Lahinch surf forecast and spots
8 spots within 21 km of Lahinch: 2 beach breaks, 5 reef breaks, 1 point break. 1 suit beginners.
Live forecasts for every spot →
Best spots today in Lahinch
- Intermediate: Lahinch (Good, 0.8–1.2 m, cross-offshore around 17:00)
- Beginners: Lahinch (Good, 0.8–1.2 m, cross-offshore around 17:00)
Tomorrow, Wednesday 4 November
- Intermediate: Lahinch (Epic, 1–1.6 m, offshore around 11:00), Spanish Point (Fair, 1–1.4 m, offshore around 09:00)
- Beginners: Lahinch (Good, 1–1.6 m, offshore around 11:00)
- Advanced: Lahinch (Fair, 1–1.6 m, offshore around 11:00), Spanish Point (Fair, 1–1.4 m, offshore around 09:00)
This weekend near Lahinch
Saturday 7 November
- Beginners: Lahinch (Fair, 0.4–0.6 m, offshore around 08:00)
Sunday 8 November
Quiet: no spot here rates Fair or better.
The best daylight hour of each spot, rated for each level. Model forecast updated 3 Nov, 15:51 UTC; it changes every few hours, so check the live forecast before you go.
The spots
- Lahinch · beach break, beginner, best on W/WSW/WNW swell with E/ENE/SE wind, all tides. Lahinch strand in Liscannor Bay has several surf schools on the promenade and lifeguards in summer. A W swell with an E wind gives peaks along the sand, and the gentler…
- Lahinch Left · reef break, intermediate, best on W/WNW/WSW swell with E/ESE/SE wind, low to mid tide. A long left over a flat rock ledge at the south end of Lahinch beach, reached over the rocks below the promenade. On clean groundswell days with light easterly wind it…
- Cornish · reef break, advanced, best on W/WSW/WNW swell with E/ESE/ENE wind, mid tide. A reef just south of the Lahinch Left with a similar rock-ledge setup but a faster, hollower and shallower wave. Mostly a left, though the peak can also offer a right…
- Aileen's · reef break, advanced, best on W/WSW/WNW swell with E/ESE/ENE wind, all tides. A big-wave right slab at the base of the Cliffs of Moher (Aill na Searrach), first ridden in 2005. It only breaks on large Atlantic swells with easterly wind and is…
- Doolin Point · point break, advanced, best on W/WNW/WSW swell with E/ESE/ENE wind, low to mid tide. A right that peels along the limestone shelf just south of Doolin pier, with a few more peaks inside the bay. With a clean easterly wind it runs as a long, fast wall…
- Crab Island · reef break, advanced, best on W/WSW/WNW swell with E/ESE/ENE wind, low to mid tide. A thick, barrelling right that breaks on the reef of a small island off Doolin pier, about 10 km north of Lahinch. It picks up more swell than the spots around Lahinch…
- Spanish Point · reef break, advanced, best on W/WNW swell with E/ESE wind, mid tide. Rocky reef and point at the beach by Miltown Malbay, producing a right when a clean west swell hits. Better for experienced surfers.
- Fanore · beach break, intermediate, best on WSW/W swell with E wind, mid tide. Beach in the Burren on the west coast of Clare, a quieter alternative to Lahinch. Dunes behind the beach, with peaks over sand and some reef at the ends.
Best time to surf in Lahinch
Good days per month for intermediate surfers; tap a month for where else to surf then.
Best months for intermediate surfers: November, January to April. For beginners: April to May, November. The water goes from about 8 °C in January (6/5 mm hooded) to 18 °C in August (3/2 mm fullsuit). Best-known spots: Lahinch. 1 of the 8 spots suit beginners, such as Lahinch.
| Month | Rideable days | Good days | Beginner days | Water |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 10 | 2 | 2 | 8 °C |
| Feb | 10 | 3 | 2 | 8 °C |
| Mar | 8 | 1 | 3 | 9 °C |
| Apr | 8 | 2 | 5 | 11 °C |
| May | 4 | 1 | 4 | 13 °C |
| Jun | 2 | 0 | 2 | 16 °C |
| Jul | 0 | 0 | 1 | 17 °C |
| Aug | 2 | 0 | 3 | 18 °C |
| Sep | 5 | 0 | 2 | 16 °C |
| Oct | 7 | 1 | 3 | 14 °C |
| Nov | 9 | 2 | 5 | 12 °C |
| Dec | 6 | 1 | 2 | 10 °C |
Days per month at the best third of the 8 spots for each level, from two years of wave and wind model data.
Questions
What are the best surf spots in Lahinch?
The best-known are Lahinch, Spanish Point, Fanore, Lahinch Left. In all, 8 spots lie within 21 km: 2 beach breaks, 5 reef breaks, 1 point break.
Where can beginners surf in Lahinch?
Lahinch: sandy, more forgiving spots. Surf them on small days, ideally with a lesson or near the lifeguards.
When is the best time to surf in Lahinch?
For intermediate surfers November, January to April. For beginners April to May, November.
What wetsuit do I need to surf in Lahinch?
The sea goes from about 8 °C in January (6/5 mm hooded) to 18 °C in August (3/2 mm fullsuit).
Also: surf spots in Clare · best spots in Ireland for beginners · best time to surf in Ireland · Ireland surf forecast this week. Reading the forecast: the forecast and the lineup together, wind and tide.