Photo: Andreas F. Borchert · CC BY-SA 4.0Slaney River Valley SAC reaches the edge of Tullow
1.7% of the land within 5 km is protected for nature, the nearest site being Slaney River Valley SAC. 3 waymarked trails start within 5 km of Tullow, among them the Rathwood Fox's Park Trail and Rathwood Honeypot Nature Trail. Footpaths add up to 6 km in the town and the kilometre around it, 0.3 for every square kilometre.
What kind of outdoors town is Tullow?
Read from the data: what stands out first, good and bad.
Tullow’s strongest suit is protected land close by. Where it falls short is footpaths.
How Tullow compares with Irish towns
Each figure against Ireland’s 321 towns and city neighbourhoods of 2,500+ (city hubs left out): the marked bar is the town’s, the line the median. Ireland has no Outdoors Grade yet: the figures are described, each against other Irish towns, and none of them counts towards the overall grade.
Parks, paths and woods: OpenStreetMap; residents: CSO Census 2022 Small Areas; protected sites: NPWS; sea: CSO and ONS land outlines. A 0 means nothing is mapped.
Tullow has the 4th fewest footpaths per km² of 40 towns its size
The 40 Irish towns nearest in population (4,603 to 5,766 residents), by km of footpath per km². Hover for each one’s protected land and woods; click for its page.
From Chapelizod (7.8 km per km²) to Carrick-On-Shannon (0.2 km per km²).
Tullow falls furthest behind on path per km², where 36 of the 39 others do better.
Every town in the comparison
| Town | Paths (km/km²) | Woodland | Protected | The sea | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chapelizod Dublin | 7.8 | 11% | 0% | – |
| 2 | St Stephen's Green Dublin | 7.4 | 0.9% | 0.3% | 11% |
| 3 | Portobello Dublin | 7.2 | 1.2% | 0.1% | 8.8% |
| 4 | Ballyboden Dublin | 5.9 | 4.3% | 0.5% | – |
| 5 | Edmondstown Dublin | 5.1 | 7.5% | 4.5% | – |
| 6 | Ballinlough Cork | 4.9 | 3.2% | 3.8% | – |
| 7 | Knocknaheeny Cork | 4.7 | 2.4% | 0.2% | – |
| 8 | Tramore Cork | 4.7 | 4.6% | 3.7% | – |
| 9 | Knockrea Cork | 4.7 | 3.1% | 3.7% | – |
| 10 | Woodquay and Nuns Island Galway | 4.5 | 0.7% | 14% | 32% |
| 11 | Inchicore Dublin | 4.5 | 3.9% | 0% | – |
| 12 | Dangan Galway | 4.3 | 3.9% | 18% | 21% |
| 13 | Bohernabreena Dublin | 4.3 | 2.9% | 5% | – |
| 14 | Fair Hill Cork | 4 | 4.4% | 0.4% | – |
| 15 | Garryowen Limerick | 3.4 | 0.5% | 9.6% | – |
| 16 | Salthill Galway | 3.3 | 1% | 15% | 46% |
| 17 | Galvone Limerick | 2.9 | 0.7% | 8.3% | – |
| 18 | Poleberry Waterford | 2.4 | 0.6% | 7.2% | – |
| 19 | Carrigtwohill Cork | 1.8 | 5.1% | 12% | – |
| 20 | Blessington Wicklow | 1.4 | 10% | 1.9% | – |
| 21 | Glounthaune Cork | 1.2 | 8% | 6.1% | – |
| 22 | Athenry Galway | 1.2 | 1.2% | 0% | – |
| 23 | Inishkenny Cork | 1.1 | 4.2% | 0.2% | – |
| 24 | Ballybeg Waterford | 1 | 1.2% | 4.1% | – |
| 25 | Ardee Louth | 0.9 | 0.7% | 0.8% | – |
| 26 | Ferrybank Kilkenny | 0.8 | 4.1% | 6.6% | – |
| 27 | Birr Offaly | 0.8 | 14% | 5.2% | – |
| 28 | Monasterevin Kildare | 0.6 | 16% | 2% | – |
| 29 | Carrick-on-Suir Tipperary | 0.5 | 9.9% | 4% | – |
| 30 | Duleek Meath | 0.4 | 0.1% | 1.3% | – |
| 31 | Cashel Tipperary | 0.4 | 1.8% | 1.4% | – |
| 32 | Ballybofey-Stranorlar Donegal | 0.4 | 7.7% | 2.3% | – |
| 33 | Listowel Kerry | 0.4 | 2.3% | 4.8% | – |
| 34 | Carrickmacross Monaghan | 0.3 | 5.5% | 0% | – |
| 35 | Tipperary Tipperary | 0.3 | 0.7% | 0.8% | – |
| 36 | Mountmellick Laois | 0.3 | 0.5% | 3.4% | – |
| 37 | Tullow Carlow | 0.3 | 0.4% | 1.7% | – |
| 38 | Roscrea Tipperary | 0.3 | 3.4% | 7.9% | – |
| 39 | Clonakilty Cork | 0.3 | 1.8% | 3.3% | 7.1% |
| 40 | Carrick-On-Shannon Leitrim | 0.2 | 2% | 0% | – |
Parks, woods, footpaths & countryside
Tap a layer to hide it. The dashed line is Tullow’s urban area.
