First pick
Aughrane Woods
Wood or forest
433 ha0.5 km of path
5 minto walk all 0.5 km of path
2.1 km northfrom the centre
Orchard Path
Directionsto a point inside
100%near a park
Outdoors in Ballygar · parks, paths & countryside
Ballygar has more park space per resident than nearly 9 in 10 Irish towns
Parks and playing fields in Ballygar add up to 12.5 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. 4 waymarked trails start within 5 km of Ballygar, among them the Suck Valley Way - Slí Gleannta na Suca and Hymany Way.
Near a park
100%
of residents within 400 m
Typical Irish town: 92%
Green space
12.5 ha
per 1,000 residents
Typical Irish town: 4.1 ha
Footpaths
1 km
0.2 km per km², town + 1 km
Typical Irish town: 2.1 km per km²
Protected for nature
13%
of the land within 5 km
Nearest: Ballygar Bog NHA
Woodland
8.5%
of the town and 1 km around it
Typical Irish town: 2.7%
Character
What kind of outdoors town is Ballygar?
Read from the data: what stands out first, good and bad.
Room to roam12.5 ha of parks and playing fields per 1,000 residents, more than 87% of Irish towns.A park on every doorstep100% of residents live within 400 m of a park or playing field.Protected land nearbyBallygar Bog NHA reaches the edge of Ballygar.Few mapped footpaths0.2 km of path per km²; the typical Irish town has 2.1.
Ballygar’s strongest suit is plenty of park space, followed by parks close to every home. Where it falls short is footpaths.
Against other towns
How Ballygar 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 space12.5 haper 1,000 residents: parks, gardens, playing fields, play spaces
88out of 100
Footpaths0.2 kmper km², the town and 1 km around it
1out of 100
Protected for nature13%of the land within 5 km
94out of 100
Woodland8.5%of the town and 1 km around it, as mapped
91out 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
Ballygar has the 4th fewest footpaths per km² of 40 towns its size
The 40 Irish towns nearest in population (660 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
Ballygar0.2
Towns its size0.7
Co. Galway towns2.1
Typical Irish town2.1
Green space, ha per 1,000 residents
Ballygar12.5
Towns its size4.1
Co. Galway towns5.5
Typical Irish town4.1
Residents within 400 m of a park
Ballygar100%
Towns its size87%
Co. Galway towns80%
Typical Irish town92%
Against towns its size, Ballygar stands out most for park space per resident: only 6 of the other 39 have more. It falls furthest behind on path per km², where 36 of the others do better.
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 | Grange Upper Waterford | 1.4 | 1.5% | 6.6% | – |
| 15 | Blarney Cork | 1.4 | 14% | 0% | – |
| 16 | Kilbarry Waterford | 1.3 | 1.6% | 5.1% | – |
| 17 | Bantry Cork | 1 | 4.4% | 0% | 18% |
| 18 | Ballina Tipperary | 0.9 | 1.8% | 4.7% | – |
| 19 | Moate Westmeath | 0.7 | 2.4% | 2.4% | – |
| 20 | Callan Kilkenny | 0.7 | 0.1% | 2.3% | – |
| 21 | Kingscourt Cavan | 0.7 | 12% | 0% | – |
| 22 | Kenmare Kerry | 0.6 | 7.2% | 6.5% | 6.4% |
| 23 | Athboy Meath | 0.6 | 1.1% | 1.5% | – |
| 24 | Bundoran Donegal | 0.5 | 2% | 5.1% | 35% |
| 25 | Muinebeag (Bagenalstown) Carlow | 0.5 | 3.9% | 2.9% | – |
| 26 | Skibbereen Cork | 0.5 | 1.7% | 1.6% | – |
| 27 | Kinnegad Westmeath | 0.3 | 4.5% | 4.5% | – |
| 28 | Donegal Donegal | 0.3 | 4% | 4.1% | 12% |
| 29 | Boyle Roscommon | 0.3 | 3.2% | 0% | – |
| 30 | Bailieborough Cavan | 0.3 | 10% | 0% | – |
| 31 | Castleisland Kerry | 0.3 | 1.7% | 12% | – |
| 32 | Kanturk Cork | 0.3 | 0% | 5.1% | – |
| 33 | Baltinglass Wicklow | 0.2 | 4.9% | 0.5% | – |
| 34 | Ballyhaunis Mayo | 0.2 | 2.8% | 3.4% | – |
| 35 | Kilrush Clare | 0.2 | 9.8% | 37% | – |
| 36 | Ballyjamesduff Cavan | 0.2 | 7.6% | 0% | – |
| 37 | Ballygar Galway | 0.2 | 8.5% | 13% | – |
| 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 Ballygar’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 Ballygar
The biggest is Aughrane Woods, 433 ha (1,071 acres).
