Beach · County Mayo
Elly Bay, Belmullet
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 2 September 2026, was excellent. Live status on beaches.ie, which the EPA updates hourly in season.
Elly Bay is a fine sandy beach consisting of sand dunes backing on to sand dunes. Elly Bay consists of a sandy dune system, extensive areas of dune grassland and machair. These marine habitats support a variety of wildlife and plant species. It is a particularly important area for birds. Special Area of conservation (SAC)/ proposed Natural Heritage Areas (pNHA) Mullet/Blacksod Bay Complex (Site Code 000470) and Blacksod Bay/Broadhaven (Site Code 004037) SPA. Blacksod Bay Designated Shellfish Waters the Mullet Peninsula is part of the Mayo Gaeltacht. Swimming is the only activity on this beach. The bathing area is approximately 1.2km wide. The bathing water is approximately 0.42km2 in area. The medium and maximum water depth within the designated bathing water is 0.5m and 5.0m respectively depending on tides.
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 | — | 8 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2025 | Excellent | 8 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2024 | Excellent | 8 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2023 | Excellent | 8 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2022 | Excellent | 8 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2021 | — | 8 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2020 | — | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2019 | — | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Facilities
| Lifeguards | No | |
|---|---|---|
| Toilets | Yes | |
| Parking | Yes | |
| Wheelchair access | Yes | |
| Beach wheelchair | No | |
| Public transport | No | |
| First aid | Yes | Details available on the beach notice board |
| Lifebuoy | Yes | |
| Information board | Yes | |
| Activity zones | No | |
| Litter bins | Yes | |
| Recycling | Yes |
Dogs and cars
- Dogs on a leadDogs only allowed before 12pm and after 6.30pm during the bathing season (1st June to 15th September) otherwise allowed at all times onto beach.
- No cars on the beach
- Car-free zone
Latest sample (2026-09-02): E. coli 190, intestinal enterococci 22 (cfu/100 ml).
The EPA's bathing water profile
Outdoors in County Mayo this week
Best day outdoors: Sun, 11 Oct — dry by day, breezy, up to 14°C
Status Yellow - Rain warning for Galway, Leitrim, Mayo, Sligo
From Thu, 8 Oct, 09:00 until Fri, 9 Oct, 04:00
Heavy spells of rain.
Be aware of potential impacts:
- Difficult travelling conditions
- Localised flooding possible
Issued by Met Éireann · met.ie/warnings
- Fri, 9 Oct12° / 8°Medium rain showers
- Sat, 10 Oct12° / 7°Sun with light cloud
- Sun, 11 Oct14° / 13°Sun with light cloud
Make a day of it
The nearest trails, beaches, woods and heritage within 25 km.
Trails & walks
Beaches & bathing waters
Parks, gardens & islands
Nature spot · 9.0 km awayInishkea IslandsIslandThe Inishkea Islands (Oileáin Inis Cé), off the coast off Belmullet, County Mayo are rich in history and are believed to be named after Saint Kea who lived on one of the islands.
Nature spot · 9.0 km awayInishkea Islands ferryIslandThe Inishkea Islands, Oileáin Inis Cé, are located off the coast off Belmullet, County Mayo. Rich in history, the Islands are believed to be named after Saint Kea who lived on one of the islands.