Walk and wash down (with your favourite tipple!): 10 walks ending in a pub
What can be better than the incentive of a pub-stop to keep those feet going? Not much! So here are our top 10 recommended walks ending in a pub stop.
Yes, the sun may be shining and the feeling of new beginnings in the air, but where walks are concerned, we’ve probably exhausted every ramble known to man! So, we’ve added an incentive (and frankly an important one) to get you back out there again. Here’s our pick of ten pubs offering great food and drink, with beautiful nearby walks. As there are tons of these fab walks and pubs to choose from, we’ll have no-doubt missed some corkers; please comment on our facebook post if you can recommend any – the more the merrier we say!
The Yew Tree Pub: 2 mile circular route in Frieth
Frieth is a winner when it comes to beautiful walks. This circular walk starts off in the village of Frieth and you can park on the road side near the kissing gate which takes you directly into the fields (it’s marked on the map near Ellery Rise Road).
This is a lovely woodland walk which is just under 2 miles long and perfect for little legs. This walk can also be made longer should you wish, as there are plenty of footpaths – there are some stiles to climb throughout the walk however, so we don’t recommend buggies for this one! But, with an abandoned tractor to find and plenty of opportunity to rummage, we give this walk the thumbs up for all the family. In Frieth Village you will find the Yew Tree Pub, which has a relaxed atmosphere and is not only dog friendly but has a lovely garden for the kids to play in (not to mention great food!). Double thumbs up from us!
See route info and map | The Yew Tree pub website
The Prince Albert Pub: 2.9 mile circular route in Moor End, Frieth
As mentioned above, Frieth has a lot to offer so here is another fab walk and pub stop. This walk offers a mix of undulating countryside and woodland which actually makes it one of our favourites. With tons of tracks and paths to follow, the adventurers among you could spend hours rambling around here; our walk covers 2.9 miles which appeals to the masses and we thoroughly enjoy it. It guarantees an adventurous walk and certainly helps to work up an appetite for your pub stop at the Prince Albert, which has been described as ‘a favourite real pub for real people’. With plenty of rave reviews, this pub offers a traditional feel, lovely gastro pub-styled grub, a garden and is also dog-friendly.
See route info and map | The pub website is down at the moment but they are most definitely open!
The Stag and Huntsman: 2 mile circular route in Hambleden
This family walk starts off in the beautiful village of Hambledon. You can park in the village itself (if you can find a space!) or in the car park next to the Stag and Huntsman Pub – this is now a pay and display car park, so in order to get over that frustration, a visit to the pub is probably necessary. The walk begins travelling up a footpath following a long and steep-ish hill (it gets us a little out of breath and I’d like to think we’re ‘fairly’ fit, but worth mentioning). This aside, once you’re up, the views are beautiful and it’s all downhill from there (in a good way!). With trees to climb for the kids, this 2 mile walk through the valley gets our thumbs up. As for the Huntsman Pub, it’s a lovely traditional English pub with good grub, a beer garden and an open fire when it’s cold. Winner winner chicken dinner!
The Frog Inn Pub: 2 mile circular route in Skirmett
Skirmett is a little gem of a village just beyond Hambledon surrounded by rolling hills and beautiful countryside. This circular walk starts and finishes at The Frog Inn pub, which is an 18th century traditional coaching inn serving fantastic food. The beer garden is really pretty and has great views over the surrounding countryside.
The walk is 2.1 miles long travelling around the perimeter of a woodland, so whilst the kids can enjoy the interest of the woods with sticks and trees, there are also beautiful views outwards over the countryside. The route starts off mostly uphill but once you are up you can enjoy going downhill all the way home (or to the pub!!).
See route info and map | The Frog website
The Royal Oak Pub: circular walk from Bovingdon Green
This walk starts right next to the Royal Oak pub in Bovingdon Green, so try hard not to be tempted in before the walk (like we have many-a-time!). The walk is perfect for little legs as the route takes about 45 minutes going at a fairly slow pace – quite nice if actually, you’re not feeling up for a sizable walk but still fancy a pint at the end. With pinch points throughout this walk, the route can be quite narrow in places (we think to stop horse riders or bikes?) so we don’t recommend the use of buggies in case you get stuck!
