The 10 prettiest villages in Hampshire
A Londoner born and bred, I arrived in Hampshire more than 30 years ago, kicking and screaming at my husband’s insistence that we live in his childhood home. Now, needless to say, I wouldn’t live anywhere else.
I love this county: its undulating hills, chalk belts and ancient woodland; its fine cities, Winchester, Southampton and Portsmouth, each steeped in history. I love walking on the Downs, fishing on the Test and the Itchen and boating on the Beaulieu and Hamble rivers. I love the way that the New Forest, 145 sq miles of ancient heathland, woodland and pasture where ponies, donkeys, pigs and cattle freely roam, reaches down to the Solent coast with its pretty waterfront towns of Milford on Sea and Lymington.
And while the county is perhaps more celebrated for its charming towns – predominantly Georgian ones such as Alresford, Stockbridge, Lymington, Odiham and Romsey – it has enough pretty villages to allow healthy debate over a top 10. Here I must declare a bias: my number one is the village I’m proud to call home. Do you agree with my selection? Please let me know in the comments below.
10. Brockenhurst
A controversial choice I suspect, but to me Brockenhurst is a proper New Forest village, surrounded, even intermingled with some of its loveliest landscape. With its brick-built High Street and its railway station, it may lack the cuteness of other Hampshire villages but it has much to offer (including – a lifeline for me – two food stores that stay open late and a brilliant hardware store) and it feels part of the fabric of the Forest. It has four features that I particularly love: the Watersplash ford at the end of the High Street; another lesser-known ford hidden along Waters Green (children love driving through them); the “beach” on the Lymington River at Balmer Lawn (also loved by families); and the green swathe of open Forest that laps the houses all the way along the edge of the village (Meerut Road), with ponies and donkeys grazing all around.
For a pint
There are several choices of pub, but my favourite is the down-to-earth Snakecatcher, which best reflects the atmosphere and history of the village.
Stay here
The first of the litter of rustic-chic Pig hotels is set in a former hunting lodge with a fine walled kitchen garden on the edge of the village, and it is still my favourite (thepighotel.com; doubles from £270). It’s very popular, so book in advance. A stylish alternative is boutique guesthouse The Cloud Brockenhurst on Meerut Road, recently opened and filled with curated art and furniture (cloudbrockenhurst.co.uk; doubles from £180).
Did you know?
The Snakecatcher is named for New Forest folk hero Brusher Mills (1840-1905), an extravagantly bearded forester who lived in a charcoal burner’s hut near Brockenhurst and was said to have caught 30,000 adders and grass snakes, armed only with a forked stick and a sack.
9. Wherwell
One of the glories of Hampshire is the River Test, which meanders through chalk hills, soothing water meadows and ancient woodland and provides superb fly-fishing for trout, grayling and salmon in the clear chalk waters of the river and its tributaries. The Test Valley has some lovely features such as Mottisfont Rose Gardens, and several picturesque villages, of which Wherwell is perhaps the most charming, chock full of medieval black-and-white thatched cottages, smothered in roses in summer. The River Test running alongside and a war memorial on the green complete the picture.
For a pint
If the village pub, the White Lion, purchased by the owner of Wherwell Priory, is still undergoing renovation at the time you read this, then head for Abbots Mitre, in the equally quaint neighbouring village of Chilbolton, also on the River Test. A simple village inn, it has a hearty food menu and a surprising line in cocktails and mocktails.
Stay here
Head for handsome Stockbridge, four miles away. The wide High Street was once a drover’s road along which vast flocks of sheep were herded en route from Wales. In the 19th century, Stockbridge was famous for its starry racecourse, the Ascot of its day, and landowner Robert Grosvenor, Marquess of Westminster built the Grosvenor Arms, now a fine hotel (thegrosvenorstockbridge.com; doubles from £290) for race goers in 1825. Alternatively, choose the Greyhound on the Test, a charming gastropub with rooms whose gardens reach down to the river (thegreyhoundonthetest.com; doubles from £179).
Did you know?
Legend has it that Wherwell was haunted by a mythical creature called a cockatrice. With the wings of a bat, the tail of a snake and the head of a rooster it unsurprisingly terrorised the locals until a man named Green killed it with a spear. His reward was four acres of land, and in nearby Harwood Forest his four acres, known as Green’s Acres, can be found today.
8. Keyhaven
More a hamlet than a village – there are no shops – Keyhaven consists of houses, a quay, two sailing clubs and a fine pub. A port since the Middle Ages, it was part of the once thriving salt industry in the West Solent and also received sheep and cattle from the Isle of Wight. Nowadays, Keyhaven is all about sailing (the Keyhaven Yacht Club was established in 1928) and birdwatching (on Keyhaven Marshes, a Nature Reserve). Here you can walk to Lymington along the Solent Way, birding as you go, with wonderful views of the Solent and the Isle of Wight. On the other side of the quay lies the shingle bank of Hurst Spit, along which you can walk to Hurst Castle, built as an artillery fortress by Henry VIII. Keyhaven is just a mile from pretty Milford on Sea, where you’ll find shops, cafes and restaurants.
