South Downs Self-Guided Walking Tour 2024

You’re welcome to check in from 4pm onwards. 

Accommodation: Abingworth Hall (D)

Check out the Discovery Point Library at the country house – stocked with maps, walks and local area information. 

For stays of 3 nights, you will have 2 days at your choice.

For stays of 4 nights, you will have 3 days at your choice.

For stays of 7 nights, you will have 6 days at your choice.

Accommodation: Abingworth Hall (B, L, D)

Enjoy a leisurely breakfast before making your way home. (B)

Our easiest routes, allowing plenty of time to savour the coastline and countryside. All our walk notes suggest the best places to stop, great pubs, and tea rooms.

• Thakeham – 2 miles
• Thakeham & Warminghurst – 3 miles
• Warminghurst & Little Thakeham – 4 miles

Some longer walks, including some stretches along the South Downs Way. Experience the true flavour of Sussex as you follow these varied routes.

• West Chiltington & Thakeham – 6 miles
• East Dean & the Seven Sisters – 6 miles
• Ditchling Village and Beacon – 6 miles
• Hurston Place & Nutbourne Common – 7 miles
• Thakeham & Ashington – 7 miles

For those who love to stride out for some longer walks.

• Pulborough Brooks & West Chiltington – 9 miles
• Pulborough Brooks & Parham Park – 9 miles
• Beachy Head & the Seven Sisters – 9 miles
• Littlehampton to Worthing – 9 miles
• Storrington and the South Downs Way – 11 miles
• Parham Park and the South Down’s Way – 15 miles

Abingworth Hall is situated amidst gentle rolling farmland at the foot of the South Downs. The nearest facilities are in the village of Storrington, about two miles away. Here you’ll find a small supermarket, post office, newsagent, pubs and a bank.

The quaint town of Arundel, about 30 minutes’ drive away, is dominated by its castle, the home of the Duke and Duchess of Norfolk. During your visit you may enjoy a walk in Arundel Castle’s extensive grounds, or beside the tranquil river Arun.

This 60-acre nature reserve is run by the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust and provides a protected habitat for a wide range of swans, geese, ducks and other wetland birds. A network of paths takes visitors to a number of viewing areas to enjoy watching the wildlife. Arundel Wetlands Centre is just outside Arundel town, about a 30-minute drive from Abingworth Hall.

Bignor Roman Villa was discovered in 1811 by a man ploughing a field. This Roman home clearly belonged to a family of some consequence and features many fine mosaic floors of intricate design. It is located just outside Pulborough, about 10 miles from Abingworth Hall.

Just 4 miles from Abingworth Hall, Pulborough Brooks is a large nature reserve in the Arun Valley managed by the RSPB. A network of nature trails take visitors into the reserve where there a range of habitats from ponds and ditches to woods and meadow. The site is an important place for over-wintering wildfowl and for nesting waders. The reserve can be reached either by road or on foot from Abingworth Hall.

Completely restored after an extensive fire in 1989, this stately National Trust property has ornate rooms and lovely gardens with surrounding woodlands. Uppark House and Garden is around 50 minutes’ drive from Abingworth.

The cosmopolitan seaside city of Brighton is about 40 minutes’ drive from Abingworth Hall and has an excellent range of specialist shops, entertainment, and its famous pier. You may also enjoy a visit to the Royal Pavilion, built in the early 19th century by George IV.

Just 15 minutes’ drive from Abingworth Hall, this large open-air museum tells the industrial story of the downs, complete with a steam railway, vintage buses and restored quarry machinery. Amberley Museum is just outside Amberley village which is also well worth a visit with its sleepy streets lined with thatched cottages and flower-filled gardens. The village is also home to a small pottery.

Just 10 to 15 minutes’ drive away, Elizabethan Parham House is surrounded by an extensive deer park. Some of our guided walks go through the deer park.

The historic cathedral city of Chichester, about 45 minutes’ drive away, has plenty of interest. Visit the impressive Chichester Cathedral and take a walk which follows the old city walls.

Just a couple of miles outside Chichester lies Fishbourne Roman Palace, the largest residential Roman building found in Britain. It was discovered in 1960; excavations revealed many superb mosaics.

A large late 17th century mansion, now run by the National Trust with extensive grounds that were landscaped by ‘Capability’ Brown. The surrounding deer park is home to a large herd of fallow deer. Petworth House is around 30 minutes’ drive from Abingworth.

Located on the Downs, near the village of Singleton, this excellent open-air museum contains many restored buildings that bring the history of Sussex to life. These include a working watermill and a re-creation of a typical downland village. The Weald & Downland Living Museum is also home to the popular BBC TV programme ‘The Repair Shop’. The museum is around 45 minutes’ drive from Abingworth.

The Bluebell Railway is one of Britain’s premier heritage steam railways with an impressive collection of 50 locomotives, representing the Southern Railway and its predecessors. The line runs through rolling countryside from Sheffield Park to East Grinstead, about 40 minutes’ drive from Abingworth.