This Easter the school holidays start for many on Monday 11 April. Make the most of your time, get out and about and enjoy time together.
Add to the memory album with these fun-tastic themed events! Plan ahead using our What's On guide and find out how you can enjoy days out within the borough, with a mix of free and ticketed activities.
What's On - Family Fun
• 9 - 24 April | The Ark Open Farm, Conlig
DINO’mite Easter Eggstravaganza [Sold out]
• 9 - 16 April | Newtownards Town Mighty Easter Egg Hunt
Newtownards Chamber of Trade is egg-cited!!! Hop into Newtownards and take part in the biggest hunt yet! Collect your entry form from Stewart Millers in Conway Square on Friday 8 April. (Hunt available in trading hours only). Lots of fantastic prizes to be won.
• 13 April 2022+ other dates | Easter Eggs Hunts at National Trust Mount Stewart, Newtownards
This spring, treat your little ones to a world of adventures at Mount Stewart on the Easter adventures in nature trails. Make your way along the trail, finding nature-inspired activities for the whole family.
• 14 - 24 April | Easter Duck Trail at WWT Castle Espie, Comber
Pick up a trail card and crack the clues to find the bright yellow, cheeky ducks that are hiding around our wetlands and win prizes!
• 16 April | Exploris - Night at the Aquarium, Portaferry (year round dates available)
Enjoy a guided tour after hours followed by a tasty meal in the Cracken Restaurant.
• 17 April | Easter SUP - Experience AND 2022
You are invited to an Easter Egg hunt with a difference as you get out on the water at Ballyholme Beach, Bangor.
• 17 April, 18 and 19 April | Drumawhey Junction Miniature Train, Donaghadee
Always popular with the little ones!
• 17, 18 and 19 April | Easter at Ulster Folk Museum, Cultra
Enjoy craft demonstrations, craft stations and traditional games. As is traditional on Easter Monday take part in egg rolling at the Bleach Green. Enjoy Traditional musicians on Easter Sunday and Monday and listen to the chorus of Fortwilliam Musical Society on Easter Tuesday.
• 18 April | Easter at North Down Museum, Bangor
Calling all Young Explorers to North Down Museum this Easter Monday! Come along and enjoy our Easter Trail! Find the clues placed around the museum's galleries to win a prize! Fun for all the family!
• 23 and 24 April | Annual Model Railway Exhibition, Bangor
April is brimming with even more events...
Looking something a bit unique to do? Or a relaxing break? Have a go at Weaving with Nature (22 April), learn basic weaving skills with Kiri Cottage, incorporating materials you’ve foraged for, along with natural fibres and fabrics, charms and wishes.
For a full list of What's on this April go to visitardsandnorthdown.com/whats-on/april-events
More things to do
• Pickie Funpark, Bangor Have a go on the Giant Pedal Swans, tour the park on the Pickie Puffer, have fun at the splash pads or simply let the kids burn energy in the playground
• Eden Pottery, Millisle Create your own personalised masterpiece, paint pottery - fun for big ones and little ones!
• Take the kids Go Karting at Eddie Irvine Sports or let them hone their biking and skateboarding skills at Thunder Park (located at Eddie Irvine Sports)
Explore for free
Spot the seals and see the pretty scallop shells at Portavogie Beach
Take in the views from Killynether Wood and Scrabo Tower
Find the Troll and his friends at Crawfordsburn Country Park
Count the Castles and the windmills – Explore the borough, see how many Tower Houses, castles and windmills you can find, a treasure hunt with a difference! What not make a day of it and take a picnic?
Visit the idyllic Bangor Castle Walled Garden then pop into North Down Museum (free entry) where kids can lend Explorer Packs taking them on a journey through the surrounding Castle Park
Moved by Nature: BIG Calendar of Action 2022
This April, the Moved by Nature Calendar offers up yet more opportunity to get out and explore, to #ConnectWithNature. There are some tips for the extreme Easter egg-rolling experts as to where to go for that perfect slope, as well as suggestions of how you can make the most of the lighter nights – cycling, nature walks and seaside escapes. Download the Calendar.
Hopes and Dreams for 100 Years | Ards Arts Centre, Newtownards
On Good Friday, 15 April, our colleagues in AND Culture will be hosting a drop-in kids' workshop. Help them fill their amazing Time Capsule to mark 100 years of Northern Ireland!
Artists Bernice Anderson and Shauna McGowan will be on-hand to help you create a collage, picture or print and writer Amy Wyatt will assist with stories and poems, all inspired by your hopes and dreams for the next 100 Years. FREE and suitable for children aged 7-11 years.
Easter themed Market
Market Fresh will be holding their BIG Easter Event on Saturday 16 April, 11am-5pm. The always popular market located at Project 24 on Queen's Parade in Bangor overlooking the beautiful Marina, is also just a few mnutes stroll from Pickie Funpark and the town centre. On top of the array of artisan food and craft stalls there will be hot food to buy and family fun including demos and taster sesstions by local Thunder Park, live music, DJ and craft activities to name some.
Make it a short break
Escape the everyday and make it a short break in Ards and North Down.
Use our website as a tool to build a retreat from the mundane, we offer stacks of fun and a warm welcome at every turn. #DiscoverAND
Special offers for accommodation – spend a few days here!
For help in planning your trip contact one of our knowledgeable Visitor Information Centre’s who can take you through ideas for accommodation, more things to do and see and can even put together an itinerary for you to take off some of that pre-holiday stress.
And if you don’t already, follow us on our social channels for more on what is happening in Ards and North Down: AND Facebook and AND Instagram.
Please note that pre-booking may apply to events – please check with providers before travelling.
This listing is meant as a guide only. All information is subject to change. If you would like to submit information on Easter events and activities please email marketing@ardsandnorthdown.gov.uk.
As always, be aware of what current local COVID-19 restrictions are in place and please follow public health guidance. For information visit, www.nidirect.gov.uk and the Public Health Agency website.
Enjoy a fun day out at Pickie Fun Park. Try out the 18-hole mini-golf course, giant pedal swans, Pickie Puffer train, children's play area, children's electric car track and more.
Stroll through this beautiful wooded wonderland which is an exhilarating experience throughout the seasons.
Enjoy a diver's view of marine life from around the world without getting wet. A sunken galleon, friendly sharks and a snappy crocodile, a Waddle of Penguins, all star in Northern Ireland’s only aquarium and seal rehabilitation centre.
Mount Stewart is a stunning estate in the beautiful scenic area of Strangford Lough. The Formal Gardens are ranked as one of the top ten in the world and the within the house there are collections of national and international significance.
Here you'll find the largest collection of ducks, geese and swans in Northern Ireland, as well as a gallery, café, woodland walks, sensory garden, events and activities, free parking, and a picnic area.
Eden Pottery's studio, shop and café are set in the countryside of Ards Peninsula, surrounded by fields, with Strangford Lough on one side and beaches and the seaside on the other. You can come along and create your own masterpiece in the studio.