For a pint
The Gun Inn, a pot or ale house from the 17th century, is a cracker of a pub with cosy seating near the fire and the bar, a large dining room beyond and a garden for notably good food from shell-on prawns with a bloody Mary dip to Korean poké bowls, burgers, steaks and catch of the day. Just the place after a bracing walk.
Stay here
In due course, the Gun may offer rooms in outbuildings but for now the nearest hotel is the Beach House (beachhousemilfordonsea.co.uk, doubles from £130), a large beachfront pub with rooms set in a historic manor house. Built for the Siemens family, this Arts and Crafts gem is filled with original features including stained-glass windows depicting the Enchanted Forest and eclectic tiled fireplaces. If you want to splash out, a further five miles takes you to Chewton Glen (chewtonglen.com; doubles from £450) with its fabulous spa and children’s activities.
Did you know?
Between March and November, a little ferry runs between Keyhaven and Hurst Castle. Take the ferry to the fortress where King Charles I was imprisoned before being sent to London for his trial and execution, and walk back along Hurst Spit.
7. Wickham
In the lovely, rolling Meon Valley, the impressive medieval square here, the second largest in the country (after Nottingham) comes as a surprise for first-time visitors, for Wickham is no more than a village, albeit a busy one. It makes a perfect place to visit, its fine Georgian houses and medieval cottages contrasting with Wickham Water Meadows for picnicking and paddling in the River Meon. Here too is the start of the 11-mile Meon Valley Trail along a disused railway. For traditional vintage finds head for Chesapeake Mill, a fine listed former flour mill made using timbers from the US frigate Chesapeake, captured by the Royal Navy during the war of 1812.
For a pint
Step back in time at the King’s Head, a white painted former coaching inn on the village square, now a Fuller’s pub with a long bar, spacious dining area, garden, cask ales and decent pub grub.
Stay here
The long-established Old House Hotel, another fine building on the square, is now part of Quob Park wine estate, offering gourmet dining, a spa and wine experiences, with a shuttle service between the hotel and the nearby estate. Rooms are luxurious, with prices to match, and Restaurant 1707 serves gourmet food (quobpark.com; doubles from £230).
Did you know?
Born about 1320, William of Wykeham became Bishop of Winchester, Lord Chancellor and founder of both Winchester College and New College, Oxford.
6. East Meon
High in the Meon Valley and surrounded by the South Downs, East Meon is one of the most sought-after places to live in Hampshire. It has all the attributes of a perfect English village: attractive houses bordering the River Meon; fine Norman church; late 14th-century manor house; shop and Post Office; primary school and picturesque village cricket ground. East Meon was the largest of the Bishops of Winchester’s manors in Hampshire, and the privately owned Court House is the best preserved of their residences.
For a pint
There are two choices, both excellent: Ye Olde George Inn and the Isaak Walton – with pub, tearoom and beer garden – named after the author of the Compleat Angler, first published in 1653.
Stay here
Ye Olde George Inn offers five en suite bedrooms with breakfast (yeoldegeorgeinn.net; doubles from £95).
Did you know?
Workhouse Lane was, as you might suppose, once the site of a workhouse, built in 1727 and a reminder of the grinding poverty of the past. It was closed in the 1830s but the local history archives have accounts that show the care of the people who lived there and the work they did in return.
5. Selborne
Forever associated with 18th-century literary naturalist Gilbert White, Selborne is notable for its village green (the Plestor, from the Saxon words “pleg stow”, meaning play space), its church of St Mary with two fine stained-glass windows commemorating White, and the great man’s house and gardens, now a museum. The house also contains the Oates Museum, dedicated to the life and tragic death of Captain Oates on the 1911 Scott expedition to the South Pole and the work of his uncle Frank Oates, who was, like White, a naturalist. A great part of the attraction of pretty Selborne is the steeply wooded Selborne Hanger that rises above, with its famous, and very narrow, zigzag path created by White.
For a pint
The Selborne Arms is a fine pub, with a long history, a huge central chimney, open fires on either side and homemade food, including its popular pies.
Stay here
I’d head for Midhurst, 15 miles away, and stay at the Spread Eagle (hshotels.co.uk; doubles from £270), one of the oldest coaching inns in the country. Closer at hand, Alton House is a traditional hotel in the market town of Alton (altonhousehotel.com; doubles from £120).
Did you know?
Gilbert White’s Natural History of Selborne is the fourth most published book in the English language and has never been out of print since it first appeared in 1789.
4. Chawton
Just as Selborne belongs to Gilbert White, so Chawton, a mere five miles north, is all about Jane Austen. The village is delightful, and so is the cottage where she spent the last eight years of her life and wrote or revised all six of her most beloved novels. Jane Austen’s House, simple but elegant, is filled with original furniture and belongings and exudes the spirit of its most famous occupant. A short walk away, St Nicholas Church is where Jane’s mother and her beloved sister Cassandra are buried (Jane’s tomb is in Winchester Cathedral). Elizabethan Chawton House was the home of her brother Edward Knight; today you can walk from her cottage, just as she did, to “the Great House” as she called it. Open to the public from Wednesday to Sunday, including its gardens, it contains an important library of early women’s writing as well as temporary exhibitions.
