Beach · County Waterford
Clonea Beach
Can I swim here? Outside the bathing season
The bathing season runs from 1 June to 15 September. Outside it the water is not tested weekly and lifeguards are not on duty. The last sample, on 7 September 2026, was excellent. Live status on beaches.ie, which the EPA updates hourly in season.
Clonea is a sandy beach with a gentle slope down to the low water mark and beyond. Rock pools become accessible at the west side of the beach during periods of low tide. The rock pools support a variety marine wildlife and plants. Activities include swimming, surfing, body-boarding and kayaking. There is an outdoor activity centre operating at the beach during the summer period. While the beach is 1 km long, the designated bathing area is approximately 500 metres long and 200 metres wide (at low tide).
Excellent (2025): The highest standard: results over four years were consistently very clean.
The record, year by year
| Year | EPA classification | Samples | Excellent | Good | Sufficient | Poor |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | — | 9 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2025 | Excellent | 9 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 1 |
| 2024 | Excellent | 9 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2023 | Excellent | 9 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2022 | Excellent | 8 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2021 | — | 8 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2020 | — | 8 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 2019 | — | 9 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Facilities
| Lifeguards | Yes | |
|---|---|---|
| Toilets | Yes | |
| Parking | Yes | |
| Wheelchair access | Yes | Ramp to beach |
| Beach wheelchair | No | |
| Public transport | Yes | Public buses |
| First aid | Yes | At lifeguard station |
| Lifebuoy | Yes | |
| Information board | Yes | |
| Activity zones | No | |
| Litter bins | Yes | |
| Recycling | Yes |
Dogs and cars
- Dogs are not allowedNo dogs allowed between 11am to 7pm, June, July and August
- No cars on the beach
Latest sample (2026-09-07): E. coli <10, intestinal enterococci <1 (cfu/100 ml).
The EPA's bathing water profile
Outdoors in County Waterford this week
Best day outdoors: Sat, 10 Oct — dry by day, breezy, up to 13°C
- Fri, 9 Oct14° / 8°Medium rain showers
- Sat, 10 Oct13° / 7°Sun with light cloud
- Sun, 11 Oct14° / 14°Light rain
Make a day of it
The nearest trails, beaches, woods and heritage within 25 km.