However, if you do want a longer walk and a different route, there are loads in this area – feel free to comment below if you found one you enjoyed! Now, more importantly…the pitstop: The Royal Oak Pub. With heated, comfy outside tables on the terrace, you can now book for up to six people from different households, or more (if from no more than 2 households). There are also garden tables under tents which have warm blankets…we love those! Food wise, The Royal Oak has won the Buckinghamshire Dining Pub of the Year 2020 for the sixth time from The Good Pub Guide. Very impressive and speaks for itself. With all this to offer, The Royal Oak gets the MarlowMums seal of approval!
The Bull and Butcher: 2 mile circular walk in Turville
We love Turville for a walk, and particularly when you can stop off at The Bull and Butcher Pub for a swift one afterwards. This walk is longer than our usual posts; around 2 miles and my goodness, it’s spot-on for the kids! You can take a whole afternoon rambling on this one with plenty of woodland to find sticks, climb trees and run through the open fields Julie Andrews style. There’s nothing to fault – apart from building up even more of an appetite and thirst for a pint (of wine). After finishing the walk in the evening, you could venture up the steep hill towards the windmill, in order to take in the views and enjoy the sunset. We did this one day with the kids and they absolutely loved the novelty of climbing up to a windmill (and of course the rewards of a snack at the top!). This route will take a couple of hours or more, and with our children aged between 4 and 8, there was plenty to offer all of them.
To end the perfect walk, The Bull and Butcher Pub is a lovely traditional pub with a beer garden and open fires when it’s cold – also, word on the street is that they offer award winning pies – also, they won the Travellers Choice Award 2020! Big thumbs up from us!
The Chequers Pub: 3 mile circular walk in Fingest
Close to Turville is the tiny village of Fingest, set deep in the Chiltern Hills AONB (area of outstanding natural beauty – that’s caught me out a couple of times!!) It is here that you will find nestled in the heart of the village, The Chequers Inn pub. This traditional country pub describes itself as a rustic rural ale house. It has a wonderful large garden ideal for kids with its swings and climbing structure set within nearly two acres of garden. The pub prides itself on its food, which is delivered by accomplished chef Jaxon Keedwell.
From the pub in the heart of the village there are many different walking routes to choose from. We have mapped a 3-mile circular route here which travels out towards Cadmore End through Hanger Woods. It really is a beautiful walk and appeals to all family members, little and longer legs. However, more stiles to jump over on this one; so, buggies are not ideal. After your jumping and walking, did we mention that The Chequers also has a beer garden with swings and slide for the kids? Yes, it does! That should help you to unwind a bit.
The Dew Drop Inn: 1.5 mile circular walk in Knowl Hill
This walk could be a new contender for our favourite. It really is quite beautiful. We parked on the ‘Knowl Hill Bridleway Circuit’ which is a long road with plenty of space opposite a field of lovely horses (which the kids loved peering at!). Oh, watch out for stinging nettles when parking by the way – they got me good n proper!!!
The path that leads to the walk starts directly opposite this road, as though you were walking back up towards the direction of the Dew Drop Pub; next to the sign that says, ‘Pudding Hill’. There is a fairly well trodden track to follow, and the walk can be as long or as short as you like! Ours was about an hour and a half and went through forests and lush green open spaces; in which we found a perfect fairy-tale looking spot with tree stumps to sit on and eat our picnic. Snow White would not have looked out of place here!
After joining a corner in the chalk road, we followed the walk around and ended up doing a perfect circle back towards the Dew Drop Inn Pub. You could walk straight down Honey Lane to get to the pub or there is another walking route running alongside it, (if you hadn’t had enough of rural views already). For a longer route option, you could follow the walk from the starting point and all the way up to the Bath Road, then along the footpath and back down in the same direction as the Warren Row Road.
In terms of the all-important pit stop, The Dew Drop Inn is the perfect pub for these walks! It’s a 17th Century Gastropub and is a snug of a pub with a relaxed and informal vibe. Reviews state that there are good beers on tap and the meals are often of large portions and great quality. It’s also dog-friendly and has a beer garden. What’s not to love! We will be going back to check out more of these routes soon – but if you have already, let us know in the comments!
