dark Age Europe - a legacy which remains to this day. The centre also doubles as a local arts and music centre, with my little sister being one of many local traditional music acts who have been asked to perform here. This is a really great looking building and a good spot for tourists or Irish natives who have forgotton about their roots!

The Saint Patrick's Centre is a newly constructed building located off the main street. The centre…read moreis open 7 days a week and organises regular special events. These events include Saint Patrick's day events and Rorbet Burns nights. The centre also have a lovely cafe on the upper floor. The food is cheap and serves up delicious food which is suited to all tastes. The centre offers discounts for group bookings into the museum part of the centre, which is often visited by students during term time. The museum is regularly updated and new pieces are added. The main hall can also be rented for bookings. Staff are friendly and polite.

We visited the Ulster Museum after we had done quite a few other attractions and decided to only…read morefocus on one of the displays, namely the section dedicated to the Troubles. Extremely informative and well-presented.

Great museum with a wide variety of things- like a national museum. So many genres, and we got…read moreextra lucky that there was an exhibit of current artists with art for sale. That exhibit was gigantic and impressive. Only downside of the museum was no acoustical/ absorption to buffer the screeching children. It was well worth a visit if you have spare time in Belfast.

Definitely more suited to children and teens. The videos felt old and tired and Manannon's voice…read moredreary. We were in an out in 30 mins. Good to do while waiting for Peel Castle to Open. The highlight was the Longboat that had sailed down a few years ago.

The second big Tourist Attraction in Peel is the House of Manannan. This large and detailed museum…read moreis the ideal place for a rainy day on the island - but even if the sun is shining, it is worth to come here and have a look at the very good exhibition. We came here on a sunny day and stayed much longer than intended because it was fun exploring the different rooms and stories behind the objects. The museum shows the history of the Isle of Man more or less in chronical order, but instead of using big boring signposts, the curator chose a more interesting approach. Each room depicts scenes from the life on the island. For example you can explore the interior of a Celtic roundhouse or a Viking longhouse, all with different scenes depicting everyday live. Some figures tell stories about how life was at this time and if you touch some of the exhibits there are short films about the history of the person linked to it. One of the most interesting exhibits is a real Viking ship. It was built in Norway and a crew of adventurous Norse and Manxmen sailed the ship down to the Isle of Man to commemorate the Millennium Year 1979 of the first Tynwald in 979. You can walk round the whole ship and read all about the 1500 mile journey and how the crew had to learn to live and think like real Vikings to brave the seas and overcome storms and even a capsize of the open boat. We really enjoyed our visit here and would recommend this place to anybody coming to the Isle of Man. You can learn so many new things about Celtic, Viking and Manx history and even have a lot of fun - perfect!

Before planning our trip here, I was unaware that the Titanic originated in Belfast. This museum…read moredid an incredible job of detailing all that went into the ship as well as all that went wrong after they were at sea. The place is very large and the tour takes a couple hours. You're taken through the processes that occurred during the massive undertaking it was to construct the ship, to the setup onboard and ultimately the voltage itself. The place flows very nicely, there's a delightful ride and the pictures/audio tell quite the story. It's a very powerful place. The SS Nomadic outside is the last surviving ferry ship in the fleet was great to walk on and around. This is a must see spot when you're up in Belfast!

I was blown away by this museum! Sure it's an extremely popular historic event with a huge movie…read moreto gather even more attention, but Belfast had done it right. I enjoyed every aspect to the gigantic museum, from the surrounding area , before you enter, to each and every floor full of displays, movies and interactive activities. Masses of people will be there, yet I never felt rushed or overwhelmed as I worked my way through. So many thumbs up to this iconic museum. Must see!

