County Wexford

The south-east claims the sunniest weather and the longest sandy beaches: Hook Head's lighthouse, Curracloe's strand and an opera town on the Slaney.

County Wexford facts

Province: Leinster
County town: Wexford
Setting: East coast
Touring region: Ireland's Ancient East
Best for: coast, family, history, food, castles
Places in the planner: 4

County Wexford, in Ireland's southeast corner, claims some of the country's sunniest weather and its longest stretches of sandy beach. Wexford town, founded by Vikings, sits on the Slaney estuary and is known for its opera festival, narrow lanes and harbour front.

The Hook Peninsula in the southwest holds one of the world's oldest working lighthouses, while the coast runs from Courtown and Curracloe's well-known strand, a film location for Saving Private Ryan, to the bird-rich Wexford Wildfowl Reserve. Inland, Enniscorthy and New Ross carry the story of the 1798 Rebellion and the Kennedy homestead at Dunganstown. Wexford's combination is hard to beat for families: safe sandy beaches, the heritage park, boat trips and wildlife, all within a compact county. The bird reserve is at its best in winter, when thousands of Greenland white-fronted geese return to the slobs.

Top sights in Wexford

Hook Lighthouse

One of the oldest operational lighthouses in the world, at the tip of the Hook Peninsula.

Curracloe Beach

A long, sandy Blue Flag strand famous as a film location and family beach.

Irish National Heritage Park

An open-air park near Wexford town recreating 9,000 years of Irish settlement.

Wexford Wildfowl Reserve

Wintering grounds for Greenland white-fronted geese on the North Slob.

Dunbrody Famine Ship, New Ross

A replica emigrant ship telling the story of 19th-century emigration.

Towns & cities in Wexford

Wexford

Vikings founded the port, opera fills the autumn, and the quay along the Slaney is where the town starts. Wexford is the county town, at the mouth of the River Slaney.

Ferns

A small village with an outsized past: an early monastic centre and the capital of the Kingdom of Leinster under Diarmait Mac Murchada. Ferns stands in County Wexford, with a 13th-century castle at its heart.

Wexford Town

County town on the harbour, known for opera and its medieval lanes.

Enniscorthy

Town on the River Slaney beneath Vinegar Hill.

New Ross

Port town on the Barrow with the Dunbrody ship and Kennedy links.

Gorey

Market town in north Wexford near the Courtown coast.

Best time to visit

Summer suits Wexford's beaches best, and the town's opera festival fills late autumn. Spring and early autumn are fine for the Hook Peninsula and coastal walks.

Getting there

Wexford town is about two hours south of Dublin by motorway. Rosslare Europort, in the county's southeast, has ferry links to Wales and France.

Places for your trip

Wexford: Vikings founded the port, opera fills the autumn, and the quay along the Slaney is where the town starts. Wexford is the county town, at the mouth of the River Slaney.
Hook Lighthouse: Hook Lighthouse on the Hook Peninsula is one of the oldest operating lighthouses in the world.
Ferns: A small village with an outsized past: an early monastic centre and the capital of the Kingdom of Leinster under Diarmait Mac Murchada. Ferns stands in County Wexford, with a 13th-century castle at its heart.
Irish National Heritage Park: The Irish National Heritage Park near Wexford town is an open-air museum of reconstructed historic dwellings.

What's on

Wexford Festival Opera

14–30 Oct 2027 · Wexford Town

Seventeen days of rare and rediscovered opera in the National Opera House on Wexford's quays. The 2027 programme was announced in October 2026.

Official site

All events in this county

Nearby counties