Outdoors in Gravesend · parks, paths & countryside
Gravesend is on the coast, on the King Charles III England Coast Path
The sea makes up 10% of the area within 5 km. 195 km of footpaths run through the town and the kilometre around it, 6.4 for every square kilometre. The Kent Downs National Landscape begins 0.3 mi from the town’s edge. Gravesend grades A for the outdoors: #20 of 87 in Kent. A character grade: it isn’t part of the overall grade.
Gravesend’s strongest suit is the sea, followed by dense footpaths. Where it falls short is park space per person.
Outdoors grade
Gravesend grades A for the outdoors
Each chart is every UK town of 1,000 or more on one measure: the green bar is Gravesend, the dashed line the typical town. The number is the share of towns it beats; the five are averaged and the average ranked again.
A
Better than 92% of UK towns#20 of 87 in Kent · 7th of 60 UK towns its size
Public green space1.4 haper 1,000 residents: parks, gardens, playing fields, play spaces
26out of 100
A park within a walk84%of residents within 400 m (a 5-minute walk)
55out of 100
National Park or National Landscape14%of the land within 5 km
74out of 100
Footpaths6.4 kmper km², the town and 1 km around it
98out of 100
The sea10%of the area within 5 km
87out of 100
Graded, never part of the overall grade (like History and Civic life). It measures what is mapped: OS Open Greenspace leaves out woodland and open-access land that isn’t a park, and OpenStreetMap’s rural paths are more complete in some places than others.
Towns its size
Gravesend is 7th of 60 UK towns its size for the outdoors
The 60 UK towns and cities of 49,500 to 68,500 people with an Outdoors Grade. Hover a dot for its figures; tap one for its page.
Outdoors score: the share of UK towns each one beats
Footpath, km per km²
Gravesend6.4
Towns its size3.5
Kent towns2.6
All UK towns3.0
Green space, ha per 1,000 residents
Gravesend1.4
Towns its size2.3
Kent towns2.3
All UK towns2.1
Residents within 400 m of a park
Gravesend84%
Towns its size86%
Kent towns78%
All UK towns83%
Against towns its size, Gravesend stands out most for path per km²: none of the other 59 has more. It falls furthest behind on park space per resident, where 53 of the others do better.
The biggest is Jeskyns Community Woodland, 146 ha (362 acres). Directions go to the park’s nearest public entrance where Ordnance Survey maps one.
All 17 named parks by size: 172 ha (426 acres) and 16 km of path
Parks & gardens 168 haPlaying fields 4.1 ha
The two biggest, Jeskyns Community Woodland and Woodlands Park, are 88% of the named green space and carry 11 km of path between them. 12 of the 17 are under 2 ha: small gardens, play spaces and pitches.
8 in 10 Gravesend 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 (Census 2021 output areas against OS Open Greenspace).
Within 400 m (84%)Further (16%)
Gravesend84%
Towns its size86%
Kent towns78%
All UK towns83%
About 9,000 people live further than that. Playing fields count, so a park within reach isn’t always one with paths or trees; 69 playgrounds are mapped in and around the town, about one for every 842 residents.
National Parks & National Landscapes
The Kent Downs National Landscape is 0.3 mi away
Protected landscapes within 30 km, by direction and distance from the edge of the built-up area; circle size shows each one’s area. National Landscapes were called Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty until 2023.
National ParkNational LandscapeThe 5 km the grade counts
National Landscape
Kent Downs
0.3 mi south-east879 km²since 196814% of the land within 5 km
14% of the land within 5 km of Gravesend is National Park or National Landscape, more than 73% of UK towns.
Footpaths & waymarked walks
Gravesend is on the King Charles III England Coast Path
195 km of footpaths, bridleways and rights of way are mapped in Gravesend and the kilometre around it, 6.4 km for every square kilometre (the typical UK town has 3.0). Bars show each route’s kilometres within 2 km of the town.
