AllWays Traveller Features
Town and country style at Farnham
Farnham, an English market town, some 36 miles from London
It has had a flourishing past that bequeaths it a fine Georgian centre.
And as a commuter town with a direct rail link into London, Farnham has been able to remain vibrant and thriving into the 21 Century.
As a result, short break visitors can take full advantage of the towns wide range of independent shops, traditional pubs and excellent restaurants.
Farnham also sits amid some stunning countryside and provides a base for exploring the Surrey Hills National Landscape, an area of outstanding natural beauty.
The South Downs National Park lies just beyond and there are a number National Trust properties and areas of open space well worth a visit.
For a place to stay, Bush Hotel, in the very heart of Farnham, is a one-time coaching that has been receiving guests continuously since the early 17 Century.
All one needs for a great short stay
Taking a short break
A short break is a great way to get to know a town or city for the first - and maybe only time.
There will be a wide range of options and, in making our choice, Ann and I consider three determining factors.
Where is the town or city? Where can we stay? What will there be to do?
With time at a premium, the place chosen has to be near enough to make the most of a two or three-night stay, but also far enough away to make it a new experience.
Accommodation is so important
The choice of accommodation is also important, being conveniently located and offering the quality and service that makes a stay memorable.
And finally, what are we going to do?
There needs to be enough to keep one happily occupied while having us leave frustrated at missing things.
Farnham
Which brings me nicely to Farnham, which ticked all our boxes.
Being some 38 miles from our London home, we were able to get there by mid-morning on the first day of a two-night, three-day stay.
https://www.visitsurrey.com/towns-villages/farnham/
It would also allow us to spend much of our last day in the area and still get home by early evening
With a direct rail link from Waterloo, we would probably have taken this option had we not wanted to explore beyond the town.
We therefore drove and although via the busy M25 and M3 still managed to get there in under two hours.
Once in Farnham, and having checked into the Bush Hotel, we had the rest of the day to take in Farnham itself.
(Ann writes about the Bush Hotel below).
Our first visit
This was our first visit to Farnham, and we found a bustling country market town of real character, as it has been since the 12th Century.
That said, it is elegant Georgian streets along West Street and Castle Hill that catch the eye and make strolling around a real pleasure.
The rail link into the capital makes Farnham a desirable commuter town proud of being one of the best places to live in Surrey.
As a result, visitors to the town can take advantage of what residents have made viable including traditional pubs, excellent restaurants and cafes and a range of independent stores and boutiques.
It all makes for a very enjoyable couple of hours of afternoon strolling around or a night on the town.
In this respect I can tell you The Castle and Tellers Arms come highly recommended.
https://castlepubfarnham.co.uk/
https://www.tellersarmsfarnham.co.uk/
Out and about
The Surrey Hills National Landscape
Farnham also sits with the Surrey Hills National Landscape and, in 1958, the first area in the UK to be officially designated an official Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
The National Trust
As great advocates of the National Trust, we always look for the chance take in one of more of the Trust's historic properties and open spaces.
On this visit we were able to get to Petworth House and Gardens on our first full day and Hatchlands Park during our last day in the area (see below).
Farnham really does offer all one could wish for in a short city break.
https://www.visitsurrey.com/towns-villages/farnham/
https://www.farnham.gov.uk/discover/farnham-visitor-guide2017
A place to stay
Bush Hotel is steeped in history and brim full of character
The charming olde worlde Bush Hotel has welcomed guests in the picturesque market town of Farnham for centuries.
By Ann Mealor
Steeped in history and full of character, the ivy clad Inn with its well-kept lawns and cobbled courtyard is charming inside and out.
Dating back to 1618, its name is thought to have come from the custom of tavern keepers who would hang an ivy bush outside their house as a sign that wine was within.
There has likely been a drinking establishment on site since the 12th Century, in what is now the Oak Lounge and adjoining bar in the original part of the building.
A country hotel in town
Being in the centre of town, Bush's extensive gardens come as a genuinely welcome surprise.
It's the chance to sit outside on sunny day with a glass of wine, coffee or a light lunch and enjoy the surroundings.
Colourful deck chairs were dotted around the lawn and tables and chairs on the patio and in the courtyard.
Comfort throughout
Inside, Bush Hotel emanates cosiness and warmth with its beamed ceilings, worn oak floors scattered with rugs and large fireplaces.
