First pick
Lodge Park Walled Garden
Park or garden · 300 m outside town
0.5 ha0.2 km of path
0.7 km south-eastfrom the centre
Directionsto a point inside
Photo: Sheila1988 · CC045%near a park
Outdoors in Straffan · parks, paths & countryside
Parks and walks in Straffan
A park or playing field is within a 5-minute walk for 45% of residents. Wicklow Mountains National Park begins 17 km away. Footpaths add up to 7 km in the town and the kilometre around it, 0.8 for every square kilometre.
Near a park
45%
of residents within 400 m
Typical Irish town: 92%
Green space
2.2 ha
per 1,000 residents
Typical Irish town: 4.1 ha
Footpaths
7 km
0.8 km per km², town + 1 km
Typical Irish town: 2.1 km per km²
Woodland
5.8%
of the town and 1 km around it
Typical Irish town: 2.7%
Character
What kind of outdoors town is Straffan?
Read from the data: what stands out first, good and bad.
Countryside close byWicklow Mountains National Park starts 17 km south-east.Parks can be a walk away55% of residents live more than 400 m from a park or playing field.
Straffan’s strongest suit is Wicklow Mountains National Park close by. Where it falls short is how far some homes are from a park.
Against other towns
How Straffan 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 walk45%of residents within 400 m (a 5-minute walk)
2out of 100
Public green space2.2 haper 1,000 residents: parks, gardens, playing fields, play spaces
25out of 100
Footpaths0.8 kmper km², the town and 1 km around it
22out of 100
Protected for nature0%of the land within 5 km
11out of 100
Woodland5.8%of the town and 1 km around it, as mapped
79out 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
Straffan has the 19th most footpaths per km² of 40 towns its size
The 40 Irish towns nearest in population (1,158 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
Straffan0.8
Towns its size0.7
Co. Kildare towns1.0
Typical Irish town2.1
Green space, ha per 1,000 residents
Straffan2.2
Towns its size3.8
Co. Kildare towns2.2
Typical Irish town4.1
Residents within 400 m of a park
Straffan45%
Towns its size83%
Co. Kildare towns79%
Typical Irish town92%
Straffan falls furthest behind on homes near a park, where 37 of the 39 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 | Straffan Kildare | 0.8 | 5.8% | 0% | – |
| 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 Straffan’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 Straffan
The biggest is Lodge Park Walled Garden, 0.5 ha (1 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
5 in 10 Straffan 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 (45%)Further (55%)
Straffan45%
Co. Kildare towns79%
Typical Irish town92%
About 600 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 Straffan
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 Straffan.
National Parks
Wicklow Mountains National Park is 17 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
17 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
7 km of footpaths cross Straffan
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
7.4 km
over 9.5 km² of town and the 1 km around it
Woodland
5.8%
about 0.6 km² of mapped woods
Registered trails
1
walking trails within 5 km
Km per km², town and 1 km around · mapped on OpenStreetMap
StraffanCo. Kildare townsTypical Irish town
Footpaths0.8
01.53 km per km²
Share of the land · mapped woods and forest
StraffanCo. Kildare townsTypical Irish town
Woodland5.8%
0%50%100%
Straffan has less footpath per km² than 78% of Irish towns and more woodland than 79% 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 Straffan
7 km of footpaths are mapped in Straffan and the kilometre around it, 0.8 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.
History
2 historic parks, gardens and demesnes on the record in Straffan
Parks, gardens, walled gardens and demesne walls in the town on the National Inventory of Architectural Heritage, each with its record.
Demesne walls/gates/railingsStraffan Housefrom 1830Regional rating (NIAH)
Demesne walls/gates/railingsDemesne walls, Straffanfrom 1860Regional rating (NIAH)
The oldest dated is Straffan House, from 1830.
National Inventory of Architectural Heritage, Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (CC BY 4.0).
When to get out
The best walking months in Straffan: 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 | 17.0 | 16.5 | 14.8 | 12.6 | 10.4 | 8.5 | 7.5 |
| High (°C) | 8 | 9 | 11 | 13 | 16 | 19 | 20 | 20 | 18 | 14 | 11 | 9 |
| Rain (mm) | 67 | 57 | 52 | 54 | 55 | 64 | 62 | 73 | 66 | 82 | 85 | 78 |
March is the driest month (52 mm) and July the warmest (highs of 20 °C). Winter days are short, about 7.5 hours of daylight in December, and 85 mm of rain falls in November, the wettest month. The climate in Straffan →
Things to do
1 hill or peak
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
Hills and peaks 1
Saint Patrick's Hill1.3 km from town
DirectionsSource: © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), Geofabrik extract, October 2026. Unnamed places are counted, not listed.
Gardens & nature
A garden or nature site to visit near Straffan
Gardens, national parks, nature sites and islands within 15 km of the town’s edge, each with its own page.
Lodge Park Walled GardenGarden · 0.5 km from town
Its pagePlaces to visit: Fáilte Ireland open data (CC BY 4.0), OpenStreetMap and Wikidata.
Next door
Next to Straffan
The nearest towns of 1,000+ within 20 km, coloured by the share of the land within 5 km protected for nature.
CelbridgeClaneMaynoothKillNewcastleSallinsStraffan
Under 1%1–10%10–25%25–50%50%+
In Clane, 91% of residents live within a 5-minute walk of a park, more than here. Celbridge, Clane and Kill have at least twice Straffan’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 Straffan
What is the biggest park in Straffan?
Lodge Park Walled Garden, 0.5 ha (1 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 Straffan?
One waymarked trail starts within 5 km: the Grand Canal Way.
How many people in Straffan live near a park?
45% 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 Straffan?
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 Straffan near a National Park?
The nearest of Ireland’s six National Parks is Wicklow Mountains National Park, 17 km south-east of the town’s edge; it covers about 223 km².
What is there to do outdoors around Straffan?
Within 2 km, OpenStreetMap maps 1 hill or peak; the named ones are listed under Things to do, with directions.
Which parks in Straffan are historic?
The National Inventory of Architectural Heritage records 2 historic parks, gardens and demesnes in the town, among them Demesne walls, Straffan and Straffan House.
Sources
Where Straffan’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
- Historic parks and gardens. Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage: National Inventory of Architectural Heritage (CC BY 4.0)
- 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).