Sea swimming in Ireland: 2025 coastal water quality
Ireland reported 138 coastal bathing waters for the 2025 season. 79.7% were classified Excellent — 1.3 points above the 78.4% for all 153 bathing waters in the country — and 1 was Poor. 69 sites have been Excellent in every season from 2015 to 2025. Among the 20 countries with at least 30 coastal bathing waters, Ireland ranks 12 by Excellent share.
coastal bathing waters
Excellent in 2025
Poor in 2025
Season status: Today (6 November 2026) is outside the official bathing season (1 June – 15 September). Official monitoring is tied to the season (a first sample may be taken shortly before it opens), so there are no current official water-quality results now. The next season starts on 1 June 2027.
Find the nearest Excellent coastal site to you →
Map of coastal bathing waters
How coastal bathing waters in Ireland rated since 2015
Counts for the sites in today’s 2025 inventory; the Excellent share is calculated over classified sites only.
| Season | Classified | Excellent | Excellent share | Poor |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 136 | 110 | 80.9% | 1 |
| 2024 | 134 | 112 | 83.6% | 1 |
| 2023 | 134 | 104 | 77.6% | 4 |
| 2022 | 133 | 108 | 81.2% | 2 |
| 2021 | 133 | 106 | 79.7% | 1 |
| 2020 | 131 | 102 | 77.9% | 2 |
| 2019 | 129 | 98 | 76% | 1 |
| 2018 | 126 | 95 | 75.4% | 2 |
| 2017 | 123 | 94 | 76.4% | 4 |
| 2016 | 120 | 94 | 78.3% | 3 |
| 2015 | 120 | 93 | 77.5% | 3 |
Most consistent Excellent sea and coast
69 sites were Excellent in all eleven seasons. Ordered by the length of the unbroken Excellent run ending in 2025; the first 60 are shown.
- AN TRÁ MÓR, COILL RUA, INDREABHÁN 11 seasons
- BAILE AN SCEILG (BALLINSKELLIGS) 11 seasons
- BALLINESKER 11 seasons
- BALLYBUNNION SOUTH 11 seasons
- BALLYHEIGUE 11 seasons
- BALLYHIERNAN, FANAD 11 seasons
- BANNA STRAND 11 seasons
- BARLEY COVE 11 seasons
- BISHOPSQUARTER 11 seasons
- BRITTAS BAY NORTH 11 seasons
- BRITTAS BAY SOUTH 11 seasons
- CARRICKFINN 11 seasons
- CASTLEGREGORY 11 seasons
- CILL MHUIRBHIGH, INIS MÓR 11 seasons
- CLOGHERHEAD 11 seasons
- CLONEA BEACH 11 seasons
- COURTOWN, NORTH BEACH 11 seasons
- CULDAFF 11 seasons
- CURRACLOE 11 seasons
- DOIRE FHÍONÁIN (DERRYNANE) 11 seasons
- DOOEGA BEACH, ACHILL ISLAND 11 seasons
- DOWNINGS 11 seasons
- DRUMNATINNY 11 seasons
- DUGORT BEACH, ACHILL ISLAND 11 seasons
- ELLY BAY, BELMULLET 11 seasons
- FANORE 11 seasons
- FENIT 11 seasons
- FINTRA 11 seasons
- FIONNTRÁ (VENTRY) 11 seasons
- GARRYLUCAS, WHITE STRAND 11 seasons
- GOIRTÍN, CLOCH NA RÓN 11 seasons
- GREYSTONES SOUTH 11 seasons
- INCH 11 seasons
- INCHYDONEY WEST BEACH 11 seasons
- KEEL BEACH, ACHILL ISLAND 11 seasons
- KEEM BEACH, ACHILL ISLAND 11 seasons
- KELLS 11 seasons
- KILKEE 11 seasons
- KILLAHOEY 11 seasons
- MAHARABEG 11 seasons
- MARBLE HILL 11 seasons
- MORRISCASTLE 11 seasons
- MULLAGHROE BEACH, BELMULLET 11 seasons
- MULRANNY BEACH 11 seasons
- MURVAGH 11 seasons
- NARAN 11 seasons
- OWENAHINCHA, LITTLE ISLAND STRAND 11 seasons
- PORT, LURGANBOY 11 seasons
- PORTMARNOCK, VELVET STRAND BEACH 11 seasons
- RINROE BEACH, CARROWTIGUE 11 seasons