At the IOM Steam Railway's final stop, Port Erin, you'll find the lovely railway museum…read more You will find retired steam engines and a souvenir shop, along with one-of-a-kind items like the carriages Queen Elizabeth II and the Queen Mother rode in on visits to the Isle; a steam train simulator (just £5 for 15 minutes and a load of fun); old maps; train sets; memorabilia; and other train ephemera. I recommend going on -- of all times -- Sunday morning ... that's when you will find the museum experts on duty and available for guided tours. We missed it the first time to Port Erin, but not the second time .... awesome! The incredible part, to me is it only costs £2 for adults and £1 for kids. Two weeks in the UK, and this is by far the least expensive museum we've been to. And worth every penny.

The Port Erin railway museum is directly at the end of the tracks for the Isle of Man steam train…read moreline in Port Erin. The museum is a great place to pickup railway souvenirs and post cards as well as Isle of Man themed post cards or gifts. They also have a nice collection of Thomas the tank engine items which we may have purchased a bit too many for my son. The museum itself is definitely worth seeing, especially for the low trivial cost of 1 GBP. The museum has two retired locomotives as well as a few of the actual railway cars used through the years. It has an interesting history of the trains on the Island. I would highly recommend a stop to visit this museum if you are in Port Erin.

In 1904 Patrick Kavanagh, Irelands first rural working class poet of renown was born down the road…read morein the little hamlet of Mucker in the parish of Inniskeen, which is itself a small village in County Monaghan close to the border with Armagh. This centre honouring him is housed in Inniskeen's former 19th century RC church of St Mary's, and here he attended mass, in between long hours of farming, and work as a cobbler too. This before he gave it all up to a pursue literary career in Dublin, although Inniskeen and the country all around here were to play a huge part in his poems & novels. Truly the title 'Kavanagh country', here is well justified. Even this church features in his comic, semi autobiographical novel "Tarry Flynn". He died in 1967 and his very rustic grave is in the churchyard around the back. The centre which is very well organized, functions both as a museum & research library, as well hosting a whole host of events & talks throughout the year. Patrick Kavanagh is very well known in Ireland, though not so well known elsewhere, although some of his work is better known than him. The song "On Raglan Road" for instance has of course become an Irish standard, and it was Kavanagh himself who set his own poem to music, It's also a popular name for Irish theme bars throughout the world, including the one in Disney world, Florida! When actor Russell Crowe famously quoted PK's short poem "Sanctity" at the BAFTA` awards in England some years back, few there knew anything about him, and the next day newspapers were full of biographical details about him. He's a fascinating & pleasingly anarchic individual to get to know, and his poems particularly "The Great Hunger", which isn't about the famine, (but more the great hunger for sex!), are earthy, peverse & simply no-tricks beautiful. Even if you're in this locality with no prior interest in the man there's enough here to satisfy & inspire. Worth checking out the half an hour straight to camera monologue that he recorded for RTÉ back in 1962. Relayed on a large screen in their 60 seater Audio-visual theatre, although it's a poor quality recording it's in turn hilarious & deeply moving. Note: Check for performance tours around the area with a local actor in the season. Also on Saturdays it's only open by prior arrangement.

I have to say, and am sad to do so, but the new museum disappointed me. They have tried to do…read moresomething different and it is spread across a number of floors, but it just seems to lack something. Hard to say what exactly, but it just doesn't, for me, gel as a whole. It is free (which is a bonus) and they do have some very interesting and well thought out sections, but other parts are very poorly designed and thought out. I think some more work needs done on the whole concept of the museum. It can and should, even if it remains free, be a very good feather in the cap of the local community, but still has a long way to go. Locals and visitors alike should want to visit and return again. After our last visit, we didn't think it would draw us in again for a long time.

Not a lot to see really and not worth just going to visit on its own, but it is on the main street…read moreand worth a visit if in the town anyway.

What a great little historic village. The people manning the buildings were knowledgable, and made…read moreyou feel Ike you were in the time when the village was in its prime. little details like burning peat in the fireplace,a nod spinning wool from the loghton sheep made it all very real. The buildings are well maintained with actual rope tied thatched roofs. All very interesting. A picturesque village well worth visiting.