First pick
Kerdiffstown Park
Park or garden · 170 m outside town
31 ha3.8 km of path
50 minto walk all 3.8 km of path
1.3 km north-westfrom the centre
Directionsto a point inside
Photo: Kenneth Allen · CC BY-SA 2.081%near a park
Outdoors in Johnstown · parks, paths & countryside
Johnstown has more park space per resident than 9 in 10 Irish towns
Parks and playing fields in Johnstown add up to 23.6 ha for every 1,000 residents; the typical Irish town has 4.1. Wicklow Mountains National Park begins 11 km away. One waymarked trail starts within 5 km of Johnstown: the Grand Canal Way.
Near a park
81%
of residents within 400 m
Typical Irish town: 92%
Green space
23.6 ha
per 1,000 residents
Typical Irish town: 4.1 ha
Footpaths
11 km
1.3 km per km², town + 1 km
Typical Irish town: 2.1 km per km²
Woodland
1%
of the town and 1 km around it
Typical Irish town: 2.7%
Character
What kind of outdoors town is Johnstown?
Read from the data: what stands out first, good and bad.
Room to roam23.6 ha of parks and playing fields per 1,000 residents, more than 95% of Irish towns.Countryside close byWicklow Mountains National Park starts 11 km south-east.
Johnstown’s strongest suit is plenty of park space, followed by Wicklow Mountains National Park close by.
Against other towns
How Johnstown 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 walk81%of residents within 400 m (a 5-minute walk)
35out of 100
Public green space23.6 haper 1,000 residents: parks, gardens, playing fields, play spaces
95out of 100
Footpaths1.3 kmper km², the town and 1 km around it
37out of 100
Protected for nature0%of the land within 5 km
11out of 100
Woodland1%of the town and 1 km around it, as mapped
17out 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
Johnstown has the 17th most footpaths per km² of 40 towns its size
The 40 Irish towns nearest in population (1,320 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
Johnstown1.3
Towns its size0.7
Co. Kildare towns1.0
Typical Irish town2.1
Green space, ha per 1,000 residents
Johnstown23.6
Towns its size4.1
Co. Kildare towns2.2
Typical Irish town4.1
Residents within 400 m of a park
Johnstown81%
Towns its size83%
Co. Kildare towns79%
Typical Irish town92%
Against towns its size, Johnstown 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 | 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 | Johnstown Kildare | 1.3 | 1% | 0% | – |
| 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 Johnstown’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 Johnstown
The biggest is Kerdiffstown Park, 31 ha (77 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
8 in 10 Johnstown 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).
Within 400 m (81%)Further (19%)
Johnstown81%
Co. Kildare towns79%
Typical Irish town92%
About 300 people live further than that. Playing fields count, so a park within reach isn’t always one with paths or trees.
Protected areas
No protected site lies within 5 km of Johnstown
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.
No site protected for nature lies within 5 km of Johnstown.
National Parks
Wicklow Mountains National Park is 11 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
11 km south-east223 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
11 km of footpaths cross Johnstown
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
11 km
over 8.3 km² of town and the 1 km around it
Woodland
1%
about 0.1 km² of mapped woods
Registered trails
1
walking trails within 5 km
Km per km², town and 1 km around · mapped on OpenStreetMap
JohnstownCo. Kildare townsTypical Irish town
Footpaths1.3
01.53 km per km²
Share of the land · mapped woods and forest
JohnstownCo. Kildare townsTypical Irish town
Woodland1%
0%50%100%
Johnstown has less footpath per km² than 63% of Irish towns and less woodland than 83% of Irish towns.
Footpaths and woods: © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), Geofabrik extract, October 2026. Woods are mapped cover, private and Coillte forests included.
Footpaths & trails
One waymarked trail starts near Johnstown
11 km of footpaths are mapped in Johnstown and the kilometre around it, 1.3 km for every square kilometre (the typical Irish town has 2.1).
Long-distance way
Grand Canal Way117.1 km
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 Johnstown: 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 | 15.8 | 16.9 | 16.5 | 14.8 | 12.6 | 10.4 | 8.5 | 7.5 |
| High (°C) | 8 | 9 | 11 | 13 | 16 | 18 | 20 | 20 | 18 | 14 | 11 | 8 |
| Rain (mm) | 75 | 63 | 59 | 60 | 60 | 71 | 68 | 78 | 73 | 93 | 94 | 86 |
March is the driest month (59 mm) and July the warmest (highs of 20 °C). Winter days are short, about 7.5 hours of daylight in December, and 94 mm of rain falls in November, the wettest month. The climate in Johnstown →
Things to do
3 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.
Per resident, playgrounds stand out most: Johnstown has 1.7× as many as the typical Irish town.
Every named place, with directions
Playgrounds 3
Plus 3 playgrounds without a name on the map.
Source: © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), Geofabrik extract, October 2026. Unnamed places are counted, not listed.
Next door
Next to Johnstown
The nearest towns of 1,000+ within 20 km, coloured by the share of the land within 5 km protected for nature.
KillNaasSallinsCarraghClaneBlessingtonJohnstown
Under 1%1–10%10–25%25–50%50%+
In Carragh, 100% of residents live within a 5-minute walk of a park, more than here.
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 Johnstown
What is the biggest park in Johnstown?
Kerdiffstown Park, 31 ha (77 acres), just outside the built-up area. 1 named park, garden or playing field is in the town or within 400 m of it.
What are the best walks near Johnstown?
One waymarked trail starts within 5 km: the Grand Canal Way.
How many people in Johnstown live near a park?
81% 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 Johnstown?
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 Johnstown near a National Park?
The nearest of Ireland’s six National Parks is Wicklow Mountains National Park, 11 km south-east of the town’s edge; it covers about 223 km².
Sources
Where Johnstown’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).