Find The Nearest Beach Ayrshire
Planning a trip to the Ayrshire coast and looking for where the nearest beach is, our beach lists will help you discover the nearest beach to me. Then for each beach, we will answer questions around location, rural or town, sandy or pebble, rockpools, tide times, weather forecast, dog restrictions, bathing water quality, closest beach cafes and provide general information on the beach and its facilities.
When on a beach page use our tools to search nearby Ayrshire seaside towns and the surrounding coast for things to see and do or places to stay and eat.
If you are looking for an award-winning beach then you can browse our Blue Flag lists or Seaside Award lists.
Finding the right beach in Ayrshire is easy – simply explore the beach links below, to find the closest hit the jump to my location compass or use the search bar to plan where your next Ayrshire beach visit should be.
- Troon’s South Sands beach is a long and wide sandy beach with a promenade and some grass areas behind. Popular kitesurfing and windsurfing beach along with Troon’s North beach. Facilities include car parking, shops, pub, cafe, toilets, and promenade. As you head south on the beach the houses end and you are backed by the Royal Troon Golf Club. Founded in 1878 with just 5 holes, and extended to become an 18 hole course in 1886, and it first held the Open Championship in 1923.
- Turnberry beach is a sandy beach which runs north along the coast from the village of Turnberry and alongside Turnberry golf course and hotel to the Turnberry Point lighthouse. To access the beach, its southern end can be reached from the car park in the village of Turnberry, whilst the northern end there is a track across the golf course to the lighthouse and beach from a roadside parking area off the A719. Facilities at the beach include parking, toilets and post office at the southern Turnberry village end.
- Doonfoot beach is also known as Greenan beach and is a sandy beach with some rocks. Parking near the beach.
- Prestwick beach is a long sandy beach with views over to Isle of Arran. The beach extends out of Prestwick and is then backed by Prestwick Golf Club, birthplace of the Open Championship. If walking northwards along the beach it is possible to paddle across the Pow burn at low-tide to Troon South Sands.
- Seamill beach a small sandy beach with some rocks backed by a grassy area.
- Girvan beach is a mile long wide sandy beach backed by large grass areas, with the beach stretching away from the harbour pier and it is just a short stroll into the town. The is one of the most popular beaches in Ayrshire and has the facilities you would expect in and around Girvan itself. There are options to park at the northern pier end or the southern end, although the south has a cafe and toilets more facilities exist at the northern end and this is the main used stretch.
- Newtown beach at Millport on Cumbrae Island is a beach of sand in a sheltered bay harbour and old pier.
- Dunure beach is a shingle beach on a rocky shoreline, located in the village of Dunure near Maybole on the coast of the Firth of Clyde. Although Dunure beach is mainly shingle, Dunure also has a lovely small harbour and Dunure Castle and park. Facilities include toilets, picnic site, harbour, pub, shop and post office in Dunure.
- Irvine beach is a long sweeping sandy beach with views across to the Island of Arran. The beach is split by the River Irvine. The bay itself is a 14 mile stretch of coastline.
- Maidens Turnberry beach is thought to be named from The Maidens of Turnberry, a series of rocks in Maidenhead Bay which have became an extension to Maidens harbour wall. This is a sandy beach that curves in the bay northwards away from the harbour and village of Maidens.
- Boydston beach, also known as Ardrossan beach, is a sandy beach with a view across to Arran. Ardrossan has a harbour, shops and multiple options to eat something.
- Saltcoats sandy beach is popular along with local walks and cycle-paths. Saltcoats name is derived from the town’s earliest industry when salt was harvested from the sea water. The harbour built in 1680 ensured the town developed as a port trading in salt, fish and coal. The North Ayrshire Museum displays relics of the towns nautical past and on the archaeology, costume, transport, culture and country life with a reconstructed traditional Ayrshire cottage interior. After the turn of the twentieth century and the decline of salt panning in the town, Saltcoats became increasingly popular as a holiday destination.
