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County WaterfordGreen Coast

Goat Island

Goat Island is on the EPA's list of places people swim, though not one of the waters it tests in County Waterford, 2.5 km west of Ardmore. The State does not test the water here, so there is no grade. The register records bins, a lifebuoy 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
No
lifeguard
2.5 km
from Ardmore
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
County
County Waterford
Managed by
Waterford City & County Council
Nearest town
Ardmore, 2.5 km west of it, in a straight line
From that town
3.2 km by road, about 5 min drivingor 3.3 km on foot, about 41 minutes at 4.8 km/h
Lifeguard
No
Toilets
No
Parking
No
Access
No
Dogs
Allowed on a lead
Cars on the beach
No
Public transport
No
Position
51.9456° N, 7.7614° W
Record changed
2023-09-16
Sandy beach at Whiting Bay
Sandy beach at Whiting Bay·Gordon Hatton, CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Sandy beach at Whiting Bay·Gordon Hatton, CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons
A stream reaches the beach at Whiting Bay
A stream reaches the beach at Whiting Bay·Gordon Hatton, CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons
A stream reaches the beach at Whiting Bay·Gordon Hatton, CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons

What the EPA says about it

Goats Island Beach is located approx 5km west of Ardmore in Co Waterford. The beach is located in an inlet that faces south and is sheltered to the west side by the island itself.

Where it is

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

Getting to Goat Island

Your journey, your way

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Going toGoat IslandDestination: the mapped location
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3 When are you going?

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

Goat Island is in Ardmore, County Waterford. 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 Ardmore, 2.5 km west of the beach. The register records no 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 Saint Declan's Sch (244611), 2.2 km away in a straight line. Use the planner to check walking connections for your journey.

  • Saint Declan's Sch 2.2 km
    buses 361 and 260
    Scheduled departures from this stop

Getting to Ardmore covers the journeys into the town itself.

Other places to swim in County Waterford

Questions people ask

Is the water clean at Goat Island?
Goat Island 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 Goat Island?
The register leaves this blank for Goat Island, which it does for the 89 waters it does not monitor. A blank is not a no. Check with Waterford City & County Council.
Does Goat Island 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 Goat Island?
No. The register records no lifeguard here, so nobody is watching the water.
How do you get to Goat Island without a car?
The nearest stop in the national timetable is Saint Declan's Sch, 2.2 km from the beach in a straight line, and buses 361 and 260 call there, run by TFI Local Link Waterford and Bus Éireann. 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 Waterford