First pick
Lusk Recreational Hub
Park or garden
8.6 ha2.4 km of path
35 minto walk all 2.4 km of path
0.8 km north-eastfrom the centre
Directionsto a point inside
Photo: Treehill · CC BY-SA 4.0100%near a park
Outdoors in Lusk · parks, paths & countryside
Almost everyone in Lusk lives within a 5-minute walk of a park
Parks and playing fields in Lusk add up to 2.9 ha for every 1,000 residents; the typical Irish town has 4.1. 14 km of footpaths run through the town and the kilometre around it, 1.1 for every square kilometre. The sea makes up 6.4% of the area within 5 km.
Near a park
100%
of residents within 400 m
Typical Irish town: 92%
Green space
2.9 ha
per 1,000 residents
Typical Irish town: 4.1 ha
Footpaths
14 km
1.1 km per km², town + 1 km
Typical Irish town: 2.1 km per km²
Protected for nature
1.3%
of the land within 5 km
Nearest: Rogerstown Estuary SPA
The sea
6.4%
of the area within 5 km
Against other towns
How Lusk 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 space2.9 haper 1,000 residents: parks, gardens, playing fields, play spaces
38out of 100
Footpaths1.1 kmper km², the town and 1 km around it
34out of 100
Protected for nature1.3%of the land within 5 km
45out of 100
Woodland0.6%of the town and 1 km around it, as mapped
9out of 100
The sea6.4%of the area within 5 km
72out 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
Lusk has the 12th fewest footpaths per km² of 40 towns its size
The 40 Irish towns nearest in population (7,687 to 10,081 residents), by km of footpath per km². Hover for each one’s protected land and woods; click for its page.
From Cabra West (7.8 km per km²) to Tuam (0.4 km per km²).
Footpath, km per km²
Lusk1.1
Towns its size2.2
Co. Dublin towns5.4
Typical Irish town2.1
Green space, ha per 1,000 residents
Lusk2.9
Towns its size4.4
Co. Dublin towns7.6
Typical Irish town4.1
Residents within 400 m of a park
Lusk100%
Towns its size95%
Co. Dublin towns100%
Typical Irish town92%
Lusk falls furthest behind on path per km², where 28 of the 39 others do better.
Every town in the comparison
| Town | Paths (km/km²) | Woodland | Protected | The sea | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cabra West Dublin | 7.8 | 4.5% | 0% | – |
| 2 | Sandyford Dublin | 7.5 | 4.8% | 0.3% | 6.2% |
| 3 | Grand Canal Dock Dublin | 6.6 | 0.9% | 1.4% | 16% |
| 4 | Glasnevin Dublin | 6.6 | 1.2% | 0% | – |
| 5 | Killiney Dublin | 6 | 7.7% | 0.5% | 45% |
| 6 | Dubber Dublin | 5.7 | 2.1% | 0% | – |
| 7 | Churchtown Dublin | 5.6 | 3.3% | 0.1% | – |
| 8 | Ballybough Dublin | 5.5 | 1.4% | 1% | 9% |
| 9 | Booterstown Dublin | 5.4 | 2.2% | 0.2% | 29% |
| 10 | Cherry Orchard Dublin | 4.6 | 0.5% | 0% | – |
| 11 | Monkstown Dublin | 4.2 | 0.8% | 0.3% | 38% |
| 12 | Finglas North Dublin | 4.2 | 1.2% | 0% | – |
| 13 | Baldoyle Dublin | 3.7 | 0.3% | 11% | 40% |
| 14 | Donaghmede Dublin | 3.5 | 2.7% | 6.2% | 31% |
| 15 | Kilmore Dublin | 3.1 | 2.2% | 3.5% | 9.5% |
| 16 | Raheny Dublin | 3.1 | 2.8% | 11% | 46% |
| 17 | Farranshone Limerick | 2.8 | 1.5% | 11% | – |
| 18 | Donabate Dublin | 2.8 | 6.8% | 2.8% | 32% |
| 19 | Dalkey Dublin | 2.6 | 3.5% | 0.2% | 60% |
| 20 | Howth Dublin | 2.2 | 2.4% | 18% | 75% |
| 21 | Hollyhill and Ballincolly Cork | 2.1 | 7.2% | 0.5% | – |
| 22 | Frankfield and Grange Cork | 2.1 | 4.3% | 2.1% | – |
| 23 | Kilcock Kildare | 1.7 | 2.8% | 0% | – |
| 24 | Ballyvolane Cork | 1.6 | 6.7% | 2.8% | – |
| 25 | Trim Meath | 1.3 | 0.9% | 1.5% | – |
| 26 | Monaghan Monaghan | 1.3 | 8.7% | 0% | – |
| 27 | Waterford City Centre Waterford | 1.3 | 1.5% | 6% | – |
| 28 | Ratoath Meath | 1.3 | 0.4% | 0% | – |
| 29 | Lusk Dublin | 1.1 | 0.6% | 1.3% | 6.4% |
| 30 | Youghal Cork | 0.9 | 0.6% | 13% | 29% |
| 31 | New Ross Wexford | 0.9 | 7.3% | 5.4% | – |
| 32 | Portarlington Laois | 0.8 | 2.5% | 1.6% | – |
| 33 | Dungarvan Waterford | 0.7 | 0.7% | 1.8% | 19% |
| 34 | Grantstown and Ballinakill Waterford | 0.6 | 4.5% | 10% | – |
| 35 | Clane Kildare | 0.6 | 1.9% | 1.5% | – |
| 36 | Thurles Tipperary | 0.5 | 2.8% | 1.2% | – |
| 37 | Nenagh Tipperary | 0.4 | 1.8% | 0% | – |
| 38 | Bandon Cork | 0.4 | 5.6% | 0% | – |
| 39 | Edenderry Offaly | 0.4 | 7% | 1.7% | – |
| 40 | Tuam Galway | 0.4 | 1.4% | 2.7% | – |
The map
Parks, woods, footpaths & countryside
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it. The dashed line is Lusk’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 Lusk
The biggest is Lusk Recreational Hub, 8.6 ha (21 acres).
