3 places to go hiking with the family near London

For the Easter holiday we’ve started thinking about places to go hiking near London, and here are some ares I would like to visit:

Box Hill
At Surrey’s Box Hill, visitors can start from the National Trust Visitor Centre at The Old Fort and explore a range of walking trails to take in the beautiful countryside views. Walking trails recommended for families include a natural play trail ideal for younger visitors, and a 2-mile walk to see Surrey’s landmark the Stepping Stones. For spring, I would love to see the carpet of bluebells in the area, and there’s also a 1.4-mile long Box Hill Bluebell walk to explore.

Alice Holt
With walking and cycling trails criss-crossing the forest, there are plenty of opportunities for a family day outdoors in Alice Holt Forest, which is around an hour to drive from Fulham. Families can enjoy spotting wooden Gruffalo sculptures in the forest, or explore the wooden play structures along the Habitat trail (0.6 miles). For a scenic walk that takes families further into the forest, the Lodge Pond trail is a 2.5-mile long option. There’s also a GoApe climbing park located at Alice Holt.

Virginia Water
In Windsor Great Park, Virigina Water is one of the popular destinations for walking, and a circuit of Virginia Water is around 4.5-miles. There’s parking by the Virginia Water Pavilion, or another option would be to start by the Savill Garden, which would make the trail around 5.1-miles long around the lake. Highlights to look for along the way would be the stunning Cascade, and the Leptis Magna Ruins.

(The photo above was taken in the Cotswolds.)

Tags: Alice Holt, Box Hill, Forest, Surrey, Virginia Water