NationalRegionalLocalOther waymarked
King Charles III England Coast Path: Grain to Woolwich8.8 km
Wealdway7.2 km
1066 Harold's Way7.1 km
Darnley Trail6.8 km
Thames Estuary Path6.2 km
Saxon Shore Way5.2 km
Hoo Peninsula Path5.1 km
King Charles III England Coast Path: Tilbury to Southend-on-Sea4.5 km
Red Circular Walk3.0 km
Purple Circular Walk1.4 km
The King Charles III England Coast Path, a national route, passes Gravesend. Close to home, the Darnley Trail has 7 km of local walk within 2 km of the town. 3 regional routes pass through, including the Wealdway, 1066 Harold's Way and Saxon Shore Way.
Waymarked walks are OpenStreetMap walking routes. Public rights of way are only as complete as the map in each area.
History along the way
History inside Gravesend’s parks
Historic England’s register of parks and gardens, and the listed buildings and scheduled monuments that stand inside Gravesend’s named parks.
Park with listed buildings
New Tavern Fort
2.1 ha. 3 listed structures and monuments stand inside it or at its edge, including New Tavern Fort, Gravesend, including Milton Chantry (a scheduled monument).
SMNew Tavern Fort, Gravesend, including Milton ChantryII*Milton ChantryII*New Tavern Fort
Listed buildings insideGordon Pleasure GardensObelisk and Statue of General Gordon
Listed buildings insideSt Andrews GardensThames House and The Three Daws Public House
A listed building or monument counts when it sits inside the park’s OS Open Greenspace outline (to about 15 m), so a few at the boundary are included. Historic England, National Heritage List for England.
When to get out
The best walking months in Gravesend: May 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)
8.3
9.9
11.7
13.8
15.6
16.6
16.2
14.6
12.5
10.6
8.8
7.9
High (°C)
8
9
11
14
18
21
23
23
20
16
11
9
Rain (mm)
54
39
34
38
43
44
39
48
47
61
61
54
March is the driest month (34 mm) and July the warmest (highs of 23 °C). Winter days are short, about 8 hours of daylight in December, and 61 mm of rain falls in November, the wettest month. Frost comes on about 33 nights a year. The climate in Gravesend →
The coast
The coast and beaches near Gravesend
10% of the area within 5 km of Gravesend is sea. 16 beaches are mapped within 5 km, 1 with a name.
The King Charles III England Coast Path passes the town.
Sea: the area outside the ONS coastline (mean high water). Bathing water quality is published by the Environment Agency (England) and Natural Resources Wales; check it before swimming.
Things to do
2 viewpoints and 69 playgrounds
Mapped within 2 km of the town in OpenStreetMap, against the typical UK town its size per resident. Named places are listed with directions; unnamed ones are only counted.
Northfleet, 1.6 miles away, grades A, the best next door: 85% of its residents live within 400 m of a park. Shorne and Ebbsfleet Valley have at least twice Gravesend’s green space per resident.
Questions about the outdoors in Gravesend
What is the biggest park in Gravesend?
Jeskyns Community Woodland, 146 ha (362 acres), with 9.8 km of path, just outside the built-up area. Woodlands Park (5.8 ha) is second. 17 named parks, gardens and playing fields are in the town or within 400 m of it.
Is Gravesend near a National Park?
The nearest protected landscape is the Kent Downs National Landscape, 0.3 mi south-east of the town’s edge. It covers 879 km² and was designated in 1968.
What are the best walks near Gravesend?
10 waymarked walking routes pass within 2 km of the town, including the King Charles III England Coast Path: Grain to Woolwich, Wealdway and 1066 Harold's Way. Jeskyns Community Woodland alone has 9.8 km of path.
How many people in Gravesend live near a park?
84% of residents live within 400 m, about a 5-minute walk, of a public park, garden or playing field (Census 2021 output areas against OS Open Greenspace). The typical UK town is 83%.
When is the best time of year for walking in Gravesend?
May to September: the longest days, the warmest afternoons and the least rain of the year, from the Met Office 1991–2020 averages.
Is Gravesend good for walking?
For paths, yes: 6.4 km of footpath and right of way per square kilometre, more than 98% of UK towns. For park space per person it beats 26% (1.4 ha per 1,000 residents).
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 Landscape within 5 km, footpaths per square kilometre, and the sea within 5 km. It is a character grade and isn’t part of Gravesend’s overall grade.
National Parks and National Landscapes: Natural England and Natural Resources Wales boundaries, areas and designation dates, Open Government Licence v3.0.
Photo: Robin Webster · CC BY-SA 2.0