The New Forest is packed with ancient woodlands, picturesque villages, pretty harbour towns, and cosy pubs. It’s the perfect place to explore for all you nature lovers and outdoor junkies!
You can get from London to the New Forest in a day, which is what I did, however if you have the time and/or money then a night here would be better! There are so many areas to explore! I decided to hire out an E-bike as a way to see more!
Getting from London to the New Forest
Train: The train goes from London Waterloo to Brockenhurst and in just 90 minutes you’ll be transported from the concrete jungle into a beautiful woodland paradise!
Bus: There are bus services from nearby Southampton (number 6 Bluestar bus), which also goes through Lymington and Lyndhurst.
Car: From London to the New Forest, it’s pretty much the M3 all the way and will take roughly 1 hour 45 mins (depending on which part of London you are coming from).
Brockenhurst Cycle Hire
When I was researching London to New Forest day trips, I kept seeing a lot of posts about cycling trails and as I only had little time, I thought this would be a great way to experience more of the area.
I found Cyclexperience which is literally in the car park on Brockenhurst train station so couldn’t be easier when travelling via public transport! The guys were super helpful and very friendly and knowledgeable, plus the rental bikes were a great price too.
There are many trails either directly from the hire place or very close by. They also will give you a map which has all the numbers of the markers for the trails along the way.
For someone who has never used trail markers (like me) it can be a bit confusing at first, but I found I got the hang of it after a while. You will need to look out for small wooden posts with numbers on, and then check your map every so often, to see if you are following the trail correctly.
The cycle hire place also has a free app which I would thoroughly recommend, where it shows the trail marked out and your current location. Just ensure you have good battery or even a portable battery charger with you. You don’t want to run out of juice half way through the woods!
The trails I did were very flat an easy and great for kids. There are also more challenging and longer trails to do. I found I cycled miles with my E-bike, so if you want to do a longer trail then having that helping hand in power makes a huge difference!
Ornamental Woods Trail
This was my favourite trail! I went as much as the scenery and photography than the cycling, so although this is the most popular easy family route, the views are some of the best!
I went to Brockenhurst in mid-Autumn and on a weekday, so it was incredibly quiet on the trails- just the way I like it haha!
From the cycle hire I followed the numbered markers, along a quiet road for only a few minutes and then it’s a gorgeous open heath to one side, with wild horses dotted about.
The train soon takes you through over a pretty stream and stunning woodland with huge trees. The Autumn colours were spectacular, and the sun was shining too!
I honestly just felt so free cruising along on my E-bike, wind in my hair, and admiring the views! This trail is perfect for all ages, families, solo travellers, couples etc and very hard to get lost as it basically just loops back around.
I took me about two hours as I was stopping every two seconds to take photos but if you were to just cycle around and not stop too much then you may be able to go around in an hour.
Beaulieu & Buckler’s Hard Trail
The Beaulieu & Buckler’s Hard was also very nice, although as the light was getting low (the only downside of going in Autumn) I only made it to Hatchet Pond and couldn’t do the extension to Buckler’s Hard. However, the pond looked amazing with the sun going down. It actually reminded me of Australia!
The trail takes you through beautiful woodland, past the large pond, and along an open road for a short time, before turning onto a huge open heathland. By this time, the sun was setting, and everything was glowing orange and looked amazing!
I managed to get back just before dark and only really stopped quickly to eat some packed lunch during the day, but remember if you were planning to stop at one of the many pubs, then factor in this time as it can eat into the day a bit, especially when it gets dark early at this time of year!
There are many other trails that I wished I had time to explore, i.e., the one down to the coast, which is nearby! If you can spend at least 2 days here, then that’s great but if not then it is definitely manageable on a day trip!
The New Forest is such a lovely part of the UK and can get extremely popular in the peak months so always book your bikes early!
I hope you enjoyed this post, for more UK adventures you may like reading:
- Winnats Pass and Mam Tor Circular Walk in Peak District (with photos)
- Awesome Devon and Cornwall Road Trip: 1 Week Itinerary
- 21 Things to Do in Cardigan Bay, Wales
- 2 Days in Edinburgh: The Ultimate Weekend Guide
8 Comments
Taking frequent stopovers to take photos is something even I would do. Hahaha! But, of course, I am unapologetic about it.
sometimes you just have too!
Loved the post – especially those pictures, really inspired me to take a cycling tour.
thank you!
Can’t believe I lived in London for 6 months but didn’t hear anything about the New Forest! This definitely seems like a nice day trip from the bustling capital city. Thank you for sharing!
for sure, you can go anywhere from london! its not too far away either! The New Forest looks good in all season too 🙂
Your day trip from London to New forest is an exhilarating one, with such picturesque landscape to look at. I can imagine what a satisfying experience it would be cruising on an ebike through the woodlands, the pretty streams and the Ornamental and Beaulieu and Buckler’s Hard trail with wind in your air.
yes a long day but so worth it! 🙂