Arthurstown to Duncannon Coastal Walk Co Wexford
We decided to start the coastal walk at Killesk church (Eircode Y34 AV90) on the Duncannon road as it allowed us to park our car in a safe location and it removed all the road walking from this trail. The church entrance is opposite the trail here. We have a 6-week old baby in our hiking family, so we needed to bring our buggies and avoid the metal stairs at the Arthurstown start point here.
Walk key information
** This trail is open to the public but it is not fully finished yet**
- Distance- out and back walk 4km total
- Time- 1 hour 30mins – 2 hours (With kids)
- Parking- Available at church (Eircode Y34 AV90) or Arthurstown Quay
- Difficulty- 3 out of 10. The path is not finished yet.
- Recommendation- 7 out of 10. This has great potential when complete.
- Buggy friendly- Very bumpy must start from Duncannon side
- Length- 2km to Arthurstown and 2km back to Duncannon, 4km total.
About the Arthurstown to Duncannon walk
Killesk Church is directly opposite our starting point. We parked on the church grounds and started our walk on a dust path that cuts through the farmland of Dunbrody house. The walk initially cuts through 2 fields with distant sea views to our left. This is a perfect location to let the 2 and 4-year-olds release energy after their long drive. You can find out more about this beautiful Wexford coast walk here.
We reach a cross junction with some old signposts point straight on. Turn left here and go down the hill into the mature woodland. The map below shows the correct route to take.
We continued straight (this was the wrong direction) and walked until we reached the Dunbrody house hotel. We knew this was not correct and turned around.
Junction for Arthurstown coastal path
After we turned down the hill toward Arthurstown, we walked into a shaded dense woodland. The forest floor was covered in thousands of bluebells.
The path had a very poor surface which was barely suitable for buggies but with a bit of Daddy power, we made our way down to the bottom. The hill down was steep and all we were thinking was how hard this was going to be walking back up with 2 buggies.
When we came out of the woodland we were greeted with beautiful coastal views. The path cut through dense gorse bushes on one side and the sea filled with passing boats on the other side. The gorse bushes provided an amazing coconut scent to our walk.
We walked to the end of the trail where Wexford Council are adjusting the walk to provide better access at the Arthurstown starting point. We had a small picnic here admiring the beautiful Wexford coastline. Wexford is really a beautiful county.
Would we recommend the Arthurstown to Duncannon Coastal Walk?
Yes, our children loved this walk. When the signposting and surface are improved, we can see this walk becoming an annual walk for our little family. It’s hard to give negative feedback about the lack of signs, as it’s still a work in progress. Once this walk is finished it will be a fabulous walk.
Is the coastal walk child safe?
We feel it is safe for children. Most of the dangerous sections are either fenced off or not too steep. If you don’t walk the Duncannon road section the walk is totally safe and really beautiful.
Is the walk buggy friendly?
It is buggy friendly to an extent. If you have a big-wheeled buggy it would be more suited to this trail. We walked this trail with a mountain buggy and travel buggy but did find it difficult in stages due to surface conditions.
Note– It’s only buggy friendly from the Duncannon side as there is a large metal staircase on the Arthurstown side of the walk.
Activities after our walk- Duncannon Beach
Sadly, this was our first time visiting Duncannon. We drove down to the beach and to our great surprise and excitement we could drive onto the beach. This proved to be a great novelty with the children and parents alike.
This was a great spot for a bit of lunch, sandcastles and soaking our feet after our 4km walk. We highly recommend Duncannon beach after your Arthurstown to Duncannon walk.
This was a great way to finish off our Wexford adventure. We truly had a great time exploring these little hidden gems in Wexford. Hopefully, we can find some more.
