Peebles’ biggest
Hay Lodge Park
Park or garden
10.0 ha (25 acres)1.2 km of path
15 minto walk all 1.2 km of path
14 pitchesfootball pitches would fit
0.5 mi westfrom the centre
Directionsto the nearest entrance
Photo: Michael Garlick · CC BY-SA 2.0–Not graded
Outdoors in Peebles · parks, paths & countryside
95% of Peebles’ residents live within a 5-minute walk of a park
The Upper Tweeddale National Scenic Area reaches the edge of Peebles. Footpaths add up to 92 km in the town and the kilometre around it, 5.3 for every square kilometre. Parks and playing fields in Peebles add up to 2.9 ha for every 1,000 residents; the typical town in England and Wales has 2.1. Peebles has no Outdoors Grade: Scottish towns aren’t graded on the outdoors yet.
Green space
2.9 ha
per 1,000 residents
Typical town in England and Wales 2.1
Near a park
95%
of residents within 400 m
Typical town in England and Wales 83%
Footpaths
92 km
5.3 km per km², town + 1 km
Typical town in England and Wales 3.0 per km²
Protected landscape
25%
of the land within 5 km
Nearest: Upper Tweeddale National Scenic Area
Character
What kind of outdoors town is Peebles?
Read from the data: what stands out first, good and bad.
Countryside close byThe Upper Tweeddale National Scenic Area starts 0.0 mi west.On a long-distance trailThe Cross Borders Drove Road passes through.
Peebles’ strongest suit is the Upper Tweeddale National Scenic Area close by, followed by the Cross Borders Drove Road.
The map
Parks, footpaths & countryside
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it. The dashed line is Peebles’ 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 Peebles
The biggest is Hay Lodge Park, 10.0 ha (25 acres). Directions go to the park’s nearest public entrance where Ordnance Survey maps one.
All 5 named parks by size: 21 ha (52 acres) and 5 km of path
Parks & gardens 21 ha
The two biggest, Hay Lodge Park and Victoria Park, are 79% of the named green space and carry 3 km of path between them.
Victoria Park
Park or garden
6.6 ha (16 acres)1.5 km of path
20 minto walk all 1.5 km of path
9 pitchesfootball pitches would fit
Centralin the middle of Peebles
2 listed
Directionsto the nearest entrance
Tweed Green
Park or garden
3.5 ha (9 acres)1.8 km of path
25 minto walk all 1.8 km of path
5 pitchesfootball pitches would fit
Centralin the middle of Peebles
Priorsford Bridge, Over River Tweed Grade II*Tweed Green
Directionsto the nearest entrance
Cuddy Green
Park or garden
0.5 ha (1 acres)0.4 km of path
Centralin the middle of Peebles
1 listed
Directionsto the nearest entrance
Old Town Green
Park or garden
0.4 ha (1 acres)
Centralin the middle of Peebles
1 and 3 Old Town Grade II*
Directionsto the nearest entrance
Close to home
How close Peebles’s homes are to 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 (95%)Further (5%)
Peebles95%
Scottish Borders towns81%
Towns in England and Wales83%
About 500 people live further than that. Playing fields count, so a park within reach isn’t always one with paths or trees; 27 playgrounds are mapped in and around the town, about one for every 338 residents.
National Parks & National Scenic Areas
National Parks and National Scenic Areas around Peebles
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
Upper Tweeddale
At the edge west128 km²since 198025% of the land within 5 km
National Scenic Area
Eildon and Leaderfoot
16 mi east39 km²since 1980
25% of the land within 5 km of Peebles is National Park or National Scenic Area.
Footpaths & waymarked walks
Peebles is on the Cross Borders Drove Road
92 km of footpaths, tracks and core paths are mapped in Peebles and the kilometre around it, 5.3 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.
NationalLocal
Cross Borders Drove Road (West Linton to Traquair)7.8 km
Pilots' Trail5.0 km
John Buchan Way4.6 km
Tantah's Trail2.2 km
The Cross Borders Drove Road, a national route, passes Peebles.
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 Peebles: 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) | 7.6 | 9.5 | 11.6 | 14.1 | 16.2 | 17.5 | 17.0 | 15.0 | 12.6 | 10.3 | 8.2 | 7.1 |
| High (°C) | 6 | 6 | 8 | 11 | 14 | 17 | 19 | 18 | 16 | 12 | 8 | 6 |
| Rain (mm) | 96 | 86 | 70 | 57 | 56 | 67 | 74 | 88 | 73 | 102 | 104 | 118 |
May is the driest month (56 mm) and July the warmest (highs of 19 °C). Winter days are short, about 7 hours of daylight in December, and 118 mm of rain falls in December, the wettest month. Frost comes on about 69 nights a year. The climate in Peebles →
Things to do
27 playgrounds and the nearest beaches
Mapped within 2 km of the town in OpenStreetMap. Named places are listed with directions; unnamed ones are only counted.
The nearest beaches
Peebles is inland. These are the nearest named beaches, measured from the edge of the town.
Fisherrow Sands20 mi from Peebles’ edge
DirectionsJoppa Shore20 mi from Peebles’ edge
DirectionsPortobello Beach20 mi from Peebles’ edge
DirectionsMusselburgh Sands21 mi from Peebles’ edge
DirectionsEast Sands of Leith22 mi from Peebles’ edge
DirectionsGood to know
Check the water before you swim. SEPA tests designated bathing waters from May to September and publishes a rating for each beach.
Up high. Ven Law Hill, at 311 m, is the highest named top within 2 km of Peebles.
Every named place, with directions
Hills and peaks 8
Ven Law Hill311 m (1,020 ft) · 0.2 mi from town
DirectionsMailingsland Hill0.5 mi from town
DirectionsTor Hill269 m (883 ft) · 0.5 mi from town
DirectionsHamilton Hill371 m (1,217 ft) · 0.8 mi from town
DirectionsCademuir Hill416 m (1,365 ft) · 0.9 mi from town
DirectionsWhitfold Hill377 m (1,237 ft) · 1.1 mi from town
DirectionsPlus 2 hills and peaks without a name on the map.
Picnic sites 6
Plus 6 picnic sites without a name on the map.
Playgrounds 27
Plus 27 playgrounds without a name on the map.
Campsites 1
Glentress Forest Lodges1.0 mi from town
DirectionsNext door
The outdoors in nearby towns
The nearest towns of 1,000+ within 12 miles. Tap a town for its outdoors page.
InnerleithenPeebles
ABCDOutdoors Grade
| Town | Outdoors | Green space, ha per 1,000 | Near a park | Protected within 5 km |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Peebles | – | 2.9 | 95% | 25% |
| Innerleithen 5.6 mi | – | 1.1 | 60% | 0% |
Questions about the outdoors in Peebles
What is the biggest park in Peebles?
Hay Lodge Park, 10.0 ha (25 acres), with 1.2 km of path. Victoria Park (6.6 ha) is second. 5 named parks, gardens and playing fields are in the town or within 400 m of it.
Is Peebles near a National Park?
It covers 128 km² and was designated in 1980.
What are the best walks near Peebles?
4 waymarked walking routes pass within 2 km of the town, including the Cross Borders Drove Road (West Linton to Traquair), Pilots' Trail and John Buchan Way.
What is the nearest beach to Peebles?
Fisherrow Sands, 20 mi from the edge of the town, then Joppa Shore (20 mi). Peebles itself is inland.
How many people in Peebles live near a park?
95% 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 Peebles?
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 Peebles’ overall grade.
Sources
Where Peebles’ 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.