Best walks in South East England by train
MapA day hike in the countryside is just a simple train journey away — explore the most charmingly located railway stations in South East England and plan your next day of green.
Hanborough Station Circular via Blenheim Palace (Oxfordshire)
1h direct from Paddington.
13km. Moderate ascents. 3h30–6h.
Beginner-friendly: A gigantic well-signposted park. It’s completely fine to deviate from the route — explore as you like! Plenty of options for lunch — no need to reserve a table.
An essential walk! It's an easy walk from the station to the beautiful, vast (and free) grounds of the finest example of English baroque architecture. For a somewhat extortionate fee you can also visit the house, but you'd probably want a whole day for that.
Highlights: Blenheim Palace and Woodstock.
Lunch stops in Woodstock (1h30–2h30 in): the Crown, the Back Lane Tavern, or the Star Inn.
End-of-walk reward: the George and Dragon.
Amberley Station to Arundel Station (Sussex)
1h 15m from Victoria, with one change.
13km. Gentle ascents. 3h30–6h.
Beginner-friendly: A beautiful, varied walk with a number of sights along the way and the experience of seeing Arundel Castle gradually emerge on the horizon. Arundel itself is a romantic little town that’s worth exploring and appreciating if you have the time. Visiting the castle and its grounds would require a day in itself. Simply follow the river and cross over when you get to Arundel. You can’t go wrong! There’s only one place to have lunch en route (the George) and it can be busy on weekends, so reserve a table to avoid a wait — book for 2.5 hours after your arrival at Amberley to allow for a leisurely pace with time to dilly-dally and appreciate sights on the way. Book for 3 hours after your arrival for a slow pace or extra contingency! (or just pack lunch).
An essential walk!
Highlights: Arundel Castle and Arundel itself.
Lunch stop: the George (1h30–3h in).
End-of-walk reward: the Eagle.
Guildford Station Circular via Watt’s Chapel (Surrey)
30m direct from Waterloo.
13km. Moderate ascents. 3h30–6h.
Beginner-friendly: No coast or river to follow, but pretty straightforward long lines nonetheless, and Watt’s Chapel provides a lovely reward for reaching the midpoint of the circuit. The lunch stop is a simple café in the vicinity of Watt’s Chapel, so no messing around with booking a table in advance.
A rambler favourite!
Highlights: Watts Chapel, Watts Gallery, St Catherine's Chapel Ruins, and Guildford.
Lunch stop: Watts Gallery café (1h30–2h30 in).
End-of-walk rewards: the Withies Inn, Ye Olde Ship Inn, the Britannia, the White House, or the George Abbot.
Aspley Guise Station Circular via the Woburn Estate (Bedfordshire)
1h from Euston, with one change.
13km. Moderate ascents. 3h–5h.
Beginner-friendly: A shortish but satisfying walk. It’s hard to go wrong and, if you do, it’s easy to recover. Lunch is in the pleasant village of Woburn, where there are many choices, so no faffing with making reservations needed. Plus it goes through a safari park and you’ll likely spot some of the beasts.
A rambler favourite!
Highlights: Woburn Safari Park.
Lunch stops in Woburn (1h–2h in): the Black Horse, Lussmanns, or the Woburn Hotel.
End-of-walk reward: the Anchor.
Fishbourne Station Circular via Chichester Harbour (Sussex)
1h 30m from Waterloo, with one change.
Easy: 11km, flat terrain. 3h–5h.
Beginner-friendly: Just follow the coast and come back along a straight walk. It’s almost too simple! Flat, short and plenty of choices for lunch.
Chichester Harbour is a little-known National Landscape. Its protected saltmarsh landscape feeds an abundance of birdlife. It’s a major recreational harbour but somehow has a romantically melancholy and isolated air — you can imagine sea shanties being composed here.
Highlights: Chichester Harbour, Bosham, and Fishbourne Roman Palace & Gardens.
Lunch stops in Bosham (1h30–2h30 in): the Anchor Bleu, Timberley's, the Berkeley Arms, or Marwick's.
End-of-walk rewards: the Bull's Head Pub, or the Woolpack Inn.
Tring Station Circular via Ashridge Estate (Hertfordshire)
45m direct from Euston.
13km. Moderate ascents. 3h30–6h.
Beginner-friendly: It’s nearly all in a big National Trust estate that’s extremely well sign-posted. It’s completely fine to deviate from the route — explore and shorten as you like! The lunch options are simple cafés, so no messing around with booking a table in advance.
An essential walk! The Ashridge Estate is very beautiful if you appreciate woodland, and covers more then enough ground to cover a day of hiking in itself. There are paths everywhere and you can wander freely. Ancient trees, rolling chalk downlands, and lush meadows. Relatively busy. Take the minor paths to avoid the crowds. Can be muddy.