Racecourse Commons
Park or garden
2.3 ha0.6 km of path
10 minto walk all 0.6 km of path
0.6 km southfrom the centre
Directionsto a point inside
Orlynn Park Green
Park or garden
2.6 ha0.4 km of path
Centralin the middle of Lusk
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
How close Lusk’s homes are to 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%)
Lusk100%
Co. Dublin towns100%
Typical Irish town92%
Playing fields count, so a park within reach isn’t always one with paths or trees.
Protected areas
1.3% of the land around Lusk is protected for nature
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 Lusk0%
Within 5 km1.3%
Co. Dublin towns0.2%
Typical Irish town1.8%
5 protected sites lie within 5 km of Lusk. Proposed Natural Heritage Areas cover 1.5% of the land within 5 km as well; many have been proposed since 1995 and aren’t counted here. Ireland’s National Parks have a block of their own on this page; much of their land also lies inside these sites.
Rogerstown Estuary SPASpecial Protection Area (birds) · 6.5 km² · 0.8 km from the edge
NPWS pageRogerstown Estuary SACSpecial Area of Conservation · 5.4 km² · 0.8 km from the edge
NPWS pageMalahide Estuary SACSpecial Area of Conservation · 7.9 km² · 4.2 km from the edge
NPWS pageMalahide Estuary SPASpecial Protection Area (birds) · 7.7 km² · 4.2 km from the edge
NPWS pageNorth-West Irish Sea cSPASpecial Protection Area (birds) · 2,333 km² · 4.6 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 32 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
32 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 Lusk
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 12.5 km² of town and the 1 km around it
Woodland
0.6%
about 0.1 km² of mapped woods
Km per km², town and 1 km around · mapped on OpenStreetMap
LuskCo. Dublin townsTypical Irish town
Footpaths1.1
03.57 km per km²
Share of the land · mapped woods and forest
LuskCo. Dublin townsTypical Irish town
Woodland0.6%
0%50%100%
Lusk has less footpath per km² than 66% of Irish towns and less woodland than 91% of Irish towns.
Footpaths and woods: © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), Geofabrik extract, October 2026. Woods are mapped cover, private and Coillte forests included.
Footpaths & trails
1 waymarked walk passes through or near Lusk
14 km of footpaths are mapped in Lusk and the kilometre around it, 1.1 km for every square kilometre (the typical Irish town has 2.1).
One more waymarked walk on OpenStreetMap
Other waymarked
Chapel Farm Stream Path0.4 km
Trails: Sport Ireland National Trails Register (CC BY 4.0), registered trails within 5 km; footpaths: OpenStreetMap (ODbL). More waymarked walks: OpenStreetMap route relations (ODbL) within 2 km, those already on the register left out. 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 Lusk: 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) | 8.0 | 9.7 | 11.7 | 13.9 | 15.9 | 17.0 | 16.5 | 14.8 | 12.6 | 10.4 | 8.5 | 7.5 |
| High (°C) | 9 | 9 | 11 | 13 | 15 | 18 | 20 | 19 | 17 | 14 | 11 | 9 |
| Rain (mm) | 61 | 50 | 51 | 51 | 55 | 63 | 61 | 70 | 63 | 78 | 83 | 71 |
February is the driest month (50 mm) and July the warmest (highs of 20 °C). Winter days are short, about 7.5 hours of daylight in December, and 83 mm of rain falls in November, the wettest month. The climate in Lusk →
The coast
Lusk is near the sea
6.4% of the area within 5 km of Lusk is sea. 3 bathing waters are within 5 km, each with its latest class.
Rush, South BeachGood (2025) · 4.2 km from town
beaches.iePortrane, the Brook BeachGood (2025) · 4.3 km from town
beaches.ieRush, North BeachExcellent (2025) · 4.9 km from town
beaches.ieOne of the 3 is rated excellent: Rush, North 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
10 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.
Next door
Next to Lusk
The nearest towns of 1,000+ within 20 km, coloured by the share of the land within 5 km protected for nature.
DonabatePortraneRushSkerriesBalrotherySwordsLusk
Under 1%1–10%10–25%25–50%50%+
None of the neighbours has many more of its people near a park than Lusk. Donabate, Portrane and Skerries have at least twice Lusk’s green space per resident.
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 Lusk
What is the biggest park in Lusk?
Lusk Recreational Hub, 8.6 ha (21 acres). Orlynn Park Green (2.6 ha) is second. 3 named parks, gardens and playing fields are in the town or within 400 m of it.
Is there protected countryside near Lusk?
Yes: 1.3% of the land within 5 km is protected, across 5 sites. The nearest is Rogerstown Estuary SPA, 0.8 km from the edge of town.
Where can you swim near Lusk?
The nearest bathing water is Rush, South Beach, 4.2 km from town: Good (2025). Check beaches.ie before swimming: a notice can close a beach for the day.
How many people in Lusk 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 Lusk?
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 Lusk near a National Park?
The nearest of Ireland’s six National Parks is Wicklow Mountains National Park, 32 km south of the town’s edge; it covers about 223 km².
Sources
Where Lusk’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).