Dipper › Co. Dublin

Donabate, Balcarrick Beach

Excellent Quality 2025 Blue Flag Green Coast faces E

🌊 Dip🏄 Surf
Any tidePrefer highPrefer low
Surf score now
36
Blowy · waist-high 0.7 m, short period 5 s, choppy
Waves
0.7 m
5 s period from SE · model cell 2.4 km out
Sea
14.9°
Fresh. M2 buoy, Irish Sea east of Dublin, 45 km away.
Tide
1.2 m
Low tide. High at 16:05.
Wind
15 km/h
Gentle breeze, S, cross, gusts 35
Daylight
07:27
Sunrise. Sunset 19:00. Air 15°C.

Best surf each day

Daylight hours
Today
19:00
Grand 83/100
chest-high 1.0 m, offshore wind · 1.0 m · 30 km/h
▲ 03:35 ▼ 09:20 ▲ 16:05 ▼ 21:55
Sat, 3 Oct
07:00
Grim 5/100
flat · 0.3 m · 7 km/h
▲ 04:40 ▼ 10:20 ▲ 17:10 ▼ 23:10
Sun, 4 Oct
11:00
Blowy 33/100
knee-high 0.3 m, offshore wind, low tide · 0.3 m · 19 km/h
▲ 05:55 ▼ 11:40 ▲ 18:30
Mon, 5 Oct
10:00
Grim 5/100
flat · 0.3 m · 21 km/h
▼ 00:45 ▲ 07:30 ▼ 13:15 ▲ 19:55
Tue, 6 Oct
10:00
Grim 5/100
flat · 0.3 m · 18 km/h
▼ 02:10 ▲ 08:45 ▼ 14:30 ▲ 21:05
Wed, 7 Oct
10:00
Grim 0/100
no wave data here · 15 km/h
▼ 03:15 ▲ 09:50 ▼ 15:30 ▲ 22:00
Thu, 8 Oct
13:00
Grim 0/100
no wave data here · 14 km/h
▼ 04:05 ▲ 10:45 ▼ 16:20 ▲ 22:55

Week at a glance

Tap or drag to pick an hour. Everything below follows.
Fri 10:0036 · Blowywaist-high 0.7 m · short period 5 s, choppy
Fri 2Sat 3Sun 4Mon 5Tue 6Wed 7Thu 80003060912151821Fri 07:00 · 36 BlowyFri 08:00 · 36 BlowyFri 09:00 · 36 BlowyFri 10:00 · 36 BlowyFri 11:00 · 28 BlowyFri 12:00 · 28 BlowyFri 13:00 · 28 BlowyFri 14:00 · 40 BlowyFri 15:00 · 65 DecentFri 16:00 · 65 DecentFri 17:00 · 60 FreshFri 18:00 · 60 FreshFri 19:00 · 83 GrandFri 20:00 · 58 Fresh · nightFri 21:00 · 58 Fresh · nightFri 22:00 · 58 Fresh · nightFri 23:00 · 58 Fresh · nightSat 00:00 · 33 Blowy · nightSat 01:00 · 33 Blowy · nightSat 02:00 · 33 Blowy · nightSat 03:00 · 33 Blowy · nightSat 04:00 · 33 Blowy · nightSat 05:00 · 33 Blowy · nightSat 06:00 · 5 Grim · nightSat 07:00 · 5 GrimSat 08:00 · 5 GrimSat 09:00 · 5 GrimSat 10:00 · 5 GrimSat 11:00 · 5 GrimSat 12:00 · 5 GrimSat 13:00 · 5 GrimSat 14:00 · 5 GrimSat 15:00 · 5 GrimSat 16:00 · 5 GrimSat 17:00 · 5 GrimSat 18:00 · 5 GrimSat 19:00 · 5 GrimSat 20:00 · 5 Grim · nightSat 21:00 · 5 Grim · nightSat 22:00 · 5 Grim · nightSat 23:00 · 5 Grim · nightSun 00:00 · 5 Grim · nightSun 01:00 · 5 Grim · nightSun 02:00 · 5 Grim · nightSun 03:00 · 5 Grim · nightSun 04:00 · 5 Grim · nightSun 05:00 · 5 Grim · nightSun 06:00 · 5 Grim · nightSun 07:00 · 5 Grim · nightSun 08:00 · 5 GrimSun 09:00 · 5 GrimSun 10:00 · 5 GrimSun 11:00 · 33 BlowySun 12:00 · 33 BlowySun 13:00 · 33 BlowySun 14:00 · 33 BlowySun 15:00 · 33 BlowySun 16:00 · 23 GrimSun 17:00 · 33 BlowySun 18:00 · 33 BlowySun 19:00 · 33 BlowySun 20:00 · 33 Blowy · nightSun 21:00 · 33 Blowy · nightSun 22:00 · 33 Blowy · nightSun 23:00 · 33 Blowy · nightMon 00:00 · 33 Blowy · nightMon 01:00 · 33 Blowy · nightMon 02:00 · 5 Grim · nightMon 03:00 · 5 Grim · nightMon 04:00 · 5 Grim · nightMon 05:00 · 5 Grim · nightMon 06:00 · 5 Grim · nightMon 07:00 · 5 Grim · nightMon 10:00 · 5 GrimMon 13:00 · 5 GrimMon 16:00 · 5 GrimMon 19:00 · 5 GrimMon 22:00 · 5 Grim · nightTue 01:00 · 5 Grim · nightTue 04:00 · 5 Grim · nightTue 07:00 · 5 Grim · nightTue 10:00 · 5 GrimTue 13:00 · 5 GrimTue 16:00 · 5 GrimTue 19:00 · 5 GrimTue 22:00 · 5 Grim · nightWed 01:00 · 5 Grim · nightWed 04:00 · 0 Grim · nightWed 07:00 · 0 Grim · nightWed 10:00 · 0 GrimWed 13:00 · 0 GrimWed 19:00 · 0 GrimThu 01:00 · 0 Grim · nightThu 07:00 · 0 Grim · nightThu 13:00 · 0 GrimThu 19:00 · 0 Grim

