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County DonegalBlue Flag

Culdaff

Culdaff is one of the waters the EPA tests and grades in County Donegal, 1.2 km south-east of Portahack. The Environmental Protection Agency classified it excellent for water quality for the 2025 season. The register records a lifeguard, toilets, parking, bins, first aid, an information board and a beach wheelchair.

Excellent
water quality, 2025
Yes
Blue Flag
Yes
lifeguard
1.2 km
from Portahack
Water quality
Excellent, 2025
Seasons before
2024 Excellent, 2023 Excellent, 2022 Excellent
Water testing
Tested by the EPA sampled through the season and given a water quality grade
Season restriction
None in place
Pollution after rain
Prone to short term pollution
Awards
Blue Flag · the register does not say which year's award
County
County Donegal
Managed by
Donegal County Council
Nearest town
Portahack, 1.2 km south-east of it, in a straight line
From that town
4.1 km by road, about 7 min drivingor 4.1 km on foot, about 51 minutes at 4.8 km/h
Lifeguard
Yes, hours not recorded
Toilets
Yes
Parking
Yes
Access
A beach wheelchair is available
Dogs
Dogs are not permitted in the Blue Flag Area of the beach from 12 pm to 7 pm (1st June to 15th September annually). Dogs are permitted on leads outside the Blue Flag Area at all times.
Cars on the beach
No
Public transport
The register records some
Protected area
Recorded as a natural sensitive area
Position
55.2940° N, 7.1463° W
Record changed
2026-03-23
The main beach at Culdaff
The main beach at Culdaff·Malcolm Neal, CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons
The main beach at Culdaff·Malcolm Neal, CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons
The beach at Culdaff
The beach at Culdaff·Carroll Pierce, CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons
The beach at Culdaff·Carroll Pierce, CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons

What the EPA says about it

Culdaff beach consists of a sandy beach with two rock outcrops at the south-east of the beach. The beach is contained to the west by sand dunes and to the north-west by the Culdaff River which has an extensive area of relatively unspoilt coastal habitats which support a range of plant and animal species. The catchment area is an idyllic location for bird watching and ecological activities. Activities include swimming, kayaking, boating, windsurfing, canoeing, surfing, shore angling and land-based activities such as walking, kite flying, rock climbing, etc.

Culdaff is classified as achieving Excellent Water Quality in 2025 based on the assessment of bacteriological results for the period 2022 to 2025. Culdaff has achieved an Excellent Water Quality rating for the four consecutive years 2022 to 2025. Annual water quality ratings are generally calculated using monitoring results over a four-year period and are assessed against stringent bacterial limits to protect bather health.

The EPA’s own beach profile

Where it is

Culdaff, and the other places to swim in County Donegal. Share your position and the map will show how far each one is from you.

Getting to Culdaff

Your journey, your way

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Going toCuldaffDestination: the mapped location
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All times are local to Ireland. Scheduled services, without live delay updates.

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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

Culdaff is in Portahack, County Donegal. 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 Portahack, 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.
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Stops near it

The nearest scheduled stop is Culdaff (10725), 1.5 km away in a straight line. Use the planner to check walking connections for your journey.

  • Culdaff 1.5 km
    buses 959 and 952
    Scheduled departures from this stop

Getting to Portahack covers the journeys into the town itself.

Other places to swim in County Donegal

Questions people ask

Is the water clean at Culdaff?
The EPA classified it Excellent for the 2025 season, which is worked out from four years of samples. Culdaff is classified as achieving Excellent Water Quality in 2025 based on the assessment of bacteriological results for the period 2022 to 2025. Culdaff has achieved an Excellent Water Quality rating for the four consecutive years 2022 to 2025. Annual water quality ratings are generally calculated using monitoring results over a four-year period and are assessed against stringent bacterial limits to protect bather health. A classification is a record of seasons that have finished; it is not a reading of the water today.
Is swimming restricted at Culdaff?
The register records no season-long restriction. That is about the season, not about today: a short notice after heavy rain would not appear here, and this water is recorded as prone to short term pollution. Check with Donegal County Council before swimming.
Does Culdaff have a Blue Flag?
The register records one. It does not record which year's award, and the flag is awarded each season, so it is worth checking the flag is flying when you arrive.
Is there a lifeguard at Culdaff?
The register records one, without giving hours. Outside those hours nobody is watching the water.
How do you get to Culdaff without a car?
The nearest stop in the national timetable is Culdaff, 1.5 km from the beach in a straight line, and buses 959 and 952 call there, run by TFI Local Link Donegal Sligo Leitrim. 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 2026-03-23. 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 Donegal