Satellite: Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 by EOX (CC BY 4.0). Outline and points © OpenStreetMap contributors / Natural Earth. North up.
In numbers
148km²
Area
144km
Coastline
688m
Highest point
Croaghaun
2,569
People
15°C
Warmest sea
August
679km
To the mainland
When to go to Achill Island
Good all year round.
The sea is warmest in August (15 °C) and coolest in February (9 °C). The water never reaches 21 °C: bring a wetsuit.
Averages 1991–2020. Sea: NOAA OISST, the water within 35 km of the coast. Air, rain and sun: NASA POWER. Best months weigh warm afternoons (23–30 °C), sea of 24 °C or more and few wet days.
Largest of the Irish isles, situated off the west coast of Ireland
Achill Island is an island in Ireland. It belongs to British Isles. It covers 148 km², with 144 km of coastline. Its highest point, Croaghaun, rises to 688 m. About 2,569 people live on it. The nearest mainland is 679 km away.
Getting there
- Ireland West Airport Knock (NOC)nearest airport with scheduled flights · 80 km in a straight lineCar hire at NOC airport (Charlestown)Discover Cars · Affiliate link↗
- FerriesInishbiggle Ferry Service, Achill - Clare Island
- 679 km from the mainlanddistance to the nearest continental coast
Plan the trip
Ferries, stays and things to do
Some links above are affiliate links: if you book through them we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you. It never changes what the data on this page says.
On the island
What you find on Achill Island.
- 37beachesKeel Beach, Keem Beach, Dooagh Strand and 34 more
- 9viewpoints
- 2ferry terminalsBullsmouth Pier, Achill Island (Cloughmore) Pier
- 1marinas
- 12named peaksCroaghaun, Slievemore, Croaghaun SW Top and 9 more
- 1castles and fortsKildownet Castle
- 69ruins and archaeological sitesMegalithic Tomb, Achill Island Signal Tower, Old Crane and 66 more
- 5waymarked walking routesThe Saula Loop, Valley Loop Walk, Dooagh Trail and 2 more
- 4campsitesKeel Camping, Lavelle's, Safe Night Ireland and 1 more
- 26hotels, guesthouses and apartments
- 13restaurants, cafés and bars
Counted in OpenStreetMap, the map anyone can edit, inside the island's outline. A low number may only mean nobody has mapped it yet.
Cross-checked with our atlases
Achill Island in our other atlases
Everything Coastya, Peakyas, Lakeyas and Cascadyas know about what lies inside Achill Island, each with its own numbers.
14beaches and covesCoastya
4mountainsPeakyas
4lakesLakeyas
Highest point
688m
Croaghaun
prominence 688 m · according to Peakyas
Largest lake
0.74km²
Keel Lough
according to Lakeyas
Warmest lake
19.5°C
Dooniver Lough
surface water, warmest month · according to Lakeyas
Beach with the warmest sea
15.4°C
Trawmore Sand
sea in the warmest month · according to Coastya
14 beaches
on Coastya, the beach atlas
- Dooniver Strand15.2°C
- Trawmore Sand15.4°C
- Keem Strand15.4°C
- Dooagh Strand15.4°C
- Annagh Strand15.2°C
- Barnynagappul Strand15.2°C
- Gubnahardia Strand15.2°C
- Ooghnasaunacove15.4°C
6 more on CoastyaOpen Coastya ↗
4 mountains
on Peakyas, the mountain atlas
- Croaghaunprominence 688 m688m
- Slievemoreprominence 582 m671m
- Maumnaman
- Doogort
4 lakes
on Lakeyas, the lake atlas
- Keel Lough0.74km²
- Dooniver Lough0.38km²
- Sraheens Lough0.18km²
- Lough Acorrymore0.13km²
Lakeyas is coming soonOpen Lakeyas ↗
The shape of the land.
On average the island stands 100 m above the sea. 85 % of it is below 200 m.
- 46 %0–50 m
- 40 %50–200 m
- 14 %200–500 m
- 2 %500–1,000 m
Share of the island's area in each altitude band, from the Copernicus DEM (30 m, read at 30–240 m on large islands).
