Hot tubs, saunas and seaweed soaks on Ireland’s west coast
Sea swimming has become a big thing on Ireland’s wild Atlantic coast, as have fun and creative methods of warming up after a bracing dip
Ireland has some extraordinarily beautiful beaches: Derrynane in Kerry and Connemara’s Glassilaun easily hold their own against Caribbean counterparts. Unfortunately, the country’s weather can rarely do the same, often making a trip to the coast a damp proposition. However, rather than escaping the harshness of the climate with a visit to warmer climes, a new generation of Irish people are embracing their cold seas – but doing it from the vantage point of mobile saunas and seaweed-filled whiskey barrels parked on the shore.
This Scandinavian-inspired solution to an Irish problem is reimagining the country’s beaches, where summer water temperatures peak at around 15C. The renewed popularity of traditional year-round sea swimming at Dublin’s Forty Foot and Galway’s Blackrock Diving Tower has inspired dozens of new swimming communities across the country, including Rise & Swim in Cork and Dublin Sea Swimming.