First pick
Ardgillan Castle and Demesne
Park or garden · 320 m outside town
79 ha14.5 km of path
3 h 15 minto walk all 14.5 km of path
1.8 km eastfrom the centre
Directionsto a point inside
Photo: Offdaw · CC BY-SA 4.0100%near a park
Outdoors in Balrothery · parks, paths & countryside
Balrothery has more park space per resident than 9 in 10 Irish towns
Parks and playing fields in Balrothery add up to 40.2 ha for every 1,000 residents; the typical Irish town has 4.1. 100% of residents live within a 5-minute walk of a park or playing field. The sea makes up 24% of the area within 5 km.
Near a park
100%
of residents within 400 m
Typical Irish town: 92%
Green space
40.2 ha
per 1,000 residents
Typical Irish town: 4.1 ha
Footpaths
14 km
1.5 km per km², town + 1 km
Typical Irish town: 2.1 km per km²
Woodland
2.2%
of the town and 1 km around it
Typical Irish town: 2.7%
The sea
24%
of the area within 5 km
Character
What kind of outdoors town is Balrothery?
Read from the data: what stands out first, good and bad.
Room to roam40.2 ha of parks and playing fields per 1,000 residents, more than 97% of Irish towns.A park on every doorstep100% of residents live within 400 m of a park or playing field.Hills with a view3 mapped viewpoints, about 36× as many per resident as the typical Irish town.
Balrothery’s strongest suit is plenty of park space, followed by parks close to every home.
Against other towns
How Balrothery 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.
A park within a walk100%of residents within 400 m (a 5-minute walk)
83out of 100
Public green space40.2 haper 1,000 residents: parks, gardens, playing fields, play spaces
97out of 100
Footpaths1.5 kmper km², the town and 1 km around it
42out of 100
Protected for nature0%of the land within 5 km
11out of 100
Woodland2.2%of the town and 1 km around it, as mapped
43out of 100
The sea24%of the area within 5 km
85out of 100
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.
Towns its size
Balrothery has the 14th most footpaths per km² of 40 towns its size
The 40 Irish towns nearest in population (2,282 to 3,141 residents), by km of footpath per km². Hover for each one’s protected land and woods; click for its page.
From Ballybrack (8.6 km per km²) to Sixmilebridge (0 km per km²).
Footpath, km per km²
Balrothery1.5
Towns its size0.7
Co. Dublin towns5.4
Typical Irish town2.1
Green space, ha per 1,000 residents
Balrothery40.2
Towns its size4.1
Co. Dublin towns7.6
Typical Irish town4.1
Residents within 400 m of a park
Balrothery100%
Towns its size87%
Co. Dublin towns100%
Typical Irish town92%
Against towns its size, Balrothery stands out most for park space per resident: none of the other 39 has more.
Every town in the comparison
| Town | Paths (km/km²) | Woodland | Protected | The sea | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ballybrack Dublin | 8.6 | 8% | 0.2% | 36% |
| 2 | Sunday's Well Cork | 7.3 | 2.7% | 0.4% | – |
| 3 | Blackpool Cork | 6.6 | 3% | 1.4% | – |
| 4 | Carna Dublin | 5.4 | 1.7% | 0% | – |
| 5 | Taylor's Hill Galway | 5.1 | 1.2% | 15% | 37% |
| 6 | Togher Cork | 5 | 1.5% | 0.5% | – |
| 7 | Decies Dublin | 4.8 | 7.2% | 0% | – |
| 8 | Mayfield Cork | 4.7 | 5.3% | 3.3% | – |
| 9 | Kylemore Dublin | 4 | 3% | 0% | – |
| 10 | Edenmore Dublin | 2.8 | 3.6% | 5.9% | 24% |
| 11 | Ballynanty Limerick | 2.5 | 5.7% | 12% | – |
| 12 | Claddagh Galway | 2.4 | 0.2% | 17% | 46% |
| 13 | Murrough Galway | 2.3 | 5.1% | 10% | 26% |
| 14 | Balrothery Dublin | 1.5 | 2.2% | 0% | 24% |
| 15 | Grange Upper Waterford | 1.4 | 1.5% | 6.6% | – |
| 16 | Blarney Cork | 1.4 | 14% | 0% | – |
