Walks you can reach from Haywards Heath by train
MapA day hike is just a simple train journey away — plan your next day of green.
Alternatively, view walks directly from Haywards Heath.
Balcombe Circular via Nymans (Sussex)
6 minutes direct from Haywards Heath.
Highly recommended: Fields, woods, stream valleys, grassy hillsides, estate parkland, a fine old village and stately home. Mostly secluded.
Woodland: half under tree cover.
Time: 4h30–8h30
3 lunch spots: Handcross (2h–3h30 in) — Nymans café, the Red Lion, or JO.CO cafe
1 end-of-walk reward: the Victory
Warnings: Can be muddy.
Adapted from: Time Out Country Walks Volume 1.
Similar walk: the Saturday Walkers Club.
Lewes to Southease (Sussex)
15 minutes direct from Haywards Heath.
Highly recommended: Escarpments, three distinct downland ridges, wide open chalk paths, panoramic views, historic town streets and gentle valleys.
Hilly: a third on high ground, rising above the surrounding land.
Time: 4h30–9h
2 lunch spots: the Trevor Arms (1h30–3h30 in), or the Ram Inn, Firle (2h30–5h in)
1 end-of-walk reward: Courtyard Café at YHA Southease Hostel
Adapted from: The Rough Guide to Walks in London & the South East (3rd edition).
Amberley to Shoreham-by-Sea (Sussex)
30 minutes direct from Haywards Heath.
Highly recommended: Open chalk ridge, South Downs escarpment, wide well-marked paths, exposed hilltops, riverside estuary path and suburban road walking near finish.
Hilly: half on high ground, rising above the surrounding land.
Time: 8h–15h30
1 lunch spot: Columba's Kitchen (4h–8h in)
2 end-of-walk rewards: the Buckingham Arms, or the Crabtree
Warnings: Very exposed in wind.
Source: Trains2Green.
Similar walk: the Saturday Walkers Club.
Berwick to Eastbourne (Sussex)
45 minutes direct from Haywards Heath.
Highly recommended: Farmland, reservoir, chalk downland, ridge grassland, chalk figure, smugglers villages and seaside resort.
Time: 5h30–11h30
2 lunch spots: the Eight Bells (2h30–5h30 in), or Jevington Tea Garden (3h–5h30 in)
1 end-of-walk reward: the Duke of Devonshire
Adapted from: Time Out Country Walks Volume 2.
Similar walk: the Saturday Walkers Club.
Eastbourne to Seaford (Sussex)
45 minutes direct from Haywards Heath.
Highly recommended: Spectacular white cliffs in a well-protected national landscape. Immense white chalk cliffs, sea, marshes, meadows and beachfront.
Hilly: a quarter on high ground, rising above the surrounding land.
Coastal: four fifths along the coast.
Time: 6h30–13h
4 lunch spots: the Kiosk (1h30–2h30 in), Cadence Cafe Beachy Head (2h–4h in), the Beachy Head Pub (2h–4h in), or Birling Gap café (3h–5h30 in; excellent)
1 end-of-walk reward: the Cuckmere Inn
Best months: Jun-Jul (when the chalk is gleaming).
Warnings: Very popular and busy.
Source: Trains2Green.
Lewes Circular via Southease (Sussex)
15 minutes direct from Haywards Heath.
Highly recommended: Three distinct downland ridges, wide open chalk paths, panoramic views, historic town streets and gentle valleys.
Warnings: Three steep climbs.
Walk details: the Saturday Walkers Club (tips, local insights and turn-by-turn directions).
Goring-by-Sea to Worthing (Sussex)
45 minutes direct from Haywards Heath.
Recommended
Woodland: a fifth under tree cover.
Time: 5h30–10h30
2 lunch spots: the Black Horse (3h–6h in), or the Gun Inn (3h–6h in)
Adapted from: The Rough Guide to Walks in London & the South East (3rd edition).
Reverse direction: Railwalks.
Eastbourne Circular via Eastbourne Pier (Sussex)
45 minutes direct from Haywards Heath.
All-tarmac seafront town walk past grand Victorian hotels, a pier, a Martello tower, the Winter Gardens, a gallery and elegant districts; a few moderate climbs.
Time: 2h30
Walk details: Travelog Lewes (tips, photos, local insights and turn-by-turn directions).
Balcombe to East Grinstead (Sussex)
6 minutes direct from Haywards Heath.
Gentle wooded hills, muddy farm tracks, landscaped gardens, reservoir shoreline, open fields and woodland paths.
Time: 5h
Warnings: Can be very muddy.
Walk details: the Saturday Walkers Club (tips, local insights and turn-by-turn directions).
Balcombe to Horsham (Sussex)
6 minutes direct from Haywards Heath.
Wealden woods, farmland fields, streams, ponds, riverside nature reserve and old market town.
Warnings: Can be very overgrown.
Walk details: the Saturday Walkers Club (tips, local insights and turn-by-turn directions).
Hassocks to Lewes (Sussex)
9 minutes direct from Haywards Heath.
South Downs chalk grassland ridge, panoramic views to sea and inland, dew ponds, Iron Age fort, wooded climbs, riverside embankment and historic town.
Time: 5h30
Warnings: Can be slippery.
Walk details: the Saturday Walkers Club (tips, local insights and turn-by-turn directions).
Plumpton to Lewes (Sussex)
15 minutes direct from Haywards Heath.
Downland climb to the wooded summit of Blackcap and Mount Harry, then down past a castle, a historic lido and the High Street; one 120m climb.
Blackcap: A National Trust downland summit topped by a clump of trees north of Lewes.
Lewes Castle: A Norman motte-and-bailey castle on a ridge above the county town.
Time: 2h30
Walk details: Travelog Lewes (tips, photos, local insights and turn-by-turn directions).