The Jolly Farmer: 0.75 mile walk to pub then back again
For a shorter walk (with potential for a buggy, hoorah!) try this Cookham Dean walk ending at the Jolly Farmer Pub. It’s best to park just off Whyteladyes Lane near Cookham Dean Cricket Club and you can walk a short distance down the road to start the walk from the footpath; this takes you between the fields. It’s a lovely 45-minute walk with lush green views and is a great one for little walkers. The bonus is that there is a clear path to follow which eliminates the risk of getting lost – a big plus in our view!
When you end the walk, you’ll stumble upon the Jolly Farmer Pub. It’s a lovely local pub owned by the village for the village and word is that they produce the best wood-fired pizzas from their very own pizza oven. There is an outdoor seated area with swings and a slide for the kids, to enable you enjoy your meal and drinks in peace (with any luck you might even get a ‘break’ of 2 minutes!).
The Olde Bell Pub: 1.7 to 3 mile circular walk options
Following the buggy theme, Hurley Village is just beyond Bisham and Temple and is on the other side of the river to Marlow. It’s just beautiful and you can access these buggy walks after driving and parking up in Hurley. You can park in the free village car park and try one of our three recommended routes. We suggest a red route which is about 1.75 miles long with lots of open grassland and is actually ideal for scooters too (if you have older kids with you. There is only one kissing gate and we think it’s a lovely little jaunt before you head to the pub!
Our blue route follows the quiet lanes of Hurley Village but it’s not actually that far before you are back on tracks! This route does include 2 fairly steep bridges so if you’re up for burning more calories whilst pushing that buggy, this walk is for you!
It won’t be long until the sun is feeling warmer and when it does, you can have a dip in the water at Hurley Lock Island.
Lastly, our green route has two kissing gates so might not be great for double buggies but is a fab route none-the-less. If you wanted to, you could add this green route to the red and blue and get a proper afternoon of walking to get that appetite ready for The Olde Bell! This lovely pub is a timber-framed coaching inn dates back to 1135 and you feel steeped in history the minute you step inside. With locally sourced food and a fancy BBQ in the summer months, oh and a huge garden for the kids to play and explore…it definitely gets the Marlow Mums recommendation!
What can be better than the incentive of a pub-stop to keep those feet going? Not much! So here are our top 10 recommended walks ending in a pub stop.
Yes, the sun may be shining and the feeling of new beginnings in the air, but where walks are concerned, we’ve probably exhausted every ramble known to man! So, we’ve added an incentive (and frankly an important one) to get you back out there again. Here’s our pick of ten pubs offering great food and drink, with beautiful nearby walks. As there are tons of these fab walks and pubs to choose from, we’ll have no-doubt missed some corkers; please comment on our facebook post if you can recommend any – the more the merrier we say!
The Yew Tree Pub: 2 mile circular route in Frieth
Frieth is a winner when it comes to beautiful walks. This circular walk starts off in the village of Frieth and you can park on the road side near the kissing gate which takes you directly into the fields (it’s marked on the map near Ellery Rise Road).
This is a lovely woodland walk which is just under 2 miles long and perfect for little legs. This walk can also be made longer should you wish, as there are plenty of footpaths – there are some stiles to climb throughout the walk however, so we don’t recommend buggies for this one! But, with an abandoned tractor to find and plenty of opportunity to rummage, we give this walk the thumbs up for all the family. In Frieth Village you will find the Yew Tree Pub, which has a relaxed atmosphere and is not only dog friendly but has a lovely garden for the kids to play in (not to mention great food!). Double thumbs up from us!
See route info and map | The Yew Tree pub website
The Prince Albert Pub: 2.9 mile circular route in Moor End, Frieth
As mentioned above, Frieth has a lot to offer so here is another fab walk and pub stop. This walk offers a mix of undulating countryside and woodland which actually makes it one of our favourites. With tons of tracks and paths to follow, the adventurers among you could spend hours rambling around here; our walk covers 2.9 miles which appeals to the masses and we thoroughly enjoy it. It guarantees an adventurous walk and certainly helps to work up an appetite for your pub stop at the Prince Albert, which has been described as ‘a favourite real pub for real people’. With plenty of rave reviews, this pub offers a traditional feel, lovely gastro pub-styled grub, a garden and is also dog-friendly.
See route info and map | The pub website is down at the moment but they are most definitely open!