Furnished in a country house style with a modern twist, Bush Hotel is a place where you immediately feel at home with its soft, squishy sofas and high backed, leather armchairs.
An impressive grandfather clock stands in reception, fresh flowers brighten the coffee tables, and an interesting mix of traditional and modern artwork frequently catch the eye.
After a swift check-in, we made our way up the staircase and along a winding corridor to our light and airy room overlooking the pretty courtyard.
Decorated in subtle hues of greys and blues there was everything needed for a short, comfortable stay.
This included a well-stocked hospitality tray, a small fridge, dressing gowns and slippers and full sized, beautifully fragranced toiletries in the bathroom.
Dining at Bush
Dinner is served in the grand wood panelled Oak Lounge.
The walls showcase wonderful Frescoes, once hidden under whitewash, but found during a refurbishment in 1931.
Depicting cheeky cherubs, they are thought to have been painted by a guest sometime between during the 1750s and 1850s in return for lodging.
An imposing portrait of Mary of Medina, the second wife of King James 1 of England hangs above the fireplace.
Her son King Charles I visited Farnham on his way back to London after being imprisoned on the Isle of Wight.
It was a treat to dine in such historic and interesting surroundings.
I had soup to start followed by a tender sirloin steak with a crunchy peppercorn sauce and all the trimmings.
Ashley went for an Asian style crayfish and mango noodle salad followed by the beer battered fish and chips.
We both finished off with three boules of creamy and refreshing ice cream.
Breakfast
Breakfast was served in a conservatory style room with greenery and garden views.
There was plenty on offer at the buffet including fruit, cereal, yoghurts, smoothies, bread and delicious pastries from the local bakery, cold meats and cheese.
We particularly enjoyed our cooked breakfast.
My smoked salmon with perfectly poached eggs and roasted tomatoes bursting with flavour.It came beautifully presented and garnished with delicate, green pea shoots.
Ashley was similarly impressed with his smashed chilli and lime avocado on sour dough topped with two softly poached eggs that oozed golden yolk on his knife's first touch.
The service by the young waiters was very friendly, efficient and polite.
For a short stay in Farnham (and you can also bring your dog) Bush Hotel, with all its history and charm is a welcome retreat.
Two fine days out from Farnham
The National Trust for the great role it plays in protecting and preserving historic sites, coastline, countryside and green spaces.
Ann and I are great advocates of this conservation charity and will look to find a Trust property or properties near to places we visit.
This was certainly the case with Farnham with Petworth House and Gardens and Hatchlands Park making for two great days out.
Petworth House and Gardens
Petworth, a 17th-century house on the grandest of scales, is set in a 700-acre deer park.
It offers visitors one of the finest art collections withing its state rooms.
The house itself, which was modelled on the finest Baroque palaces of Europe, has been a family home for a remarkable nine centuries.
The land where it stands was first being gifted by the widow of Henry I to her brother Joscelin de Louvain.
He then married into the powerful Percy family and the estate has passed in a direct line of descent ever since.
Work on the house was begun in 1682 when heiress Elizabeth Percy, who at just 16 was already twice widowed, married Charles Seymour the 6th Duke of Somerset.
Conjoining two great fortunes they become one of the wealthiest couples in England.
Using the French palace of Versailles as their inspiration, Elizabeth and Charles determined that their Petworth would take its place among the new European palaces.
No expense was spared in achieving this.
The art collection
Fast forward 75 years when George O'Brien Wyndham, the 3rd Earl of Egremont, inherited Petworth.
He was an avid art collector and patron to many of the prominent artists of the time, including JMW Turner and John Constable, both of whom were frequent at Petworth.
George 'ruled' over what is now known known as the Golden Age of Petworth with great works of art being brought to, and displayed, at Petworth.
This now comprises one of the finest art collections in the care of the National Trust.
The state rooms display an almost overwhelming, wall-to-wall- to ceiling display of paintings and sculpture, including artwork by Van Dyck, Turner, Reynolds and Gainsborough.
The 6th Duke and Duchess of Somerset also commissioned a series of lime-wood carvings by Grinling Gibbons for the Carved Room at Petworth, which is held as a crowning achievement of the 17th century Dutch wood carver.
As a travel journalist, seeing the Petworth Globe was also a highlight of our visit.
