Nearest Blue Flag Beaches UK and Ireland
Blue Flag beaches , the Blue Flag award is a prestigious, international award scheme that aims to provide an assurance to tourists that a beach has met a minimum standard. To collect a Blue Flag any UK and Ireland beach must achieve the highest quality of water, facilities, safety, environmental education and management.
Below we list the current beaches holding the Blue Flag award.
- Canford Cliffs beach is a shallow sloping sandy beach, although as the tide comes in the amount of sand available is limited. The beach is below a steep sandy cliff which means you have steps to go down to get to the beach. Facilities include parking, toilets (with disabled facilities), food kiosks, and lifeguards in the summer.
- Pwllheli beach is a very long stretch of south facing sand on the Llyn Peninsula and is also known as Pwllheli South Beach. The beach starts out at the marina and stretches for approximately 3 miles to Llanbedrog and as you move away from the town you have a beautiful remove beach. Pwllheli is known as the unnoficial capital of the Llyn Peninsula. Parking on the road behind the beach, toilets, promenade, beach shop and Pwllheli has a harbour.
- Ventry beach is a sandy beach sitting a sheltered bay. The beach area has Ventry Strand a small dune system, a small lake, wet grasslands and an extensive Common Reed swamp.
- The Central beach at Swanage is a great family beach set within a Victorian town with a pier. Swanage is a nice traditional family seaside resort whilst the beach is a sandy beach and is part of a larger stretch of sand that lasts for approximately 2km. Facilities include pier, promenade, cafes/restaurants, shops, children’s play area, beach huts, seasonal lifeguards, toilets with disabled facilities, showers and car parking.
- Shoebury Common Beach is a shingle beach that overlooks the Thames Estuary and is bounded to the East by the land formerly occupied by the Shoeburyness Artillery Barracks. The beach is on the eastern end of the long continuous Southend seafront, backed by a promenade with beach huts. Facilities include parking, toilets, cafe, beach huts and promenade.
- The main beach at Abersoch is in a sheltered position that makes it ideal for traditional beach visitors and watersports lovers alike. This is a large, relatively sheltered sandy beach, on the south east facing side of the Llyn Peninsula with colourful beach huts.
- Llanddwyn Beach is a large sandy beach with dunes on the south-western tip of Anglesey. Newborough Warren National Nature Reserve and forest is just behind the beach giving it an amazing backdrop. The nature reserve is protected but some great trails in the forest to explore. The beach is popular beach with kitesurfers, kite-buggies and windsurfers, although can get busy. Llanddwyn Beach is sometimes referred to as Newborough beach. Facilities include parking, toilets with disabled facilities, picnic areas and more available in nearby Newborough.
- Trearddur Bay beach is a small sandy beach sheltered with rocks at either end. Popular beach for watersports. Facilities include parking, toilets, promenade, shop, pub and slipway.
- Marble Hill beach is sandy beach with dunes. The sand dune at Marble Hill have many flowers and bird species and is one of the remaining locations in Ireland where you can hear the Corncrake. Beach is used for surfing and it is protected from the big West swells.
- Magilligan Beach (Benone Strand) is located on the North West corner of Northern Ireland and stretches for 7 miles from Downhill to Magilligan Point. Magilligan foreland is Ireland’s largest coastal accumulation comprising some 32 square km of marine and wind-blown sand deposits. Facilities include car parking, shops, cafe/restaurant.
- Tramore Beach is a sweeping bay with all the facilities of a seaside town. Popular with families and surfers/bodyboarders.
- Ross beach is a sandy beach within Killala Bay. Killala Bay is an estuary with mudflats lining the sides of the channel with enables some good bird watching. The nearby river Moy which flows into Killala Bay is renowned for its salmon fishing.
