Bathing water quality in West, Ireland
West has 33 official bathing waters in the EEA dataset for the 2025 season (28 coastal, 3 transitional (lagoon/estuary) and 2 lake). 81.8% were classified Excellent — 3.4 points above the 78.4% across Ireland — and 0 were Poor. 18 sites have been Excellent in every season from 2015 to 2025.
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official bathing waters
Excellent in 2025
Poor in 2025
Map of official bathing waters in West
Sea, lakes and rivers in West
| Water type | Sites | Excellent | Good | Sufficient | Poor | Not classified |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Coastal | 28 | 24 (85.7%) | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Transitional (lagoon/estuary) | 3 | 1 (33.3%) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Lake | 2 | 2 (100%) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Coastal waters are assessed against stricter bacterial limits than lakes and rivers but are diluted far more; see how the classes are calculated.
Most consistent Excellent sites
18 sites were Excellent in all eleven seasons. Ordered by the length of the unbroken Excellent run ending in 2025; the first 24 are shown and every site is in the full list below.
- AN TRÁ MÓR, COILL RUA, INDREABHÁN 11 seasons
- BATHING PLACE AT PORTUMNA 11 seasons
- CILL MHUIRBHIGH, INIS MÓR 11 seasons
- DOOEGA BEACH, ACHILL ISLAND 11 seasons
- DUGORT BEACH, ACHILL ISLAND 11 seasons
- ELLY BAY, BELMULLET 11 seasons
- GOIRTÍN, CLOCH NA RÓN 11 seasons
- KEEL BEACH, ACHILL ISLAND 11 seasons
- KEEM BEACH, ACHILL ISLAND 11 seasons
- LOUGHREA LAKE 11 seasons
- MULLAGHROE BEACH, BELMULLET 11 seasons
- MULRANNY BEACH 11 seasons
- RINROE BEACH, CARROWTIGUE 11 seasons
- ROSS BEACH, KILLALA 11 seasons
- SALTHILL BEACH 11 seasons
- SILVERSTRAND BEACH 11 seasons
- TRÁ AN DÓILÍN, AN CEATHRÚ RUA 11 seasons
- TRÁ CHALADH FÍNIS, CARNA 11 seasons
- TRÁ INIS OÍRR (MAIN BEACH) 10 seasons
- CÉIBH AN SPIDÉIL 7 seasons
- GOLDEN STRAND, ACHILL ISLAND 6 seasons
- CARROWNISKEY, LOUISBURGH 5 seasons
- BERTRA BEACH, MURRISK 4 seasons
- CLARE ISLAND, LOUISBURGH 4 seasons
Rated Poor in 2025
None of the 33 official bathing waters in West was classified Poor in 2025.
Changes from 2024 to 2025
Improved (0)
None.
Declined (3)
- BALLYLOUGHANE BEACH Excellent → Good
- GRATTAN ROAD BEACH Good → Sufficient
- TRÁ NA BHFORBACHA, NA FORBACHA Excellent → Good
How West 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 | 32 | 27 | 84.4% | 0 |
| 2024 | 31 | 29 | 93.5% | 0 |
| 2023 | 32 | 29 | 90.6% | 1 |
| 2022 | 31 | 27 | 87.1% | 1 |
| 2021 | 31 | 22 | 71% | 0 |
| 2020 | 31 | 24 | 77.4% | 0 |
| 2019 | 31 | 24 | 77.4% | 1 |
| 2018 | 31 | 23 | 74.2% | 0 |
| 2017 | 31 | 25 | 80.6% | 1 |
| 2016 | 31 | 25 | 80.6% | 2 |
| 2015 | 30 | 24 | 80% | 1 |
All 33 official bathing waters in West
Grouped by water type, alphabetical within each group. Open a site for its 2015–2025 history, nearby alternatives, weather forecast and the national profile link.
