Top 10 Lighthouses in The Irish Coast
The Irish coast is among the most demanding in the world for mariners. Exposed on three sides to the full fetch of the North Atlantic, Ireland's 2,500 kilometres of coastline includes some of the most powerful sea conditions in the northern hemisphere: the Fastnet Rock in heavy weather, the tide-ripped passages around Malin Head, the swell that builds along the Connemara coast from storms that began their lives off Newfoundland. The Commissioners of Irish Lights, established in 1796 and responsible for aids to navigation around the entire island, responded to this challenge with a network of towers whose engineering quality stands comparison with anything in Britain or France. The engineer George Halpin senior built dozens of stations in the early nineteenth century, working at exceptional speed and to high standards of structural integrity; his son George Halpin junior continued the work through the mid-century. Many of their towers — Fastnet excepted — remain unchanged in their external form to this day, whitewashed against the Atlantic, their lights automated but their presence unchanged.
1. Fastnet Rock Lighthouse, County Cork
Fastnet Rock, the outermost point of Ireland and the last sight of land for westbound transatlantic voyagers — 'Ireland's Teardrop' — carries the most technically ambitious lighthouse in the British Isles. The first tower, completed in 1854 by George Halpin, was found to move perceptibly in severe storms; it was replaced by the current granite tower, designed by William Douglass and built between 1897 and 1904. The new tower is 54 metres tall, built of Cornish granite blocks interlocked without mortar in courses that bind the tower together as loading increases. The light shows a white flash every five seconds with a range of 27 nautical miles. The rock is 13 kilometres south of Mizen Head and completely exposed to Atlantic weather. The Fastnet Race, one of offshore sailing's greatest events, uses the rock as its turning mark. Automation came in 1989. There is no public visitor access to the rock.
2. Hook Head Lighthouse, County Wexford
Hook Head lighthouse, at the southern tip of the Hook Peninsula in Wexford Harbour, is one of the oldest working lighthouses in the world. A fire beacon was maintained on the head by monks from the fifth century; the present tower was built by the Anglo-Norman lord William Marshal between 1172 and 1245 as part of his development of New Ross as a port. The round stone tower, reinforced by massive battered walls at its base, is 35 metres tall and shows a white flash every three seconds with a range of 23 nautical miles. The lighthouse is managed by Irish Lights as an active aid to navigation and heritage attraction; it is open to the public year-round, with guided tower tours available daily. The visitor centre within the adjacent keeper's buildings is among the best maritime heritage facilities in Ireland.
3. Fanad Head Lighthouse, County Donegal
The Fanad Head lighthouse was built in 1817 following the wreck of the frigate HMS Saldanha in Lough Swilly in 1811, in which 253 men were lost. The white tower stands on a dramatic promontory at the entry to Lough Swilly with views north across the open Atlantic to Scotland's Islay coast on clear days. The lighthouse is 24 metres tall with a focal plane of 39 metres; the white and red group flash every five seconds carries 18 nautical miles in white. The station was automated in 1983 and the keeper's cottages were converted to self-catering holiday accommodation, which has been operating for several decades as one of the most popular lighthouse lets in Ireland. The headland is accessible by road from Portsalon and the cliff walks around it offer some of the finest coastal scenery in Donegal, with seabird colonies on the stacks below and porpoises frequently visible in the lough.
4. Old Head of Kinsale Lighthouse, County Cork
The Old Head of Kinsale is a narrow peninsula jutting six kilometres into the sea south of Kinsale, one of the most prominent headlands on the south Irish coast. The lighthouse was built by George Halpin junior in 1853, replacing an earlier signal tower on the head. The black-banded white tower is 22 metres tall with a focal plane of 72 metres; the white flash every five seconds carries 20 nautical miles. The head marks the approach to Kinsale from the west and is close to the position where the liner RMS Lusitania was torpedoed on 7 May 1915, with the loss of 1,198 lives. The headland is now a private golf course and public access to the lighthouse is restricted, though Irish Lights conducts occasional heritage open days. The light is visible from the Kinsale coast road and from the sea approach.
5. Loop Head Lighthouse, County Clare
Loop Head marks the tip of the Loop Head Peninsula in County Clare, the finger of land that divides the Shannon estuary from the open Atlantic. The lighthouse was built by George Halpin junior in 1854; the white tower is 23 metres tall with a focal plane of 84 metres, and the character is a white flash every four seconds visible for 23 nautical miles. The head was previously marked by a coal-burning fire on a platform, maintained from the seventeenth century; the current tower replaced an 1802 lighthouse when that structure proved inadequate. Loop Head is part of the Wild Atlantic Way and is one of the most visited lighthouse headlands in Ireland. Irish Lights opened the lighthouse for public tours in 2016 after automation; the tower can be climbed and the views encompass the Shannon mouth, the Aran Islands, and the Dingle Peninsula across the water.
