With a mix of large towns and suburban villages and a stretch of lovely coastline, the North Down area is a beautiful and varied area of Northern Ireland. With good railway links to Belfast and beyond, as well as local bus services and a good motorway network, North Down is easy to travel about. Much of the former North Down council area is commutable to Belfast, including Bangor, which is considered to be part of the Belfast Metropolitan Area. Ards and North Down was rated the second best place to live in Northern Ireland, based on factors including earnings, education, and employment levels, according to a 2015 Detail Data analysis.