The globe is believed to have been a gift from Sir Walter Raleigh to Henry Percy, 9th Earl of Northumberland when the two were 'privileged inmates' in the Tower of London.
It was first recorded as being displayed at Petworth in 1632.
https://www.nationaltrustcollections.org.uk/object/486024
Making the most of Petworth
With so much on view in the state rooms at Petworth, there are a number of ways to make the very most of a visit.
A pdf house tour, which can be downloaded before arriving, is will help to set the scene :
On most days there is the chance to get a10 minute highlight talk and/or take the 45-minute guides tours
There will also be volunteers in every room, who are 'mine of information.
Finally, there are description folders in each room which list every object and a Turner and Reynolds leaflet, taking you around the house picking out eight works by each artist and four foreign language guides available.
Before leaving the house, one should take in the servants' quarters, including the historic kitchens,
The gardens
The Petworth Pleasure Garden surrounding the house feature formal borders, woodland walks, and architectural features including a Rotunda.
The 700-acre Deer Park, which was transformed in the 1750s and early 1760s, by the landscape architect Lancelot 'Capability' Brown, has ancient trees and fallow deer.
It all makes for a splendidly relaxing stroll.
https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/sussex/petworth
Hatchlands Park
Hatchlands Park offers another of those great days out.
Sitting proudly in 400 acres of rolling parkland and woodland on the edge of the Surrey Hills it is surrounded by a string of wonderful English villages.
As one of the largest country estates in the area, Hatchlands was built in the 1750s, for naval hero Admiral Edward Boscawen and his wife Fanny.
The couple had married in 1742 and in all Edward was at sea for some 10 years of their marriage.
As such, the role of overseeing work on their grand home fell to Fanny, a remarkable woman in her own right.
While at sea, he contracted typhoid fever and was brought home to Hatchlands where Fanny nursed him constantly until he died in January 1761, just two years after Hatchlands was completed.
Over the centuries since then, the property has been a residence for wealthy families and a finishing school for girls before being given to the National Trust in 1945 by the then owner Harry Stuart Goodhart-Rendel.
Opening Hatchlands to the public
Looking to open Hatchlands to the public, the Trust agreed that the mansion could become the tenanted family home of Alec Cobbe who would fill the mansion with the Cobbe Collection of paintings and fine furniture along with Europe's largest and finest collection of keyboard instruments.
The collection of Old Masters has its origins in the 18th century, when members of the Cobbe family collected a large number of Italian and Dutch paintings.
The 18 keyboard instruments on display were owned or played by composers including Purcell, Johann Christian Bach, Mozart, Haydn, Beethoven, Chopin, Mahler and Elgar and there is also a piano played by Marie Antionette.
A series of Music Room concerts using the instruments are performed during the summer and autumn.
Finally, the interior at Hatchlands Park is the earliest documented work in an English country house by Robert Adam, the Scottish neoclassical architect, interior designer and furniture designer.
Touring the house is a truly memorable experience, particularly when one gets the volunteers in each room to explain what is on display.
The parkland and gardens
While the house at Hatchlands has its remarkable collection, the 430 acres of gardens and parkland are an invigorating attraction in their own right.
Magnificent tall trees stand on the lawns as one arrives and beyond there is rolling pasture and the Repton parkland of ancient Oaks and ponds.
Circular walks allow visitors to take in everything and, when we were there in April, the bluebells carpeting the woods were worth the price of admission in themselves.
At other times of the year, it can wood anemones, cherry blossom, rhododendron or foxgloves, and all to the soundtrack of birdsong.
https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/surrey/hatchlands-park
https://www.cobbecollection.co.uk/
The Surrey Hills National Landscape
The National Trust also cares for over 4,000 hectares of countryside within the Surrey Hills National Landscape.
An official Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, it was the first of the UK's 46 nationally protected landscapes, which enjoy the status and protection of a national park.
The Surrey Hills take in about one quarter of the county stretching from Farnham in the west to Oxted and including the chalk slopes of the North Downs and the deeply wooded Greensand Hills.
It offers countryside rich in wildlife, woodland and small market towns and villages.
https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/
https://www.visitsurrey.com/explore/the-surrey-hills-aonb/
More information :
https://www.visitsurrey.com/towns-villages/farnham/
AllWays leading the Farnham, Surrey
Here is your AllWays leading magazine feature to Farnham Surry.
It can be read here or downloaded to a smart phone or tablet.
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