WorldIreland › Sligo › Bay Break

Bay Break 64.0

#2787 of 5756 surf spots in the world · 🇮🇪 Ireland · Sligo · near Sligo

Very consistent, no off season, thick rubber.

Works all yearIntermediate
Bay Break, Ireland
Photo: Dieglop · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Surf score64.0 /100
Surfable days81% of the year
Clean days31% groundswell + friendly wind
Groundswell40% period 11 s+
Typical size1.1 m 3.5 ft median
Water12°C a 5/4 with boots and hood

Best time to surf Bay Break

The best time to surf Bay Break is January, February, December. The season runs Dec to Mar. In February the water sits around 8°C, so pack a 6/5 with boots, gloves and hood, and the typical wave is 1.7 m. The nearest airport is BFS (160 km) and the nearest town is Sligo (8 km).

MonthSurfableCleanSizeWaterSuit
Jan94%54%1.5 m9°C6/5
Feb95%72%1.7 m8°C6/5
Mar88%48%1.3 m9°C6/5
Apr71%24%0.8 m10°C6/5
May78%16%0.8 m12°C5/4
Jun69%7%0.8 m13°C4/3
Jul58%2%0.6 m16°C4/3
Aug64%4%0.8 m16°C3/2
Sep79%19%1.0 m15°C4/3
Oct90%29%1.3 m13°C4/3
Nov93%36%1.4 m12°C5/4
Dec92%52%1.4 m10°C5/4

What is under Bay Break

Eight kilometres out along its swell window the sea floor sits over 25 m.

Depth 8 km out25 m
Depth 4 km out12 m

Measured, not estimated: NOAA ETOPO 2022 global relief at 15 arc-seconds, about 460 m per cell, sampled along this spot’s own swell window. At that scale the survey sees passes and channels; it cannot see a reef ledge, so nothing here is said about how the wave breaks.

Why 64.0

Seven parts, each normalised 0 to 1 and multiplied by its weight; the sum is scaled so the best spot in the world scores 100. Wave quality and what the spot does on its best days carry more than half of it, which is what separates this from a ranking of where the water is warm.

Wave quality 34.7%
12.4
Best days 22.4%
12.3
Clean days 18.4%
14.0
Consistency 10.2%
9.6
Season spread 4.1%
4.1
Water comfort 6.1%
0.0
Access 4.1%
3.0

The detail

Faces 326° with 33% open water around it. Friendly morning wind 77% of days. Mean peak period 10.8 s. Days over 3 m: 3%. On its best tenth of days it reaches 2.2 m, with a peak period of 13 s. Mellow days (0.4 to 1.2 m): 52%. Months that work: 12 of 12. Coordinates 54.279, -8.606 (OpenStreetMap).

What it costs to be here

Living here
€1,500/ month
typically €1,320 – €1,680
Rent, one bedroom€786
Groceries€314
Eating out€178
Getting around€106
Phone + internet€110
Renting by the month, cooking most days, local transport.
One month here
€2,920/ month
typically €2,570 – €3,260
Somewhere to stay€1,720
Eating out€612
Car, transfers, fuel€395
Data + extras€187
Short stays, eating out, a car or transfers.
49% cheaper if you live here instead of visiting

Remote spot, so the local estimate is 15% below the country average. Estimate: World Bank PPP price level for Ireland (2025, United States = 1.00) applied to a fixed surfer basket, then adjusted for how remote the spot is. Your own number moves with the season and how you live.

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Spots nearby

Aneho Beach🇹🇬 Togo · score 69.8Malibu🇺🇸 United States of America · score 70.0La machacona🇪🇸 Spain · score 69.9Ocean Park🇺🇸 United States of America · score 68.5
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