Kildare’s Donadea Forest Park and Mullaghreelan Wood in top 20 parks in Ireland

Donadea Forest Park and Mullaghreelan Wood in Co. Kildare were named among the Top 20 most visited Coillte recreational forests in Ireland according to visitor statistics recorded in 2024.

Donadea Forest Park recorded almost 217,000 visits last year, placing it fourth among the most visited Coillte recreational forests. The park offers scenic looped walking trails that feature notable sites such as Donadea Castle and Estate, along with historical landmarks including the walled gardens, boat and ice houses, and St Peter’s Church. Meanwhile, Mullaghreelan Wood saw over 75,500 visits, with those visiting enjoying its extensive network of forest pathways and a hilltop rath that offers panoramic views of Kilkea Castle.

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In first place with almost 350,000 visits, Avondale Forest Park is home to the visitor destination Beyond the Trees Avondale which officially opened in July 2022. In addition to Avondale House, the home of Charles Stewart Parnell, it now boasts a unique Treetop Walk and Viewing Tower, Ireland’s longest slide and for the Halloween season, offers a Spooktacular Halloween Twilight Trail and family fun activities.

Rossmore Forest Park in Co. Monaghan, which boasts a variety of walking trails around Rossmore Castle, surrounding lakes where fishing is available, family cycling trails, and nature tracks, attracted the second highest number of visits in 2024, with over 340,000 recorded. Ticknock in Co. Dublin, which offers several walking and hiking trails, as well as mountain-bike tracks and orienteering courses, followed in third place with over 260,000 visits last year.

Over three million people visited Coillte’s top 50 most popular recreational woodlands and parks in 2024. The data indicates a growing interest from the public in local outdoor recreation, with many visitors to Coillte sites enjoying walks through recreational parks and woodlands where they can explore nature and biodiversity. There are also a host of activities available at various locations including cycling, fishing, orienteering, horse-riding and ziplining.

Coillte is the largest provider of outdoor recreation in Ireland with a total of 260 forest recreational areas, twelve forest parks and six mountain bike centres nationwide.