National Trails

Discover more of the Great Outdoors on the four National Trails in the South East of England, The Ridgeway, the Thames Path, the South Downs Way and the North Downs Way.

Get away from the bustle of life on these four trails, part of a network of thirteen National Trails in England established by the Countryside Agency. Enjoy them in your own way: all take in superb scenery and historic sites which make them ideal for an afternoon's stroll, a weekend break or a full-scale ramble from end to end. All of them, except the Thames Path, travel through fine chalk countryside with marvellous downland, lovely woods and pretty villages to explore. The Ridgeway, Britain's oldest road, travels for 87 miles from the Avebury World Heritage Site in Wiltshire to Ivinghoe Beacon in Buckinghamshire, the North Downs Way is 153 miles from Farnham in Surrey to the coast at Dover, and the South Downs Way covers 100 miles from Winchester to the white chalk cliffs at Eastbourne. Alternatively you can follow the Thames Path for 184 miles as it accompanies the river from its source in the Cotswolds to the Thames Barrier in Greenwich.

For information about any of the National Trails visit www.nationaltrail.co.uk. Alternatively telephone 01865 810224 for The Ridgeway and the Thames Path, and 01243 558716 for the South Downs Way.