Confirmed · Londonderry, Fermanagh and Armagh · Landscape
Downhill Strand
Dragonstone shore, where the Seven are burned in Game of Thrones. Open to visitors; allow 1 hour.
- On screen as
- Dragonstone shore, where the Seven are burned
- Series and episodes
- Game of Thrones Season 2 · Game of Thrones Season 2, Episode 1
- Access
- Open to visitors
- Time needed
- 1 hour
- Where
- Castlerock, County Londonderry
On screen
How Downhill Strand appears
In The North Remembers, the season two opener, Stannis Baratheon's followers drag the wooden statues of the Seven onto the beach at Dragonstone and burn them while Melisandre proclaims the Lord of Light. The wide sands and dark cliffs of Downhill Strand gave the island fortress its bleak shoreline. In the story Dragonstone is a volcanic island in the Narrow Sea, east of King's Landing; the real beach runs along the north coast of County Londonderry, with the Atlantic in front and the Mussenden Temple on the cliff behind. The temple is a viewpoint above the beach and was not part of the set.
The real place
What you can visit
Downhill Strand is part of a long sweep of sand running west towards Benone, backed by dunes and basalt cliffs. Above it, the National Trust's Downhill Demesne includes the ruins of the Earl Bishop's mansion and the Mussenden Temple, a small domed library built on the cliff edge in the 1780s; the demesne is a separate visit with its own charges. The beach is free. The Belfast to Derry railway runs along the foot of the cliffs here and through a tunnel beneath the temple.
Wind and tide change the beach quickly, and the railway runs close by the access. Use the marked crossing and keep children and dogs away from the line.
Discover Northern Ireland: Game of Thrones ↗Downhill is on the A2 between Castlerock and Limavady, about 10 minutes west of Coleraine. There is beach access and parking at Downhill village, below the cliffs. Castlerock station, on the Belfast to Derry line, is about a mile away. The sand is firm near the access point but soft in the dunes.
Gallery
More views of Downhill Strand
Common questions
Planning a responsible visit
Was Mussenden Temple used in Game of Thrones?
No. The Dragonstone scenes were filmed on Downhill Strand below. Mussenden Temple is a nearby National Trust viewpoint and attraction on the cliffs, not the location of the beach set.
Which episode was filmed at Downhill Strand?
Season two, episode one, The North Remembers, when the statues of the Seven are burned on the shore of Dragonstone.
Is Downhill beach free?
Yes. The beach is free to visit. The Downhill Demesne and Mussenden Temple on the clifftop are run by the National Trust and charge non-members.
Plan your visit
Build it into the day.
Mussenden Temple on the clifftop above, and Binevenagh, 20 minutes west.
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Map
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