Beach forecast for Fahan
Today, Wednesday, October 28, 2026 · local time (GMT) · Donegal, Ireland Today, Wed, Oct 28 · GMT- Swimming
- Use care · 3.3 ft
- Water
- 54 °F · very cold
- Max UV
- 1 · SPF 15
- Low tide
- 12:42 am and 1:05 pm
Today, Wednesday, October 28, it's not a beach day in Fahan (0/10). Today is the best day of the week.
Beach forecast for the next 7 days
| Day | Rating | Best hours | Swimming | Water | UV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Today | 0Not a beach day | Not today | Use care · 3.3 ft | 54 °F | 1 |
| Thu 29 | 0Not a beach day | No good window | Calm · 1.6 ft | 54 °F | 1 |
| Fri 30 | 0Not a beach day | No good window | Calm · 1.4 ft | 54 °F | 1 |
| Sat 31 | 0Not a beach day | No good window | Calm · 1.4 ft | 54 °F | 0 |
| Sun 1 | 0Not a beach day | No good window | Calm · 1.4 ft | 54 °F | 1 |
| Mon 2 | 0Not a beach day | No good window | Calm · 1.1 ft | 54 °F | — |
| Tue 3 | 0Not a beach day | No good window | Calm · 0.5 ft | 53 °F | — |
Each rating comes from sun, temperature, rain, wind, waves, UV, water temperature and, where there is one, the tide.
Today in detail
- Low tide at 1:05 pm: more sand
- Cloudy (91% cloud cover)
- Feels like 52 °F: chilly for the beach
- Moderate onshore wind (13 mph): choppy water
- Swim with care: 3.3 ft waves every 11 s; moderate rip current risk
- Water at 54 °F (very cold)
Today, hour by hour
- Swimming Use care · 3.3 ft
3.3 ft waves every 11 s: swim with care and stay where you can stand. Moderate rip current risk. Always follow the lifeguard's flags.
- Water 54 °F
Very cold: ease in and keep swims short.
- Sun & sunscreen UV 1 · SPF 15
Max UV 1 (low): SPF 15 sunscreen.
- Wind 13 mph
Moderate onshore wind (13 mph).
- Tide & sand 12:42 am
Low tide at 12:42 am and 1:05 pm: that's when there's the most sand. High tide at 6:56 am and 7:21 pm. Coefficient 101 (spring tides): little sand left at high tide.
The EPA Ireland (beaches.ie) issues its bathing notices in season, from 1 June to 15 September; none are in force now. We don't have data on jellyfish or sargassum: ask the lifeguard or check the flags.
Today, hour by hour
| Time | Rating | Sky | Feels like | Wind | Waves | UV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8:00 am | 0 | Overcast | 49 °F | 9 mph | 3.3 ft | 0 |
| 9:00 am | 0 | Partly cloudy | 49 °F | 10 mph | 3.2 ft | 0 |
| 10:00 am | 0 | Overcast | 49 °F | 11 mph | 3.1 ft | 0 |
| 11:00 am | 0 | Partly cloudy | 48 °F | 13 mph | 3.1 ft | 1 |
| 12:00 pm | 0 | Overcast | 51 °F | 12 mph | 3.1 ft | 1 |
| 1:00 pm | 0 | Overcast | 51 °F | 12 mph | 3.0 ft | 1 |
| 2:00 pm | 0 | Overcast | 51 °F | 12 mph | 3.0 ft | 1 |
| 3:00 pm | 0 | Overcast | 51 °F | 11 mph | 3.0 ft | 0 |
| 4:00 pm | 0 | Overcast | 52 °F | 8 mph | 2.9 ft | 0 |
Beach hours only: from one hour after sunrise to half an hour before sunset.
Beaches near Fahan
Map: OpenFreeMap · © OpenMapTiles · © OpenStreetMap contributors
- Lisfannon Beach 0.5 mi · NW
- Restrooms
Good water quality 2025 season, EEA
- Brown Shore 0.7 mi · SW
- Carricknaha 1.2 mi · W
- Back Bay 1.7 mi · W
- Buncrana Beach 2.0 mi · N
- Parking
Sufficient water quality 2025 season, EEA
- Millybay 2.7 mi · SW
- Mullanadee Shore 2.7 mi · SW
- Porthaw Beach 3.9 mi · N
- Parking
Named beaches within 6.2 mi, nearest first. Amenities from OpenStreetMap: some may be missing or out of date. View on OpenStreetMap · Add or fix on OpenStreetMap
Beaches and amenities: © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL). Bathing water quality: European Environment Agency (EEA), with data from the authorities of Ireland.
