Ireland is a small country, but its coastline measures around 3500 miles (5600km).
The western seaboard is incredibly convoluted, breaking into fine headlands and a spread of islands. While many parts of Ireland's coastline are well known, such as the Giant's Causeway and the Cliffs of Moher, few have heard of the Wexford Coastal Path, the Sheep's Head or Inishturk.
This guide covers over fifty coastal walks around Ireland, taking in broad beaches, towering cliffs, battered headlands and a score of lovely islands. There is a huge amount of variety, astounding scenery, plenty of history and heritage, with a good system of transport, accommodation and other services. In sunshine or storm, many of these coastal walks exhibit a raw, rare beauty.
The walks are, of course, all coastal. However, they are also remarkably varied and represent a good selection of routes, which include cliffs and rocky headlands, marshes, dunes and estuaries, with plenty of wilderness and little industry. The classic coastal names are there: Bray Head, the Cliffs of Moher, the Giant's Causeway. A spread of fascinating islands includes the Aran Islands, Clare Island, Achill Island, Tory Island and Rathlin. In fact, there are a total of 54 coastal walks including 19 walks on islands. Most of the walks are quite easy, but some are akin to mountain walks, climbing over some of the highest sea cliffs in Europe. The walks are numbered and arranged in a clockwise direction around the coast, starting north of Dublin, taking in the eastern, southern and western coasts, and ending in Northern Ireland.
