Kilcoole Beach
About Kilcoole Beach
Kilcoole is a long, quiet beach of stone and shingle reached in the most characterful way in Wicklow — over the railway level crossing beside Kilcoole Station, where a free car park sits behind the platform. Once across the line the coast opens out, wide and empty, with a five-kilometre walk north along the shore towards Greystones. This is one of the county's most important wildlife beaches: the shingle is a nesting site for little terns, protected as a BirdWatch Ireland reserve. Through the breeding season, roughly May to August, the colony is fenced and wardened — keep to the marked path, keep dogs under close control, and give the roped-off nesting area a wide berth. The water is monitored by the county council but is not an EPA-identified bathing water, so no official annual classification is published.
Get directions to the car park
This opens the verified car-park pin — never the beach itself or a mid-route point.
📍 Get directions to the car park
Pin confirmed at 53.1064, -6.0411. Always verify the car park on arrival — access can change.
Map
Verified car-park pin.
Activity suitability
- Not yet confirmed: Swimming, Surfing, Walking, Lifeguard (summer)
Facilities
- Car park — Free
- Not yet confirmed: Toilets, Disabled access, Lifeguard, Shower, Café nearby
Facilities confirmed from Wicklow County Council and Fáilte Ireland.
Water quality
Where to stay nearby
Pub with rooms · Map · ~5 km as the crow flies
Holiday village · Map · ~9 km as the crow flies
Search accommodation near Kilcoole Beach
From the RambleIreland network directory. Distances are straight-line (as the crow flies), not driving distance.
Nearby walks
From WalkWicklow.ie. Distances are straight-line (as the crow flies), not walking distance.
Nearby golf
From the GolfIreland.ie network. Distances are straight-line (as the crow flies), not driving distance.