Salthill Promenade

The prom runs about two kilometres along Galway Bay from the edge of the city out to Blackrock, and walking it is the standard Galway outing in any weather. At the Blackrock end is the local custom: you kick the wall before turning around, a small ritual with no known origin that everyone does and nobody explains, and which Steve Earle's song about Galway Girl and later Ed Sheeran's put into wider circulation. Blackrock also has a diving tower, a concrete platform used for jumping into the bay year-round, including by the swimmers who go in every morning through the winter. The bay view runs to the Burren hills across the water. There are beaches along the prom - Ladies Beach, Grattan and Salthill itself - lifeguarded in summer. It is exposed to Atlantic weather, and in a westerly the spray comes clean over the sea wall, which is part of why locals walk it.

What you'll find

• The wall at Blackrock - kicked by everyone who reaches the end.
• The diving tower - used for jumping into the bay year-round.
• The Burren view - the Clare hills across Galway Bay.
• The beaches - Ladies, Grattan and Salthill, lifeguarded in summer.

When to go

Any season - locals walk it year-round and winter storms are part of the appeal. April to September for swimming, with lifeguards in high summer. Sunset over the bay is the classic time.

Good to know

Fully exposed - spray comes over the wall in westerly weather and the prom is genuinely dangerous in storm conditions. The diving tower is unsupervised. Beaches are small and fill on hot days.

Nearby

Galway city and the Claddagh are east along the shore; Barna and Connemara run west.