Size, for real
Next to islands you may know.
10 km
All outlines drawn to the same scale (Natural Earth and OpenStreetMap).
Month by month
The weather on the island.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Afternoon high (°C) | 8 | 8 | 9 | 11 | 13 | 15 | 16 | 16 | 15 | 13 | 11 | 9 |
| Night low (°C) | 6 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 9 | 11 | 13 | 13 | 12 | 10 | 8 | 6 |
| Sea (°C) | 10 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 13 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 13 | 12 | 10 |
| Rain (mm) | 134 | 106 | 96 | 76 | 88 | 91 | 109 | 116 | 106 | 127 | 141 | 143 |
| Wet days | 22 | 19 | 19 | 17 | 17 | 18 | 21 | 22 | 20 | 21 | 23 | 23 |
| Sun h/day | 0.9 | 2.3 | 3.8 | 6.0 | 7.0 | 6.2 | 5.1 | 4.8 | 3.9 | 2.6 | 1.1 | 0.6 |
| Wind (km/h) | 32 | 30 | 28 | 24 | 24 | 22 | 21 | 23 | 25 | 28 | 29 | 31 |
Averages 1991–2020 for the ~55 km NASA POWER cell over the island; the sea from NOAA OISST.
Recent years
Warmer and cooler years at sea.
Each month's sea temperature compared with its 1991–2020 average, in degrees.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | −0.2 | +0.1 | +0.1 | +0.2 | +0.4 | −0.1 | −0.8 | +0.2 | +0.2 | −0.4 | −0.1 | −0.1 |
| 2021 | −0.2 | +0.2 | +0.4 | +0.1 | ±0.0 | −0.4 | +1.3 | +0.2 | +1.1 | +0.4 | +0.3 | ±0.0 |
| 2022 | +0.1 | +0.4 | +0.5 | +0.8 | +1.2 | +0.3 | ±0.0 | +0.2 | +1.0 | +0.5 | +0.7 | +0.3 |
| 2023 | +0.3 | +0.4 | +0.5 | +0.4 | +1.3 | +2.7 | +1.1 | +0.6 | +1.2 | +0.9 | +0.8 | +0.1 |
| 2024 | ±0.0 | +0.6 | +0.6 | +0.7 | +1.1 | −0.4 | −0.6 | −0.5 | −0.2 | ±0.0 | +0.7 | +0.5 |
| 2025 | +0.4 | +0.6 | +0.9 | +1.1 | +2.3 | +0.9 | +0.9 | +0.9 | ±0.0 | −0.1 | +0.3 | +0.2 |
+1 warmer than usual −1 cooler than usual
Photos
Seen by visitors.
Nearby
More islands nearby.
Ireland
Ireland84,421 km²1,039 m155 km away
Inis MórIreland32 km²123 m95 km away
Inis MeáinIreland9.8 km²79 m102 km away
Inis OírrIreland6.2 km²57 m106 km away
ArranmoreIreland18 km²16 m150 km away
Tory IslandIreland3.6 km²62 m186 km away
Valentia IslandIreland26 km²267 m230 km away
Skellig MichaelIreland0.22 km²218 m246 km awayAbout these numbers
| Names, area, population | Wikidata (Q631581) · CC0 |
|---|---|
| Outline | © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL |
| Sea temperature | NOAA OISST v2.1 · 1991–2020 |
| Climate | NASA POWER · 1991–2020 |
| Relief, 3D model | Copernicus DEM GLO-30 · © DLR e.V., © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, Copernicus/ESA |
| Beaches, ports, lighthouses, trails | © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL |
| Towns | GeoNames · CC BY 4.0 |
| Images | EOX Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 · CC BY 4.0; Wikimedia Commons |
| Beaches, mountains, lakes and waterfalls | Coastya, Peakyas, Lakeyas — Wikidata · CC0; © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL; GeoNames · CC BY 4.0; NOAA OISST; HydroLAKES (Messager et al. 2016) · CC BY 4.0, LakeTEMP (Korver et al. 2024) · CC BY 4.0 |
Every figure is an average, an estimate or a count from a public dataset. Licences and methods: data sources.
The family
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