First pick
Forêt du Coulin
Wood or forest
686 ha22.8 km of path
5 h 5 minto walk all 22.8 km of path
2.7 km eastfrom the center
Directionsto a point inside
Photo: Ltqphg · CC01.3%of the land protected
Outdoors in Arès · protected areas, woods and footpaths
Arès is on the coast
87% of Arès is mapped woodland. 28 km of footpaths cross Arès (0.6 km per km²). Waymarked hiking routes add up to 5 km in Arès. France has no Outdoors Grade yet: these are the figures, each beside the compared towns’ median.
Protected areas
1.3%
of the commune’s land
Compared town: 0.1%
Woodland
87%
of the land, mapped on OpenStreetMap
Compared town: 13%
Footpaths
28 km
0.6 km per km²
Compared town: 1.7 km per km²
Hiking routes
5.3 km
waymarked, GR and others
Compared town: 0.3 km per km²
Parks & woods
3
named, in or within 400 m of the commune
First: Forêt du Coulin
The sea
On it
the commune touches the coast, 1 km from its center
Throughout this page, the Gironde median and the France median are the median of compared communes (those with an overall grade), each figure its own median.
What kind of place
What kind of outdoors place is Arès?
Read from the data: what stands out first, good and less good.
On the coastThe commune touches the sea; the coast is 1 km from its center.A wooded commune87% mapped woodland, more than in 99% of compared French towns, against 13% for the median compared town.Few mapped footpaths0.6 km per km², against 1.7 km per km² for the median compared town.
What sets Arès apart: the sea, then its woods. It is shorter on footpaths.
Against French towns
How Arès compares with French towns
Each figure against the 3,798 compared French towns (communes with an overall grade): the marked bar is the town’s, the line the median. Described, not graded.
Protected areas1.3%Share of the land in a national park, regional nature park, nature reserve or Natura 2000 site
57out of 100
Woodland87%Share of the land mapped as forest or woods on OpenStreetMap
100out of 100
Footpaths0.6 km per km²Km of mapped footpath and track open on foot, per km² of the commune
16out of 100
Hiking routes0.1 km per km²Km of waymarked hiking routes (GR and others), per km² of the commune
31out of 100
Percentiles among compared French towns; ties count half.
Towns its size
Arès has the 5th fewest footpaths per km² of 41 towns its size
The 40 compared French towns nearest in population (6,442 to 6,537 residents), by km of footpath per km². Hover for each one’s protected land and woods; click for its page.
From Bonsecours (7.5 km per km²) to Lezoux (0.2 km per km²).
Every town in the comparison
| Town | Paths (km/km²) | Woodland | Protected | Coast | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bonsecours Seine-Maritime | 7.5 | 34% | 0% | 55 km |
| 2 | La Montagne Loire-Atlantique | 5.6 | 18% | 9.4% | 28 km |
| 3 | La Mulatière Rhône | 4 | 9.1% | 0% | 248 km |
| 4 | Vezin-le-Coquet Ille-et-Vilaine | 3.9 | 3.6% | 0% | 45 km |
| 5 | Saint-Laurent-Blangy Pas-de-Calais | 3.8 | 7.9% | 0% | 80 km |
| 6 | Saint-Priest-en-Jarez Loire | 3.3 | 0.6% | 0% | 214 km |
| 7 | Longpont-sur-Orge Essonne | 3.2 | 15% | 0% | 166 km |
| 8 | Villers-Saint-Paul Oise | 3.2 | 16% | 0% | 115 km |
| 9 | Limours Essonne | 3.1 | 22% | 0.1% | 153 km |
| 10 | Frouard Meurthe-et-Moselle | 3.1 | 59% | 0% | 358 km |
| 11 | Saint-Alban Haute-Garonne | 3.1 | 0% | 0% | 152 km |
| 12 | Cormontreuil Marne | 2.9 | 6.1% | 1.5% | 202 km |
| 13 | L'Arbresle Rhône | 2.7 | 4.5% | 0% | 256 km |
| 14 | Calvisson Gard | 2.7 | 27% | 0% | 27 km |
| 15 | Péronnas Ain | 2.7 | 38% | 8.7% | 304 km |
| 16 | Ondres Landes | 2.5 | 59% | 5.2% | On it |
| 17 | Marignier Haute-Savoie | 2.3 | 56% | 3.3% | 268 km |
| 18 | Changé Mayenne | 2.3 | 2.7% | 0% | 73 km |
| 19 | Neuves-Maisons Meurthe-et-Moselle | 2.2 | 5.8% | 0% | 365 km |
| 20 | Sciez Haute-Savoie | 2.1 | 38% | 4.6% | 297 km |
| 21 | Gouesnou Finistère | 1.7 | 7.4% | 0% | 6.2 km |
| 22 | Grézieu-la-Varenne Rhône | 1.7 | 9.3% | 0% | 248 km |
| 23 | Ploudalmézeau Finistère | 1.7 | 3.4% | 4.3% | On it |
| 24 | Bon-Encontre Lot-et-Garonne | 1.6 | 8.4% | 0% | 134 km |
