A story from Warrenpoint

The horse tram to Rostrevor

In short: A horse-drawn tram ran from Warrenpoint to the Great Northern Hotel in Rostrevor between 1877 and 1915, linking the railway to Rostrevor along the shore of Carlingford Lough.

Between 1877 and 1915 you could step off the train in Warrenpoint and onto a horse-drawn tram to the Great Northern Hotel in Rostrevor. Long before buses or cars, the trip round the lough was part of the holiday itself.

Go and see it

Walk or cycle the shore road to Rostrevor along the old tram route.

Make a day of it: Sunny day With kids Free entry

Questions people ask

Was there a tram between Warrenpoint and Rostrevor?

Yes. A horse-drawn tramway ran between 1877 and 1915, meeting the trains at Warrenpoint and taking visitors to the Great Northern Hotel in Rostrevor.

Can you follow the old tram route?

Yes. You can walk or cycle the shore road between Warrenpoint and Rostrevor, roughly 3 miles along the lough.

When: 1877. Sources: Tramway operated 1877–1915. Spotted something we should correct? Let us know.

Then, nearby

Somewhere to eat or drink afterwards, closest first.

Cafés · Warrenpoint

Leafy Greens & Co.

Vegetarian café and deli on Church St, Warrenpoint.

In Warrenpoint30–60 min

Cafés · Warrenpoint

Church Lane Coffee

Coffee shop on Church St, Warrenpoint.

In Warrenpoint30–60 min

Restaurants · Warrenpoint

The Wheelbarrow

Restaurant on Mary St, Warrenpoint.

In Warrenpoint1–2 hours

More stories from Warrenpoint

Story · Warrenpoint

How the train made Warrenpoint a holiday town

From 1849 until 1965 the railway ran right into Warrenpoint, and it changed the place. The railway company didn't just bring people here: it put money into hotels and entertainment so they'd stay. That's a big part of why Warrenpoint became somewhere you came for your holidays, not somewhere you passed through.

Stroll the seafront and picture the trains unloading holidaymakers a few streets away.

Story · Warrenpoint

The grand hotel that went bust in a year

The Beach Hotel opened in March 1885 with fifty rooms, a billiard room, a smoking room, and baths with hot, cold, fresh and salt water. It was a big bet, and it didn't pay off for its owner, Henry Stanley, who went bankrupt the following year. The Great Northern Railway Company bought it, made it bigger and folded it into their seaside holiday business.

Walk the front and look up at the old hotel buildings that line it.

Story · Warrenpoint

From grand hotel to school

The Great Northern Hotel stopped being a hotel in 1923, but the building carried on. Over the years it was a boarding school, a day school and a home for elderly men. One building, and you can follow the whole story of the town in it: from Victorian holidays to classrooms and care.

Look out for the old Great Northern building on your walk through town.