7 in 10 Tullow residents live within a 5-minute walk of a park
Each square is 1 in 100 residents: green lives within 400 m of a public park, garden or playing field (CSO Census 2022 Small Areas against OpenStreetMap).
About 1,700 people live further than that. Playing fields count, so a park within reach isn’t always one with paths or trees.
The protected site within 5 km of Tullow
Special Areas of Conservation, Special Protection Areas and Natural Heritage Areas designated by the National Parks and Wildlife Service, within 5 km of the town’s edge.
One protected site lies within 5 km of Tullow. Ireland’s National Parks have a block of their own on this page; much of their land also lies inside these sites.
Protected sites: National Parks and Wildlife Service designated site boundaries (CC BY 4.0), 2026; land within 5 km from CSO Small Areas and, over the border, ONS. Overlapping sites are counted once.
Wicklow Mountains National Park is 24 km away
Ireland’s National Parks within 100 km, and the nearest always, by direction and distance from the town’s edge; circle size shows each park’s area.
Wicklow Mountains National Park
National Park boundaries: National Parks and Wildlife Service, generalised to 50 m (CC BY 4.0, © Government of Ireland), 2022. Distances from the town’s outline (CSO Small Areas).
6 km of footpaths cross Tullow
Footways that aren’t pavements, paths, bridleways, steps and tracks open on foot, and mapped woods and forest, in the town and 1 km around it, each beside the county’s and Ireland’s typical town of 2,500+.
Km per km², town and 1 km around · mapped on OpenStreetMap
Share of the land · mapped woods and forest
Tullow has less footpath per km² than 94% of Irish towns and less woodland than 95% of Irish towns.
Footpaths and woods: © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), Geofabrik extract, October 2026. Woods are mapped cover, private and Coillte forests included.
3 waymarked trails start near Tullow
6 km of footpaths are mapped in Tullow and the kilometre around it, 0.3 km for every square kilometre (the typical Irish town has 2.1).
Trails: Sport Ireland National Trails Register (CC BY 4.0), registered trails within 5 km; footpaths: OpenStreetMap (ODbL). Coillte’s own forest trails and recreation sites aren’t included: Coillte’s terms limit its data to research or private study. Its trails on the National Trails Register are listed.
The best walking months in Tullow: May to September
Met Éireann’s 1991–2020 averages for the town’s 1 km square and the daylight at its 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) | 8.1 | 9.8 | 11.7 | 13.9 | 15.8 | 16.9 | 16.4 | 14.7 | 12.6 | 10.5 | 8.6 | 7.6 |
| High (°C) | 8 | 9 | 11 | 13 | 16 | 19 | 20 | 20 | 18 | 14 | 11 | 9 |
| Rain (mm) | 83 | 65 | 62 | 60 | 59 | 65 | 64 | 74 | 73 | 96 | 96 | 89 |
May is the driest month (59 mm) and July the warmest (highs of 20 °C). Winter days are short, about 7.6 hours of daylight in December, and 96 mm of rain falls in October, the wettest month. The climate in Tullow →
2 playgrounds
Mapped on OpenStreetMap in the town and 2 km around it; each count per resident beside Irish towns’ typical town of 2,500+. Beaches are on the coast’s list, from the EPA.
