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County KerryBlue Flag

Kells

Kells is one of the waters the EPA tests and grades in County Kerry, 11.8 km west of Glenbeigh. The Environmental Protection Agency classified it excellent for water quality for the 2025 season. The register records toilets, parking, bins, recycling, a lifebuoy, first aid and an information board.

Excellent
water quality, 2025
Yes
Blue Flag
No
lifeguard
11.8 km
from Glenbeigh
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, closed 10 days last season
Awards
Blue Flag · the register does not say which year's award
County
County Kerry
Managed by
Kerry County Council
Nearest town
Glenbeigh, 11.8 km west of it, in a straight line
From that town
15.7 km by road, about 15 min driving
Lifeguard
No
Toilets
Yes
Parking
Yes
Access
Ramp
Dogs
Dogs are not allowed on the Blue-Flag section of the Beach (ie. within the Lifeguard Patrol area) between 12 noon and 6pm each day from the 1st June to 15th September inclusive.
Cars on the beach
No
Public transport
No
First aid
Available locally - details on beach notice board
Protected area
Recorded as a natural sensitive area
Position
52.0258° N, 10.1044° W
Record changed
2026-03-31
Kells Bay, Ring of Kerry, Co. Kerry, Ireland
Kells Bay, Ring of Kerry, Co. Kerry, Ireland·Robert Linsdell from St. Andrews, Canada, CC BY 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Kells Bay, Ring of Kerry, Co. Kerry, Ireland·Robert Linsdell from St. Andrews, Canada, CC BY 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Kells Bay, Ring of Kerry, Co. Kerry, Ireland
Kells Bay, Ring of Kerry, Co. Kerry, Ireland·Robert Linsdell from St. Andrews, Canada, CC BY 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Kells Bay, Ring of Kerry, Co. Kerry, Ireland·Robert Linsdell from St. Andrews, Canada, CC BY 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons

What the EPA says about it

Kells Beach is a small sandy cove located in a little inlet in a predominantly rocky shoreline. The beach is largely sheltered from Atlantic wave action. The greater catchment is dominated by agriculture, with a mix of grassland and woodland. The coastal headlands adjacent to Kells Beach are designated as Special Protection Area. The hilly region to the southwest of Kells is designated as Special Area of Conservation. Activities include swimming and water sports. The identified bathing area is approximately 100 m wide.

Kells is classified as achieving Excellent Water Quality in 2025 based on the assessment of bacteriological results for the period 2022 to 2025. Kells 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

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

Getting to Kells

Your journey, your way

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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

Kells is in Glenbeigh, County Kerry. 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 Glenbeigh, 11.8 km west 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 Kells (350741), 1.5 km away in a straight line. Use the planner to check walking connections for your journey.

  • Kells 1.5 km
    buses 280 and 279A
    Scheduled departures from this stop

Getting to Glenbeigh covers the journeys into the town itself.

Other places to swim in County Kerry

Questions people ask

Is the water clean at Kells?
The EPA classified it Excellent for the 2025 season, which is worked out from four years of samples. Kells is classified as achieving Excellent Water Quality in 2025 based on the assessment of bacteriological results for the period 2022 to 2025. Kells 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 Kells?
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 Kerry County Council before swimming.
Does Kells 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 Kells?
No. The register records no lifeguard here, so nobody is watching the water.
How do you get to Kells without a car?
The nearest stop in the national timetable is Kells, 1.5 km from the beach in a straight line, and buses 280 and 279A call there, run by TFI Local Link Kerry 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 2026-03-31. 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 Kerry