Webcams near Fahan
Webcams provided by windy.com — add a webcam
How we rate a beach day
We rate every beach hour from 0 to 10 with simple, fixed rules:
- Adds: sunshine (up to 3 points, fewer with more clouds), warmth (up to 4, from the feels-like temperature; ideal between 81 °F and 91 °F), a calm sea (1), water at 70 °F or warmer (1; from 64 °F, half) and low or mid tide (1: more sand). Anything without data is left out and the rest is scaled to 10.
- Takes away: cold (feels-like below 64 °F, 1 to 4 points), rain (half a point if likely, up to 6 if it rains; thunderstorms, 8), wind from force 4, about 12 mph (1 to 6 points; half a point more if offshore, which blows inflatables out to sea, or onshore, which churns the water), waves (1 to swim with care, 4 if dangerous, 1 more for high rip current risk), very high UV (half a point; extreme, 1), water below 59 °F (1) and spring high tides (1: little sand left).
- Swimming: calm, use care (waves from 2.6 ft, or long swell) or dangerous (from 6.6 ft, or 4.9 ft with a long period), based on how much of the wave reaches this shore given the way it faces. In the U.S., today's and tomorrow's rip current risk comes from the National Weather Service surf zone forecast when it issues one; otherwise we estimate it from the waves.
- Best windows: runs of 2 to 5 hours rated 4 or more and close to the best hour, at least one hour apart.
- Day rating: the average of the best window; a 2-hour window keeps 85% of it and a 3-hour window 95%.
Today, in the best window: sun 0 of 3, warmth 0 of 4, calm sea 0 of 1, water 0 of 1 and tide 0 of 1; minus cold 4, waves 1, cold water 1 and high tide 1; short window: the rating keeps 85%.
It's a guide, not a guarantee: weather changes and every beach is different. Always follow the lifeguard's flags.
Questions about the beach in Fahan
Is it a beach day in Fahan today?
Not a beach day: 0/10. No good beach time today.
What are the swimming conditions in Fahan today?
3.3 ft waves every 11 s: swim with care and stay where you can stand. Moderate rip current risk. Always follow the lifeguard's flags.
How warm is the water in Fahan?
About 54 °F today: very cold. That's the sea surface temperature offshore; it can differ a little at the shoreline.
How much sun protection do I need in Fahan today?
UV reaches 1 (low): SPF 15 sunscreen, sunglasses and a hat.
When is low tide in Fahan?
Today low tide is at 12:42 am and 1:05 pm: that's when there's the most sand. High tide is at 6:56 am and 7:21 pm. Coefficient 101 (spring tides): little sand left at high tide.
What about tomorrow? Will it be a beach day in Fahan?
Tomorrow, Thursday, October 29: not a beach day (0/10).
What beaches are near Fahan?
Lisfannon Beach (0.5 mi), Brown Shore (0.7 mi), Carricknaha (1.2 mi), Back Bay (1.7 mi) and Buncrana Beach (2.0 mi). See below for amenities and water quality.
Are there jellyfish or sargassum today?
We don't know: there's no open data on jellyfish or sargassum. Ask the lifeguard or check the flags. The EPA Ireland (beaches.ie) issues its bathing notices in season, from 1 June to 15 September; none are in force now.
How is the rating worked out?
From the hourly forecast: sun and clouds, feels-like temperature, rain, wind (and whether it blows onshore or offshore), waves and their period, UV, water temperature and, where there is one, the tide. Each factor adds or takes away a fixed number of points and the rating sums them up out of 10.
More about Fahan today
Learn more
Our own calculation, using the Open-Meteo forecast (ECMWF, NOAA GFS, Météo-France, Copernicus Marine and CAMS, CC BY 4.0), the tide from Buncrana (Marine Institute) and the sun from astronomy-engine. Marine Institute, Ireland: tide prediction for Buncrana, https://erddap.marine.ie/erddap/tabledap/imiTidePrediction.html. Licensed CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Modified: harmonic constants fitted by TidePlanet from the hourly prediction of 2026.