Skip to content
County WicklowGreen Coast

Arklow South Beach

Arklow South Beach is on the EPA's list of places people swim, though not one of the waters it tests in County Wicklow, 1.2 km south-east of Arklow. The State does not test the water here, so there is no grade. The register records a lifeguard, parking, bins, a lifebuoy, first aid and an information board. It leaves 2 of the questions on this page unanswered, and those are shown as not recorded rather than as a no.

No
Blue Flag
Yes
lifeguard
1.2 km
from Arklow
Water quality
Not monitored for a classification
Water testing
Not tested by the EPA on its list, but not sampled for a grade
Season restriction
Not recorded
Pollution after rain
Not recorded
Awards
Green Coast · the register does not say which year's award
Managed by
Wicklow County Council
Nearest town
Arklow, 1.2 km south-east of it, in a straight line
From that town
1.5 km by road, about 2 min drivingor 1.5 km on foot, about 19 minutes at 4.8 km/h
Lifeguard
Yes, hours not recorded
Toilets
No
Parking
Yes
Access
No
Dogs
Dogs allowed on lead. Owners must clean up after their dog.
Cars on the beach
No
Public transport
Irish Rail Arklow station 1.5km from the beach. Dublin Bus 1km from the beach.
First aid
First Aid at Lifeguard Station
Position
52.7924° N, 6.1384° W
Record changed
2023-09-16
Arklow South Beach aerial photo
Arklow South Beach aerial photo·瑞丽江的河水, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Arklow Pier aerial photo
Arklow Pier aerial photo·瑞丽江的河水, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons

What the EPA says about it

Arklow South Beach is located in Arklow Town and is a sandy stretch of beach backed by boulders.

Where it is

Arklow South Beach, and the other places to swim in County Wicklow. Share your position and the map will show how far each one is from you.

Getting to Arklow South Beach

Your journey, your way

Let’s get you to Arklow South Beach.

Choose where you are starting. We’ll work out the rest.

Going toArklow South BeachDestination: the mapped location
1 Where are you starting?

Type at least two letters, then choose a suggestion.

Nearby starting points
2 How would you like to travel?
3 When are you going?

All times are local to Ireland. Scheduled services, without live delay updates.

Journey preferences Transport type and sorting

Choose a starting point to plan your journey.

About these directions

Public transport times come from National Transport Authority. Timetables cover 2026-09-18 to 2027-09-19. These are scheduled services; check with the operator for cancellations and changes before travelling.

Walking and driving times are estimates. A town search starts at its centre; choose your location or a point on the map for a more precise starting point. Eircode search is not available.

How journey planning works
Destination, access and nearby stops

Arklow South Beach is in Arklow, County Wicklow. Routes here end at the point the map records for this place. The entrance has not been verified, so the last few metres are for you to judge.

The nearest settlement is Arklow, 1.2 km south-east of the beach. The register records parking here. Getting to the town is not getting to the beach, so the journey below is worked out to the beach itself and the last stretch on foot is measured rather than left out.
Stops near it

The nearest scheduled stop is Ferrybank (106121), 1.1 km away in a straight line. Use the planner to check walking connections for your journey.

  • Ferrybank 1.1 km
    buses 2 and 740A
    Scheduled departures from this stop
  • Arklow 1.4 km
    bus 2
    Scheduled departures from this stop
  • Arklow Stn 1.4 km
    buses 183, 800 and 800a
    Scheduled departures from this stop
  • Arklow W 1.6 km
    buses 2, 183, 800, 740A, 800a and BR01
    Scheduled departures from this stop
  • Tiknock 1.8 km
    bus BR01
    Scheduled departures from this stop

Getting to Arklow covers the journeys into the town itself.

Other places to swim in County Wicklow

Questions people ask

Is the water clean at Arklow South Beach?
Arklow South Beach is on the EPA's list but is not one of the waters it tests, so the State works out no grade for it and none exists. Nothing here says the water is clean or dirty, because nobody has published either.
Is swimming restricted at Arklow South Beach?
The register leaves this blank for Arklow South Beach, which it does for the 89 waters it does not monitor. A blank is not a no. Check with Wicklow County Council.
Does Arklow South Beach have a Blue Flag?
No Blue Flag, but the register records a Green Coast award, which recognises clean water and an unspoilt shore rather than facilities.
Is there a lifeguard at Arklow South Beach?
The register records one, without giving hours. Outside those hours nobody is watching the water.
How do you get to Arklow South Beach without a car?
The nearest stop in the national timetable is Ferrybank, 1.1 km from the beach in a straight line, and buses 2 and 740A call there, run by Bus Éireann and Wexford Bus. The planner on this page works out the walk from that stop over real footways, and the whole journey from wherever you are starting, for the day and time you pick. Where no footway joins the stop to the beach it says so rather than making a number up.
Where does this come from?
The Environmental Protection Agency's list of places people swim, which it calls the bathing water register, read on 2026-09-20, where this record was last changed on 2023-09-16. Water quality, awards, lifeguards and facilities are the EPA's own fields, and a field it leaves blank is shown as not recorded rather than as a no. The distance to the nearest town is this site's own measurement, in a straight line.

Water quality, awards, lifeguards, toilets, parking and access are the Environmental Protection Agency’s own fields, from its bathing water register, read 2026-09-20. The classification covers four years of sampling and is not a reading for today: after heavy rain the water can be worse than the classification suggests, and the EPA and the local authority post notices when it is. Positions are the EPA’s grid references, projected to latitude and longitude. Journeys are the National Transport Authority’s published timetable.

Beaches and bathing waters in Ireland·Beaches in County Wicklow