Viking Festival sets sail in Strangford

Vikings will be invading Strangford Lough next month when the Viking Festival sails into town.
Mayor of Ards and North Down Borough Council, Councillor Mark Brooks and Chairperson of Newry, Mourne and Down District Council, Councillor Cathy Mason along with Magnus Vikings from Ballydugan Medieval Settlement are excited to launch the Strangford Lough Viking Festival being held this MarchMayor of Ards and North Down Borough Council, Councillor Mark Brooks and Chairperson of Newry, Mourne and Down District Council, Councillor Cathy Mason along with Magnus Vikings from Ballydugan Medieval Settlement are excited to launch the Strangford Lough Viking Festival being held this March
Mayor of Ards and North Down Borough Council, Councillor Mark Brooks and Chairperson of Newry, Mourne and Down District Council, Councillor Cathy Mason along with Magnus Vikings from Ballydugan Medieval Settlement are excited to launch the Strangford Lough Viking Festival being held this March

Supported by Tourism NI, Ards and North Down Borough Council and Newry Mourne and Down District Council are excited to launch the Strangford Lough Viking Festival being held this March.

With the main activity taking place in Portaferry and Strangford, from Thursday March 24 - Sunday March 27, the festival will highlight the strong Viking links rooted within Strangford Lough and showcase a wide range of experiences and entertainment for all ages.

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Portaferry and Strangford will see Viking camps, open 10am-4pm Saturday and Sunday, with re-enactors telling the Viking story and showing how they lived in the area more than a thousand years ago. They will also be displaying their full sized replica long ships both on land and water, with sailors from the “Vikings” TV series discussing their adventures.

Demonstrations will include blacksmithing, woodworking, pottery, weaving, jewellery making, birds of prey and Rune Reading. Visitors can try their hand at axe throwing, archery and spear throwing and hear “Skalds” tell Viking sagas, participate in children’s treasure hunts and see fierce warriors do battle.

Programmed events include walking tours, pottery making talks, make your own mead workshops, make your own Viking jewellery workshops, talks by famous Celtic & Viking artists, lectures on herbs for health and on the Irish-Danish connection to boat building. The highlights of the festival will be a “Viking Feast” on Friday night and a torchlit procession followed by a concert in The Portico of Ards on Saturday night.

Mayor of Ards and North Down, Councillor Mark Brooks, said: “Portaferry and Strangford have strong links with Vikings so it is a natural fit for both councils to work together to promote these areas of County Down. The Festival will provide a much-needed boost to our economy and aid local businesses in their recovery from the pandemic.”

Full festival details will be available later this month online at visitardsandnorthdown.com and visitmournemountains.co.uk.

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