Inch Beach

Inch is not a bay beach but a spit: a tongue of sand about five kilometres long reaching south from the Dingle peninsula into Dingle Bay, with the open Atlantic on one side and a sheltered lagoon and dune system on the other. The sand is firm enough that driving onto it has been standard practice for generations, and cars park along the strand in summer. It has a consistent enough beach break to be one of Kerry's main surf beaches, with a school and hire operating in season. Ryan's Daughter and The Playboy of the Western World were both filmed here. The dune system behind is fragile and important for its plants and nesting birds. Two things to be clear about: the tide comes in fast across flat sand and vehicles have been caught, and the beach is only lifeguarded at the near end and only in high summer.

The landscape

• The spit - five kilometres of sand reaching into Dingle Bay.
• The dunes and lagoon - the sheltered system behind the strand.
• The surf - a consistent break, with schools operating in season.
• The cars on the sand - long-standing local practice, and its risks.

When to go

May to September. Lifeguards cover a limited area in July and August only. Check the tide before driving on - the flat sand floods quickly.

Good to know

Rip currents are present and lifeguard cover is limited in area and season. Vehicles get caught by the incoming tide most years. The dunes are fragile - stay off them. Facilities are limited to the car park end.

Nearby

Annascaul and Dingle are west; Castlemaine and the Ring of Kerry are east.

Key facts