70 Beaches to Explore in Ireland

An Trá Mhór is a long sheltered sandy beach situated at Inverin, Co. Galway. It is a whie sandy beach with clear water and great views of the coastline. This beach has a gradual slope into the water, making it a great place to swim. There is a car park and toilet facilities are provided.

Ardamine Beach is a long sandy beach located in Courtown, County Wexford. At the curve in the beach, built up sand has created a shallow, stoneless sandbank. At the curve in the beach, built up sand has created a shallow, stoneless sandbank where the waves break early before reaching the beach. It’s a great spot for the families and well worth a visit.

The beautiful Ardmore Beach is one of the more popular places to visit in Waterford. Especially as you can pair a visit here with a ramble along the Ardmore Cliff Walk and then lunch in the Cliff House Hotel, if you fancy! A day trip to the beach is much more special when it comes imbued with history, tradition and plenty of other activities for the outdoor-minded visitor.

Baginbun Beach is a secluded and sheltered beach located just outside Fethard in County Wexford. It is a family friendly beach that was good with white sands and there are so many opportunities for fun too.

Ballinesker is the beach where Steven Spielberg shot the film “Saving Private Ryan” in 1997 and is covered in soft, wind blown sand.The Beach is a 3 mile section of a long stretch of sandy coastline extending from the Special Area of Conservation at the Raven Point to Ballyconniger Head, which is approximately 10 miles long. This beautiful and accessible beach is the perfect spot for bird watching, as it it close by to Wexford Wildfowl Reserve, and also for collecting stunning sea shells.

A beautiful beach which was down the hill from Allihies and is the best beach in the locality. While the area provides spectacular views and there are marvellous coves, most of the coves are stony and sandy beaches are relatively rare. The whole coastline here is rugged and rocky and apparently too wild for sand to accumulate.

Ballyheigue Beach is an extensive sandy beach located beside Ballyheigue in County Kerry. This stretch of coast is ideal for taking scenic walks along the coastline. The beach is also popular for swimming and surfing and there is a lifeguard service during the summer months.It looks out over Tralee Bay and is great place for swimming, surfing, walking and other water sports activities.

A beautiful sandy beach on the western shore of Lough Swilly. It stretches from Portsalon to the Knockalla Hills. It is certainly one of the most beautiful beaches in Ireland and was once voted as the second most beautiful in the world – beaten to the top spot by a beach in the Seychelles.

Bannow Island is an island in County Wexford. Bannow Island is situated northwest of Clammers Point, north of Selskar Rock. It is a beautiful beach that is heavily affected by the tide. There are rock pools to be enjoyed at the right side of the beach as you walk onto it, loads of little creatures to be found. It is well worth a visit if you’re looking for somewhere to go for a few hours.

This frontline beach land is a once in a lifetime opportunity to acquire a breathtaking piece of West Cork. It consists of 2 beaches, each approximately 150m in length.This beach forms part of a Special Area of Conservation and a National Heritage Area Ballyrisode Beach is an extremely valuable resource to both residents and visitors for a number of reasons, including its scenery and landscape and for its safe and sheltered location for swimming and other recreational activities.

A beautiful sandy beach which was located in the west of the harbour mouth and at higher tides consists largely of fairly unwelcoming pebbles. It is a fantastic beach to walk along with your beloved pooch. Castletown beach is within walking distance of local shops and caravan parks, which makes it a top pick among travellers.

Bettystown Beach is a sandy beach in a popular seaside resort. The beach is a long beach stretching from the River Boyne on the border of County Meath and County Louth in the north down to the River Nanny at Laytown to the South. This southern stretch is Laytown beach.

Blackrock is a beautiful seaside village just to the south of Dundalk, County Louth, Ireland. Blackrock beach and its promenade is still a focal point of the village and the site of Christmas Day fundraising events, an annual raft race, annual movie festival, pumpkin festival as well as several other events throughout the year. Kitesurfing has become popular in the area.

Buncrana Beach is on the shorefront of the town and is a lovely clean and well-used beach. There is a large kids play park, two tennis all-weather tennis courts, a small football/basketball pitch and an outdoor free gym is approximately 100m down the path.

The Maghera Caves are located beneath Slievetooey mountain and some are accessible at low tides from Maghera Strand. Maghera Beach stretches out into the bay. Access to the beach is via a car park and a short 200 metre walk to the caves. There are over 20 caves, 8 arches and 5 tunnels which can be visited, ideally by Kayak or other small craft, and would be enough to sate the appetite of any explorer.

Courtown is part of a long, sandy stretch of the Wexford coastline on the east coast of Ireland. This lovely beach is made up of fine sand and has extensive coastal protection works all along the boundary between the dunes/woodland and the beach itself. The beach itself is relatively narrow around the main access points but is worth the wait once it expands in width the further north you travel.

Cullenstown Strand is one of Wexford’s many award winning beaches located on the East Coast near the small village of Cullenstown. The beach is a short 5 minute drive from Bannow, where the Normans landed back in 1169 at Bannow Bay. An iconic location for a short picnic and also there are so many things to see and do here.

Curracloe is long wide fine stretch of beach with 3 main entrances known locally as Ballinsker/White Gap/Culletons Gap running north to south, White Gap being the largest. Culletons Gap is bordered by the Raven Nature Reserve and forestry. These all have wooden boardwalks running from car parks down to the beach with Ballinesker accessible in a wheelchair.

An extensive sandy beach in Derrynane Bay, County Kerry. The sheltered dune-backed beach is a crescent of white sand overlooking Abbey Island with its ancient burial ground and ruins of a long-forgotten mediaeval church. The area is rich in biodiversity and of significant national importance. It is a safe and sheltered beach, ideal for swimming and other water sports.

Dogs Bay is a horseshoe shaped bay with more than a mile long stretch of white sandy beach. It backs on to Gurteen Bay, and together they form a tombolo which juts out into the Atlantic Ocean. The wild headland which stretches out into the Atlantic between the two beaches is an area of great beauty and is a fantastic walk where you will be surrounded by water on three sides.