Two Kilkenny amenities make the Top 20 of Ireland's most visited Coillte recreational parks

Jenkinstown Wood and Millennium Woods in Kilkenny were named among the Top 20 most visited Coillte recreational forests in Ireland according to visitor statistics recorded in 2024.

Jenkinstown Wood had almost 102,000 visits last year, while Millennium Woods saw over 61,500 visits.

Jenkinstown Wood offers two looped walks through surrounding forestry, with landmarks including St. Colman’s well visible along the route. The recreational forest also hosts a herd of deer for visitors to view before entering the woodland trail. Millennium Woods, also known as Coill an Fhaltaigh, consists of walking trails bringing visitors through its variety of conifer woodland trees and seasonal flora that grows under the woodland.
Pictures: New walking trail and a raft of enhancements open at Jenkinstown Woods in Kilkenny

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, will offer a Spooktacular Halloween Twilight Trail and family fun activities.

Rossmore Forest Park in 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 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.