Download all 33 sites as CSV (classes 2015–2025, coordinates, nearest place; EEA data, CC BY 4.0)
Coastal 28 sites · 85.7% Excellent
- AILLEBRACK/SILVERHILL BEACH Excellent Excellent 3 seasons in a row
- AN TRÁ MÓR, COILL RUA, INDREABHÁN Excellent Excellent 11 seasons in a row
- BELMULLET TIDAL POOL AND SHORE ROAD BATHING AREA Not classified
- BERTRA BEACH, MURRISK Excellent Excellent 4 seasons in a row
- CARROWMORE BEACH, LOUISBURGH Sufficient
- CARROWNISKEY, LOUISBURGH Excellent Excellent 5 seasons in a row
- CILL MHUIRBHIGH, INIS MÓR Excellent Excellent 11 seasons in a row
- CLARE ISLAND, LOUISBURGH Excellent Excellent 4 seasons in a row
- DOOEGA BEACH, ACHILL ISLAND Excellent Excellent 11 seasons in a row
- DUGORT BEACH, ACHILL ISLAND Excellent Excellent 11 seasons in a row
- ELLY BAY, BELMULLET Excellent Excellent 11 seasons in a row
- GOIRTÍN, CLOCH NA RÓN Excellent Excellent 11 seasons in a row
- GOLDEN STRAND, ACHILL ISLAND Excellent Excellent 6 seasons in a row
- KEEL BEACH, ACHILL ISLAND Excellent Excellent 11 seasons in a row
- KEEM BEACH, ACHILL ISLAND Excellent Excellent 11 seasons in a row
- MULLAGHROE BEACH, BELMULLET Excellent Excellent 11 seasons in a row
- MULRANNY BEACH Excellent Excellent 11 seasons in a row
- OLD HEAD BEACH, LOUISBURGH Excellent Excellent 4 seasons in a row
- RINROE BEACH, CARROWTIGUE Excellent Excellent 11 seasons in a row
- ROSS BEACH, KILLALA · Inishcrone Excellent Excellent 11 seasons in a row
- SALTHILL BEACH · Galway Excellent Excellent 11 seasons in a row
- SILVERSTRAND BEACH · Bearna Excellent Excellent 11 seasons in a row
- TRÁ AN DÓILÍN, AN CEATHRÚ RUA Excellent Excellent 11 seasons in a row
- TRÁ CHALADH FÍNIS, CARNA Excellent Excellent 11 seasons in a row
- TRÁ INIS OÍRR (MAIN BEACH) Excellent Excellent 10 seasons in a row
- TRÁ NA BHFORBACHA, NA FORBACHA · Bearna Good Excellent → Good since 2024
- TRÁ NA MBAN, AN SPIDÉAL Good
- TRAUGHT, KINVARA Excellent Excellent 4 seasons in a row
Transitional (lagoon/estuary) 3 sites · 33.3% Excellent
- BALLYLOUGHANE BEACH · Galway Good Excellent → Good since 2024
- CÉIBH AN SPIDÉIL Excellent Excellent 7 seasons in a row
- GRATTAN ROAD BEACH · Galway Sufficient Good → Sufficient since 2024
Lake 2 sites · 100% Excellent
- BATHING PLACE AT PORTUMNA Excellent Excellent 11 seasons in a row
- LOUGHREA LAKE Excellent Excellent 11 seasons in a row
Compared with other regions in Ireland
| # | Region | Sites | Excellent | Poor |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | South-West | 30 | 86.7% | 0 |
| 2 | Mid-West | 15 | 86.7% | 0 |
| 3 | West | 33 | 81.8% | 0 |
| 4 | Border | 27 | 81.5% | 0 |
| 5 | Dublin | 19 | 52.6% | 1 |
Regions with at least 15 official bathing waters. Size, water type and how densely sites are designated differ, so the table is context rather than a verdict.
Quick answers
- How many bathing waters in West were rated Excellent in 2025?
- 27 of 33 (81.8%) in the official EEA 2025 classification; 3 were Good, 2 Sufficient and 0 Poor, and 1 had no class. That ranks West 3 of 5 Ireland regions by Excellent share.
- Which beaches in West have the best long-term record?
- 18 sites were Excellent in every season from 2015 to 2025, for example AN TRÁ MÓR, COILL RUA, INDREABHÁN, BATHING PLACE AT PORTUMNA, CILL MHUIRBHIGH, INIS MÓR. See the ranking.
- Were any bathing waters in West rated Poor?
- No. None was classified Poor in 2025.
- Where do I check whether swimming is allowed today?
- On Beaches.ie (EPA) (Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and local authorities). Temporary bans, pollution alerts and closures are published there and on signs at the water, not in the annual EEA class.
Ireland overview · All regions of Ireland · Bathing season dates
Sources and method
Bathing-water records: European Environment Agency (EEA), data and coordinates reported by Ireland, licensed CC BY 4.0. Region and area boundaries: Eurostat NUTS 2024 (© EuroGeographics for the administrative boundaries). Place names: GeoNames (CC BY 4.0). A site belongs to the area that contains its reported coordinates; a site up to 10 km off the generalised coastline is placed in the nearest area of Ireland. Counts, shares and rankings are calculated by BathingWaterFinder from the official records.