The Stag and Huntsman: 2 mile circular route in Hambleden
This family walk starts off in the beautiful village of Hambledon. You can park in the village itself (if you can find a space!) or in the car park next to the Stag and Huntsman Pub – this is now a pay and display car park, so in order to get over that frustration, a visit to the pub is probably necessary. The walk begins travelling up a footpath following a long and steep-ish hill (it gets us a little out of breath and I’d like to think we’re ‘fairly’ fit, but worth mentioning). This aside, once you’re up, the views are beautiful and it’s all downhill from there (in a good way!). With trees to climb for the kids, this 2 mile walk through the valley gets our thumbs up. As for the Huntsman Pub, it’s a lovely traditional English pub with good grub, a beer garden and an open fire when it’s cold. Winner winner chicken dinner!
The Frog Inn Pub: 2 mile circular route in Skirmett
Skirmett is a little gem of a village just beyond Hambledon surrounded by rolling hills and beautiful countryside. This circular walk starts and finishes at The Frog Inn pub, which is an 18th century traditional coaching inn serving fantastic food. The beer garden is really pretty and has great views over the surrounding countryside.
The walk is 2.1 miles long travelling around the perimeter of a woodland, so whilst the kids can enjoy the interest of the woods with sticks and trees, there are also beautiful views outwards over the countryside. The route starts off mostly uphill but once you are up you can enjoy going downhill all the way home (or to the pub!!).
See route info and map | The Frog website
The Royal Oak Pub: circular walk from Bovingdon Green
This walk starts right next to the Royal Oak pub in Bovingdon Green, so try hard not to be tempted in before the walk (like we have many-a-time!). The walk is perfect for little legs as the route takes about 45 minutes going at a fairly slow pace – quite nice if actually, you’re not feeling up for a sizable walk but still fancy a pint at the end. With pinch points throughout this walk, the route can be quite narrow in places (we think to stop horse riders or bikes?) so we don’t recommend the use of buggies in case you get stuck!
However, if you do want a longer walk and a different route, there are loads in this area – feel free to comment below if you found one you enjoyed! Now, more importantly…the pitstop: The Royal Oak Pub. With heated, comfy outside tables on the terrace, you can now book for up to six people from different households, or more (if from no more than 2 households). There are also garden tables under tents which have warm blankets…we love those! Food wise, The Royal Oak has won the Buckinghamshire Dining Pub of the Year 2020 for the sixth time from The Good Pub Guide. Very impressive and speaks for itself. With all this to offer, The Royal Oak gets the MarlowMums seal of approval!
The Bull and Butcher: 2 mile circular walk in Turville
We love Turville for a walk, and particularly when you can stop off at The Bull and Butcher Pub for a swift one afterwards. This walk is longer than our usual posts; around 2 miles and my goodness, it’s spot-on for the kids! You can take a whole afternoon rambling on this one with plenty of woodland to find sticks, climb trees and run through the open fields Julie Andrews style. There’s nothing to fault – apart from building up even more of an appetite and thirst for a pint (of wine). After finishing the walk in the evening, you could venture up the steep hill towards the windmill, in order to take in the views and enjoy the sunset. We did this one day with the kids and they absolutely loved the novelty of climbing up to a windmill (and of course the rewards of a snack at the top!). This route will take a couple of hours or more, and with our children aged between 4 and 8, there was plenty to offer all of them.
To end the perfect walk, The Bull and Butcher Pub is a lovely traditional pub with a beer garden and open fires when it’s cold – also, word on the street is that they offer award winning pies – also, they won the Travellers Choice Award 2020! Big thumbs up from us!
The Chequers Pub: 3 mile circular walk in Fingest
Close to Turville is the tiny village of Fingest, set deep in the Chiltern Hills AONB (area of outstanding natural beauty – that’s caught me out a couple of times!!) It is here that you will find nestled in the heart of the village, The Chequers Inn pub. This traditional country pub describes itself as a rustic rural ale house. It has a wonderful large garden ideal for kids with its swings and climbing structure set within nearly two acres of garden. The pub prides itself on its food, which is delivered by accomplished chef Jaxon Keedwell.
From the pub in the heart of the village there are many different walking routes to choose from. We have mapped a 3-mile circular route here which travels out towards Cadmore End through Hanger Woods. It really is a beautiful walk and appeals to all family members, little and longer legs. However, more stiles to jump over on this one; so, buggies are not ideal. After your jumping and walking, did we mention that The Chequers also has a beer garden with swings and slide for the kids? Yes, it does! That should help you to unwind a bit.
