The village of Rosslare Harbour (), also known as Ballygeary, grew up to serve the needs of the

harbour A harbor (American English), or harbour (Commonwealth English; see American and British English spelling differences#-our, -or, spelling differences), is a sheltered body of water where ships, boats, and barges can be Mooring, moored. The t ...

of the same name (now called Rosslare Europort), first developed in 1906 by the

Great Western Railway The Great Western Railway (GWR) was a History of rail transport in Great Britain, British railway company that linked London with the southwest, west and West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, ...

and the

Great Southern and Western Railway The Great Southern and Western Railway (GS&WR) was an Irish gauge () railway company in Ireland from 1844 until 1924. The grew by building lines and making a series of takeovers, until in the late 19th and early 20th centuries it was the larges ...

to accommodate steamferry traffic between Great Britain and Ireland. This port also serves France and Spain, traffic is mainly roll-on roll-off (RoRo). Rosslare Harbour railway station opened on 30 August 1906.

Village

Although the harbour itself is located close to, and for census purposes is co-terminous with, the village of Ballygeary, and within the

townland A townland (; Ulster-Scots: ''toonlann'') is a traditional small land division used in Ireland and in the Western Isles of Scotland, typically covering . The townland system is of medieval Gaelic origin, predating the Norman invasion, and mo ...

of Ballygillane Big, it was named after the village of Rosslare, some 4 km away (8 km by road) along the coast. The village of Ballygeary was divided into two townlands, one known as "tin town" and the other as "straw town" or "bamboo town". It is believed this was because of the roofs on the houses. The village has a number of guesthouses, hotels, a

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

church, a post office and some shops, one of which being a Daybreak service station and is regarded as "the heart and soul of Rosslare Harbour" by locals. Just south of the harbour is a small strand leading to ''Greenore Point'', where grey seals can sometimes be seen. The harbour is home to an

RNLI The Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) is the largest of the lifeboat services operating around the coasts of the United Kingdom, Ireland, the Channel Islands, and the Isle of Man, as well as on some inland waterways. Founded in 1824 ...

lifeboat station. The population of Rosslare Harbour reached 2,247 at the 2022 census, increasing 87% from 2016 and becoming one of the fastest-growing urban areas in the country.

Railways and ferries

Services provided by Irish Rail on the Dublin-Rosslare railway line from Rosslare Europort railway station to major places such as Wexford O'Hanrahan,

Enniscorthy Enniscorthy () is the second-largest town in County Wexford, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The town is located on the picturesque River Slaney and in close proximity to the Blackstairs Mountains and Ireland's longest beach, Curracloe. The Plac ...

Arklow Arklow ( ; ; ) is a town in County Wicklow on the southeast coast of Ireland. The town is overlooked by Ballymoyle Hill. It was founded by the Vikings in the ninth century. Arklow was the site of one of the Battle of Arklow, bloodiest battles ...

Wicklow Wicklow ( ; , meaning 'church of the toothless one'; ) is the county town of County Wicklow in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is located on the east of Ireland, south of Dublin. According to the 2022 census of Ireland, 2022 census, it had ...

Greystones Greystones () is a coastal town and seaside resort in County Wicklow, Ireland. It lies on Ireland's east coast, south of Bray and south of Dublin city centre and has a population of 22,009, according to the 2022 census. The town is border ...

, Bray Daly to

Dublin Connolly Connolly station () or Dublin Connolly is the busiest railway station in Dublin and Ireland, and is a focal point in the Irish route network. On the North side of the River Liffey, it provides InterCity, Enterprise and commuter services to ...

. From

onward rail connections via the Sligo Line links with

Longford Longford () is the county town of County Longford in Ireland. It had a population of 10,952 at the 2022 census. It is the biggest town in the county and about one third of the county's population lives there. Longford lies at the meeting of ...

and

Sligo Sligo ( ; , meaning 'abounding in shells') is a coastal seaport and the county town of County Sligo, Ireland, within the western province of Connacht. With a population of 20,608 in 2022, it is the county's largest urban centre (constituting 2 ...

and the Belfast Line links with Drogheda MacBride, Dundalk Clarke,

Newry Newry (; ) is a City status in Ireland, city in Northern Ireland, standing on the Newry River, Clanrye river in counties County Down, Down and County Armagh, Armagh. It is near Republic of Ireland–United Kingdom border, the border with the ...

Portadown Portadown ( ) is a town in County Armagh, Northern Ireland. The town is based on the River Bann in the north of the county, about southwest of Belfast. It is in the Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council area and had a population ...

and Belfast Grand Central.

Bus transport

Rosslare Harbour and Rosslare Europort are served by Bus Éireann routes 40, 132, 370, 379 and 385 and Local Link route 387. The main routes serving Rosslare Harbour are Bus Éireann ''Expressway'' route 40 which provides several services a day to/from

Waterford Waterford ( ) is a City status in Ireland, city in County Waterford in the South-East Region, Ireland, south-east of Ireland. It is located within the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster. The city is situated at the head of Waterford H ...

via

New Ross New Ross (, formerly ) is a town in southwest County Wexford, Republic of Ireland, Ireland, on the River Barrow on the border with County Kilkenny, northeast of Waterford. In 2022, it had a population of 8,610, making it the fourth-largest t ...

and the 387 to

Wexford Wexford ( ; archaic Yola dialect, Yola: ''Weiseforthe'') is the county town of County Wexford, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Wexford lies on the south side of Wexford Harbour, the estuary of the River Slaney near the southeastern corner of the ...

several times daily. Local route 370 replaces the rail service to

and runs twice a day each way (except Sundays) serving locations in South County Wexford previously served by the railway;

Bridgetown Bridgetown (UN/LOCODE: BB BGI) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Barbados. Formerly The Town of Saint Michael, the Greater Bridgetown area is located within the Parishes of Barbados, parish of Saint Michael, Barbados, Saint Mic ...

, Wellingtonbridge and Campile. ''Expressway'' route 2 used to link the Harbour with Dublin Airport every hour but was withdrawn in September 2012. There is now only one through bus a week to

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

– route 132 departing Rosslare Europort on Thursday mornings. It runs cross-country via

Carnew Carnew () is a village in County Wicklow, Ireland. It is the most southerly town in Wicklow situated just a mile from the border with County Wexford. For historical reasons it has often been described as "a Protestant enclave". The village is ...

References

External links

{{Authority control 1906 establishments in Ireland Populated places established in 1906 Towns and villages in County Wexford Port cities and towns in the Republic of Ireland

Village

Railways and ferries

Bus transport

See also

References

External links