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County Cork

Red Strand

Red Strand is on the EPA's list of places people swim, though not one of the waters it tests in County Cork, 3.7 km south-east of Rathbarry. The State does not test the water here, so there is no grade. The register records 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
3.7 km
from Rathbarry
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
None
County
County Cork
Managed by
Cork County Council
Nearest town
Rathbarry, 3.7 km south-east of it, in a straight line
From that town
4.3 km by road, about 6 min drivingor 4.3 km on foot, about 54 minutes at 4.8 km/h
Lifeguard
No
Toilets
No
Parking
No
Access
Access from public road
Dogs
Allowed on a lead
Cars on the beach
No
Public transport
No
Position
51.5472° N, 8.9269° W
Record changed
2023-09-16
Dirk Bay beach
Dirk Bay beach·Gordon Hatton, CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Dirk Bay beach·Gordon Hatton, CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Beach with view to Galley Head
Beach with view to Galley Head·Neville Goodman, CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Beach with view to Galley Head·Neville Goodman, CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons

What the EPA says about it

Red Strand is located just outside Clonakilty in Co Cork. It is a sheltered beach with beautiful views across to Galley Head lighthouse on the nearby peninsula.

Where it is

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

Getting to Red Strand

Your journey, your way

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Going toRed StrandDestination: 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

Red Strand is in Rathbarry, County Cork. 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 Rathbarry, 3.7 km south-east 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

No scheduled stop was found within 2.5 km of Red Strand. On-demand services may not be included.

Getting to Rathbarry covers the journeys into the town itself.

Other places to swim in County Cork

Questions people ask

Is the water clean at Red Strand?
Red Strand 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 Red Strand?
The register leaves this blank for Red Strand, which it does for the 89 waters it does not monitor. A blank is not a no. Check with Cork County Council.
Does Red Strand have a Blue Flag?
No. A beach without one can still have excellent water: the Blue Flag also asks for facilities, lifeguards and information boards, which a quiet strand may not have.
Is there a lifeguard at Red Strand?
No. The register records no lifeguard here, so nobody is watching the water.
How do you get to Red Strand without a car?
No stop in the national timetable is within two and a half kilometres of Red Strand. That is what the published timetable holds rather than a statement that nothing goes near: services that run on demand, and routes that file no schedule, are not in the feed at all.
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 Cork