The top 10 parks on the Northside

ARE the kids driving you insane as the school holidays crawl into their second month? Have you spent a fortune on summer camps? It’s time to get them off their gadgets and into the great outdoors with our guide to the Northside’s top 10 parks, offering everything from state-of-the-art playgrounds to farms to stately homes.

1. ARDGILLAN CASTLE AND DEMESNE: Located between Balbriggan and Skerries in North County Dublin, this is considered something of a hidden gem. Set in spectacular parklands overlooking the Irish Sea, the park offers stunning views as far as the Mourne Mountains and overlooks the nearby town of Skerries. Apart from the historic castle (pictured above), the park is home to an excellent children’s playground and luscious woodlands. An absolute credit to Fingal County Council’s Parks Department.

2. NEWBRIDGE HOUSE AND DEMESNE: Another feather in Fingal County Council’s cap, this park is located just off the M1 on the main road to Donabate. While the centrepiece is the historic house itself, visitors can also enjoy a farm, children’s playground and pleasant wooded walks.

3. MALAHIDE CASTLE AND GARDENS: A more obvious choice but hard to beat. The history of the Talbot family dates back as far as 1175 and the castle is one of the oldest in Ireland. The park is set on 260 acres, comprising gardens, wooded walks and playing pitches. There is also a brilliant children’s playground and keep-fit equipment. Now home to the upmarket Avoca chain, we still can’t help but miss the old restaurant in the basement of the castle.

4. ST ANNE’S PARK: With its famous rose gardens, ponds, forest walks and Red Stables area, this popular park, located between Raheny and Clontarf, has been enjoyed by generations of Dubliners. One of our all-time favourite places.

5. DEER PARK: Who remembers playing pitch and putt here as a child? Offering panoramic views across Howth and the sweeping Northside coastline, Deer Park is famous for its magnificent rhododendrons, golf course and Howth Castle. Well worth the steep, uphill walk!

6. ALBERT COLLEGE/HAMPSTEAD PARK: If you’re looking for a quiet oasis in the heart of this busy Northside suburb, Albert College/Hampstead Park, located beside DCU in Glasnevin, is the place to go. Popular with dog walkers and a well-known venue for sports.

7. SANTRY DEMESNE. Santry Demesne public park is located on the site of what was once a palatial old house and gardens, built in 1703 in the grounds of an earlier medieval residence. With its walled gardens and peaceful lakeside setting, the park is managed by Fingal County Council.

8. FAIRVIEW PARK: This 20 hectares park, just minutes from the city centre, is home to playing fields, a children’s playground a skate park and tree-lined walks. Originally a tidal mudflat which was used for landfill in the early 1900s, the park was developed in the late 1920s. Fairview Park was significantly disrupted by the Dublin Port Tunnel works but was restored to its former glory afterwards.

9. FATHER COLLINS PARK: Ireland’s first wholly sustainable park opened in May 2009. Extending to 26 hectares, it was named after a much respected local parish priest who was instrumental in its original acquisition for development as a public park. Facilities include a skate park, fitness trail, playgrounds, sports fields, ornamental lake and wind turbines.

10. PHOENIX PARK: The Phoenix Park, at 707 hectares (1,752 acres), is one of the largest enclosed recreational spaces within any European capital city. Home to Dublin Zoo, Farmleigh and Áras an Uactharáin, it was the venue for Pope John Paul II’s legendary Irish mass in 1979, an event attended by over one million people and marked today by the Papal Cross.