Portstewart Strand is a sandy, two-mile long beach

Beach

A beach is a geological landform along the shoreline of an ocean, sea, lake or river. It usually consists of loose particles which are often composed of rock, such as sand, gravel, shingle, pebbles or cobblestones...

 in Portstewart

Portstewart

Portstewart is a small town in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. It had a population of 7,803 people in the 2001 Census. It is a seaside resort neighbouring Portrush. Of the two towns, Portstewart is decidedly quieter with more sedate attractions. Its harbour and scenic coastal paths form an...

, County Londonderry

County Londonderry

The place name Derry is an anglicisation of the old Irish Daire meaning oak-grove or oak-wood. As with the city, its name is subject to the Derry/Londonderry name dispute, with the form Derry preferred by nationalists and Londonderry preferred by unionists...

, Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...

, on the northern Atlantic Ocean

Atlantic Ocean

The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...

 coast of the island of Ireland

Ireland

Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...

. It is situated between the popular seaside resort of Portstewart and the mouth of the River Bann

River Bann

The River Bann is the longest river in Northern Ireland, the total length being 80 miles . The river winds its way from the south east corner of Northern Ireland to the north west coast, pausing in the middle to widen into the enormous Lough Neagh...

, known as the Barmouth and is one of the top 10 visitor attractions in Northern Ireland.

Facilities

It is owned and managed by the National Trust

National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty

The National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, usually known as the National Trust, is a conservation organisation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland...

 and is a Blue Flag beach

Blue Flag beach

The Blue Flag is a certification by the Foundation for Environmental Education that a beach or marina meets its stringent standards.The Blue Flag is a trademark owned by FEE which is a not-for-profit, non-governmental organisation consisting of 65 organisations in 60 member countries in Europe,...

 in recognition of high standards of beach management and water quality. Cars can be brought onto the beach and parked on the strand. When the National Trust purchased the beach in 1980, it allowed this long-standing tradition to continue. The beach attracts up to 180,000 visitors every year. All activities including watersports, are zoned. On 28 April 2008, the National Trust opened a new visitor facility at the beach following a £450,000 investment, part-funded through the Northern Ireland Tourist Board

Northern Ireland Tourist Board

The Northern Ireland Tourist Board is a non-departmental public body of the Department of Enterprise Trade and Investment. Its primary objective is to promote Northern Ireland as a tourist destination....

.

Conservation

The site is also an important nature conservation area and is officially designated an Area of Special Scientific Interest

Area of Special Scientific Interest

An Area of Special Scientific Interest or ASSI is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in Northern Ireland. ASSIs are the equivalent of Sites of Special Scientific Interest in the rest of the United Kingdom....

 and a proposed Special Area of Conservation

Special Area of Conservation

A Special Area of Conservation is defined in the European Union's Habitats Directive , also known as the Directive on the Conservation of Natural Habitats and of Wild Fauna and Flora...

. It has an important dune system (180 acres) formed about 6,000 years ago and reaches heights of up to 30 metres (100ft). Neolithic

Neolithic

The Neolithic Age, Era, or Period, or New Stone Age, was a period in the development of human technology, beginning about 9500 BC in some parts of the Middle East, and later in other parts of the world. It is traditionally considered as the last part of the Stone Age...

 pottery and implements have been found on the site, as well as bronze

Bronze

Bronze is a metal alloy consisting primarily of copper, usually with tin as the main additive. It is hard and brittle, and it was particularly significant in antiquity, so much so that the Bronze Age was named after the metal...

 pins and Roman

Ancient Rome

Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....

 jewellery, indicating a long history of human habitation. In 2000, the dune system was included in the Bann Estuary Area of Special Scientific Interest, due to the rare and fragile habitats and wildlife that it supports. Many species of butterflies and orchids, including the rare bee orchid

Bee Orchid

The Bee Orchid is an herbaceous perennial plant belonging to the family Orchidaceae.-Etymology:The name "Ophrys" derives from the Greek word "ophrys", meaning "eyebrow", while the Latin name of the species "apifera" refers to the bee-shaped lip.-Description: The Bee Orchid grows to a height of ....

, have been recorded, and can be viewed from waymarked trails.