Oban’s biggest
Dungallan Parks
Park or garden
0.5 ha (1 acres)
0.5 mi westfrom the centre
1 listed
Directionsto the nearest entrance
Photo: The Carlisle Kid · CC BY-SA 2.0–Not graded
Outdoors in Oban · parks, paths & countryside
Oban is on the coast
The sea makes up 35% of the area within 5 km. The Lynn of Lorn National Scenic Area begins 3.5 mi from the town’s edge. Parks and playing fields in Oban add up to 1.0 ha for every 1,000 residents; the typical town in England and Wales has 2.1. Oban has no Outdoors Grade: Scottish towns aren’t graded on the outdoors yet.
Green space
1.0 ha
per 1,000 residents
Typical town in England and Wales 2.1
Near a park
51%
of residents within 400 m
Typical town in England and Wales 83%
Footpaths
54 km
2.7 km per km², town + 1 km
Typical town in England and Wales 3.0 per km²
Protected landscape
0%
of the land within 5 km
Lynn of Lorn starts 3.5 mi out, past the 5 km
The sea
35%
of the area within 5 km
A coastal town
Character
What kind of outdoors town is Oban?
Read from the data: what stands out first, good and bad.
On the coast35% of the area within 5 km is sea; 15 beaches mapped.Countryside close byThe Lynn of Lorn National Scenic Area starts 3.5 mi north.Parks can be a walk away49% of residents live more than 400 m from a park or playing field.
Oban’s strongest suit is the sea, followed by the Lynn of Lorn National Scenic Area close by. Where it falls short is how far some homes are from a park.
The map
Parks, footpaths & countryside
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it. The dashed line is Oban’s locality.
Green space: parks, gardens, playing fields and play spaces, named or not.© OpenStreetMap contributors · Contains OS data © Crown copyright · Scottish Government, NatureScot
Places to walk
Parks to walk in, in and around Oban
The biggest is Dungallan Parks, 0.5 ha (1 acres). Directions go to the park’s nearest public entrance where Ordnance Survey maps one.
Close to home
5 in 10 Oban 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 (NRS Census 2022 output areas against OS Open Greenspace).
Within 400 m (51%)Further (49%)
Oban51%
Argyll and Bute towns74%
Towns in England and Wales83%
About 3,900 people live further than that. Playing fields count, so a park within reach isn’t always one with paths or trees; 21 playgrounds are mapped in and around the town, about one for every 381 residents.
National Parks & National Scenic Areas
The Lynn of Lorn National Scenic Area is 3.5 mi away
Protected landscapes within 30 km, by direction and distance from the edge of the locality; circle size shows each one’s area. National Scenic Areas are Scotland’s finest landscapes, chosen by NatureScot.
National ParkNational Scenic AreaThe 5 km the grade counts
National Scenic Area
Lynn of Lorn
3.5 mi north50 km²since 1980
National Scenic Area
Scarba, Lunga and the Garvellachs
12 mi south-west20 km²since 1980
National Scenic Area
Ben Nevis and Glen Coe
14 mi north-east905 km²since 1980
Protected landscape begins just outside the 5 km ring the Outdoors Grade measures, so Oban scores 0% on it even though the Lynn of Lorn National Scenic Area is 3.5 mi away.
Footpaths & waymarked walks
1 waymarked walk passes through or near Oban
54 km of footpaths, tracks and core paths are mapped in Oban and the kilometre around it, 2.7 km for every square kilometre (the typical town in England and Wales has 3.0). Bars show each route’s kilometres within 2 km of the town.
Local
St Conan Pilgrim Way8.6 km
Close to home, the St Conan Pilgrim Way has 9 km of local walk within 2 km of the town.
Waymarked walks are OpenStreetMap walking routes. Scotland has no rights-of-way register: everyone has a right of responsible access to most land, so tracks and councils’ core paths count. Paths are only as complete as the map in each area.
When to get out
The best walking months in Oban: June to September
The town’s 1991–2020 averages (Met Office HadUK-Grid) and the daylight at its latitude. Outlined months have 12½+ hours of daylight, highs of 15 °C or more and little rain for the town.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daylight (h) | 7.5 | 9.4 | 11.6 | 14.1 | 16.4 | 17.7 | 17.1 | 15.1 | 12.6 | 10.2 | 8.0 | 6.9 |
| High (°C) | 7 | 7 | 9 | 12 | 15 | 17 | 18 | 18 | 16 | 13 | 10 | 7 |
| Rain (mm) | 223 | 169 | 150 | 101 | 102 | 106 | 122 | 142 | 154 | 201 | 193 | 215 |
April is the driest month (101 mm) and July the warmest (highs of 18 °C). Winter days are short, about 7 hours of daylight in December, and 223 mm of rain falls in January, the wettest month. Frost comes on about 30 nights a year. The climate in Oban →
The coast
The coast and beaches near Oban
35% of the area within 5 km of Oban is sea. 15 beaches are mapped within 5 km, 3 with a name.