The Dew Drop Inn: 1.5 mile circular walk in Knowl Hill
This walk could be a new contender for our favourite. It really is quite beautiful. We parked on the ‘Knowl Hill Bridleway Circuit’ which is a long road with plenty of space opposite a field of lovely horses (which the kids loved peering at!). Oh, watch out for stinging nettles when parking by the way – they got me good n proper!!!
The path that leads to the walk starts directly opposite this road, as though you were walking back up towards the direction of the Dew Drop Pub; next to the sign that says, ‘Pudding Hill’. There is a fairly well trodden track to follow, and the walk can be as long or as short as you like! Ours was about an hour and a half and went through forests and lush green open spaces; in which we found a perfect fairy-tale looking spot with tree stumps to sit on and eat our picnic. Snow White would not have looked out of place here!
After joining a corner in the chalk road, we followed the walk around and ended up doing a perfect circle back towards the Dew Drop Inn Pub. You could walk straight down Honey Lane to get to the pub or there is another walking route running alongside it, (if you hadn’t had enough of rural views already). For a longer route option, you could follow the walk from the starting point and all the way up to the Bath Road, then along the footpath and back down in the same direction as the Warren Row Road.
In terms of the all-important pit stop, The Dew Drop Inn is the perfect pub for these walks! It’s a 17th Century Gastropub and is a snug of a pub with a relaxed and informal vibe. Reviews state that there are good beers on tap and the meals are often of large portions and great quality. It’s also dog-friendly and has a beer garden. What’s not to love! We will be going back to check out more of these routes soon – but if you have already, let us know in the comments!
The Jolly Farmer: 0.75 mile walk to pub then back again
For a shorter walk (with potential for a buggy, hoorah!) try this Cookham Dean walk ending at the Jolly Farmer Pub. It’s best to park just off Whyteladyes Lane near Cookham Dean Cricket Club and you can walk a short distance down the road to start the walk from the footpath; this takes you between the fields. It’s a lovely 45-minute walk with lush green views and is a great one for little walkers. The bonus is that there is a clear path to follow which eliminates the risk of getting lost – a big plus in our view!
When you end the walk, you’ll stumble upon the Jolly Farmer Pub. It’s a lovely local pub owned by the village for the village and word is that they produce the best wood-fired pizzas from their very own pizza oven. There is an outdoor seated area with swings and a slide for the kids, to enable you enjoy your meal and drinks in peace (with any luck you might even get a ‘break’ of 2 minutes!).
The Olde Bell Pub: 1.7 to 3 mile circular walk options
Following the buggy theme, Hurley Village is just beyond Bisham and Temple and is on the other side of the river to Marlow. It’s just beautiful and you can access these buggy walks after driving and parking up in Hurley. You can park in the free village car park and try one of our three recommended routes. We suggest a red route which is about 1.75 miles long with lots of open grassland and is actually ideal for scooters too (if you have older kids with you. There is only one kissing gate and we think it’s a lovely little jaunt before you head to the pub!
Our blue route follows the quiet lanes of Hurley Village but it’s not actually that far before you are back on tracks! This route does include 2 fairly steep bridges so if you’re up for burning more calories whilst pushing that buggy, this walk is for you!
It won’t be long until the sun is feeling warmer and when it does, you can have a dip in the water at Hurley Lock Island.
Lastly, our green route has two kissing gates so might not be great for double buggies but is a fab route none-the-less. If you wanted to, you could add this green route to the red and blue and get a proper afternoon of walking to get that appetite ready for The Olde Bell! This lovely pub is a timber-framed coaching inn dates back to 1135 and you feel steeped in history the minute you step inside. With locally sourced food and a fancy BBQ in the summer months, oh and a huge garden for the kids to play and explore…it definitely gets the Marlow Mums recommendation!
More family walks
Shillingridge Woods Walk
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Turville Heath Family Walk
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Bisham Woods
Bisham woods is on the way towards Cookham when travelling from Marlow. These woods offer all of the usual natural woodland features you’d expect in the woods from logs to walk along and dens to rope swings. There is also an abundance of sticks and trees to hit them against! You can park for free […]