| 25 | Le Perray-en-Yvelines Yvelines | 1.6 | 33% | 100% | 137 km |
| 26 | Cuincy Nord | 1.6 | 13% | 0% | 87 km |
| 27 | Saint-Pathus Seine-et-Marne | 1.4 | 1.7% | 0% | 147 km |
| 28 | Entrelacs Savoie | 1.3 | 37% | 9.9% | 254 km |
| 29 | Champagne-sur-Seine Seine-et-Marne | 1.1 | 66% | 0% | 210 km |
| 30 | Eu Seine-Maritime | 1 | 24% | 0.6% | 3.3 km |
| 31 | Louhans-Châteaurenaud Saône-et-Loire | 0.9 | 19% | 1.1% | 353 km |
| 32 | Saint-Florent-sur-Cher Cher | 0.9 | 22% | 3.7% | 270 km |
| 33 | Ambert Puy-de-Dôme | 0.7 | 44% | 100% | 223 km |
| 34 | Brioude Haute-Loire | 0.7 | 7.1% | 1.6% | 200 km |
| 35 | Chatuzange-le-Goubet Drôme | 0.6 | 11% | 0% | 175 km |
| 36 | Plonéour-Lanvern Finistère | 0.6 | 10% | 0.8% | 5 km |
| 37 | Arès Gironde | 0.6 | 87% | 1.3% | On it |
| 38 | Gueugnon Saône-et-Loire | 0.5 | 17% | 0% | 338 km |
| 39 | Estaires Nord | 0.4 | 0.7% | 0% | 50 km |
| 40 | Condom Gers | 0.4 | 11% | 0% | 136 km |
| 41 | Lezoux Puy-de-Dôme | 0.2 | 19% | 5.3% | 258 km |
The map
Parks, woods, footpaths & countryside
Tap a number to zoom to a park or wood. Tap a layer to hide it. The dashed line is the commune’s boundary.
Green: parks, gardens and woods mapped on OpenStreetMap, named or not.© OpenStreetMap contributors · INPN / PatriNat · IGN
Places to walk
Parks and woods to walk in, in and around Arès
Named parks, gardens and woods in the commune or within 400 m, the biggest and best-pathed first: Forêt du Coulin leads, at 686 ha. Directions go to a point inside.
Parc du Château d'Arès
Park or garden
5.5 ha1 km of path
15 minto walk all 1 km of path
0.9 km westfrom the center
Directionsto a point inside
Esplanade Georges Dartiguelongue
Park or garden
0.5 ha
1 km south-westfrom the center
Directionsto a point inside
Source: © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL): named parks, gardens and woods; sizes are the whole site.
Protected areas
1.3% of Arès lies in protected areas
The protected areas reaching the commune, and the nearest: national parks, regional nature parks, nature reserves and Natura 2000 sites.
Regional nature park
Médoc Regional Nature Park
5.8 km from the town center
Regional nature park
Landes de Gascogne Regional Nature Park
6.2 km from the town center
Nature reserve
Réserve naturelle des Prés Salés d’Arès et de Lège-Cap-Ferret nature reserve
0.9% of the commune1.1 km from the center
Natura 2000 site
Bassin d’Arcachon et banc d’Arguin
1.3% of the commune1 km from the center
Natura 2000 site
Bassin d’Arcachon et Cap Ferret
1.3% of the commune1 km from the center
Share of the commune’s land
Any protected area1.3%
Nature reserve0.9%
Natura 2000 site1.3%
Designations overlap (a regional park can hold a Natura 2000 site), so the rows don’t add up; the first counts each piece of land once.
1.3% of Arès’ land is protected, more than in 57% of compared French towns; the median compared town in Gironde has 7.7%. A regional nature park is a charter between communes to look after a landscape: farming, building and hunting go on inside it.
Source: INPN / PatriNat, protected areas July 2026, Natura 2000 December 2024; shares of IGN’s commune boundary.
Footpaths and woods
28 km of footpaths and 5 km of hiking routes cross Arès
Paths, bridleways, steps and tracks open on foot, and waymarked hiking routes, mapped on OpenStreetMap inside the commune; woods are mapped forest and woodland, private woods included.
Footpaths
28 km
0.6 km per km²
Hiking routes
5.3 km
waymarked: 0.1 km per km²
Woodland
87%
about 42.5 km² of mapped woods
Km per km² of the commune · mapped on OpenStreetMap
ArèsGironde medianFrance median
Footpaths0.6
Hiking routes0.1
012 km per km²
Share of the land · mapped woods and forest
ArèsGironde medianFrance median
Woodland87%
0%50%100%
That is less than in 84% of compared French towns for footpaths per km², and for woodland more than in 99% of compared French towns. Hiking routes often follow paths and lanes already counted, so the two lengths overlap: don’t add them. Every home in Arès is within 800 m of a mapped park or wood, as in most French towns.
