Half of this list sits on Achill Island. Keem Bay is the one people picture: a horseshoe of pale sand under steep cliffs at the end of a winding clifftop road, with two small car parks that fill early. Keel, the 3.5km Trawmore Strand, faces the swell head-on and has surf schools and summer lifeguards. On the north coast, under Slievemore, Golden Strand and Pollawaddy both hold Blue Flags and look across Blacksod Bay, while Dooega sits on the quieter south-west side, an Irish-speaking village with rock pools that open at low tide.
The second cluster is around Louisburgh. Carrowniskey is the learn-to-surf beach, with the only consistent break in the area and horse races on the sand in summer, though parts of it have been stony since the storms of 2013–14. Carrowmore, a short drive north of the town, is more sheltered, lifeguarded in summer and backed by rare machair grassland. Old Head, further into Clew Bay, is the calm-water option on days the open coast is rough, with Croagh Patrick filling the view.
The rest are spread thinly and each needs its own drive: Doohoma on a Gaeltacht peninsula reaching into Blacksod Bay, the broad low-tide plain at Lacken Strand, and Killala Bay where the Moy meets the Atlantic.
A horseshoe of pale sand below steep cliffs at the end of Achill's winding clifftop road, and the county's most photographed stretch of coast.
An 850-metre strand north of Louisburgh, backed by rare machair and lifeguarded in summer, one of the more sheltered swims on this stretch of coast.
The go-to learn-to-surf strand near Westport, with the only consistent break in the area and one of Ireland's oldest surf schools on the sand.
A working Achill village of trad pubs and summer Irish classes, with a beach that has washed away and come back more than once.
A Blue Flag beach in Camport Bay on Achill's quieter south-west coast, with rock pools at low tide and far fewer people than Keel or Keem.
16 of 17 shown — tap a pin for the place.
Achill Island, mayo
Keem Bay is the beach at the far west of Achill Island: a horseshoe of pale sand below steep cliffs at the end of a winding clifftop road. It was a basking-shark fishery within living memory and a location for The Banshees of Inisherin. Come early – the two small car parks fill fast and roadside parking is enforced.
Clew Bay, mayo
Carrowmore is an 850-metre strand a short drive north of Louisburgh, backed by rare machair grassland and looking out to Clare and Achill islands. It's one of the more sheltered swims on this stretch of coast, lifeguarded in summer and popular with surfers; it held a Blue Flag in 2024, though not since.
Carrowniskey Beach, mayo
Carrowniskey is a long Atlantic strand south-west of Louisburgh and the go-to learn-to-surf beach near Westport, with the only consistent break in the area and Surf Mayo, one of Ireland's oldest surf schools, on the sand. It also hosts summer beach horse races. Since the storms of 2013–14, parts of the beach are covered in stones, and weever fish in the shallows make footwear sensible.
Achill Island, mayo
Dooagh's beach has washed away and returned more than once, most famously in 2017. Beyond the shifting sand it's a working Achill village: two trad pubs, the Scoil Acla summer school, a monument to solo Atlantic rower Don Allum, and Keem Bay a short drive west.
Achill Island, mayo
Dooega is a Blue Flag beach tucked into Camport Bay on Achill's quieter south-west coast, with rock pools that open at low tide. It's an Irish-speaking village built around Coláiste Acla, one of the country's long-running Irish-language colleges. The beach isn't lifeguarded and dogs are restricted in summer, but it draws far fewer people than Keel or Keem.
Mayo, mayo
Doohoma Head (An Ceann Ramhar) is a long, largely empty strand on a Gaeltacht peninsula reaching into Blacksod Bay, with views to Achill and the Mullet. It has a dependable beach break for intermediate surfers and a nine-hole course on the headland, in a small community whose history runs from Famine emigration to the tattie-hoker boats.
Achill Island, mayo
Set against the imposing slopes of Slievemore, Dugort preserves the stone foundations of the ambitious Achill Mission colony. Visitors can wander the historic site, join a BAFTA-winning local guide on The Colony Tour, and unwind on the island’s award-winning Silver and Golden Strands.
Dugort, mayo
Dugort Strand, also called Silver Strand or Pollawaddy, is a Blue Flag beach at the foot of Slievemore on Achill Island's north coast, overlooking Blacksod Bay. Behind the sand lies a protected machair grassland that flowers through spring and summer, and the shore draws surfers, windsurfers and, at New Year, a crowd of cold-water swimmers. It's the quiet, north-facing alternative to Achill's busier southern beaches.
Dugort, mayo
Golden Strand, known locally as Barnyagappul Strand (*Trá Bhearna na gCapall*), stretches a kilometre of golden sand on the north coast of Achill Island. Backed by rolling dunes and a pebble-lined edge, the beach draws swimmers, surfers and kayakers, while the surrounding landscape carries the memory of 19th-century seaweed-hauling horses.
Achill Island, mayo
Keel Beach, or Trawmore Strand, is a 3.5km Atlantic shoreline on Achill Island that draws surfers, families and walkers. Backed by the Minaun Cliffs and rare machair dunes, this Blue Flag beach is free to visit, faces the swell head-on, and has surf schools and summer lifeguards.
Killala Bay, mayo
Killala Bay is a deep, sheltered estuary between Mayo and Sligo where the River Moy meets the Atlantic. The continental shelf lies close to shore, which makes for strong sea fishing; there's Blue Flag swimming at Ross Strand, a low-tide walk out to Bartragh Island, and the pier where French troops landed in 1798.
Lacken, mayo
At low tide Lacken Strand opens into a broad plain of pale sand the community uses for horse racing and open-air concerts. A short walk away, Kilcummin pier marks where General Humbert’s French force came ashore in August 1798 to launch its march on Ballina.
Old Head Beach, mayo
The Old Head peninsula shelters this Clew Bay beach, keeping the water calm enough to swim on days the rest of Mayo's coast is rough. There's a Finnish-style sauna on the pier, a rare Atlantic oak wood 200m behind the sand, and Croagh Patrick filling the view across the bay.
Achill Island, mayo
Pollawaddy, or Dugort Beach, is the smaller and more westerly of two Blue Flag beaches under Slievemore on Achill's north coast, facing across Blacksod Bay to the Belmullet peninsula. It sits beside the remains of the Achill Mission, the Church of Ireland colony Edward Nangle founded at Dugort in 1831. Free parking and picnic tables, lifeguards in high summer, but no toilets.
Portacloy, mayo
Portacloy is a sheltered horseshoe bay at the northern edge of Erris, calm enough for swimming and snorkelling on days when the open Atlantic is unusable. From the sand, an 18 km loop climbs to Benwee Head and looks out on the Stags of Broadhaven. It took a Green Coast Award in 2017.
Kilcummin, mayo
Newport, mayo
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