Bangor, Ards and North Down, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom

🇮🇪 Bangor (Beannchar) is a city in County Down, Northern Ireland. It is a seaside resort on the southern side of Belfast Lough and within the Belfast Metropolitan Area. It functions as a commuter town for the Greater Belfast area, which it is linked to by the A2 road and the Belfast–Bangor railway line. Bangor is situated 13.6 miles (22 km) east from the heart of Belfast.

Bangor is part of the North Down constituency. Tourism is important to the local economy, particularly in the summer months, and plans are being made for the long-delayed redevelopment of the seafront; a notable historical building in the city is Bangor Old Custom House. The largest plot of private land in the area, the Clandeboye Estate, which is located a few miles from the city centre, belonged to the Marchioness of Dufferin and Ava. Bangor hosts the Royal Ulster and Ballyholme yacht clubs. Bangor Marina is one of the largest in both Northern Ireland and Republic of Ireland, and holds Blue Flag status.

On 20 May 2022, it was announced that Bangor would be granted city status by Letters Patent later in 2022. It received the status on 2 December 2022, becoming Northern Ireland's sixth city, alongside Armagh, Belfast, Derry, Lisburn, and Newry.

Geography Bangor lies on the east coast of Northern Ireland, on the south shore of the mouth of Belfast Lough, north east of central Belfast.

Ballyholme Bay The sea area to the north east of Bangor is Ballyholme Bay, named for the township of Ballyholme in the east of the town. During World War II the bay was used as a base for American troops training for the Normandy Landings. Two ships have been named SS Ballyholme Bay. In 1903 a Viking grave was found on the shore at Ballyholme Bay: it contained two bronze brooches, a bowl, a fragment of chain and some textile material. It has been said that "Ballyholme Bay is a sheltered bay and studies have suggested that it is one of the best landing places on Belfast Lough and would therefore have made a good location for a Viking base. It is possible that the burial was associated with a Viking settlement in the area". In 1689 Field Marshal Schomberg landed with 10,000 troops either at Ballyholme Bay or at Groomsport, a little further east.

Economy Bangor had an estimated Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of the equivalent of $US678 million in 2015.

Places of interest • Bangor Marina • Clandeboye Estate • Ward Park • Clandeboye Park • Castle Park • Bangor Abbey • Bangor Carnegie Library • Bangor Castle • Somme Heritage Centre • Bangor Market House, which dates from the late 18th century, is a 5-bay 2-storey building currently used as a bank • Bangor Old Custom House • McKee Clock • Bangor walled garden.