Fri, 2 Oct, 10:00

36 Blowy
  • waist-high 0.7 m
  • short period 5 s, choppy
  • cross-shore wind
  • low tide
  • cross wind
NESWsunrisesunset0.7 m15 km/h
faces 93° E · wind cross
Waves
0.7 m @ 5 s from SE
Wind
15 km/h S · gusts 35
Tide
1.2 m · low
Air
15°C · dry

Meteogram

Score, waves, wind (green offshore, amber cross, red onshore), rain and air, tide

Hour by hour

Next 48 hours
TimeSurfWavesPeriodFromWindGustTideRainAirWhy
Today
10:0036 Blowy0.7 m5 sSE15 km/h S351.2 m ▼dry15°waist-high 0.7 m, short period 5 s, choppy, cross-shore wind
11:0028 Blowy0.7 m5 sSE18 km/h SSW401.6 m dry17°waist-high 0.7 m, short period 5 s, choppy, cross-shore wind
12:0028 Blowy0.7 m5 sSE22 km/h SSW442.2 m dry17°waist-high 0.7 m, short period 5 s, choppy, cross-shore wind
13:0028 Blowy0.8 m6 sSE21 km/h S472.9 m dry17°waist-high 0.8 m, short period 6 s, choppy, cross-shore wind
14:0040 Blowy0.9 m6 sSE30 km/h SSW503.4 m 0.1 mm18°waist-high 0.9 m, cross-shore wind
15:0065 Decent1.0 m7 sSE29 km/h SSW503.7 m ▲0.4 mm18°chest-high 1.0 m, cross-shore wind, high tide
16:0065 Decent1.1 m8 sSE28 km/h SSW493.9 m ▲0.7 mm17°chest-high 1.1 m, cross-shore wind, high tide
17:0060 Fresh1.0 m8 sSE20 km/h S483.8 m ▲1.1 mm16°chest-high 1.0 m, cross-shore wind, high tide
18:0060 Fresh1.0 m8 sSE25 km/h SSW443.3 m 1.0 mm16°chest-high 1.0 m, cross-shore wind, rain
19:0083 Grand1.0 m8 sSE30 km/h WSW372.6 m 0.2 mm15°chest-high 1.0 m, offshore wind
20:0058 Fresh0.9 m8 sSE23 km/h WSW321.9 m dry14°waist-high 0.9 m, offshore wind
21:0058 Fresh0.8 m8 sSE22 km/h WSW321.3 m ▼dry13°waist-high 0.8 m, offshore wind, low tide
22:0058 Fresh0.7 m8 sSE18 km/h WSW321.1 m ▼dry12°waist-high 0.7 m, offshore wind, low tide
23:0058 Fresh0.6 m6 sSE18 km/h W311.3 m ▼dry11°waist-high 0.6 m, offshore wind, low tide
Saturday, 3 October
00:0033 Blowy0.6 m6 sSE18 km/h W281.8 m dry11°knee-high 0.6 m, offshore wind
01:0033 Blowy0.5 m6 sSE20 km/h W292.4 m dry10°knee-high 0.5 m, offshore wind
02:0033 Blowy0.5 m6 sSE20 km/h W282.9 m dry9°knee-high 0.4 m, offshore wind
03:0033 Blowy0.4 m6 sSE13 km/h W243.4 m dry9°knee-high 0.4 m, offshore wind, high tide
04:0033 Blowy0.4 m6 sSE7 km/h W193.7 m ▲dry9°knee-high 0.4 m, offshore wind, high tide
05:0033 Blowy0.3 m6 sSE6 km/h WSW173.8 m ▲dry9°knee-high 0.3 m, offshore wind, high tide
06:005 Grim0.3 m5 sSE5 km/h WSW173.5 m dry9°flat
07:005 Grim0.3 m5 sSE7 km/h WSW173.0 m dry9°flat
08:005 Grim0.3 m5 sSE6 km/h WSW172.4 m dry9°flat
09:005 Grim0.2 m5 sSE6 km/h SW171.8 m dry10°flat
10:005 Grim0.2 m5 sSE7 km/h WSW171.4 m ▼dry12°flat
11:005 Grim0.2 m4 sSE9 km/h WSW171.5 m ▼dry13°flat
12:005 Grim0.2 m4 sSE11 km/h WSW181.8 m dry14°flat
13:005 Grim0.2 m4 sSE9 km/h WSW182.3 m dry15°flat
14:005 Grim0.2 m4 sSE8 km/h WSW202.8 m dry16°flat
15:005 Grim0.1 m4 sSE13 km/h SSE233.2 m dry15°flat
16:005 Grim0.1 m4 sSE14 km/h SSE253.5 m ▲dry15°flat
17:005 Grim0.2 m4 sSE12 km/h SSE263.7 m ▲dry15°flat
18:005 Grim0.2 m3 sSE11 km/h SW243.7 m ▲dry16°flat
19:005 Grim0.2 m3 sSE9 km/h SSW223.3 m dry14°flat
20:005 Grim0.2 m3 sSE10 km/h S202.7 m dry13°flat
21:005 Grim0.2 m3 sSE9 km/h SSW212.1 m dry13°flat
22:005 Grim0.2 m3 sSE11 km/h SW201.6 m ▼dry13°flat
23:005 Grim0.2 m3 sSE11 km/h SW191.3 m ▼dry12°flat
Sunday, 4 October
00:005 Grim0.2 m4 sSE8 km/h SW201.4 m ▼dry11°flat
01:005 Grim0.2 m4 sSE8 km/h SSW211.7 m dry12°flat
02:005 Grim0.2 m4 sSE8 km/h SSW222.1 m dry12°flat
03:005 Grim0.2 m4 sSE8 km/h S242.6 m dry12°flat
04:005 Grim0.3 m4 sSE5 km/h SSW273.1 m dry12°flat
05:005 Grim0.3 m4 sSE10 km/h SW293.4 m ▲dry12°flat
06:005 Grim0.3 m4 sSE11 km/h SSW323.6 m ▲dry13°flat
07:005 Grim0.3 m4 sSE10 km/h SSW333.5 m ▲dry13°flat
08:005 Grim0.3 m4 sSE19 km/h SW333.1 m dry15°flat
09:005 Grim0.3 m4 sSE18 km/h SW332.6 m dry15°flat