6. Baily Lighthouse, County Dublin
The Baily lighthouse on Howth Head, the headland east of Dublin that forms the northern arm of Dublin Bay, has guided vessels into Dublin port since 1814. The white tower by George Halpin stands 13 metres tall on a cliff 40 metres above the sea, achieving a focal plane of 41 metres and a white flash every twenty seconds visible for 18 nautical miles. An earlier signal fire stood on the summit of Howth Head itself, too high for vessels to see in fog; the lower position solved the problem. The lighthouse is automated and not open to the public, but the surrounding Howth Head coastal path — one of the finest walks in County Dublin — passes near it, and the setting with Dublin Bay spread out below and the Wicklow Mountains to the south is spectacular. Howth village and DART station are within easy reach.
7. Wicklow Head Lighthouse, County Wicklow
Wicklow Head carries three lighthouse towers, of which two are disused and one is active. The original octagonal towers of 1781 are among the earliest lighthouse structures in Ireland; the later cylindrical tower, added in 1818, was raised in height in 1872. The active tower is 36 metres tall with a focal plane of 37 metres and shows a white and red character every five seconds. The head marks the most significant headland on the Wicklow coast and guards the approach to Wicklow Harbour from the north. The disused towers are now available as holiday accommodation through Irish Landmark Trust, making this one of the few places in Ireland where visitors can stay inside an eighteenth-century lighthouse tower. The tower lets are managed by the Irish Landmark Trust; the setting on the open headland with views to the Sugar Loaf mountain and south along the Wicklow coast is exceptional.
8. Mizen Head Signal Station, County Cork
Mizen Head, Ireland's most southwesterly point, was the site of a signal station rather than a conventional lighthouse; the light here is a fog signal installation on a sea stack connected to the headland by a suspension bridge. Built in 1906 as a fog signal and signal station for transatlantic telegraph cables, the complex includes the bridge, the engine room for the fog signal, and the keepers' quarters. The Mizen Head Visitor Centre now occupies the station, which was decommissioned in 1993; it is one of the most visited tourist attractions in West Cork and one of the finest coastal headland experiences in Ireland. The station is accessible year-round; the suspension bridge crossing to the sea stack, the engine room museum, and the dramatic cliff views make it a full half-day destination.
9. Tory Island Lighthouse, County Donegal
The Tory Island lighthouse, on the westernmost inhabited island off the Donegal coast, was built by George Halpin in 1832. The white Scotch granite tower is 27 metres tall on the island's most exposed southwest point; the character is a white flash every four seconds visible for 27 nautical miles. Tory Island lies 14 kilometres offshore and the passage between it and the mainland is one of the more challenging short sea crossings in Ireland, regularly impassable in Atlantic swells. The island is an Irish-speaking community of around 120 people; the lighthouse is automated and not accessible to visitors, but the island is served by ferry from Magheroarty and Bunbeg. The lighthouse is visible on arrival by sea; the island itself is famous for its naive art school, its traditional music, and the King of Tory, a community leader elected by the islanders.
10. Mine Head Lighthouse, County Waterford
Mine Head lighthouse on the Waterford coast was built by George Halpin junior in 1851 and marks the outer approach to Waterford Harbour and the Suir estuary, one of the principal ports of the south Irish coast. The white tower is 34 metres tall with a focal plane of 87 metres; the white flash every four seconds carries 28 nautical miles. The head lies on a stretch of coast between Dungarvan and Dunmore East that is exposed to southerly swells, and several wrecks on the offshore ledges preceded the lighthouse's construction. The lighthouse is automated; the surrounding headland is part of the Copper Coast UNESCO Geopark, a designated area of geological interest stretching along the Waterford shore. The Mine Head coastal path connects to the wider Waterford Greenway network, making the lighthouse accessible on foot or bicycle from Dungarvan.
Visiting the Irish Coast Lighthouses
Irish Lights operates a small number of lighthouse visitor centres and permits tours at selected stations. Hook Head and Loop Head offer the most complete experiences, with guided access to the lantern room and exhibition facilities in the keeper's buildings. The lighthouse holiday lets at Fanad Head and Wicklow Head provide full immersion in the keeper's environment. The Wild Atlantic Way, Ireland's western coastal tourist route, passes within sight of most of the Atlantic stations. The best months for touring are May through September; summer brings long evenings and the possibility of seeing dolphins, minke whales, and basking sharks from the headlands. Open the map to locate every lighthouse along the Irish coast.