| 17 | Kilbarry Waterford | 1.3 | 1.6% | 5.1% | – |
| 18 | Bantry Cork | 1 | 4.4% | 0% | 18% |
| 19 | Ballina Tipperary | 0.9 | 1.8% | 4.7% | – |
| 20 | Moate Westmeath | 0.7 | 2.4% | 2.4% | – |
| 21 | Callan Kilkenny | 0.7 | 0.1% | 2.3% | – |
| 22 | Kingscourt Cavan | 0.7 | 12% | 0% | – |
| 23 | Kenmare Kerry | 0.6 | 7.2% | 6.5% | 6.4% |
| 24 | Athboy Meath | 0.6 | 1.1% | 1.5% | – |
| 25 | Bundoran Donegal | 0.5 | 2% | 5.1% | 35% |
| 26 | Muinebeag (Bagenalstown) Carlow | 0.5 | 3.9% | 2.9% | – |
| 27 | Skibbereen Cork | 0.5 | 1.7% | 1.6% | – |
| 28 | Kinnegad Westmeath | 0.3 | 4.5% | 4.5% | – |
| 29 | Donegal Donegal | 0.3 | 4% | 4.1% | 12% |
| 30 | Boyle Roscommon | 0.3 | 3.2% | 0% | – |
| 31 | Bailieborough Cavan | 0.3 | 10% | 0% | – |
| 32 | Castleisland Kerry | 0.3 | 1.7% | 12% | – |
| 33 | Kanturk Cork | 0.3 | 0% | 5.1% | – |
| 34 | Baltinglass Wicklow | 0.2 | 4.9% | 0.5% | – |
| 35 | Ballyhaunis Mayo | 0.2 | 2.8% | 3.4% | – |
| 36 | Kilrush Clare | 0.2 | 9.8% | 37% | – |
| 37 | Ballyjamesduff Cavan | 0.2 | 7.6% | 0% | – |
| 38 | Gort Galway | 0.2 | 4.3% | 24% | – |
| 39 | Carndonagh Donegal | 0.1 | 4.9% | 5.1% | 5.8% |
| 40 | Sixmilebridge Clare | 0 | 0.7% | 2% | – |
The map
Parks, woods, footpaths & countryside
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it. The dashed line is Balrothery’s urban area.
Green: parks, gardens, playing fields, play spaces and woods, named or not.© OpenStreetMap contributors · NPWS · Sport Ireland · CSO
Places to walk
Parks to walk in, in and around Balrothery
The biggest is Ardgillan Castle and Demesne, 79 ha (194 acres).
Glebe Park
Park or garden
7.1 ha1.4 km of path
20 minto walk all 1.4 km of path
Centralin the middle of Balrothery
Directionsto a point inside
Named parks, gardens, commons and woods in the town or within 400 m of it, from OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL); pieces of one name that touch are one place. Sizes are the whole site; directions go to a point inside.
Close to home
Everyone in Balrothery lives 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).
Within 400 m (100%)Further (0%)
Balrothery100%
Co. Dublin towns100%
Typical Irish town92%
Playing fields count, so a park within reach isn’t always one with paths or trees.
Protected areas
North-West Irish Sea cSPA is the nearest protected area, 1.5 km away
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.
Inside Balrothery0%
Within 5 km0%
Co. Dublin towns0.2%
Typical Irish town1.8%
One protected site lies within 5 km of Balrothery. Ireland’s National Parks have a block of their own on this page; much of their land also lies inside these sites.
North-West Irish Sea cSPASpecial Protection Area (birds) · 2,333 km² · 1.5 km from the edge
NPWS pageProtected 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.
National Parks
Wicklow Mountains National Park is 39 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.
National ParkThe 5 km around the town
National Park
Wicklow Mountains National Park
39 km south223 km²
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).
Footpaths and woods
14 km of footpaths cross Balrothery
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+.
Footpaths
14 km
over 9 km² of town and the 1 km around it
Woodland
2.2%
about 0.2 km² of mapped woods
Km per km², town and 1 km around · mapped on OpenStreetMap
BalrotheryCo. Dublin townsTypical Irish town
Footpaths1.5
03.57 km per km²
Share of the land · mapped woods and forest
BalrotheryCo. Dublin townsTypical Irish town
Woodland2.2%
0%50%100%
Balrothery has less footpath per km² than 58% of Irish towns and less woodland than 57% of Irish towns.