A named hiking route within 2 km
Other named walk
SLR Longarisse - Bayonne12 km
Source: © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), extracts of October 25, 2026 (Geofabrik).
When to get out
The best walking months in Arès: April to September
Météo-France’s 1991–2020 normals at Cazaux, 26 km away, and the daylight at the town’s latitude. Outlined months have long days, highs of 15 to 30 °C and little rain for the place.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daylight (h) | 9.2 | 10.4 | 11.8 | 13.4 | 14.8 | 15.6 | 15.3 | 14.0 | 12.4 | 10.9 | 9.5 | 8.8 |
| High (°C) | 11 | 12 | 16 | 18 | 21 | 24 | 26 | 27 | 24 | 20 | 15 | 12 |
| Rain (mm) | 99 | 74 | 67 | 73 | 63 | 66 | 44 | 61 | 76 | 88 | 128 | 109 |
July is the driest month (44 mm) and August the warmest (highs of 27 °C). 128 mm of rain falls in November, the wettest month. Frost comes on about 35 nights a year. The climate in Arès →
Neighbors
Next to Arès
The nearest towns of 2,500 or more, colored by the share of their land in protected areas.
Andernos-les-BainsLège-Cap-FerretLantonLe PorgeArcachonAudengeArès
Under 1%1–10 %10–25 %25–50 %50 %+
| Town | Protected | Woodland | Paths (km/km²) | Coast |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arès | 1.3% | 87% | 0.6 | On it |
| Andernos-les-Bains 12,710 · 4.4 km | 3.4% | 46% | 2.6 | On it |
| Lège-Cap-Ferret 7,909 · 4.7 km | 21% | 73% | 1.6 | On it |
| Lanton 7,337 · 9 km | 100% | 83% | 0.2 | On it |
| Le Porge 3,465 · 11 km | 100% | 89% | 0.3 | On it |
| Arcachon 11,092 · 13 km | 6.4% | 22% | 4 | On it |
| Audenge 9,596 · 14 km | 100% | 72% | 0.4 | On it |
Lège-Cap-Ferret, Lanton and Le Porge have at least twice as much protected land.
How to read these numbers
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Protected areas. National-park cores, national parks’ outer areas, regional nature parks, nature reserves and Natura 2000 sites, from INPN. A national park’s core is strictly protected; its outer area and a regional park are charters between communes, not bans. Designations overlap, so the total counts each piece of land once.
- Woodland. Forest and woods as OpenStreetMap maps them, private woods included: woods nobody has mapped are missing, and a mapped wood isn’t necessarily open to walkers.
- Footpaths and hiking routes. Footpaths, bridleways, steps and tracks open on foot, then waymarked hiking routes (GR and others) measured apart. A route often follows a path or lane already counted: the two overlap. Paths nobody has mapped are missing.
- Green space nearby. The share of residents (INSEE’s 200 m grid) within 800 m, as the crow flies, of a mapped park, garden or wood edge. It measures nearness, not a way in. Guadeloupe and French Guiana have no grid: their pages say whether the town center is within 800 m.
- The coast. The straight-line distance from the town center to OpenStreetMap’s coastline, which follows the tide line into estuaries. A commune is on the coast when the coastline crosses its boundary.
- No grade yet. U.S. and UK towns have an Outdoors Grade; French towns don’t yet. Each figure is set beside the median of compared communes (those with an overall grade) in the département and in France, each figure its own median.
Questions about the outdoors in Arès
Is Arès in a national or regional nature park?
No, but 1.3% of its land is in a nature reserve or a Natura 2000 site.
Are there good walks in Arès?
OpenStreetMap maps 28 km of footpaths and tracks open on foot in the commune, 0.6 km per km² (the median compared town: 1.7 km per km²); 5 km of waymarked hiking routes cross it.
How much of Arès is woodland?
87% of the commune is mapped woodland, private woods included; the median compared French town has 13%.
Is Arès near the sea?
Yes: the commune touches the coast, 1 km from its center.
When is the best time for walking in Arès?
April to September: long days, mild highs and little rain, from Météo-France’s 1991–2020 normals at the nearest suitable station.
Why is there no Outdoors Grade for French towns?
TownRatings grades the outdoors in the U.S. and the UK; the French figures are new and not graded yet. This page sets each one beside the median compared French town instead.
Sources: INPN / PatriNat (protected areas 2026, Natura 2000 2024) · © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL (paths, hiking routes, woods, coast, gardens) · INSEE, Filosofi 2021 200 m grid (residents) · IGN Admin Express (boundaries) · Météo-France normals 1991–2020 · Medians and percentiles: TownRatings, over compared French towns, updated November 9, 2026. Under the Licence Ouverte / Open Licence 2.0 (Etalab).
Contains public sector information under the Licence Ouverte / Open Licence 2.0 (Etalab): INSEE, DGFiP, the Interior Ministry’s statistics service (SSMSI), the Ministry of Education (DEPP), the Health Ministry’s statistics service (DREES) and the Housing Ministry (Carte des loyers). Commune boundaries: IGN Admin Express.