Every named place, with directions
Source: © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), Geofabrik extract, October 2026. Unnamed places are counted, not listed.
A garden or nature site to visit near Tullow
Gardens, national parks, nature sites and islands within 15 km of the town’s edge, each with its own page.
Places to visit: Fáilte Ireland open data (CC BY 4.0), OpenStreetMap and Wikidata.
Next to Tullow
The nearest towns of 1,000+ within 20 km, coloured by the share of the land within 5 km protected for nature.
| Town | Near a park | Green space, ha per 1,000 | Paths (km/km²) | Protected within 5 km |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tullow | 66% | 1.9 | 0.3 | 1.7% |
| Rathvilly 9.0 km | 58% | 3.4 | 0.0 | 1.4% |
| Carlow 13 km | 72% | 1.9 | 0.9 | 2% |
| Castledermot 14 km | 100% | 1.9 | 0.2 | 0.3% |
| Baltinglass 15 km | 64% | 1.4 | 0.2 | 0.5% |
| Bunclody 18 km | 72% | 3.6 | 0.8 | 4.2% |
| Tinahely 19 km | 30% | 1.1 | 0.5 | 0.9% |
In Castledermot, 100% of residents live within a 5-minute walk of a park, more than here.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Green space nearby. The share of residents (CSO Small Areas, by where people live) within 400 m of a park, garden, common or playing field mapped on OpenStreetMap. Mapping is uneven: a town whose parks nobody has mapped looks greyer than it is.
- Protected areas. Land in a Special Area of Conservation, Special Protection Area or Natural Heritage Area within 5 km, overlaps counted once. Protected for nature doesn’t always mean open to walkers.
- Footpaths and hiking routes. Footways that aren’t pavements, paths, bridleways, steps and tracks open on foot, in the town and 1 km around it, from OpenStreetMap. Trails are the registered ones within 5 km; a trail often follows mapped paths, so the two aren’t added.
- Woodland. Woods and forest as OpenStreetMap maps them, private and Coillte forests included: mapped cover, not access.
- No grade yet. Ireland’s grades don’t include the outdoors yet: these figures describe the town and stand beside the median Irish town.
Questions about the outdoors in Tullow
Is there protected countryside near Tullow?
Yes: 1.7% of the land within 5 km is protected, in one site. Slaney River Valley SAC reaches Tullow.
What are the best walks near Tullow?
3 waymarked trails start within 5 km, including the Rathwood Fox's Park Trail, Rathwood Honeypot Nature Trail and Rathwood Molloy's Walk.
How many people in Tullow live near a park?
66% of residents live within 400 m, about a 5-minute walk, of a park or playing field; in the typical Irish town it is 92%.
When is the best time of year for walking in Tullow?
On the town’s 1991–2020 averages and its daylight: May to September, when days are long, highs reach 15 °C and rain is light for the place.
Is Tullow near a National Park?
The nearest of Ireland’s six National Parks is Wicklow Mountains National Park, 24 km north-east of the town’s edge; it covers about 223 km².
Where Tullow’s outdoors figures come from
- Parks, woods and paths. OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL): parks, woods and footpaths, Geofabrik extract, October 2026
- Protected sites. National Parks and Wildlife Service: designated sites (SAC, SPA, NHA), 2026
- Trails. Sport Ireland: National Trails Register, 2026
- Residents. CSO: Census 2022 Small Areas (residents)
- National Parks. National Parks and Wildlife Service: National Park boundaries, generalised to 50 m (CC BY 4.0), 2022
- Things to do. OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL): viewpoints, hills, waterfalls, nature reserves, picnic sites, playgrounds, campsites and waymarked walks, Geofabrik extract, October 2026
- Weather. Met Éireann: 1991–2020 averages (Copyright Met Éireann)
Protected sites: National Parks and Wildlife Service (CC BY 4.0). Trails: Sport Ireland National Trails Register (CC BY 4.0). Bathing water: EPA (CC BY 4.0). Parks, woods and paths: © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).
Not on this page yet: Coillte’s forest trails (its terms) and bike routes.
Contains Central Statistics Office (CSO) data, Census 2022, and Tailte Éireann boundaries (CSO Urban Areas, Small Areas, local electoral areas, constituencies), under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 (CC BY 4.0).