Avondale Forest Park in Co Wicklow.
Newly released 2024 visitor statistics show that Avondale Forest Park in Wicklow was the most visited Coillte recreational forest last year, with almost 345,000 visits, while Devil’s Glen ranked among the Top 20 with almost 47,000 visits.
Avondale, near Rathdrum, includes Avondale House, the home of Charles Stewart Parnell, as well as the Beyond the Trees Avondale visitor attraction, which opened in 2022 and includes the Treetop Walk and Viewing Tower, and Ireland’s longest slide.
Devil’s Glen, near Ashford, is set within a steep-sided river valley shaped at the end of the Ice Age, when meltwater from retreating glaciers carved the gorge. The Vartry River continues to descend through the landscape from the reservoir toward Ashford, with two looped walks: the Seamus Heaney Walk and the Waterfall Walk.
The figures place Avondale ahead of Rossmore Forest Park in Co Monaghan (just over 340,000 visits), Ticknock in Co Dublin (over 260,000), Donadea Forest Park in Co Kildare (over 216,000) and Tintern in Co Wexford (around 169,000).
More than three million visits were recorded across Coillte’s 50 most popular sites in 2024. Coillte said Storm Éowyn caused significant damage, temporarily closing almost 100 recreation sites. Ninety-two have since reopened, with recovery works ongoing at eight.
Coillte’s head of recreation, Daithi de Forge, said: “As Ireland’s largest provider of outdoor recreation spaces, Coillte is delighted to see the growth in visitor numbers to three million, across our most popular recreational sites in 2024. This increase highlights the importance of outdoor recreation and reflects a growing demand to spend time in nature.”