Great Oak Walks

About

Great Oak Walks offers scenic self-guided walking holidays, over rolling hills and fields and through ancient woodland and valleys, linking some of the finest castles, houses and gardens in England. Stay along the way in old English homes or atmospheric inns, all carefully selected by Great Oak Walks for the quality and comfort of their accommodation. Walk at a relaxed carefree pace while we transport your baggage for you. Enjoy walking to a historic place of interest or beautiful garden each day, and then walk on to welcoming period 4 and 5 star accommodation and hearty locally sourced food in pubs and inns.

All our walks are just that – walks. You do not need a car for any of them; they all start and finish at railway stations only one to two hours journey from London, and they are almost entirely on footpaths or quiet country lanes. No transport is needed on the walks - they are designed so that you walk to your accommodation, and to all the places of interest on the way.

Try our flagship five-day circular picturesque Castles and Gardens Scenic Walking Tour.  This lovely circular walking holiday begins and ends in the quaint High Weald village of Wadhurst. The path leads over gentle hills, through woods and past tranquil lakes to moated castles in romantic gardens and stately parkland. It winds through pine forests, open countryside and apple orchards and passes through picturesque medieval Wealden villages with their unique architecture of wood and brick tiles, oast houses and lovely churches. Each day you can stop to visit a castle, house, park or garden - some of the best loved in Southern England.

Tread in the steps of history on our Historic Houses. Scenic Walking Tour. This wonderful walking holiday visits some of the great historic houses of England, set in gardens of stately trees that abound with colour from spring with the first bluebells, azaleas, tulips and rhododendrons, to summer with their stunning herbaceous borders and rose gardens to finish with the warm colours of autumn. It takes you through the fields and woods of the Low Weald, and leads to some of the most picturesque and ancient villages in Kent with their white weatherboard fronts or hung tile facades unique to the Weald and fine medieval churches. It traverses oak and beech woods on old pack horse trails along ridges with views as far as the South Downs, and includes the marvellous deer park of Knole in Sevenoaks. The starting and finishing points are reachable from London in less than an hour. A more leisurely option adds an extra day, giving you a full day to explore Hever Castle and its environs.

Enjoy the Weald to Rye Scenic Walking Tour. The tour starts in the High Weald Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, a hidden treasure of undulating landscape only an hour's travel by train from London. It traverses the shores of the largest inland water in South East England, before visiting two of England's most romantic moated castles as well the beautiful Great Dixter Gardens. It takes a lesser known route, away from roads and including some beautiful woodland, rich in wild flowers, before descending to a river area with a magnificent vista of the ancient town of Rye beyond.

Follow the route of William the Conqueror’s invading army on the 1066 Country Walk. In 1066 they landed in Pevensey on the coast of England and marched inland to meet the doomed forces of king Harold in what is now the town of Battle. Known as the Battle of Hastings, it changed English history forever. This exhilarating walk traces the country where these events happened. Seagulls mark the start and finish, and in between there is lovely woodland walking, wild marshland and grassy hills. The whole route is well signposted. Both the starting and finishing points are directly reachable by train. The first and last days comprise relatively short walks, so you to start the walk directly on arrival, and to leave on the last day of walking.

On all walks you will receive a package including a detailed written guide for your walk, detailed 1:25,000 maps, a compass, and information on all the places of interest the walk passes through.

Our tours can be customised according your requirements. Just let us know when you would like to start, how many days you would like to walk for and how far you would like to walk a day, and we will do the rest!

Book your self-guided walking holiday with Great Oak Walks  for a unique experience combining the marvellous heritage of England with the pleasure of walking through the undulating landscape of one of the most beautiful parts of England. Or if you would prefer a guided walking holiday, get in touch and we will organise it for you.