Walks you can reach from Penshurst by train

Parkland, river valley, farmland, woods, vineyard and picturesque village streets.

Woodland: a quarter under tree cover.

Penshurst Place

Chiddingstone Village

Time: 4h–7h30

1 lunch spot: the Leicester Arms (1h–2h in)

Warnings: Can be muddy.

Source: Trains2Green.

Similar walk: the Saturday Walkers Club.

Rolling Kent hills, pastoral river valleys, parkland, woods, lakes and commons extending into town.

Time: 4h30–9h

1 lunch spot: the Leicester Arms Pub (1h–2h in)

5 end-of-walk rewards: the Mount Edgcumbe, the Grove Tavern, the Compasses, the Bedford, or the Claremont

Warnings: Can be muddy.

Adapted from: Time Out Country Walks Volume 1.

Similar walk: the Saturday Walkers Club.

Rolling Kentish farmland, fields, oasthouses, bluebell woods, steep greensand hillside and deer park.

Time: 4h30

Warnings: Can be muddy.

Walk details: the Saturday Walkers Club (tips, local insights and turn-by-turn directions).

Low-lying farmland, river valley, woodland, low ridges, golf course, ancient churchyards and old coaching village.

Time: 4h30

Warnings: Can be muddy.

Walk details: the Saturday Walkers Club (tips, local insights and turn-by-turn directions).

Undulating hills, open fields, beech woods, rivers, ponds, quaint villages and historic estates.

Time: 3h30

Warnings: Can be muddy.

Walk details: the Saturday Walkers Club (tips, local insights and turn-by-turn directions).

Parkland, farm fields, paddocks, orchards, country park, riverside paths, residential streets and fishing and sailing lakes.

Time: 4h30

Walk details: the Saturday Walkers Club (tips, local insights and turn-by-turn directions).

Nature reserves, wetland lakes, restored sand quarries, Greensand Ridge, farm fields, wooded commons, suburban streets and pedestrianised town centre.

Time: 5h

Warnings: Can be muddy.

Walk details: the Saturday Walkers Club (tips, local insights and turn-by-turn directions).

Gentle farmland, orchards, river valleys, parkland, country park lakes and riverside paths into a market town.

Time: 3h30

Warnings: Can be muddy.

Walk details: the Saturday Walkers Club (tips, local insights and turn-by-turn directions).

Recommended: More than two-thirds off-road, along footpaths through fields and a quiet lane, passing orchards, cornfields, hedgerows and a walk beside the River Medway into Tonbridge. Flat and sometimes muddy and but fine in boots; a short orchard section can get churned up by tractors. Passes the Grade I listed church of Thomas a Becket at Capel; the route can be left at Moat Farm for the shop and pub in Five Oak Green; good for orchard blossom in spring.

Time: 3h–6h30

2 lunch spots: the Poacher and Partridge, or the George and Dragon

Warnings: A short orchard section north of Five Oak Green can be deeply churned by tractors; the alternative road through Five Oak Green is fairly busy with a bend on an unpaved stretch.

Walk details: Slow Ways.

Recommended: Views of the North Downs. A direct, mostly off-road route leaving the busy A23 for residential streets and Cycleway 21, a mix of paved and unpaved (asphalt and gravel) surfaces, through Whitebushes and a rural section with bluebells, green fields and views of the North Downs and before a final pavement stretch on the 40mph Orchard Drive into Horley. A non-public footpath into Horley can be overgrown. Follows Cycleway 21; passes 'Asylum Arch Road' and East Surrey Hospital. Local shops at Whitebushes roughly two-thirds of the way.

Woodland: a quarter under tree cover.

Time: 2h30–4h30

Lunch: A handy shop at Whitebushes about two-thirds along; multiple shop, pub and eatery options at both ends.

Warnings: Orchard Drive into Horley is a 40mph road, though it has a pavement. A non-public footpath at the Horley end was very overgrown and only just passable.

Walk details: Slow Ways.

The views across Kent are beautiful when you get to Carter's Hill and Rook's Hill. A largely off-road route through Knole Park and along the Greensand Way, on a mix of tracks and grassy paths over hilly terrain with some steep climbs and narrow paths with steep drops. Heavy clay soil means it can be very muddy after wet weather and with a number of gates and stiles. Follows the Greensand Way for a long stretch through the Kent Downs; there is a bench with a pleasant view in Shipbourne churchyard.

Woodland: a fifth under tree cover.

Knole Park (Deer Park)

Ightham Mote: A medieval moated manor house dating to 1340, cared for by the National Trust.

Time: 4h30–9h

2 lunch spots: the Chaser Inn, or Ightham Mote cafe

1 end-of-walk reward: Fuggles Beer Cafe

Warnings: Plenty of mud after wet weather, especially across the ploughed fields around Shipbourne; some downhill paths near Ightham can be slippery; a number of gates and stiles.

Walk details: Slow Ways.

Spectacular unimpeded views from the North Downs scarp; a superb view from a bench near the top. A surprisingly rural and varied route with grassy tree-lined rides, woodland paths, grazing pastures, a churchyard, a park, arable fields and chalk-grassland nature reserves, plus six lakes near Redhill. One very long, very steep hill (up to 35%); kissing gates, high stiles and rutted/rooty tracks. Only about 3.5km is on roads and mostly very quiet lanes. Passes the Park Ham and Quarry Hanger nature reserves with rare chalk wildflowers and grazing animals, plus several lakes around Nutfield Marsh. There is no mid-route public transport, though some buses stop at Mill Lane and Doctors Lane in an emergency.

Woodland: a quarter under tree cover.

Time: 3h30–6h30

Lunch: A food truck near Mercers Lake watersports centre (about 300m off-route) sells hot drinks and snacks. Shops at either end.

Warnings: One very long, very steep hill. A 275m stretch on Pendell Lane has little verge, bends and a humpback bridge that mess with sightlines; walk with care. Possible cows, goats or bullocks in the nature reserves and the fields just north of the M25 underpass, where a stile can also get very muddy.

Walk details: Slow Ways.