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 Ballygar 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%)
Ballygar100%
Co. Galway towns80%
Typical Irish town92%
Playing fields count, so a park within reach isn’t always one with paths or trees.
Protected areas
13% of the land around Ballygar 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 Ballygar0.2%
Within 5 km13%
Co. Galway towns14%
Typical Irish town1.8%
10 protected sites lie within 5 km of Ballygar. Ireland’s National Parks have a block of their own on this page; much of their land also lies inside these sites.
Ballygar Bog NHANatural Heritage Area · 1.7 km² · reaches Ballygar
NPWS pageSuck River Callows NHANatural Heritage Area · 16 km² · 1.0 km from the edge
NPWS pageRiver Suck Callows SPASpecial Protection Area (birds) · 15 km² · 1.0 km from the edge
NPWS pageBallygar (Aghrane) Bog SACSpecial Area of Conservation · 0.3 km² · 1.3 km from the edge
NPWS pageAughrim (Aghrane) Bog SACSpecial Area of Conservation · 1.1 km² · 2.2 km from the edge
NPWS pageAughrim Bog NHANatural Heritage Area · 2.6 km² · 2.2 km from the edge
NPWS pageKilmore Bog NHANatural Heritage Area · 1.6 km² · 3.7 km from the edge
NPWS pageFour Roads Turlough SACSpecial Area of Conservation · 1.0 km² · 4.3 km from the edge
NPWS pageFour Roads Turlough SPASpecial Protection Area (birds) · 1.0 km² · 4.3 km from the edge
NPWS pageCastle Ffrench East Bog NHANatural Heritage Area · 2.0 km² · 5.0 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
Burren National Park is 63 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
Burren National Park
63 km south-west21 km²
National Park
Wild Nephin National Park
92 km north-west171 km²
National Park
Connemara National Park
99 km west21 km²
3 of Ireland’s six National Parks are within 100 km of Ballygar.
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
1 km of footpaths cross Ballygar
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
1.5 km
over 9 km² of town and the 1 km around it
Woodland
8.5%
about 0.8 km² of mapped woods
Registered trails
4
walking trails within 5 km
Km per km², town and 1 km around · mapped on OpenStreetMap
BallygarCo. Galway townsTypical Irish town
Footpaths0.2
01.53 km per km²
Share of the land · mapped woods and forest
BallygarCo. Galway townsTypical Irish town
Woodland8.5%
0%50%100%
Ballygar has less footpath per km² than 99% of Irish towns and more 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
Ballygar is on the Suck Valley Way - Slí Gleannta na Suca
1 km of footpaths are mapped in Ballygar and the kilometre around it, 0.2 km for every square kilometre (the typical Irish town has 2.1).
Long-distance wayWalking trail
Suck Valley Way - Slí Gleannta na Suca123.9 km
Hymany Way98.3 km
Aghrane Loop5.6 km
Aghrane Castlekelly Loop4.1 km
The Suck Valley Way - Slí Gleannta na Suca (124 km end to end) passes through Ballygar. For a shorter walk, the Aghrane Loop is 5.6 km, graded easy.
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 Ballygar: 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) | 8 | 9 | 11 | 13 | 16 | 19 | 20 | 19 | 18 | 14 | 11 | 9 |
| Rain (mm) | 113 | 87 | 83 | 70 | 68 | 76 | 79 | 90 | 80 | 104 | 111 | 119 |
May is the driest month (68 mm) and July the warmest (highs of 20 °C). Winter days are short, about 7.5 hours of daylight in December, and 119 mm of rain falls in December, the wettest month. The climate in Ballygar →
Things to do
1 playground
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
Playgrounds 1
Plus 1 playground without a name on the map.
Source: © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), Geofabrik extract, October 2026. Unnamed places are counted, not listed.
Next door
Next to Ballygar
The nearest towns of 1,000+ within 20 km, coloured by the share of the land within 5 km protected for nature.
RoscommonBallygar
Under 1%1–10%10–25%25–50%50%+
| Town | Near a park | Green space, ha per 1,000 | Paths (km/km²) | Protected within 5 km |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ballygar | 100% | 12.5 | 0.2 | 13% |
| Roscommon 15 km | 60% | 4.0 | 0.2 | 3.9% |
None of the neighbours has many more of its people near a park than Ballygar.
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 Ballygar
Is there protected countryside near Ballygar?
Yes: 13% of the land within 5 km is protected, across 10 sites. Ballygar Bog NHA reaches Ballygar.
What are the best walks near Ballygar?
4 waymarked trails start within 5 km, including the Suck Valley Way - Slí Gleannta na Suca, Hymany Way and Aghrane Loop.
How many people in Ballygar 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 Ballygar?
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 Ballygar near a National Park?
The nearest of Ireland’s six National Parks is Burren National Park, 63 km south-west of the town’s edge; it covers about 21 km². 2 more are within 100 km.
Sources
Where Ballygar’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
- 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).