Clifden Beach
Not monitored
This spot isn't an officially designated bathing water, so it has no annual classification and no pollution-alert monitoring. Past sample results are shown below, but none is recent. Assess conditions yourself before entering.
Checked against the Environmental Protection Agency (Ireland) · data last changed 7 days ago.
Sea conditions
Water temperature
14.5°C
Chilly — most swimmers want a wetsuit
Wave height
1.3 m
Significant wave height offshore; inshore conditions vary.
Tide
Going out
- Low water around UTC
- High water around UTC
Modelled values, not measurements — coastal water often differs from the open-sea model, and tide times are approximate to within about half an hour. Use official tide tables for anything that depends on precise timing.
About this spot
Clifden Beach is a small sheltered sandy beach located close to Clifden Town, 78kms to the west of Galway City on the shores of Clifden Bay. The bathing area is located down a narrow road called “The Beach Road” beside Clifden Boat Club and the RNLI Station. It is divided from a rocky shore and a mooring facility by a small grassy headland. There is a small seating area overlooking the rocky shore.Clifden Beach had been an identified/regulated bathing water and was monitored and managed under the terms of the 2008 Bathing Water Quality Regulations. Clifden Beach was declassified in 2021 due to Poor water quality - it had been classified as Poor for five consecutive years (2016 to 2020). Clifden Beach is no longer an identified/regulated bathing water, but continues to be monitored by Galway County Council as an other monitored water.
This spot’s record
Clifden Beach is in Galway, about 35 km from Louisburgh. Across the 12 most recent samples published by the Environmental Protection Agency (Ireland), E. coli counts ranged from 10 to 1,043 per 100 ml. The highest was taken on 5 August 2025. A classification is calculated from percentiles across four seasons, so no single reading decides how this water is rated.
Recent sample results
The last 12 bacterial samples published by the Environmental Protection Agency (Ireland), most recent on the right. Counts are per 100 ml of water.
Dashed line: 500 E. coli per 100 ml, the Bathing Water Directive guide value for coastal / transitional waters.
| Date | E. coli | Enterococci | Assessment |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7 Sept | 121 | 69 | Excellent |
| 10 Aug | 183 | 15 | Excellent |
| 15 Jul | 10 | 2 | Excellent |
| 13 Jul | 20 | 3 | Excellent |
| 15 Jun | 10 | 5 | Excellent |
| 27 May | 10 | 6 | Excellent |
A bathing water's official classification is calculated from percentiles across four bathing seasons, not from any single sample — so one high reading doesn't mean a spot is unsafe, and one low reading doesn't mean it's clean today.
Facilities & access
- Lifeguard
- No
- Parking
- Yes
- Toilets
- Yes
- Accessible entry
- No
- Dogs
- Yes
- Public transport
- No
Official water quality
This spot has no official annual classification.
Common questions
- Can you swim at Clifden Beach right now?
- Clifden Beach is currently marked "Not monitored". This spot isn't an officially designated bathing water, so it has no annual classification and no pollution-alert monitoring. Past sample results are shown below, but none is recent. Assess conditions yourself before entering. This reflects the latest data published by the Environmental Protection Agency (Ireland). Conditions change quickly — always assess the water yourself before entering.
- Is there a lifeguard at Clifden Beach?
- No lifeguard cover is listed for Clifden Beach. Never swim alone at an unguarded spot.
- What facilities are there at Clifden Beach?
- Clifden Beach has toilets, parking. Facility information is published by the Environmental Protection Agency (Ireland).
This spot is also in
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