For a pint
Hampshire is pretty good on traditional pubs. In Chawton itself, the Greyfriar, opposite Jane Austen’s House and under new management, is an obvious choice, or head to Upper Faringdon, where the Rose & Crown is believed to have been built as an ale house by Edward Knight in 1810.
Stay here
The same suggestions apply for Chawton as for Selborne: the Spread Eagle in Midhurst (hshotels.com) or Alton House (altonhousehotel.com).
Did you know?
Jane Austen wrote in the sitting room of the cottage, as quietly and secretly as possible, on small pieces of paper. A creaking door, which she asked not to be mended, alerted her to anyone coming into the room.
3. Hamble
Full name Hamble-le-Rice, this quaint village at the mouth of the River Hamble is beloved of yachties and second only to Cowes in importance as a sailing centre. It is also a useful halfway point for walkers along the Solent Way from Milford on Sea to Emsworth. It’s a dear, cobbled place enlivened by its three marinas as well as boatyards and sailing clubs and is bordered by the river to the east and Royal Victoria Country Park to the west. Yachtsmen and landlubbers alike flock to Hamble as much for its restaurants, pubs and cafes as for its pretty looks.
For a pint
My favourite is the King and Queen, on the cobbled High Street between the village square and the quay. Inside are pine tables, candelabra and nauticalia. Outside is a pretty courtyard garden with a pizza oven for the summer months. There’s often live music too.
Stay here
Where more appropriate than a yacht club? The Royal Southern has simple, contemporary rooms available to non-members in 18th-century cottages next to the club in a prime position overlooking the Hamble (royal-southern.co.uk; doubles from £135).
Did you know?
Hamble played an important role in the Second World War, not least its aerodrome. Here was the Ferry Pool operated by the Air Transport Auxiliary (ATA), the all-female band of gung-ho pilots who delivered aircraft to the Royal Navy and RAF Squadrons, of which my mother-in-law, in whose house I now live, was one.
2. Buckler’s Hard
It’s so well preserved that it’s easy to visualise the hamlet of Buckler’s Hard, on the Beaulieu River, in its heyday. The two terraces of shipwrights’ cottages that run down to a slipway on the river are still intact; between them over 50 wooden ships were built, including Nelson’s favourite, Agammenon, as well as Euryalus and Swiftsure, which both saw action at the Battle at Trafalgar. Nowadays, Buckler’s Hard, with its superbly presented Maritime Museum, its quiet and contemplative chapel, hidden in one of the cottages, and its recently expanded marina, makes a popular place for day visitors and yachtsmen alike.
For a pint
Henry Adams was the master shipbuilder at Buckler’s Hard between 1744 and 1805. His home is now the Master Builder’s House Hotel, which includes a cosy yachtsman’s pub with an open fire and, outside, seating at trestle tables on the green slope where his ships were built, or in the hotel’s garden.
Stay here
Wake on a sunny morning in a quirkily luxurious main house bedroom at the Master Builder’s and watch the river slowly coming to life. It’s hard to think of a more captivating view; you’ll eat well here too (themasterbuilders.co.uk; doubles from £224).
Did you know?
The Beaulieu River is one of the few privately owned tidal rivers in the country and has been part of the Montagu family’s estate for four centuries. In 1204, King John had granted ownership to Beaulieu Abbey’s Cistercian monks.
And the winner is…
1. Beaulieu
Yes, I live in Beaulieu, but how can such an outstanding setting for a village that’s both pretty and historic not make it number one? For me, it’s the way that the Beaulieu River, tidal and navigable, reaches all the way (four miles) from the Solent to the village, that makes it so special. The sight of ponies and donkeys grazing on the village green by the river, with dinghies and canoes on the water beyond, is a charming one – add the old corn mill and the Mill Pond, with Lord Montagu’s seat, Palace House, as an impressive backdrop, plus the pretty cobbled High Street, and the picture is complete. Set back from the road is the Abbey Church, once the monks’ refectory, and the conserved ruins of their once powerful monastery, accessible as part of a visit to the National Motor Museum and Palace House.
For a pint
There’s no beamed olde-worlde pub in Beaulieu but Monty’s Inn, attached to the Montagu Arms Hotel, at the foot of the High Street, does a good job at being a village hub, especially since community-minded Cally Cross took charge, and as well as ale, excellent pub grub is served in the bar and the restaurant.
For a stay
Two stone dogs have flanked the entrance to the Montagu Arms for decades, heralding an appealing country house hotel with a timeless atmosphere and an oasis of a garden (montaguarmshotel.co.uk; doubles from £262).
Did you know?
Take the path behind the Montagu Arms and you can walk along the river to Buckler’s Hard, a pleasant two-mile stroll.
