Quiet, flat sands and great winds make our beaches ideal for sunshine holidays and all kinds of water sports for both the experienced and novices alike.

Rhyl Beaches

Opposite the top of the High Street is the main resort beach and the busiest beach in Rhyl During the season our lifeguards will keep an eye on you to ensure your safety in and out of the water, and deal with any issues that arise, so that you have an enjoyable visit. Don’t forget if you’re on our beaches, the tides go in and out, so don’t get caught out on a sandbank when there is an incoming tide, check the tide times and stay safe.

Rhyl Central

Has the Seaside Award flag, which means that the water meets mandatory standard quality, and the beach is clean, safe and well managed. As this is our busiest beach, there is a restriction on dogs from May – September.

Rhyl East

Stretching from the Coastguard station past the Suncentre and onto Old Golf Road, Rhyl East is a much quieter beach, away from the hustle and bustle of Rhyl West and Rhyl Central. It’s a nice place to relax and enjoy the views. Try and spot the Little Orme, Snowdonia, The Vale Of Clwyd, The Wirral, and on a clear day you should even be able to see Anglesey. Dogs are restricted on Rhyl East during the season from May – September.

Splash Point

Splash Point is our dog friendly beach, and it’s where pooches can stretch their legs at anytime, in or out of season. Access onto the beach is at certain points as the sea walls are quite high, between the beach and the prom. If you’re taking your dog onto the beach at Old Golf Road, head east (that’s towards Prestatyn) and you’ve got a few miles of beach where you can go unrestricted.

Beach Lifeguards operate on and around the beaches in Rhyl and Prestatyn, from Whit half-term in May until the first week of September. Our main concern is your safety so keep an eye on the flags, follow our advice and we’ll to ensure that you have a safe and enjoyable time.

Fully qualified lifeguards watch over our zoned bathing areas, and we occasionally patrol the non-zoned areas as well giving out safety advice and responding to incidents, throughout the season.

Our beaches stretch along the Denbighshire coastline from the Blue Bridge in Rhyl to the Sailing Club in Prestatyn, and there are two lifeguarded bathing areas:

• Rhyl Central – Rear of the Seaquarium,  Rhyl
• Prestatyn Central - Rear of Nova Centre, Prestatyn

While we’re working, we keep a safe eye on the bathing areas, give out safety advice and tourist information, and administer first aid.

Our core hours are 11am-4:30pm but obviously when the sun is cracking the flags, we’ll be there much longer…… if the red and yellow flags are flying then you know we’re working.

Prestatyn Beaches

Ffrith Beach

At the western end of Prestatyn, Ffrith Beach has two areas. The first, Ffrith Beach West stretches from the Golf Course to the entrance to Ffrith Beach Fun Parc you’ll know you’re here as the promenade has a sloping section instead of steps making it much easier for people to access the beach. This beach forms part of our dog friendly area and you can come and exercise your dog here at any time.

From the Fun Parc East, past Tower Gardens to the Nova West Car Park is Ffrith East which is a more popular area that leads you towards the main resort beach at Prestatyn Central. Dogs are restricted at Ffrith East from May – September, so please keep your dog off the beach here as there is a byelaw in place.

Central Beach

Where we proudly display our Blue Flag, it’s our main resort beach in Prestatyn and the most popular with visitors. The water here meets guideline standards, so you know it is regularly checked for quality. You can park the car here, and directly access the beach from the car parks at Nova East and Nova West.  It’s also where our lifeguards are stationed during the season.

If you're planning on going for a swim remember to check the lifeguards flags to see if it’s safe, and find where is best to swim. If you're unsure pop to their cabin and they’ll be happy to advise.

Other facilities on offer at Central Beach include an outdoor shower, public toilets, cafés and the new Central Beach play area.

Barkby Beach

Ahoy there! Barkby Beach is a hive of activity for boats and craft, it’s where you’ll find Prestatyn Sailing Club and boat launching slipway. If you're interested in using slipways and launching please contact our Maritime Department on 01824 70 8407.

Otherwise, we wouldn’t advise directly swimming in this area because of the vessels using the slipway, but the beach is ideal for enjoying yourself for building a sand castle or just enjoying the weather. East of the slipway and sailing club is where the dog friendly area starts again.

Getting around

Cycling is one of the best ways of getting to see all of Denbighshire’s superb beaches and wonderful attractions, whilst also staying healthy and helping the environment.

The National Cycle Network along the North Wales Coast (National Route 5) links Gronant, Prestatyn, Rhyl, Kinmel Bay and Abergele and is almost completely traffic-free. Running from Barkby Beach with its views of the North Hoyle Windfarm, past the Nova Centre, the route continues on the promenade to Rhyl with its many attractions. At the Blue Bridge the route joins the road and crosses the county boundary to rejoin the promenade within the county of Conwy.

From Prestatyn head inland on the Prestatyn-Dyserth Way, a shared use traffic free railway path that runs to the village of Dyserth with its famous waterfall. This 3 mile route has many aspects of interest including geology, archaeology and a variety of wildlife habitats.