Little Ganavan Beach0.5 mi from town
DirectionsPort na Mairt0.7 mi from town
DirectionsGanavan Sands1.0 mi from town
DirectionsSea: the area outside the ONS coastline (mean high water). Bathing water quality is published by SEPA; check it before swimming.
Things to do
11 viewpoints and 21 playgrounds
Mapped within 2 km of the town in OpenStreetMap. Named places are listed with directions; unnamed ones are only counted.
Every named place, with directions
Viewpoints 11
Plus 11 viewpoints without a name on the map.
Hills and peaks 23
Battery Hill55 m (180 ft) · in town
DirectionsOban Hill84 m (276 ft) · in town
DirectionsPulpit Hill72 m (236 ft) · in town
DirectionsBàrr Cruinn71 m (233 ft) · 0.1 mi from town
DirectionsBarra Mòr90 m (295 ft) · 0.1 mi from town
DirectionsDruim Mòr122 m (400 ft) · 0.1 mi from town
DirectionsCnoc Càrnach128 m (420 ft) · 0.2 mi from town
DirectionsCnoc Poll a' Mhinisteir138 m (453 ft) · 0.3 mi from town
DirectionsPlus 15 hills and peaks without a name on the map.
Waterfalls 1
Plus 1 waterfall without a name on the map.
Picnic sites 1
Plus 1 picnic site without a name on the map.
Playgrounds 21
Plus 21 playgrounds without a name on the map.
Campsites 2
Holiday Park1.1 mi from town
DirectionsOban Holiday Park1.1 mi from town
DirectionsSlipways 12
Public Slipway0.9 mi from town
DirectionsGanavan Slip0.9 mi from town
DirectionsPlus 10 slipways without a name on the map.
Questions about the outdoors in Oban
What is the biggest park in Oban?
Dungallan Parks, 0.5 ha (1 acres). 1 named park, garden or playing field is in the town or within 400 m of it.
Is Oban near a National Park?
The nearest protected landscape is the Lynn of Lorn National Scenic Area, 3.5 mi north of the town’s edge. It covers 50 km² and was designated in 1980.
What are the best walks near Oban?
1 waymarked walking route passes within 2 km of the town, including the St Conan Pilgrim Way.
How many people in Oban live near a park?
51% of residents live within 400 m, about a 5-minute walk, of a public park, garden or playing field (NRS Census 2022 output areas against OS Open Greenspace). The typical town in England and Wales is 83%.
When is the best time of year for walking in Oban?
June to September: the longest days, the warmest afternoons and the least rain of the year, from the Met Office 1991–2020 averages.
How is the Outdoors Grade worked out?
From five measures, each placed among UK towns of 1,000 or more: public green space per resident, the share living near a park, National Park or National Scenic Area within 5 km, footpaths per square kilometre, and the sea within 5 km. It is a character grade and isn’t part of Oban’s overall grade.
Sources
Where Oban’s outdoors figures come from
- Parks and green space: Ordnance Survey OS Open Greenspace (parks and gardens, playing fields, play spaces, and their access points). Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026, Open Government Licence v3.0.
- National Parks and National Scenic Areas: Scottish Government and NatureScot boundaries (Loch Lomond and The Trossachs, Cairngorms; the 40 National Scenic Areas), clipped to land, Open Government Licence v3.0.
- Footpaths, tracks, core paths, walking routes, beaches and things to do: © OpenStreetMap contributors, Open Database License (ODbL), via Geofabrik’s Scotland extract, October 2026.
- Historic gardens, listed buildings and monuments: Historic Environment Scotland designations, Open Government Licence v3.0.
- Rain and temperature: Met Office HadUK-Grid 1991–2020 averages for the town; daylight calculated from its latitude.
- The sea: ONS Countries (December 2024) boundaries clipped to mean high water. Residents near a park: NRS Scotland’s Census 2022 output areas.
- Grade: Scottish towns have no Outdoors Grade yet.
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026 (ONS boundaries). Northern Ireland: Source: NISRA; contains Land & Property Services data and Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland information, © Crown copyright, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Scotland: contains National Records of Scotland data, Registers of Scotland data and SEPA data, © Crown copyright / © SEPA 2025, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.