- ROSS BEACH, KILLALA 11 seasons
- ROSSBEIGH, WHITE STRAND 11 seasons
- ROSSES POINT BEACH 11 seasons
- ROSSLARE STRAND 11 seasons
- ROSSNOWLAGH 11 seasons
- SALTHILL BEACH 11 seasons
- SEAPOINT 11 seasons
- SEAPOINT 11 seasons
- SHELLING HILL/TEMPLETOWN 11 seasons
- SILVERSTRAND BEACH 11 seasons
Sea and coast rated Poor in 2025
- DUN LAOGHAIRE BATHS Poor in 1 of 1 classified seasons
Changes from 2024 to 2025
Improved (7)
- BUNMAHON BEACH Good → Excellent
- LOUGHSHINNY BEACH Sufficient → Good
- MULLAGHMORE BEACH Good → Excellent
- PORTRANE, THE BROOK BEACH Sufficient → Good
- SANDYMOUNT STRAND Poor → Sufficient
- SKERRIES, SOUTH BEACH Good → Excellent
- SUTTON, BURROW BEACH Good → Excellent
Declined (9)
- ARDMORE BEACH Excellent → Good
- BALBRIGGAN, FRONT STRAND BEACH Good → Sufficient
- BALLYMONEY, NORTH BEACH Excellent → Good
- COUNSELLORS' STRAND, DUNMORE EAST Excellent → Good
- FOUNTAINSTOWN Excellent → Good
- LAHINCH Excellent → Good
- PORTSALON Excellent → Good
- SILVER STRAND Good → Sufficient
Coastal bathing waters by region
| Region | Sites | Excellent | Poor |
|---|---|---|---|
| South-West | 30 | 86.7% | 0 |
| West | 28 | 85.7% | 0 |
| Border | 25 | 84% | 0 |
| Dublin | 19 | 52.6% | 1 |
| Mid-West | 11 | 90.9% | 0 |
Regions with at least three coastal bathing waters; counts include only this water type.
Near which major cities?
Sites within 60 km (straight line) of a major city covered by our city guides:
- Dublin 29 coastal bathing waters within 60 km
Sea and coast compared across Europe
| # | Country | Sites | Excellent | Poor |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cyprus | 123 | 100% | 0 |
| 2 | Greece | 1,733 | 97.1% | 0 |
| 3 | Bulgaria | 92 | 96.7% | 0 |
| 4 | Denmark | 917 | 92.1% | 2 |
| 5 | Spain | 1,925 | 92% | 10 |
| 6 | Portugal | 487 | 92% | 3 |
| 7 | Italy | 4,782 | 90% | 65 |
| 8 | Germany | 346 | 89.3% | 0 |
| 9 | Malta | 87 | 88.5% | 0 |
| 10 | Croatia | 957 | 88.3% | 0 |
| 11 | Romania | 48 | 83.3% | 0 |
| 12 | Ireland | 138 | 79.7% | 1 |
| 13 | Netherlands | 82 | 78% | 0 |
| 14 | France | 2,035 | 76.3% | 35 |
| 15 | Sweden | 268 | 74.3% | 4 |
| 16 | Poland | 149 | 67.8% | 0 |
| 17 | Belgium | 41 | 63.4% | 0 |
| 18 | Finland | 78 | 55.1% | 2 |
| 19 | Estonia | 30 | 40% | 2 |
| 20 | Albania | 113 | 15.9% | 26 |
Countries with at least 30 coastal bathing waters. Networks differ in size and in how sites are designated, so this is a descriptive comparison, not a safety ranking.
Quick answers
- How many coastal bathing waters in Ireland are rated Excellent?
- 110 of 138 (79.7%) in the 2025 EEA classification.
- Which sea and coast in Ireland have the best long-term record?
- 69 sites were Excellent in every season from 2015 to 2025, for example AN TRÁ MÓR, COILL RUA, INDREABHÁN, BAILE AN SCEILG (BALLINSKELLIGS), BALLINESKER. See the full list.
- Can I check current conditions?
- The annual class is not a live status. Current results and bans are published on Beaches.ie (EPA). Each site page on BathingWaterFinder also shows a weather forecast, including heavy-rain warnings.
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