Where the energy comes from

Wave energy (H²·T) this week by direction, against the swell window

No swell window: this spot is inland or fully sheltered.

Tide today

Howth, 10 km away · metres above chart datum
03:3509:2016:0521:55
High 03:35 · 4.0 mLow 09:20 · 1.1 mHigh 16:05 · 3.9 mLow 21:55 · 1.1 m

The spot

Faces
93° E
Swell window
None (sheltered)
Exposure
Bay · model cell 2.4 km out
Water
Excellent Quality · Blue Flag

Facing and swell window are derived from the wave model's coastline around the spot, not surveyed. Know better? Tell us.

Water quality

Recent grades: 2024 Excellent, 2023 Excellent, 2022 Excellent. The EPA flags a short-term pollution risk here after heavy rain.

Beach profile (PDF) · beaches.ie

On the ground

Lifeguard: 11am to 7pm weekends only in June & full time July & AugustToiletsParkingDogs on lead

As listed by Fingal County Council. Open in Maps.

Sauna after?

The Sea Sauna · Tower Bay Beach, Portrane · 2 km · fixed

Restore Sauna Portmarnock · White Sands Hotel, Coast Road, Portmarnock · 5 km · fixed

The Wood Fired Sauna (Rush) · North Beach, Rush · 6 km · fixed

Mercury Sauna · Portmarnock Beach north car park · 6 km · fixed

Donabate Balcarrick beach is a south-east facing, gently sloping sandy beach consisting of a large sandy dune area.

Put Donabate, Balcarrick Beach in your calendar

Dipper Plus drops the best surf hour here into your phone every day, with waves, sea temperature, tide and a 45-minute nudge. Up to three spots.

Set up Dipper Plus
🏄 Donabate, Balcarrick Beach surf · Grand · sea 15° · 1.0 mFri, 2 Oct 18:30–19:30 · chest-high 1.0 m, offshore wind
🏄 Donabate, Balcarrick Beach surf · Grim · sea 15° · 0.3 mSat, 3 Oct 06:30–07:30 · flat
🏄 Donabate, Balcarrick Beach surf · Blowy · sea 15° · 0.3 mSun, 4 Oct 10:30–11:30 · knee-high 0.3 m, offshore wind, low tide

Nearby spots

Portrane, the Brook Beach

2 km · Co. Dublin · Good Quality

Rush, South Beach

5 km · Co. Dublin · Good Quality

Portmarnock, Velvet Strand Beach

5 km · Co. Dublin · Excellent Quality

Rush North Beach

6 km · Co. Dublin · Excellent Quality

Score is Dipper's own blend. It rates comfort, not safety. Forecast: Met Éireann. Waves: Marine Institute Irish Shelf wave model.