Highlights: Ashridge Estate and Ashridge House.
Lunch stops: the Ashridge Estate Café (1h–1h30 in), or Ashridge House café (2h–3h30 in).
End-of-walk reward: the Valiant Trooper.
East Grinstead Station Circular via Standen House (Sussex)
1h from London Bridge, with one change.
Easy: 8km, moderate ascents. 2h30–4h.
Beginner-friendly: This short walk is nearly all National Trust territory and signposted. If you want to make it even shorter and simpler, just skip the detour through the woods. The lunch stop is a simple café, so no messing around with booking a table in advance.
An essential walk! Mostly secluded.
Highlights: Standen House.
Lunch stop: Standen House café (1h–2h in).
Windsor and Eton Riverside Station Circular via Windsor Great Park (Berkshire)
1h direct from Waterloo.
18km. Gentle ascents. 5h–8h.
Beginner-friendly: A gigantic well-signposted park. It’s completely fine to deviate from the suggested route — explore as you like! The lunch stop is a simple café, so no messing around with booking a table in advance.
Highlights: Windsor Great Park, Windsor Castle, and Windsor.
Lunch stops in Windsor Great Park (2h30–4h30 in): the King And Castle, or Savill Garden Visitor Centre Cafe. Other lunch stop: Water Lilies at Windsor Great Park (3h–5h in).
End-of-walk rewards: the Two Brewers Pub, the Prince Harry, or the Royal Windsor.
Margate Station to Broadstairs Station (Kent)
1h 30m direct from London St. Pancras International.
11km. Moderate ascents. 3h–5h.
Beginner-friendly: Just keep the sea on your left and follow it to Broadstairs.
Very popular and busy.
Highlights: Margate and Broadstairs.
Lunch stop: the Captain Digby (1h30–2h30 in).
End-of-walk rewards: the Tartar Frigate, the Neptune's Hall, Siam Kitchen, the Magnet Micropub, or the Prince Albert.
Buying train tickets: Buy a return ticket to Margate (it’s fine to embark at Broadstairs for the return journey, because Broadstairs is en route to Margate).
Pangbourne Station to Goring & Streatley Station (Berkshire)
45m from Paddington, with one change.
Easy: 8km, gentle ascents. 2h30–4h.
Beginner-friendly: Just keep the River Thames on your left and follow it up to Goring.
Lunch: A walk so short that you don’t need lunch — just eat at one of the many options in Goring & Streatley.
End-of-walk rewards: the Swan at Streatley and the Coppa Club, Pierreponts, the Miller of Mansfield, or the Catherine Wheel.
Buying train tickets: Buy a return ticket to Goring & Streatley (it’s fine to disembark at Pangbourne, because Pangbourne is en route to Goring & Streatley) (that’s assuming you’re coming from the east or south (aka London/Reading) — if you’re coming from the north or west you need to buy return ticket to Pangbourne instead).
Henley-on-Thames Station to Marlow Station (Oxfordshire)
45m from Paddington, with one change.
16km. Flat terrain. 3h30–5h30.
Beginner-friendly: Cross the river, make sure it’s on your left, and keep walking all the way to Marlow! You can't go wrong.
Very popular and busy. Be warned that the river bank is prone to flooding, making sections of the route impassible — if that happens there will be many other ramblers who you can follow for the alternative route.
Lunch: There’s nowhere to eat en route so either pack a lunch or eat in Marlow at the end — there are many cafés, pubs and restaurants there.
End-of-walk rewards: the Bull Inn, the Old Brewery, the Prince of Wales, or the Marlow Donkey.
Buying train tickets: Henley and Marlow are on different train lines, so unfortunately you can't buy a return ticket. Instead buy an Anytime Day Single to get to Henley-on-Thames and another Anytime Day Single to depart from Marlow.
Borough Green & Wrotham Station to Sevenoaks Station (Kent)
30m direct from London Bridge.
16km. Moderate ascents. 4h30–7h30.
An essential walk! Greensand hills, apple orchards, woodland paths, streams, deer park, open parkland, and historic manor grounds. Mostly secluded. Can be muddy.
Highlights: Ightham Mote (14th century manor; a visit easily fits into a walk schedule), Knole House (enormous aristocratic estate, associated with the Bloomsbury Group; well worth a visit but consumes a day in itself), and Knole Park.
Lunch stops: the Plough (2h–3h in), or Ightham Mote café (2h–3h30 in).
End-of-walk rewards: the Chequers, the Restoration, or the Sennockian.