Spiddal Beach (Spiddle, Spideal, An Trá Mhór)

Spiddal is a sandy beach, flanked by rocky outcrops.  It is about 200 meters long, and is located just to the east of the village of Spiddal, along the road that enters the village. From the beach there are views across Galway Bay towards the Aran Islands and towards the hills on the other side of the bay.

The beach is particularly popular for swimming, with a lifeguard service at weekends in June and every day in July and August. However, it can become crowded at times, being a particularly popular beach for young people, due to the popular Irish language courses run in the village during the summer months.

The nearest car park is in the village of Spiddal, a little more than 100 meters from the beach. The village, which has a scenic harbour, is a vibrant tourist destination and people come here from around Ireland. As a result there are many shops, places to eat and places to stay and a lively nightlife in the various pubs, many of which play traditional Irish music in the evenings.
This is an area where it is quite common to hear the Irish language spoken in the local pubs and shops.