Footpaths and woods: © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), Geofabrik extract, October 2026. Woods are mapped cover, private and Coillte forests included.
Footpaths & trails
Footpaths in and around Balrothery
14 km of footpaths are mapped in Balrothery and the kilometre around it, 1.5 km for every square kilometre (the typical Irish town has 2.1).
No waymarked trail starts within 5 km of Balrothery; its footpaths are counted above.
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.
When to get out
The best walking months in Balrothery: June 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) | 8.0 | 9.7 | 11.7 | 13.9 | 15.9 | 17.0 | 16.5 | 14.8 | 12.6 | 10.4 | 8.5 | 7.5 |
| High (°C) | 8 | 9 | 10 | 12 | 15 | 18 | 19 | 19 | 17 | 14 | 11 | 9 |
| Rain (mm) | 67 | 53 | 55 | 54 | 58 | 66 | 63 | 73 | 66 | 83 | 89 | 75 |
February is the driest month (53 mm) and July the warmest (highs of 19 °C). Winter days are short, about 7.5 hours of daylight in December, and 89 mm of rain falls in November, the wettest month. The climate in Balrothery →
The coast
Balrothery is near the sea
24% of the area within 5 km of Balrothery is sea. 2 bathing waters are within 5 km, each with its latest class.
Balbriggan, Front Strand BeachSufficient (2025) · 1.9 km from town
beaches.ieSkerries, South BeachExcellent (2025) · 4.8 km from town
beaches.ieOne of the 2 is rated excellent: Skerries, South Beach.
Bathing water classes: EPA, latest season (CC BY 4.0). Sea: the area outside CSO and ONS land outlines. Check today’s water quality on beaches.ie
Things to do
3 viewpoints and 6 hills and peaks
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.
3Viewpoints36× the typical Irish town, per resident6Hills and peaks1Nature reserves2Picnic sites8Playgrounds2.7× the typical Irish town, per resident1Dog parks
Per resident, viewpoints stand out most: Balrothery has 36× as many as the typical Irish town.
Every named place, with directions
Viewpoints 3
Plus 3 viewpoints without a name on the map.
Hills and peaks 6
Plus 6 hills and peaks without a name on the map.
Nature reserves 1
Wavin Lakes14 ha · 0.6 km from town
DirectionsPlaygrounds 8
Quay Street Playground1.6 km from town
DirectionsPlus 7 playgrounds without a name on the map.
Dog parks 1
Plus 1 dog park without a name on the map.
Source: © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), Geofabrik extract, October 2026. Unnamed places are counted, not listed.
Next door
Next to Balrothery
The nearest towns of 1,000+ within 20 km, coloured by the share of the land within 5 km protected for nature.
BalbrigganSkerriesLuskStamullenRushPortraneBalrothery
Under 1%1–10%10–25%25–50%50%+
None of the neighbours has many more of its people near a park than Balrothery.
How to read these numbers
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 Balrothery
What is the biggest park in Balrothery?
Ardgillan Castle and Demesne, 79 ha (194 acres), just outside the built-up area. Glebe Park (7.1 ha) is second. 2 named parks, gardens and playing fields are in the town or within 400 m of it.
Is there protected countryside near Balrothery?
One protected site lies within 5 km, though it covers under 1% of the land. The nearest is North-West Irish Sea cSPA, 1.5 km from the edge of town.
Where can you swim near Balrothery?
The nearest bathing water is Balbriggan, Front Strand Beach, 1.9 km from town: Sufficient (2025). Check beaches.ie before swimming: a notice can close a beach for the day.
How many people in Balrothery live near a park?
100% 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 Balrothery?
On the town’s 1991–2020 averages and its daylight: June to September, when days are long, highs reach 15 °C and rain is light for the place.
Is Balrothery near a National Park?
The nearest of Ireland’s six National Parks is Wicklow Mountains National Park, 39 km south of the town’s edge; it covers about 223 km².
What is there to do outdoors around Balrothery?
Within 2 km, OpenStreetMap maps 3 viewpoints, 6 hills and peaks, 1 nature reserve and 2 picnic sites; the named ones are listed under Things to do, with directions.
Sources
Where Balrothery’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
- Bathing water. EPA: bathing water quality, 2025 season
- 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).